Entries Tagged 'pregnancy Nutrition' ↓

Pica is the name for unusual food cravings (Latin - pica = magpie, a bird known for its unusual appetites). The condition is the basis for jokes about the yearning for odd combinations of foods, such as pickles and ice cream. In fact, women with pica often eat substances like clay, dirt, laundry starch, baking powder, baking soda, ashes, or ice.

Nobody quite knows the reason for pica. Some researchers speculate that it is caused by nutritional deficiencies, including iron. Some women say it helps with nausea and vomiting. Other women find it relieves nervous tension. In some cultures, pica is passed on from mother to child, although pica is not limited to any particular geographic areas or cultural groups. What is clear about pica is that it can lead to nutritional deficiencies, especially iron-deficiency anemia.

A few simple suggestions may help you overcome your pica habit. Think of things you might do when you get the urge-go for a walk, go to the movies, call a good friend. You can try chewing sugarless gum. These are techniques people use in conquering any harmful habit.

Pica is a health problem, not a cause for embarrassment. If you have pica, even pica for ice, which may not seem at all unusual, tell your physician or midwife, who can assist in making sure that your nutrition remains adequate.

Excessive Vitamin Intake

The recommended dose of 60 mg of vitamin C in pregnancy is much lower than many people take today. Many people commonly take hundreds of milligrams of vitamin C to ward off colds and other infections. Excessive doses of vitamin C in the fetus, however, may lead to symptoms of vitamin C deficiency in the newborn. Eating at least two servings a day of a vitamin C-rich food is sufficient during pregnancy. Megadoses should be avoided.

Vitamin D in large doses also may be harmful to the infant. Doses that have been identified as dangerous, however, are above what any body gets with just about any amount of sunlight and milk. If a woman does not drink milk, a supplement of 400 IUs of vitamin D a day is safe. This is especially important in winter months or climates where you receive little sunlight. Half this dosage might be taken by women whose intake of fortified milk is low.

Vitamin A has the greatest potential among the vitamins to cause problems in the fetus. Both vitamin A deficiency and vitamin A excess can be dangerous to the fetus. The recommended dose of vitamin A in pregnancy does not differ from the recommendation for nonpregnant women. Most women in the u.s. have adequate stores of vitamin A (fat soluble vitamins, including A, D, and E, are stored in the body, unlike vitamins Band C, which are water soluble and excreted in the urine).

As vitamin A deficiency is rare in this country, overdose is a greater concern. There are consistent reports of malformation in infants born to women who take more than 25,000 IUs of vitamin A daily. Reports of fetal malformation among women who take more than 10,000 IUs have also appeared. The Teratology Society recommends that women take no more than 8,000 IUs of vitamin A daily during pregnancy and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommends limiting intake to 5,000 IUs. If you take a multivitamin or prenatal vitamin, you must read the label to see how much vitamin A you are getting. Stop the tablet immediately if the dose is greater than 8,000 IUs. Beta carotene, the form of vitamin A available from plant sources, is safe. The anti-acne medication isotretinoin (Accutane) is a vitamin A product and is teratogenic in pregnancy.

Phosphorus

Phosphorus is widely available in the American diet. Calcium and phosphorus need to be in balance in the blood or muscular irritability, such as leg cramps, may occur. In pregnancy, because of the stress on the body’s calcium reserves and the wide availability of phosphorus in processed and snack foods and many soft drinks, this balance may be disturbed. Pregnant women should limit their intake of processed and snack foods and soda in pregnancy, especially if they get leg cramps.

Caffeine

In general, the prudent approach is to limit caffeine during the pregnancy planning stage and during pregnancy. Drink no more than two cups of percolated coffee per day. This is especially important if you have risks for a low birth weight baby. (Risks include a previous premature or low birth weight baby, smoking, or having diabetes or high blood pressure.)

Tea has about two-fifths the amount of caffeine as coffee and cola beverages. You can make your coffee or tea weaker and add increasing amounts of milk. Mild herbal teas can be substituted, such as peppermint or lemon tea. (Check with your physician or midwife to ascertain that a specific tea isn’t dangerous in pregnancy. Lobelia, sassafras, colts foot, comfrey, pennyroyal, ginseng, licorice, hops, sage, golden seal root, and blue and black cohosh are among those that might have adverse side effects in pregnancy.) Decaffeinated beverages can be substituted as well, but we do not know for sure that these don’t contain other substances that might adversely affect the baby.

Of course, water and unsweetened juice are nature’s best drinks. Caffeine is contained in some combination medications that are not recommended in pregnancy check the labels of any nonprescription medication.

Alcohol

At present, we simply do not know what constitutes a safe intake in pregnancy. Abstinence is the best policy, although wine or other alcohol can be used in cooking as its alcohol content burns out.

Raw Meat And Fish

Raw meat can cause toxoplasmosis, a mild disease in adults that may have severe consequences on the fetus, discussed in. Even rare meat should be avoided in pregnancy, unless you have had a blood test that shows you are immune to toxoplasmosis. Wash hands well after preparing meat and clean all surfaces such as counter tops and cutting boards that the meat has touched.

Raw fish or sushi may carry bacteria or parasites. While it is rare for a person to get sick from eating sushi, the safest route is to avoid eating raw fish in pregnancy.