To accomplish these ends you not only must eat suitable food, but you must digest and absorb it as well. This requires that you constantly guard against overeating, constipation and indigestion of any kind. Indigestion may be avoided during pregnancy exactly as it is at other times, by eating proper food, by cultivating a happy frame of mind; by having sufficient exercise, fresh air, rest and sleep. If you are accustomed to a fairly simple, well balanced, mixed diet, you probably will need to make little or no change, except to have the evening meal light if it has been a hearty one. It may surprise you to learn that you need not “eat for two,” in quantity, as is so commonly believed necessary, for during pregnancy you make so much better use of food materials than usual that an amount and kind of food that keep you in good condition will be adequate to meet your baby’s needs, too, until the latter part of pregnancy. On the other hand, it is very unwise for an expectant mother to cut down her diet, with the idea of keeping the baby small and thus make labor easy, except under the direction of her doctor. In general it is the size of the baby’s head that makes labor easy or difficult, and not the amount of fat distributed over his body. And if the mother cuts down the minerals in her diet to make the baby bones soft, the only result is that her own bones and teeth are softened, because the baby extracts from them enough lime to supply what the food lacks. Three meals a day will usually be enough during at least the first half of pregnancy and they should be taken with clock-like regularity, eaten slowly and masticated thoroughly. The possible need for slight additional food during the later weeks may be supplied more satisfactorily by lunches of milk, cocoa or broth and crackers or toast, between meals and upon retiring, than by taking larger meals. An expectant mother who has a tendency to nausea early in pregnancy often feels better for taking a small lunch regularly five or six times daily instead of the usual three full meals. It is of the greatest importance that every pregnant woman drink an abundance of fluid to act as a solvent for her food and waste material and promote the activity of her kidneys, skin and bowels. She needs about three quarts daily, most of which should be water, the remainder consisting of milk, cocoa, soup and other liquids. Alcohol should not be taken except upon the doctor’s orders and only moderate amounts of coffee and tea, unless he gives permission for more. The expectant mother will be wise to avoid fried food, pastry, rich desserts, rich salad dressings and any other food which would ordinarily disagree with her.