During pregnancy, it is important to consider the dietary needs of the mother and the baby, and even if you eat for two, there are some foods that should be avoided to ensure that your baby has a bright and healthy start to life.

Fruits and vegetables

A diet rich in fruits and vegetables is recommended to increase your vitamin intake, but be sure to rinse fresh fruits, salads, and vegetables in warm water first to avoid dirt traces that may contain toxoplasma. Toxoplasmosis is a parasitic infection that can cause brain damage or blindness in the fetus. Also avoid all moldy fruits and vegetables. Specialists also recommend not eating grapes in the last trimester due to their high heat content. There is also some evidence that papaya, a fruit rich in latex, can trigger uterine contractions and stimulate preterm labor. However, ripe papaya is a great source of vitamins during pregnancy.

Dairy products

Pregnant women are encouraged to include at least two eggs a day in their diet, as this helps the development of the baby’s brain and retina. Take great care to make sure the eggs are cooked properly and avoid any raw egg products like homemade mayonnaise, ice cream, custard, and fresh Caesar dressing. Store-bought products are generally fine in this area, but raw or undercooked eggs can cause salmonella food poisoning. Salmonella can cause headache, vomiting, fever, severe abdominal cramps, and diarrhea.

Some soft cheeses should also be avoided, especially mature ones with mold and blue marbling, cheeses such as Brie, Camembert, Chevre, Danish blue, Gorgonzola, Roquefort and some Mexican soft cheeses. These are made from a mold that can contain a bacteria called listeria and cause miscarriage, stillbirth, or serious illness in your new baby. Symptoms of listeria infection can take up to six weeks to appear and can include fever, muscle aches, and nausea. If the infection spreads to your nervous system, you could experience confusion, changes in alertness, loss of balance, and seizures.

Also avoid unpasteurized milk, if you can only get pasteurized milk, it is recommended to boil it first.

Meat

Make sure all meat is well cooked to avoid food poisoning, stay away from pate and other liver products as they are high in vitamin A, your body needs some vitamin A during pregnancy as it is good for your immune system, however, your body naturally stores vitamin A and excessive build-up can harm your baby. Also cured sausages such as pastrami, salami and Parma, as they can also contain a risk of listeria.

Fish

Fresh fish is a great source of nutrients in a pregnancy diet, it is low in fat and high in protein, however you should not eat raw seafood such as oysters, mussels and sushi. Fish with high levels of mercury, such as shark, horse mackerel, and swordfish, should also be avoided. Tuna can also be considered a fish with high levels of mercury, so it is recommended to limit your intake of tuna to just 12 ounces per week of fresh or four small cans of can.

Alcohol and caffeine

Alcohol and caffeine should be consumed in careful moderation, especially during the first trimester, when the risk of miscarriage is greatest. Too much caffeine can cause low birth weight in newborns, and doctors have even witnessed caffeine withdrawal in newborn babies whose mothers consumed excessively. If you must drink non-decaf coffee, it is important to limit your intake to two cups a day.

Also watch your consumption of chocolate, tea, and caffeinated sodas for the same reasons. Heartburn can be a major area of ​​discomfort for pregnant women and while it is not a risk to the baby, there are certain foods you can avoid to minimize this side effect, avoiding spicy or greasy foods, mustard, vinegar , chocolate and high citrus flavors. help decrease heartburn.

It’s also a good idea to check the labels of grocery store foods to avoid additives like monosodium glutamate (MSG), which can cause stomach upset and headaches.

Although there are some foods to avoid, there are many foods that you are recommended to eat to ensure that both you and your baby are getting adequate intakes of vitamins, minerals, fats, and proteins. Avocados, olive oil, walnuts, muesli, lentils, and yogurt are just a few that you can feast on for the benefit of a healthy pregnancy.