7 Healthy Pregnancy Breakfast Ideas

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Breakfast may be the most essential meal of the day, especially if you are a pregnant mom juggling kids, life, and/or work. Busy mornings often mean running out the door and skipping breakfast. Or picking up a less-than-healthy breakfast that is easy to eat on the go. But to stay balanced as a pregnant mom, eating a healthy breakfast is an absolute MUST! This list of healthy pregnancy breakfast ideas is perfect for eating on the go.

Looking for pregnancy recipes? You have come to the right place. 

What breakfast foods should you eat while pregnant?

Breakfast is probably the most important meal for pregnant moms. After going all night without eating, your body needs fuel to get going for the day.  Eating sugary cereals, muffins, pastries, pancakes or other high carb foods can cause blood sugar to spike and will crash your energy.

Also if you are suffering from morning sickness, skipping breakfast can actually make it worse. You stomach needs to have food in it, even though this may seem counterintuitive. Read more on how to prevent morning sickness here. 

What to eat for breakfast when pregnant?

It’s best to start your day with protein during pregnancy and some of the best foods to eat while pregnant.

Here is a quick list of high-protein foods that are beneficial during pregnancy:

• Eggs
• Meat (ideally from pasture raised animals)
• Fish and seafood
• Bone broth
• Nuts and nut butter – Almonds, Sunflower seeds, Pumpkin seeds, pecans, peanuts
• Oats 
• Greek yogurt
• Cheese
• Cottage cheese
• Quinoa
• Black beans
• Lentils

Building your breakfast around these foods will help you to have more energy throughout the morning. 

If you decide to include juice in your morning routine, consider one of these juices for pregnancy.

Want to learn how to get the best nutrition for you and your baby? Check out this online pregnancy course that will help eliminate the confusion about what to eat to optimize your pregnancy diet!

Tips for finding Clean Eating Pregnancy Breakfast Ideas

There are so many delicious clean eating breakfast ideas for pregnancy. When deciding what to eat for breakfast consider the following tips:

• Look for breakfast recipes that contain 2 or more nutrient dense pregnancy superfoods – this is a great way to pack in extra vitamins and nutrients with real food.
• Look for recipes that are “clean” – meaning have little to no processed food. Avoiding additives in your food is an easy way to have a healthier pregnancy.
• Find recipes that are low sugar – avoiding refined sugar and high sugar fruits during pregnancy can help reduce the risk of gestational diabetes.
• Focus on breakfast ideas that are low carb – carbs can be deceiving. While you initially feel full, you become hungry faster after eating a high carb meal. Instead choose carbs like rice or quinoa.
• Choose recipes that follow the basic principles of nourishing your pregnant body.

Healthy Breakfast for Pregnant Women

Now for the breakfast ideas! This list contains ideas for breakfast for pregnant women that are healthy and EASY. You will find pregnancy smoothies, pregnancy oatmeal recipes, egg recipes and so many more healthy breakfast ideas for pregnancy!

There are a few easy formulas you can follow to make breakfast with the ingredients you have on hand. 

These recipes are all clean eating, real food breakfast ideas that will give you the energy to start your day. Many of the recipes are paleo, plant-based, and gluten free. 

Eggs are perhaps one of the best things to eat during pregnancy because they are high in protein, but also in choline, a very important nutrient for baby’s development.

The awesome part is it only takes a few minutes to cook eggs and to put together these easy pregnancy breakfast recipes. 

Eggs are also easy to eat on the go! Make bento boxes filled with the breakfast ideas below to eat in the car if you are too rushed in the morning. 

This list of healthy make ahead breakfast recipes has some good ideas too.

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#1 – Scrambled eggs + avocado + corn tortilla

Image credit: Serious Eats

Eat with a side of black beans for a hardier breakfast.

#2 – Boiled egg + avocado + gluten free toast

Take your avocado up a level by adding boiled egg. Boil a dozen eggs on the weekend and eat for breakfast and snacks all week long.

Learn more about batch cooking for beginners here and how it can help make pregnancy meal prep easier.

#3 – Omelet + broccoli + cheese + leftover meat

Omelets are a great way to use up leftover vegetables and meat from dinner. 

# 4 – Bone broth poached eggs

Image credit: Nyssa’s Kitchen

Bone broth is filled with an amazing amount vitamins and nutrients that can help grow a healthy baby making it a great way to start you day.

Broth made with bones is high in gelatin, collagen and glycine. These nutrients are essential to your baby’s development. Eating more nutrient dense foods will help ensure that you are avoiding the common nutritional deficiencies during pregnancy.

To learn more about the essential nutrients you need during pregnancy, check out the book Real Food for Pregnancy. It is a super helpful, updated and modern guide to pregnancy diet that all Moms should read. 

If you are suffering through morning sickness, sipping bone broth for breakfast may help ease some of the symptoms.

You can sip warm bone broth in a cup with a dash of sea salt and squeeze of lemon. 

Or you can make an easy breakfast soup! 

• Bring 2-3 cups of broth to a boil in small pot
• Crack 1-2 eggs into broth
• Add a couple of dashes of sea salt
• Simmer until eggs are cooked (they turn white and firm) about 3-5 minutes.
• Serve with gluten free toast

#5 Oatmeal

Oatmeal is an easy and simple breakfast. The key to making this a healthy pregnancy breakfast is to load your oatmeal with superfoods. Oatmeal is high in protein, fiber and can help control blood sugar. 

A good way to boost your oatmeal is to add ingredients like coconut oil, chia seeds, hemp seeds and flax seeds. These are small ways to boost nutrients in a simple meal. 

Here are a few delicious and healthy oatmeal breakfast ideas:

• Oatmeal + mixed berries + coconut oil + hemp seeds
• Oatmeal + apples + cinnamon + date fruit + flax seeds
• Oatmeal + banana + raisins + chia seeds
• Oatmeal + shredded carrot + coconut flakes + pecans

Did you know that soaking your oatmeal overnight actually makes it more digestible? Overnight oats are also great to eat on the go! 

To make the above recipes overnight oats use this simple formula:

1/4 cup oats + 1/4 cup chia seeds + toppings + milk or non dairy milk of choice

Mix everything together in a wide mouth mason jar or small container and store in the fridge until ready to eat!

Check out a whole list of oatmeal recipes for pregnancy, all loaded with extra nutrition.

#6 – Quinoa

Did you know that you can eat quinoa for breakfast? Quinoa is high in fiber, amino acids and protein. Eating it for breakfast can help keep you fuller for longer.

Try these ideas for quinoa breakfast bowls featuring eggs:

• Fried egg + fresh tomato slices + avocado + quinoa
• Scrambled eggs + sauteed greens + quinoa

Quinoa can even be eaten like cereal, or in a porridge like oatmeal! Add lots of your favorite superfood toppings just like you would to oatmeal. 

Here is a quick and easy recipe for Quinoa Oatmeal:

• Bring 2 cups of water to boil in small pot
• Add 1/4 cup quinoa and 3/4 cup old fashioned oats (GF)
• Add handful of dates, raisins or dried cranberries
• Add 1-2 spoonfuls of coconut oil
• Add 1 tbsp hemp seeds
• Simmer until water evaporates
• Serve topped with whole fat coconut milk (or nut milk of your choice) and fresh berries

Quick Tip: Save time by making this recipes in a programmable rice cooker or instant pot. Start it the night before so that breakfast is ready when you wake up! Then save leftovers for the rest of the week!

#7 – Smoothie or smoothie bowl

Pregnancy smoothies are a great way to get a bunch of nutrients in fairly quickly and easily.

But not all smoothies are created equal!

It’s important to include ingredients that boost energy over time rather than just give you a sugar spike. 

The formula for making pregnancy smoothies that are actually good for you:

Low-glycemic fruit + healthy fats

+ protein + something green

+ nut milk or Greek yogurt

Here is a list of low glycemic fruit for pregnancy smoothies:

• Cherries (read more about the benefits of cherries while pregnant)
• Bananas
• Apples
• Pears
• Strawberries (learn more about eating strawberries during pregnancy)
• Peaches
• Oranges
• Blackberries
• Blueberries,
• Raspberries

Give this pregnancy smoothie for labor a try! It’s a great option for breakfast especially in the third trimester. 

For healthy fats try adding:

• Full fat coconut milk
• MCT oil – it’s like a liquid supercharged version of coconut oil
• flax seed oil
• avocado oil
• chia seeds

For protein, you don’t have to use just protein powder! However, if you do, make sure you are using a high-quality one like this one made just for pregnancy.

Here are some good ways to add more protein to your smoothies:

• Nut butters (peanut, cashew, almond)
• Handful of nuts (walnuts, almonds)
• Handful of oats
• Greek yogurt

Always add something green to your pregnancy smoothies. Try a few of these suggestions:

• Spinach
• Baby kale
• Avocado
• Green Powder – if you don’t want to see your greens!

Mama are you looking for an easy way to get more nutrients while pregnant? This pregnancy protein powder has all the essential nutrients of a prenatal plus more all in an easy to drink mix you can add to water or a smoothie. This is great for when you can’t keep anything else down in early pregnancy and for extra energy later in pregnancy. Try it here!

More Healthy Pregnancy Recipes from Birth Eat Love

Want to learn more about healthy eating during pregnancy? Make sure to sign up for our email list below for more tips delivered to your inbox weekly. Check out some of our most popular post on healthy pregnancy meals:

50+Nutrient Dense Snacks for Pregnancy to Try Right Now

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Healthy Pregnancy Dinner Recipes (Superfood Edition)

7 Steps to Planning Healthy Pregnancy Meals Using Pinterest

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