Which foods you need to avoid

Women got the privilege and with it a great responsibility to carry a baby inside them for 9 months. From the moment you get the information about being pregnant, this feeling about taking care of someone awakes. All physical problems which will occur are nothing compared with being responsible and taking care for your baby. Every single responsible mother will change some of her life habits immediately when realizing she pregnant.

Coffee, cigarettes, and alcohol

I’ve always cared about what I eat. Is this because of the Celiac or I just went by »You are what you eat«, I’m not sure. What I know for sure is that I always took my eating habits seriously. But no one is perfect especially when growing up and searching for yourself. What I’m not proud of is smoking. I never was a passionate smoker but I did smoke one or two cigarettes per day. A few days earlier before doing pregnancy test, I stopped because I got sick just thinking about smoking. When I got the information I’m pregnant I realized this was not just a temporary phase but a serious life decision and a change. Today, after 18 months, I can only say I couldn’t be happier deciding to do so.

Besides getting indescribable aversions for cigarettes, the same thing happened with coffee. First few months of pregnancy I couldn’t stand the smell of coffee. But when aversions stopped I just couldn’t find the reason to start drinking it again.

Caffeine is not recommended during pregnancy so you should decrease consummation of coffee as well as black and green tea to the minimum.

Besides coffee and cigarettes, there is one more thing I strongly believe you should stop consuming during pregnancy and later when breastfeeding – alcohol. On one hand, some are saying it’s not been scientifically proven one glass of wine or beer affects your embryo but on the other hand there were researches made with statistic correlation between baby’s later health problems and mother’s alcohol consummation during pregnancy. So, if there is a reasonable doubt I can’t see the reason why a single mother would jeopardize the health of your baby just because of a couple of glasses of alcohol. I’ve heard many times one glass is healthy but I strongly believe iron and vitamin B can be consumed in other ways too.

Sweets, snacks and carbonated drinks

I was really not one of those pregnant women who would watch on every calorie but I did try to do my best and not eat too many sweets. There are other ways to sweeten yourself and this way you help yourself as well as your baby. Fresh or dry fruits, homemade cookies from chosen ingredients, honey … A pregnant woman doesn’t need to eat for two and gain weight uncontrollably, it’s just bad for you and your baby. I gained precisely 15kg but a week after giving birth I only had 1 kg more than before delivery. Every kilo I gained was only because of the baby, placenta, and water.

Carbonated drinks and salty snacks are not recommended during pregnancy because they can cause water collection in your body and swelling. I noticed that when I had a couple of sips of Coca-Cola my baby starts to kick and hiccup. I assumed baby doesn’t like it so I stopped experimenting and crossed Coca-Cola from my list.

If you are pregnant during summer and you keep away from this kind of drinks but you still get swelling when in 8th or 9th month, it’s probably connected to heat and your weight. If one foot swells more or both of them swell heavily I strongly suggest you see your doctor because not all swellings are normal and it’s always better to react on time.

Meat, fish, milk, and eggs

Meat, fish, and eggs should be thermally well prepared before consuming. In another case your generating perfect environment for bacteria such as Listeria, Escherichia coli, Salmonella which could be deadly in your state. Being cooked, baked or grilled I suggest to keep it low fat in all cases. Meat products such as pates and hotdogs are also not recommended. Pregnant women should keep their food as natural and fresh food without too many additives. If you like to eat pate I suggest you consider a homemade option. My receipt can be found here.

If you like milk products watch to eat them pasteurized and fresh. Also, keep away from moldy and salty cheeses.

Tea and fresh juices

Tea is good for pregnant women but do keep an eye what tea and how much of it you drink. Some tea can cause contractions of the uterus which could lead to abortion. Some of them are hibiscus, yarrow, St John’s-wort, bearberry, nettle. Instead of these treat yourself with a cup of tea from mint, chamomile. Not only they are good for pregnancy they will also relax your body.

Medicine and other supplements

Every sudden change in your body during pregnancy should be checked with your doctor. Taking medicine without discussing it with your doctor is highly risky. But if you decide to take it anyway be sure to carefully read the instructions to see which medicines are allowed during pregnancy. You can forget aspirin for this period.

Due to my Duhring, I struggled with anemia which is strongly linked to celiac disease. Before taking anything else, you should always try to increase iron in your body with food. If you are anemic try increasing iron with following ingredients: beet, red meet, yolk, fish, dark chocolate, cacao, blueberry, peach. To absorb as much iron as possible it is recommended not to combine it with milk products. On the other hand, it is recommended to combine foods rich with iron with folic acid and vitamin C as they help to degrade iron in your body.

For me, eating food rich with iron was not enough so I drank gluten-free Sideral Folico all my pregnancy. I started to drink Sideral Forte for two months after giving birth. I was afraid my blood results will get worse when breastfeeding but, on my surprise, results were never as good as in this period! I haven’t consumed any other supplement during my pregnancy.

Dear pregnant ladies, mothers think about yourself and your food because your baby needs you healthy and strong. The right selection of food will not only affect your physical appearance but will also help you stay mentally balanced. Choose the ingredients wisely, read the declarations and grown as much your own fruit and vegetables as possible. Don’t forget that health is coming through the mouth.