Just wanted to copy my previous post about the Optimal Diet and pregnancy, which was buried in the depths of the Dr. K mega-thread.
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Hi to the newcomers. I'm 33 weeks pregnant (and also on the SCD).
I've been eating high-fat, moderate-carb most of the time since last fall. In the beginning, it was mainly to satisfy cravings, as this baby seems to really love fats. Then, when I started looking into the high-fat way of eating, I came across all the Kwasniewski stuff on the web. Since the English language sites don't give instructions for pregnancy, I decided to aim for about a 1:2:1 ratio: 20% protein, 60% fat, 20% carbohydrate (in hindsight, more of a Barry Groves diet).
Then I got the books, and read his advice that the Optimal Diet was absolutely okay to do while pregnant and nursing. There are a few things that could be of concern, though. I only have time to share them briefly right now, but I'll happy to go into more detail later, if anyone is interested.
1) Beginners might go through a stage of ketosis as their bodies adjust to the diet, which might be something to avoid during pregnancy. He doesn't say this in the books, but his advice all seems to assume that the reader was already on the diet when she became pregnant, and he's not a fan of ketosis in general, so it's kind of an open question. If you're LC already, though, it seems unlikely to be a big issue.
2) He says that babies of Optimal Dieters, and children who are raised on this way of eating, will be very healthy but smaller than average, and will grow and mature more slowly. He thinks this is a good thing. (I'll explain why later on, when I get the chance.) He also doesn't think that it's good for pregnant women to gain more than 15-20 lb. If you're not comfortable with this, you might want to get off the bus... or at least take a more moderate approach, with ~60% fat and 20% protein, as I was doing in the beginning.
3) He recommends nursing for at least one year, and ideally three or more. The child should be weaned onto Optimal foods, such as broth with egg yolks, or milk with added cream. He doesn't talk about specific ratios for children, but his suggested recipes for lunchboxes are all around a 1:2:1 ratio.
4) During pregnancy, he says that you should increase carbohydrate to ~125 g/day in the last few weeks, so that the baby can build glycogen stores. He recommends getting these carbs from bread. (Since I'm still on the SCD, I can only have fruit and honey, which isn't turning out to be as much fun as it sounds! I'm finding it hard to work in all those simple sugars. I'm thinking about skipping ahead to a later stage of the SCD, and adding legumes.)
Other than that... pregnant women shouldn't restrict their overall food intake, but they also shouldn't eat just for the sake of it, or stuff themselves with snacks. You'll need to increase your protein and calories somewhat, compared to a regular adult, since you need them to build that baby! He doesn't give specific ratios, but just says you can follow your appetite (again, this assumes you've been on the diet for a while, and your appetite is a reliable indicator of your actual hunger). I've found that cravings are a good guide, and I'll often have a simple fourth meal in the late evening, containing the foods that are most appealing: cheese or yogurt for protein and calcium, heavy cream for fat, fruit for carbs.
When I sit down and work out the numbers, it turns out that I'm sticking pretty closely to the standard ratios, getting plenty of protein by mainstream medical standards, and eating a ton more fat than I ever would have imagined. My energy level is much better than in past pregnancies, weight gain is on the lower end of the normal range (and clearly "all baby;" with my other children, I tended to resemble a beached whale by this stage), the baby's size and activity level are fine, and everyone has been commenting on how healthy I look. I'm very happy with how things are going.
Optimal Diet during Pregnancy
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