While pregnancy is well known for being a time to indulge in treats and give in to cravings, it’s also important for pregnant moms to enjoy a healthy and nutritious diet that will support their changing bodies and the growth of their baby. Getting enough protein is crucial for moms and their growing babies and using supplements can be a great way to ensure you are consuming adequate protein.
With endless brands and types of protein powders on the market, it can be tough to figure out what the best protein powders are for pregnancy. We’ve done the research for you, and this article will help you choose with tips including:
- The best protein powders for pregnancy
- Tips on protein powder ingredients
- Benefits of protein powder for pregnancy
- Pregnant protein shake recipe ideas
We hope this information will help you to choose the right protein powder for you, and to enjoy it as a way to make sure you are eating well for you and baby!
9 of the Best Protein Powders for Pregnancy
Totally Egg Protein Powder
Totally Egg Protein Powder gives pregnant women many of the best nutrients found in one of the best foods for pregnancy – eggs. Egg yolks are one of the best sources for choline, an essential nutrient that women are often deficient in, and with protein from both egg whites and egg yolks, Totally Egg is a great choice for protein powders during pregnancy.
Protiva Pregnancy – Prenatal Protein Powder
Protiva Pregnancy Prenatal Protein Powder was designed to help women experience healthier pregnancies thanks to the vitamins, micronutrients, protein, and collagen included in their powder formula. Especially made for expectant moms, Protiva Pregnancy’s powders don’t use GMOs or preservatives, and its collagen protein has been clinically proven to be safe to take during pregnancy.
True Nutrition Whey Protein Powder
Every expecting mother’s nutrition needs vary, so it’s nice to have customizable options when you’re looking at supplements. True Nutrition provides completely customizable protein mixes that let moms decide what they want in their mix. Their protein powders are sweetened with stevia, a safe sweetening option for pregnancy.
Baby Booster Prenatal Protein Powder
Made especially for a pregnant woman’s dietary needs, Baby Booster Prenatal Protein Powder is an all-natural protein supplement developed with a board certified OB/GYN. The Tahitian Vanilla flavor is perfect for blending into your favorite beverages, and you don’t have to worry about any additives with the powder’s all-natural ingredient list.
TGS All Natural 100% Whey Protein Powder
TGS All Natural 100% Whey Protein Powder is a clean supplement with ingredients sourced from U.S. farms. It is a low-calorie supplement void of gmo’s, hormones, or additives. This powder comes unflavored and unsweetened, so it can be easily used in any beverage you wish.
Vegan Protein Powders
Manitoba Harvest
With a rich but unsweetened powder, Manitoba Harvest’s Organic Hemp Yeah!plant protein blend provides a serving of vegan protein. This powder also offers omega-3 fatty acids and iron. Manitoba Harvest carries several other lines of protein powder with different amounts of protein and fiber, great for pregnant women who might want to customize their supplement for their diet needs.
Nuzest Clean Lean Protein – Premium Vegan Protein Powder
Nuzest’s Vegan Powder packs a punch of protein with 21 grams and with only one gram of carbohydrates. Sweetened with West African Katemfe fruit, it’s tasty without artificial sweeteners of any sort. Nuzest’s powder is a soy formula and it’s GMO-free, so you can feel good about using it to make a vegan protein powder pregnancy shake.
Pure Food Plant-Based Protein Powder
When you’re pregnant and only wanting to put the best and healthiest foods into your body, an organic protein powder is an excellent way to ensure your protein needs are being met. Pure Food: Plant Based Protein Powder has ingredients that are 99% free of chemicals, preservatives, and fillers. Not only is this powder clean and vegan, but it also features plant-based probiotics that can help your digestive system when dreaded pregnant constipation can happen.
Vegan Fantastic! Plant-Based Protein Powder
Chickpeas, rice, and pea proteins are some of the main ingredients in Vegan Fantastic! Plant-Based Protein Powder. With vegan branch-chain amino acids and with no fillers or sweeteners, Vegan Fantastic! is a perfect powder for mixing into smoothies and shakes.
Look at the Ingredients
Pregnant women have to pay attention to the ingredients in many products they purchase and use. From knowing what nutrients and vitamins they should seek out, to knowing what ingredients they should avoid for their health and their baby’s, it’s important for expecting mothers and their loved ones to take a close look at the ingredients in their foods and to understand what is good and bad.
There are some ingredients commonly found in protein powders and supplements that are fine for people who aren’t pregnant, but that are either found to be unsafe or questionable for women who are. Here is a list of some of the ingredients found in protein powders that pregnant women are often advised to avoid, as well as a list of those that are found in the best protein powders for pregnancy.
Protein Powder Ingredients to Avoid When You’re Pregnant
Herbal Supplements:
While herbs can be thought to help with some of the more challenging pregnancy symptoms (ahem, nausea), there are substances found in some herbs that might be dangerous. It’s best to talk to your doctor before using herbal supplements, and definitely to avoid them in your protein powder.
Additives:
A lot of popular protein powders contain additives like creatine, caffeine, and other fillers that might not be suited for pregnant women. Focus on powders with simple ingredient lists that provide known, safe supplemental ingredients.
CBD:
Though CBD has recently become a popular ingredient in many products promoting health and well-being, the FDA doesn’t yet have any conclusive research on the effect it has on women. That said, it’s recommended that pregnant women avoid CBD in order to rule out some of the possible risks such as liver toxicity and harmful interactions with other substances you might be taking.
Artificial Sweeteners:
Most healthy individuals can use artificial sweeteners without too much concern, but some studies have found them to have less-than-desirable effects – and when you’re pregnant, you want to play it safe. Artificial sweeteners have been linked to a variety of gastrointestinal issues, so do yourself a favor and avoid protein powders that include them while you’re pregnant.
Protein Powder Ingredients that are Good for Pregnancy
High Quality Protein:
There are a lot of different protein powders to choose from, and a good place to start is by looking at a powder’s protein source. The best protein powders for pregnancy will have whey, casein, egg, pea, and hemp proteins, all of which have all been shown to be excellent sources of protein. When evaluating your protein powder choices, make sure that the protein source is at the very top of the ingredients list to ensure it is the most significant ingredient in the powder’s composition.
Natural Sweeteners and Flavorings:
A safe and healthy protein powder can taste good, too! Look for protein powders that have natural sweeteners and flavors like cane sugar, stevia, vanilla, cacao, or chocolate.
Probiotics:
Because pregnancy can wreak havoc on a woman’s digestive system, including good sources of probiotics in your diet are a great way to help keep your gut health in check and to ensure you are comfortable and don’t experience the discomfort that bloating and constipation can bring.
Benefits of Protein Powders for Pregnancy
Getting an adequate amount of protein in your diet is important to maintaining your health at any time, and it’s even more important when you’re pregnant. It’s well known that protein helps cells repair themselves and also helps various tissues in your body to function properly. When it comes to your baby, protein plays a big role in helping them to develop with as healthy a start as possible.
Some of the researched benefits of adequate protein intake for unborn babies include:
- Development of hormones and enzymes
- Growing muscles that function properly
- Efficiently moving oxygen through the bloodstream
- Benefitting the immune system by making antibodies
- Growing new tissue and repairing damaged tissues
When it comes to mom, there are a lot of benefits to staying on top of your protein consumption. The best protein powders for pregnancy will help you meet the suggested amounts of protein for you. Talk with your healthcare provider about how much protein you need every day, since the amount depends on your weight. Benefits of eating quality protein for moms are:
- Healthy development of breast and uterine tissue
- Increasing your blood supply to support your pregnancy
- Helping your body to fight off infections
- Aiding your digestive system
Protein Shake Recipes for Pregnancy
The most popular way to incorporate protein powders into your diet is to use it as a base for an enjoyable shake! Many protein powders have appetizing flavors like vanilla or chocolate that can enhance the other ingredients you might choose to add to your protein shake, while some are unsweetened and will let you enjoy the other components of your protein shake even more.
Here are several ideas for the best protein shapes for pregnancy you might want to try:
Banana Protein Shake:
If you love the sweet taste and thickening quality bananas add to milkshakes, you’ll love what it brings to a tasty and healthy protein shake! In this banana protein shake recipe from A Sweet Pea Chef. With creamy Greek yogurt in the mix, this shake recipe is good for you and deliciously filling.
Peanut Butter Chocolate:
Imagine a nutritious shake that tastes more like dessert, and you have a peanut butter chocolate protein shake from The Spruce Eats. Add in some hearty oats and this recipe will satisfy your taste buds (and stomach) at breakfast or any time of day.
Green Protein:
Spinach might not sound like the perfect shake ingredient, but when you blend it with fresh berries and add warm cinnamon, its nutritious benefits shine and its flavor gets lost in the yummy mix of a refreshing, good-for-you shake. Try this spinach and berry shake from The Lemon Bowl.
In Conclusion
Making sure you are enjoying a proper diet and getting adequate nutrition is one of the most important things you can do during your pregnancy. We hope our tips on the best protein powders for pregnancy, along with the other information shared in this article will help you to navigate how you can use protein powder as a simple and delicious way to get the protein you need for yourself, and for baby!
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