Diet taboos after induction of labor

Absolutely avoid iced drinks, iced foods, and all alcoholic drinks for one month after surgery. In the first two weeks, avoid medicated meals containing blood-activating ingredients such as safflower, ginseng, motherwort, etc., and try to avoid heavy foods that are high in oil and spicy content. In addition, as long as you are not allergic to the ingredients, you can eat most common foods normally, and there is no need to follow all kinds of taboo rules.

Two years ago, I was hospitalized with my best friend who had just had an induced labor in the second trimester, and something bad happened in the first three days - her mother specially brought safflower black chicken soup from her hometown that had been simmered for three or four hours, saying that it would replenish her blood. However, she drank less than half a bowl, and the amount of lochia doubled that night, and it oozed all over her underwear. We were so scared that we rang the call bell all night to find a nurse. Finally, the doctor came to check for a long time, and said that she had eaten too much blood-activating things, and prescribed some uterine contraction medicine to stabilize her.

Speaking of this, some people must want to ask, can fruits at room temperature be eaten? At that time, my best friend was told by the elderly at home that fruits were "cool" and would cause disease if touched. She did not even dare to touch bananas. On the third day after the operation, she was constipated to the point of crying in the toilet. Finally, the nurse came to check and saw her. She said that as long as you usually eat cold foods without diarrhea, eating apples, strawberries, blueberries, and bananas at room temperature can supplement vitamins and moisturize the intestines. It is better than squatting hard with constipation. If the abdominal pressure is too high and causes a wound due to constipation, that will be the real suffering. Of course, many traditional Chinese medicine practitioners believe that after induction of labor, if qi and blood are deficient and the spleen and stomach function are weak, it is safer to warm the fruit before eating. In fact, there is no problem with either view. It all depends on your own gastrointestinal acceptance. If you usually have stomach problems when drinking room temperature water, don’t force yourself to eat cold apples. If your gastrointestinal tolerance is good, there is nothing wrong with eating some at room temperature. There is no need to stick to a certain rule.

There is also a controversy that has been going on for many years: Should we avoid "fat foods" after induction of labor, such as seafood, beef and mutton? I have talked about this with my obstetrician before. The view of Western medicine is that as long as you are not allergic to these ingredients and do not have obvious fever or wound inflammation after the operation, stewed beef and boiled shrimp can supplement high-quality protein, which is better than drinking white porridge every day, and you will recover faster. However, some Chinese medicine practitioners believe that inducing labor is equivalent to miscarriage. When the body's righteousness is insufficient, divergent foods such as seafood can easily induce old diseases or aggravate inflammatory reactions. It is recommended to avoid them in the week before surgery. In fact, the logic of both sides is tenable. If you are really unsure, it is not too late to eat light chicken, eggs, and green leafy vegetables the week before, and then eat seafood and beef when your physical condition is more stable.

Oh, by the way, don’t take supplements blindly. I have seen too many people think that induction of labor is harmful to the body. They just eat pig trotter soup or old hen soup when they are discharged from the hospital. The oil floating on the soup is so thick that you can scrape off a layer. As a result, after taking supplements for half a month, not to mention gaining seven or eight kilograms, they also have blocked milk and have a fever. After all, many people will have physiological breast enlargement after induction of labor. Drinking soup that is too oily will only aggravate milk stasis. Instead, it is better to drink some light loofah soup, egg drop soup, millet porridge, which can replenish water and make digestion easier. There are also people who say you can’t eat salt after induced labor. This is pure nonsense. Without salt, you will feel weak and even walk with difficulty, which is not conducive to recovery. Just use less salt and don’t eat too salty.

Several obstetric nurses I have contacted have said privately that in fact, there are not as many rules for eating after induction of labor as mentioned on the Internet. The core is just four words: "comfortable and safe". Eat whatever you usually eat and don't feel uncomfortable after eating. Don't stuff yourself with things you don't like just to make up for it. Don’t be greedy for drinking iced milk tea and iced watermelon in the summer. I had a friend who couldn’t help but secretly drink half a cup of iced Americano a week after the operation. She had diarrhea for two days and had uterine pain for almost a week. During the follow-up examination, she still had uterine effusion, and she was scolded by the doctor for a long time.

If you are really unsure about whether you can eat something, just ask your doctor or nurse directly. It is much more reliable than asking relatives and friends through short videos. After all, everyone’s physique and recovery situation are different. What is suitable for others may not be suitable for you. The most important thing is to take good care of your body safely.