Table 3.
Median (IQR) daily servings from food groups during pregnancy and adherence to serving recommendations for the total sample of pregnant women living in Australia (n 857), June–November 2013
| Daily servings | Adherence to recommendations | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Food group | Recommended daily servings† | Median | IQR | n | % |
| Grain (cereal) foods‡ | 8·5 | 4·0 | 2·0–6·0 | 33 | 4 |
| Vegetables and legumes/beans§ | 5·0 | 2·0 | 1·0–3·0 | 81 | 10 |
| Fruit|| | 2·0 | 2·0 | 1·0–2·0 | 482 | 56 |
| Milk, yoghurt, cheese and/or alternatives¶ | 2·5 | 2·0 | 1·0–3·0 | 246 | 29 |
| Lean meat and poultry, fish, eggs, nuts and seeds, and legumes/beans†† | 3·5 | 1·0 | 1·0–2·0 | 13 | 2 |
IQR, interquartile range.
Recommendations for pregnancy as specified in the 2013 Eat for Health Australian Dietary Guidelines( 13 ).
Example serving: 1 slice bread; ½ medium bread roll or flat bread; ½ cup porridge; ¾ cup breakfast cereal flakes or ¼ cup muesli; 1 crumpet, small English muffin or plain scone; ½ cup cooked rice, pasta, noodles, other grains; 3 crisp breads.
Example serving: ½ cup cooked orange (e.g. carrots or pumpkin) or cruciferous (e.g. broccoli, cauliflower or cabbage) vegetables; 1 cup green leafy vegetables or salad vegetables (raw); 1 small–medium tomato; ½ cup cooked or canned beans, peas or lentils; 1 small or ½ medium potato or other starchy vegetable, e.g. sweet potato, sweet corn, taro or cassava.
Example serving: 1 medium piece (e.g. apple, banana); 2 small pieces (e.g. apricots, kiwi fruit); 1 cup diced pieces/canned fruit; ½ cup juice; dried fruit (e.g. 4 dried apricot halves, 1·5 tablespoons sultanas).
Example serving: 1 cup milk (250 ml); ½ cup evaporated milk; 2 slices cheese or 4 pieces (3 cm×2 cm); 1 tub yoghurt (200 g); 1 cup custard (250 ml); 1 cup soya, rice or other cereal drink with at least 100 mg added Ca per 100 ml.
Example serving: 65 g cooked meat (e.g. ½ cup lean mince, 2 small chops or 2 slices roast meat); 80 g cooked poultry (e.g. ½ chicken breast); 100 g cooked fish fillet or small can of fish; 2 eggs; 1 cup cooked or canned beans, peas, lentils or tofu; ⅓ cup nuts; ¼ cup seeds.