'I need your advice regarding eating spicy food during pregnancy. I don’t care what the pizza place advertises; their highly spicy pizza will not put you in labor. Why would anyone crave it then? That’s the last time they’ll have time to go out for dinner for several months after they have the baby, or they want an excuse to go out to eat after reading about how much it costs to raise a baby. I’ve heard that you shouldn’t eat spicy food during pregnancy. It is really a matter of tastes and tolerances. This isn’t like the smell of red meat or tuna that make me rather intolerant of those foods in my presence. There are women who can’t tolerate spicy food too, because it triggers morning sickness. The smell of meat is much more likely to trigger it. There are women craving cranberry juice and clay due to pregnancy, so being more sensitive to the smell of curry is not unreasonable. I’m concerned about eating it, but not made ill by it. If you have indigestion now, which usually kicks in during the second trimester because the growing baby is putting weight on the stomach, eating spicy foods will make it worse. Then I could get away with eating less of it. Or eat bread and other foods that absorb the stomach acids before you try to spicy foods. I’ve heard that spicy foods can be very good for you. Do you know that you can get the same nutrients from milder vegetables like tomato sauce and carrot juice over peppers? Tomato sauce is acidic too. Any food you eat that is acidic, including some spicy foods, risks making indigestion worse. So avoid the spicy foods during the second trimester. Indigestion gets worse into the third trimester as the baby puts more pressure on the stomach and drives acid into the esophagus. However, you can enjoy it more if you have small servings in the mid day or afternoon instead of the evening. I think that’s because indigestion is worse when you lay down. Yes, which is why if you want that spicy burrito, have it for lunch instead of dinner. But don’t have it as a late night snack. I’ve heard that you shouldn’t eat spicy foods during pregnancy or even while nursing. While traces of the foods will end up in the milk, it won’t have much of an effect unless you get drunk from that rum based spice cake or beer in addition to beer batter bread. I know not to drink alcohol during pregnancy. You’ll make the impact of spicy foods worse if you combine it with coffee or energy drinks that boost the acid in your stomach. Soda is almost as bad. So have water or juice with your Mexican or Indian lunch to minimize the impact, assuming you don’t have crackers and lemon water afterward to literally minimize the effect. It sounds like spicy foods are safe during pregnancy. There are spices you should avoid during pregnancy like roman chamomile, saw palmetto - That second one is recommended for prostate problems, and I don’t have one of those. I’ve read you should avoid aloe vera and basil oil, though a little on the Italian bread is fine. Limit the ginseng and senna and some other herbs. That rules out a lot of teas, but not foods per se. If in doubt, tell the waiter you’re pregnant so they know what not to recommend.'
Tags: pregnancy , spicy food , eating spicy food , during pregnancy
See also:
comments