Pregnancy dietary taboos

There is no absolute taboo list that is universal across the Internet. The essence of all dietary taboos is risk classification - high-risk foods that are clearly proven to cause teratogenesis and disease must be 100% avoided. Controversial medium-risk foods can be flexibly chosen based on your own situation and different medical advice. Most of the "folk taboos" spread online should not be taken to heart. Don't starve yourself and lack nutrients for unnecessary taboos, which is the real loss.

Oh, by the way, let me first mention the red line that the doctor repeatedly emphasized during my prenatal check-up. No matter you are susceptible to allergies or have very sensitive skin, whether you believe in Chinese medicine or Western medicine, you really should not touch these types of foods: they are categories with a high probability of being contaminated by Listeria and Salmonella. For example, undercooked meat, eggs, aquatic products, soft-boiled eggs, half-cooked steaks, sashimi, and raw pickled foods that you usually love, but you really can’t tolerate when you’re pregnant, as well as unpasteurized raw milk, soft cheese made from raw milk, refrigerated fruit platters that have been cut and stored at roadside stalls for an unknown period of time, and raw salads that have not been washed and mixed directly, all of which have crossed the high-risk red line. I met a 6-month-pregnant mother in the maternity ward before. She ate cut cantaloupe that had been left in the refrigerator overnight because of the cold weather in the summer. She was infected with listeria and her fever reached 39 degrees. She was hospitalized for almost two weeks before she stabilized. It was really not worth the gain.

As for coffee, milk tea, and alcoholic foods that many people struggle with, there is actually no unified answer. According to evidence-based medicine research, consuming no more than 200 mg of caffeine per day (about the amount of a medium cup of sugar-free American coffee) will not have any impact on the fetus. My former colleague who worked at an Internet company drank half a cup of latte every day throughout her pregnancy. The baby was born weighing 8 pounds, and all physical examinations were excellent. But if you are seeing a traditional Chinese medicine doctor or a more conservative obstetrician, there is a high probability that you will be advised not to touch caffeine at all in the first three months. After all, early embryos are not stable yet. If you feel flustered and insomnia after drinking coffee, there is definitely no need to drink it. Alcohol is less controversial. Most doctors will recommend avoiding it completely, even if it is low-alcohol alcohol such as fruit wine and fermented glutinous rice. After all, there is currently no research to prove that "a small amount of alcohol is safe". If you can, don't touch it. In fact, you don't need to be too anxious if you take a sip. Just don't touch it after that. Don't be scared for several days just because of a sip of wine. On the contrary, a bad mood will have a greater impact.

To be honest, 99% of the myths about "eating crabs will lead to miscarriage", "eating watermelon to cause uterine coldness" and "eating rabbit meat to cause harelips" are all folk rumors without scientific basis. The year I was pregnant with my baby happened to be the hairy crab season. I showed off two female crabs in one meal, and nothing happened. My prenatal checkup was also normal. But if you are allergic to eating crabs or have diarrhea when eating iced watermelon, then it is definitely not a good idea when you are pregnant. There is a risk of uterine contractions due to gastrointestinal irritation, but you should not eat crabs and watermelons because you are intolerant. As for hare lips, that is even more nonsense. It is the result of the combined effect of genes and adverse environmental conditions in early pregnancy. It has nothing to do with whether you eat rabbits or not. Oh, by the way, if the elderly at home are particularly concerned about these opinions, there is no need to contradict them. It is not impossible to eat a few bites in front of the elderly and turn around to satisfy their cravings secretly. It is not worth it to cause a family conflict just because of one bite.

There are also some invisible "taboos" that few people mention. For example, don't blindly take those so-called supplements for pregnant women that are extremely expensive. Bird's nest, fish maw, and sky-high-priced milk powder for pregnant women are really not as effective as drinking two cups of milk and eating two eggs a day to supplement protein. I met a pregnant mother before who ate hundreds of thousands of bird's nests throughout her pregnancy. In the end, the baby was still too small and she gained 40 pounds. It was really unnecessary. There is also the idea of ​​"eating goose eggs to remove fetal toxins", which is even more nonsense. Fetal poisoning itself is a false concept. The cholesterol of goose eggs is horribly high. If you eat one egg a day, the risk of excessive cholesterol is much greater than the so-called "detoxification" effect. My best friend believed this before and ate goose eggs for a month. In the end, her cholesterol was so high during the prenatal check-up that the doctor asked her to control oil for half a month. She did not dare to eat anything heavy. It was not a loss.

In fact, pregnancy is really not that delicate. You should remember one big principle: you will feel comfortable after eating it, and you will not have any uncomfortable reactions such as allergies, diarrhea, or panic. The ingredients are fresh and fully cooked. Except for clear high-risk foods, you really don’t dare to eat this or that. I have seen too many pregnant mothers who, in order to comply with all kinds of messy taboos, do not eat this or that during the entire pregnancy. In the end, they are deficient in iron and calcium, which affects the development of the baby. That is really not worth the gain. If you are really unsure about something, just casually asking your doctor during your next prenatal check-up will be more reliable than reading ten posts about home remedies on the Internet.