The #1 Mistake Most Pregnant Women Are Making (And No One Is Telling Them)

Main Ideas

Pregnancy as an Active Period of Development

Guest Jessie Inchauspé challenges the idea that a pregnant person is simply a passive “oven” carrying a baby whose development is already determined. She compares pregnancy instead to growing a seed in soil: a baby inherits genes, but the pregnancy environment may influence how those genes are expressed. She describes this process as epigenetics—biological switches that can affect metabolism and other traits.

Her central message is that pregnancy nutrition may help shape a child’s long-term health. However, nutrition is only one influence among many, and no one can control every outcome.

Four Nutrients and Factors She Highlights

Inchauspé identifies four priorities she believes may have an outsized influence during pregnancy:

• Glucose and blood-sugar levels: She says high maternal blood glucose also exposes the developing baby to high glucose. She links this exposure to greater later vulnerability to type 2 diabetes and discusses possible effects on inflammation and fat storage. She cites studies associating gestational diabetes with higher rates of diabetes in children and describes a possible association with psychiatric diagnoses. She stresses that association does not prove causation.
• Choline: Found in foods such as eggs, choline is described as important for brain development and neuron formation. Inchauspé says low choline is associated with miscarriage risk and may affect brain development.
• Protein: She says protein is needed for many bodily functions, not just muscle. Citing animal research, she argues that inadequate protein may influence how a baby’s body develops and regulates muscle mass. She gives an approximate pregnancy target of 1.5–1.6 grams per kilogram of body weight per day, or about 100 grams for many people.
• Omega-3 fats: She describes omega-3s as important for brain development and points to research associating adequate intake with later cognitive measures. She mentions fish, algae-based sources, and supplements.

She also notes that many pregnant people may not get enough of these nutrients, attributing the problem partly to the modern food environment and a lack of clear guidance—not individual failure.

Practical Suggestions Discussed

The following are Inchauspé’s recommendations and examples from the interview, not individualized medical advice:

• During the first trimester: If nausea makes eating difficult, focus on what is manageable rather than adding pressure. She mentions protein in the morning or at meals, keeping almonds by the bed, ginger, and exercise as things that helped her. She says severe nausea may warrant medication.
• As nausea eases: She suggests including a protein source at each meal, eating choline-rich foods such as eggs, and getting omega-3s from fish or a supplement. She gives four eggs a day and 2 grams of omega-3 supplements daily as examples from her own approach. She says supplements may be more practical for people avoiding animal foods.
• Limit added sugar and manage glucose spikes: She cites the World Health Organization’s recommendation of 25 grams of sugar or less per day. To moderate glucose spikes, she suggests:
  • Eating protein, fat, or fiber alongside carbohydrates rather than eating sugary foods alone.
  • Having vegetables before a carbohydrate-rich meal.
  • Avoiding sugar on an empty stomach, particularly at breakfast.
  • Choosing whole fruit instead of juice as one possible swap.
  • Taking a short walk or doing gentle movement after meals. She also mentions calf raises after eating.
  • If using her vinegar approach, choosing pasteurized vinegar. She describes mixing one tablespoon into a large glass of water before a carbohydrate-containing meal.
• Respond to appetite and changing comfort: She advises not forcing meals when someone is not hungry. Smaller, more frequent meals may be easier as pregnancy progresses and the stomach has less room.
• Choose realistic movement: She favors doing what a person can manage, such as walking or strength training, rather than pursuing a rigid exercise target.
• Avoid known hazards: She advises avoiding alcohol, cigarettes, and drugs, and taking care with possible environmental exposures such as pesticides, mold, asbestos, and heated plastic. She presents some concerns—particularly those involving plastics—as precautionary and says the evidence is still developing.

She also cautions against the myth of “eating for two.” In her account, extra energy needs vary across pregnancy and do not mean doubling food intake.

Miscarriage, Grief, and Uncertainty

Inchauspé recounts a silent miscarriage during her first pregnancy. At a three-month ultrasound, she learned that the embryo had stopped developing, despite having had no symptoms. She describes her grief, anxiety during her subsequent pregnancy, and the relief she felt when hearing other people share their experiences.

She says potential contributors to miscarriage can include chromosomal abnormalities, nutritional deficiencies, or placental problems, but many cases are not fully explained and often cannot be prevented. She emphasizes that following nutritional advice cannot guarantee a pregnancy outcome, and that miscarriage is not necessarily the result of something the pregnant person did.

Jay Shetty and Inchauspé discuss how people often respond to miscarriage by trying to “fix” the grief or reassure someone too quickly. Inchauspé says she mainly needed others to acknowledge the loss and offer support without minimizing it.

The Role of Society and Healthcare

Both speakers criticize the lack of practical pregnancy education and the limited attention some nutrients receive in routine care. Inchauspé argues that food systems, marketing, affordability, and gaps in medical education contribute to the problem. She says the goal should be to offer a few manageable priorities rather than make pregnant people feel responsible for controlling every aspect of a child’s future.

Other Points Raised

• Inchauspé says a father’s diet can affect sperm quality before conception. After conception, she says the pregnant person’s diet is more directly involved in supplying nutrients.
• She describes animal research suggesting that exercise during pregnancy may benefit offspring, while noting that the findings cannot simply be assumed to apply in the same way to humans.
• She discusses a UK sugar-rationing period and later research comparing people whose pregnancies occurred during lower- versus higher-sugar periods. She presents the results as evidence associating lower maternal sugar intake with reduced lifetime diabetes risk, not as proof that sugar alone determines an individual outcome.
• She says individual development also reflects genetics, life experiences, and many other factors. Pregnancy is an important window, not the sole determinant.

Speakers and Sources Featured

• Jay Shetty: Host and interviewer; also delivers the Pandora advertisement and introduces a separate episode featuring Michelle Obama.
• Jessie Inchauspé: Guest, biochemist, and author, sharing her interpretation of research, practical suggestions, and personal experiences.
• Michelle Obama: Heard briefly in a closing excerpt from the separately promoted episode.
• Research sources discussed by Inchauspé: Unnamed human studies and population surveys, animal studies, a study of the UK sugar-rationing period, and recommendations attributed to the World Health Organization. No specific study titles or researchers are identified in the subtitles.
• Other sources mentioned: Inchauspé’s doctors, therapist, family members, and friends are discussed in relation to medical advice and personal experiences; they do not speak directly in the interview.
• Pandora: Advertiser featured in a sponsored segment read by Jay Shetty.