First Trimester Foundations: Start Here

Your First Trimester Foundations 

The first trimester is about stability and often, survival.

Your appetite, energy, and digestion may all change quickly. That’s normal. 

The goal right now is to:

• Stay hydrated
• Keep food down
• Cover the most important nutrient bases
• Reduce common symptoms

You do not need to eat perfectly to have a healthy pregnancy. It is okay if you are eating fewer whole foods and more carb-heavy options right now. 

If you are experiencing nausea and vomiting, remember, it is temporary.

How much to eat in the first trimester

In the first trimester, you typically don’t need extra calories, but you often do need more frequent eating. There’s no set calorie goal and we don’t recommend tracking.

Instead, focus on:

• Eating every 2–3 hours if nausea hits when your stomach is empty
• Building meals/snacks with protein, fat, fiber, and flavor when you can
• Eating until you feel comfortably satisfied

Your intake may change day to day. That’s expected. The most important thing is tuning into your body and following its cues.

What if I don’t feel bad?

Not everyone experiences nausea, vomiting, or strong food aversions in the first trimester — and that’s completely normal, too. 

If you’re feeling okay, this is a great time to:

• Build steady, balanced meals
• Focus on variety when it feels easy
• Start incorporating more nutrient-dense foods

You don’t need to “eat for two,” but you can use this window to support your body with consistent, well-rounded meals.

If you’re feeling good, focus on:

• Regular meals and snacks (don’t skip just because you can)
• A mix of carbs, protein, fat, and fiber at most meals
• Including foods from the Top Foods: First Trimester list (on the previous screen) when possible
• The 3 foundations below, still 

If symptoms show up later, you can always shift to a more nausea-focused approach. Flexibility is part of the plan.

The 3 Foundations That Matter Most

These are the only four things we want you to focus on first.

1. Fluids (Hydration First)

Why it matters:
Hydration needs increase in pregnancy, and dehydration makes nausea, headaches, constipation, and fatigue worse.

Start here:

• Aim for pale yellow urine most of the day
• Use whatever fluids work: water, sparkling water, electrolytes, coconut water, soups, smoothies, juice, tea, or milk
• If water tastes bad: add lemon, use a straw, try it cold or warm, add fruit and herbs like mint, add a flavor packet, or try a different type 

If you are:

• Vomiting 
• Fatigued
• Constipated
• Diarrhea-ing 

You’ll likely benefit from adding electrolytes. This can be as simple as drinking coconut water or making one of our mineral mocktail recipes. There are also many premade electrolyte packets — see our comparison chart in the electrolyte note.

Explore more:
→ Fluids & Hydration
→ Coconut Water
→ Mineral Mocktails
→ Smoothies
→ Tea

2. Eat What You Can Tolerate (Then Upgrade It)

Why it matters:
Some calories are better than none, so it is important to eat whatever you can keep down for now. Even though sometimes it feels hard, adequate nutrition can help your nausea. 

Start here:

• Eat every 2–3 hours (an empty stomach makes nausea worse)
• Be prepared with snacks, especially when you leave the house 
• Build a safe foods list (5–10 foods you can reliably keep down) to keep in your house and on your grocery list
• Cold foods often go down easier because they don’t often have as strong of smells 
• Don’t force foods that are making you gag

Then, when possible, upgrade:

• Add protein or fat to carbs (“carbs with friends”)
• Try eating your carb first to “settle” your stomach, then eat your protein/fat
  • Examples: toast + eggs, crackers + cheese, fruit + yogurt, cereal + milk
• Use protein-forward versions of familiar foods (protein waffles/pancakes, protein cereal, baked oats with yogurt or collagen, muffins made with yogurt or collagen)
  

Explore more:

→ The Full Morning Sickness Relief Guide
→ Hyperemesis Gravidarum
→ Food Aversions Help
→ Gas & Bloating
→ Ginger
→ Vitamin B6

→ Collagen

 → Protein powder

3. Folate + Choline (Early Development Support)

Why these matter:
Folate and choline are critical in early pregnancy, when the neural tube, brain, and nervous system are forming. Folate gets most of the attention but choline is just as foundational and often under-consumed.

You do not need to calculate and hit perfect numbers every day. Consistency matters more than perfection.

Folate (Vitamin B9)

• Pregnancy needs: 600 mcg DFE/day
• Start-here goal: aim for 2 folate-rich foods/day (plus, your prenatal)
• Top food sources: spinach, asparagus, legumes (lentils/beans), avocado, fortified cereals/grains, strawberries

→ Learn more: Folate

Choline 

• RDA in pregnancy: 450 mg/day
• Emerging research target: ~930 mg/day may be even more supportive (think of this as a helpful higher target, not a daily perfection standard)
• Start-here goal: include 1–2 choline-rich foods/day (plus, your prenatal)
• Top food sources: eggs (yolks), beef liver, beef, pork, salmon, soy beans/edamame, Shiitake mushrooms, red potatoes, dairy, wheat germ 

→ Learn more: Choline

If nausea is making this hard

That’s okay.

• Smoothies, soups, fortified grains, and simple meals still count
• Your prenatal helps bridge gaps while intake is unpredictable
• We can optimize variety later as symptoms improve

Explore more

→ The Prenatal Vitamin Guide
→ Folate
→ Choline
→ Essential Pregnancy Foods

What to avoid

You don’t need to memorize a giant list. The foods to avoid is a much smaller list than you would think. 

Food safety

• Basic food safety principles such as hand washing, a clean kitchen, cooking foods to appropriate internal temperatures, and washing all produce thoroughly.
• The foods that cause the most food borne illness outbreaks are pre-cut and individually packaged items, raw shellfish, produce, raw sprouts, in general. 

Explore more:
→ Food Safety in Pregnancy
→ Deli Meats
→ Soft Cheeses

Fish

• Avoid high mercury fish
• Avoid raw shellfish

Explore more:

→ low mercury fish

→ mercury

→Tuna

→Cod

→salmon 

→crab

→sushi

Caffeine

• Avoid excessive intake
• For most, 1 cup or 150 mg of caffeine per day is okay

Explore more:

→ Coffee Alternatives

→ Caffeine in Pregnancy

 → Avoid list 

First Trimester Supplements

Everyone: 

Prenatal vitamin

To consider:

Omega-3’s – if you do not eat fish

Vitamin D – if you’ve tested, and your levels are low

Probiotics – if you do not eat fermented foods 

Magnesium – if your prenatal vitamin has little to none or if you have specific symptoms that warrant more magnesium 

Iron – if you’ve tested, and your levels are low

Inositol – if you have PCOS or are at increased risk of gestational diabetes

Using Recipes & Top Foods in the App

• Recipes tagged “First Trimester” are designed to support early pregnancy needs
• Recipes tagged “Good for Nausea” focus on gentle, easy-to-tolerate options
• At the top of each trimester learning hub, you’ll find the Top Foods for that trimester — use these as inspiration, not necessarily a “checklist”
• Start with what sounds good today, then build from there.

When to Get Help 

Talk to your provider if:

• You can’t keep fluids down
• You’re losing weight rapidly
• You feel dizzy or faint often
• You suspect HG

The Big Picture Reminder

First trimester can be really hard.  Your job right now is not to be the pillar of perfect nutrition. Your job is to eat consistently and keep food down. 

Questions about your first trimester?

Go to “Ask an RD” (search it or post your question there) or book a Quick Question Call