Best Meal To Relieve Constipation During Pregnancy

Written by: Co-Founder Amanda Capriglione, RDN, CDN
Medically Reviewed by Dr. Nicole Palmer, DO

This is not your average salad. In fact, we bet you never tasted a salad this good. It’s full of delicious and nutritious ingredients that will both fill you up and nourish you and your growing baby.  Plus, there is tons of fiber…and pregnant moms need fiber! Fiber helps keep you full, focused, and regular (because constipation is the worst!).

We love all of these salad ingredients not only for their nutrient profiles but for their texture and flavors. The key to a delicious and satisfying salad is variety. What’s great is that you can prep a few of these ingredients ahead of time and toss them together when you’re ready to eat!

Enjoy this salad for lunch, a snack, or even a light dinner. Feel free to mix and match the types of lettuce (although we love bitter greens like kale and radicchio for this!) and nuts. We are nuts for nuts but love walnuts because of the Omegas 3s (brain food!) they provide. You can also add grilled chicken, beef, or salmon on top to make the salad a little heartier.

The BEST part of this salad is the dressing. It’s easy to make, plus it’s homemade, so you know the ingredients are REAL (and not with additives like the bottled versions). With ingredients like lemon and honey, it may even help ease nausea! You can also swap out the garlic powder and use ginger to help combat any nauseous feelings.

Mama’s salad can be prepared in 15 minutes and even shorter if some ingredients are already prepped. Trust us, you’ll be making this salad your entire pregnancy. Pair with sweet potato fries (we have a great recipe in our e-book) and talk about amazing!

With a combination of dark leafy greens (the darker the green, the more nutrients!), quinoa, carrots, blueberries (fruit in salad tastes fantastic!), walnuts, chickpeas, and avocado…it’s literally a superfood salad for mom and baby. B vitamins, calcium, Omega 3, vitamin A, Vitamin C, folate, and iron round out just some of the nutrients packed in all of this yummy salad goodness. Your next go-to salad recipe is below!

★ Quinoa is considered a superfood, and it is one of the healthiest and most nutritious foods on the planet.

Quinoa is rich in fiber, antioxidants, B-complex vitamins, minerals such as copper, manganese, iron, magnesium, and all nine essential amino acids. The fiber offered in quinoa is insoluble, which means it can’t dissolve in water while being prepped. Insoluble fiber helps regulate bowel movements by passing through your intestines and helps stool efficiently move through your digestive system.

For more healthy recipes for pregnancy, check out our e-book, Feel Good Food for a Healthy Pregnancy.

Mama’s Salad

Yield: 4 cups salad and about ½ cup dressing

Ingredients:

SALAD:

• ½ cup quinoa, cooked
• 1 ½ cups kale, chopped
• ½ cup radicchio, chopped
• ½ cup shredded carrots
• ½ cup craisins or blueberries
• ¼ cup walnuts
• ½ cup chickpeas, rinsed and drained
• ¼ - ½ avocado, cubed

DRESSING:

• ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tbsp balsamic or apple cider vinegar
• 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 1 ½ - 2 tbsp honey
• ½ tsp sea salt
• ½ tsp freshly ground black pepper, optional
• ¼ tsp garlic powder or ground ginger, optional

PREPARATION:

1. Make quinoa according to package directions, set it aside to cool.
2. Prepare and combine all salad ingredients.
3. Make the dressing by whisking all ingredients in a small bowl or shaking in a covered jar. Pour the desired amount into the salad.
4. Enjoy!