Food to avoid during pregnancy

Pregnancy is the most exciting and also one of the most delicate time in women’s life. Women during this time should be very careful about their health as it’s not only about them now but also a new life growing inside her so now she has 2 responsibilities one is herself and other is the baby growing inside her. Pregnancy effects immune system, the food you eat has direct effect on the baby growing inside you.

To avoid health problems, here are food items women should avoid during pregnancy;

1. SOFT CHEESE;

When you are pregnant, avoid soft, mould ripened cheese like brie, camembert and chevre, these are the type of goat cheese. These cheeses are more moist and less acidic than other cheese, high moisture and low acid are the perfect environment for the growth of listeria bacteria because of this there are chances that the soft cheese can have bacteria growing in it.

Listeria bacteria can cause infection Listeriosis and infection is the thing that pregnant women should always stay away from.

2. RAW PAPAYA;

Raw or semi ripe papaya has sufficient traces of latex; a milky solution that is known to trigger strong uterine contraction which stimulate abortion. So, it’s very dangerous to eat raw papaya when you are pregnant.

Latex is not found in ripe papaya so it’s totally safe to eat ripe papaya.

3. LIVER;

Avoid liver or liver products when you are pregnant. Liver has high amount of vitamin A, too much of vitamin A is harmful for the growing baby and it can cause birth defect.

4. UNPASTEURISED MILK;

Avoid drinking unpasteurised milk. There are chances that it may have harmful bacteria like listeria, salmonella, E.coli that can cause bacterial infection which is not at all good for mother and the growing baby.

When milk is pasteurised, the harmful bacteria present in it gets killed by the heat without affecting the nutrition value of the milk so always prefer pasteurised milk.

5. CAFFEINE;

Do not drink caffeine in excess; limit it to 2 – 3 cups of coffee in a day. Intake of too much caffeine can cause problems like restricted baby’s growth, underweight baby and miscarriage.

Too much caffeine can also lead to problems like anaemia as caffeine slows down iron absorption in the body.

6. RAW / UNDER – COOKED EGG;

Do not eat raw or under cooked egg as there are chances it may contain harmful salmonella bacteria which can cause food poison.

Egg is a healthy food if cooked in a proper way, so make sure eggs are properly cooked so that in case if there is any bacteria present it gets killed while cooking. Cook egg till the egg white and egg yolk get solidify.

7. RAW / UNDER – COOKED MEAT;

Do not eat raw or under cooked meat such as chicken, mutton or pork as there is chances it may contain harmful salmonella bacteria which can cause food poison.

So make sure that meats are properly cooked at high temperature for proper time. When the meat is cooked at high temperature, the bacteria present gets killed by heat.

Raw and under cooked meat can also lead to digestion problem.

8. ALCOHOL;

Stay away from alcohol; do not drink alcohol when you are pregnant. Everything you eat has direct effect on baby; alcohol can affect baby’s health directly by interfering in the baby’s growth in mother’s womb. Baby can get problems like “Fetal alcohol syndrome” and other development disorder.

Consuming alcohol also increases the risk of miscarriage.

Along with avoiding foods, follow good habits while eating like washing your hand more frequently as you never know your hand can be the first source of infection and avoid fruits and vegetable that has deep cuts as many time such cuts are mostly the homes of bacteria.