When you're pregnant, you may worry about gaining too much weight. However, doctors typically recommend that you refrain from dieting. This doesn't mean that you should go ahead and eat whatever you want, though. To maintain a healthy pregnancy, you want to eat healthy foods. You may be able to eat some diet foods during pregnancy, but your focus should be on health.

Eating right is essential during pregnancy, and most women require a somewhat higher calorie diet than before they were pregnant. Some situations, including twins or higher multiples or being underweight prior to pregnancy require additional calories. Get the calories you need during pregnancy from healthy foods, including plenty of protein, whole grains, healthy fats and fruits and vegetables, rather than high-calorie junk food. Always follow your doctor's diet advice.

You may be eating for two and craving pickles and ice cream, but pregnancy isn't a weight gain free-for-all. Sure, you'll have to gain weight to support your growing baby, but excessive pregnancy weight gain can cause problems for you and your baby. Knowing how much you should gain and how to keep your baby weight under control can add up to a healthy pregnancy.

The Brewer diet, developed by Dr. Tom Brewer, is designed to provide good nutrition during both normal and high-risk pregnancies. The Brewer diet is high in protein and whole grains and relatively high in fat. Advocates of the Brewer diet support its use to prevent toxemia, pregnancy-induced hypertension, as well as pre-eclampsia and eclampsia, which are also characterized by high blood pressure as well as fluid retention and protein in the urine, and premature birth. In severe cases, these prenatal complications can result in convulsions, coma or even death.

When you're pregnant, drinking a cup of caffeine-free herbal tea may seem like a better option than downing a cup of coffee or black tea. But Dr. Laura Riley, author of "Pregnancy: The Ultimate Week By Week Pregnancy Guide," argues that drinking any herbal teas while you are pregnant is not safe for you or your baby. The American Pregnancy Association recommends certain teas, but only with the approval of your doctor or midwife.

Commercial detoxes and fad-diet flushes can be dangerous even when you aren't pregnant. Add a fragile fetus to the mix, and detoxes could mean bad news for your body and your baby. Detoxes often use dangerous stimulants and herbs that are not be safe to use during pregnancy. If you feel like you need to detox while carrying your child, a healthy diet, plenty of exercise and a few lifestyle changes can help you remove toxins from your body in a safe and effective way.

Pregnancy is a time when most women gain weight. While the idea of gaining weight may cause distress, your growing baby, placenta and amniotic fluid account for some of the added pounds. Although you may not look forward to an increase in your weight, pregnancy is not the time to lose weight or to take diet pills.

When you wander the aisles of the grocery store, it seems that every food item has both an organic and non-organic, or conventional variety. Since the 1990s and into the 21st century, organic foods have grown in popularity. By 2005, 4 million acres of farmland were dedicated to organic farms, up from 1 million in 1990, according to Dr. Alan Greene at The Daily Green. When you're pregnant, you may wish to eat more organic, or exclusively organic to protect your baby from exposure to pesticides.

Eating for two can be difficult. Eating for three can seem almost impossible if you don't know how to do it effectively. Expecting twins puts an additional strain on your body and requires not only an increased calorie intake but also an increase in specific nutrients and vitamins. Knowing some of the tricks to adding healthy calories to your pregnancy diet will help you keep those babies growing according to schedule.