Eggplant, especially on pizza, was another expectant mother's obsession. Many of these cravings seem to come out of nowhere, and they can feel overpowering. What causes them? Hormones, right? Maybe in part. The extreme hormonal changes women go through during pregnancy can have a huge impact on taste and smell. This would help explain why women going through menopause may also experience strong food cravings and aversions. But the bottom line is that no one knows for sure. One thing we do know is that aversions and food cravings go hand in hand.
In an Ethiopian study, women who experienced food aversions were more than twice as likely to crave certain foods compared with those who didn't. Some nutritionists and healthcare providers believe that certain cravings are meaningful. For example, some experts think that craving large amounts of ice and nonfood substances, such as laundry starch and dirt or clay a condition called pica , are linked to an iron or zinc deficiency, though there's not enough research to support a cause and effect relationship.
San Francisco midwife and herbalist Cynthia Belew says some food cravings may be worth paying attention to. For example, alternative medicine practitioners believe that a shortage of magnesium can trigger a craving for chocolate. Foods that contain magnesium include whole grains, beans, nuts, seeds, and green vegetables such as spinach.
Belew has also found that many of her patients need more essential fatty acids in their diet. When they start taking fish oil or flax oil, their food cravings disappear. Similarly, a craving for red meat seems like a transparent cry for protein. And the mom in our survey who said she consumed great quantities of peaches may have been responding to her body's need for beta carotene.
Judith Brown, author of What to Eat Before, During, and After Pregnancy, agrees that in some cases there might be a biological cause for cravings. She points to pregnant women who develop an aversion to certain foods or drinks that might be harmful like diet soda , coffee , or alcohol.
Less obvious, however, is knowing the particular foods pregnant women shouldn't eat in order to avoid infectious, food-borne diseases, as these can cause miscarriage, low birth weight or a higher risk of Mum getting sick.
Read more on Parenthub website. This infographic is a handy guide to find out what is safe to eat during your pregnancy and the foods and drinks you should avoid. Many women experience food cravings or a food aversion during pregnancy. Find out how to ensure you continue to eat healthily if this affects you. You may find during pregnancy that you need to change your eating and drinking habits.
Read more on Ngala website. Make sure you know the important facts about which foods you should avoid or take extra care with when you're pregnant. Foods you should avoid, listeriosis information, mercury in fish, weight gain in pregnancy. Read more on NT Health website. Pregnancy, Birth and Baby is not responsible for the content and advertising on the external website you are now entering.
Video call. This information is for your general information and use only and is not intended to be used as medical advice and should not be used to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any medical condition, nor should it be used for therapeutic purposes. The information is not a substitute for independent professional advice and should not be used as an alternative to professional health care. If you have a particular medical problem, please consult a healthcare professional.
For more information, please visit the links below:. You are welcome to continue browsing this site with this browser. Some features, tools or interaction may not work correctly. We include products we think are useful for our readers. If you buy through links on this page, we may earn a small commission. Lots and lots of nachos. Watch out: Your pregnancy cravings are officially in full swing. According to research presented in Frontiers in Psychology , about 50 to 90 percent of American women have some type of specific food craving during pregnancy.
Rapidly changing hormones might be to blame. Cravings might also happen because of the extra work your body does to quickly produce a lot more blood. Or it might be as simple as the comfort certain foods bring as your body changes.
For most women, cravings start in the first trimester , peaking during the second trimester , and declining in the third. In fact, a lot of women have one craving for a day or two, another craving for a different day or two, and so on. Food aversions are the opposite of food cravings. They can create some equally unusual feelings. Food cravings and food aversions during pregnancy usually start around the same time. Interestingly, Frontiers in Psychology found that food cravings might not have anything to do with the nausea and vomiting of morning sickness , but avoiding certain foods probably does.
Meat , normally a staple for most women in the United States, is often rejected during pregnancy. This type of pump is quicker than using a manual pump, but can be noisy and more expensive. Mums often say that a manual breast pump is better if you're only expressing occasionally, while an electric pump is more efficient if you need to express milk quickly and often, for example if you've gone back to work.
If you're giving your baby expressed or formula milk, you'll need to buy some bottles. The choice of baby bottles can be overwhelming as there are quite a few options. When you start bottle feeding, don't buy loads as your baby may not necessarily like the ones you've chosen. Better to start off with a few and, if your baby approves, you can always buy more. Shaped: some bottles come with holes in the middle or special handles to make them easier for your baby to hold. You can choose between silicone and latex teats for most of these bottle types.
Silicone is more durable, while latex is softer and more flexible, but needs to be replaced more often. The teats come in a bell shape, or a bulbous shape that's designed to feel more like a nipple. You might want to try both shapes when your baby first starts bottle feeding to see which one they prefer. The teats often come with different flow rates.
To find out which flow rate is best for your baby takes a bit of trial and error. If they're spluttering or choking with their current bottle, they need a slower flow. But if they're sucking quite hard and seem to be getting frustrated while they're feeding, you might want to try a faster flow. You can also get variflow teats — some of these can be manually adjusted, while others automatically increase in flow as your baby's sucking gets stronger.
A birth plan is a way of letting your midwife, nurses and doctors know what you want to happen during your labour. It's a chance to plan things like where you want to give birth, who's going to be with you during the birth, and what facilities you'd like to use.
If you're concerned about how coronavirus might affect your birth plan, visit the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists for the most up-to-date advice. It's important to remember that giving birth doesn't always go perfectly to plan, and things may have to change at the last minute but your midwife will be there to help you make the best and safest decision for you and your baby. You can download an NHS birth plan template.
While you're writing your birth plan, talk to your midwife about your choices so they understand and can advise you.
The flu jab is the safest way to help protect pregnant women and their babies against flu, regardless of their stage in pregnancy, or how fit and healthy they feel.
Pregnancy naturally weakens the immune system, which means it's harder to fight off infections. As a result, flu can cause serious complications. One of the most common flu complications is bronchitis - a chest infection that can become serious and develop into pneumonia. Read more about the flu jab in pregnancy on the NHS website. Get personalised emails for trusted NHS advice, videos and tips on your pregnancy week by week, birth and parenthood. Back to Pregnancy. Share this page Facebook Pinterest Twitter Whatsapp.
On this page 1. Am I pregnant? When do pregnancy cravings start? How much weight should I gain in pregnancy? What prenatal vitamins should I take? How do I stay fit in pregnancy? How should I sleep in pregnancy? What happens in an antenatal class?
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