Foods that should not be a Part of your Pregnancy Diet
Plan
The news of a baby is always accompanied by excitement,
surprise, and a huge urge to plan. One way to plan for the safe
arrival of your bundle of joy is to create and follow a
pregnancy diet plan. You have to kick bad habits and acquire
new, good ones to make sure you are consuming healthy,
nutritious food and avoiding dangerous substances and foods
that could cause you or your unborn baby harm.
A Low-Fat, Low-Cholesterol Pregnancy Diet
Plan
As much as you may love desserts, fatty fried foods, and
whole dairy products, it is important to lessen your fat intake
during pregnancy. A healthy pregnancy diet plan consists of 30%
fat or less of the daily total calorie intake. Cholesterol is
another thing we need to watch out for when following our
pregnancy diet plans. Make sure you consume no more than 300mg
of cholesterol daily.
Dangerous Foods to Avoid
Soft cheeses like brie, camembert, and blue cheese should
not be a part of your pregnancy diet plan. These cheeses are
often unpasteurized and can cause listeria infection. Hard and
processed cheeses as well as yogurt and cottage cheese are no
problem. It is important to incorporate plenty of dairy
products into your diet to meet calcium requirements. Just
avoid these soft cheeses for your safety.
Certain types of fish like swordfish, shark, and white
snapper are dangerous during pregnancy because of their high
mercury levels. Mercury can do damage to your unborn fetus so
make sure they aren’t a part of your pregnancy diet plan. You
will also have to give up your monthly dinners out at the sushi
restaurant because raw fish is a no-no during pregnancy because
it can cause toxoplasmosis.
Substances that can be Harmful to Your Unborn
Fetus
As if you needed someone to tell you this, do not drink
alcohol during pregnancy! There is no excuse not to follow this
rule in your pregnancy diet plan. The consumption of alcohol
during pregnancy has been linked to mental retardation,
premature delivery, and low-birth weight babies.
As much as you feel like you need all those cups of joe in
the morning, pregnancy means you need to cut back on caffeine
intake. Limit your caffeine intake to no more than 300mg per
day. That adds up to about 2 cups of coffee max. This rule
should also apply to your post-pregnancy diet if you breastfeed
because the caffeine can pass through to your baby via breast
milk.
When you sweeten that one cup of coffee you drink in the
mornings, avoid using the artificial sweetener saccharin.
Studies show it can cross through the placenta and remain in
fetal tissues. Try an all natural sweetener like xylitol.
So there you have it. While breaking your pregnancy diet
plan might be tempting, the risks involved are simply not worth
it. Make sure you read more about what and what not to include
in your pregnancy diet plan so you can have a healthy
pregnancy, labor, and baby!
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