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Now it has been confirmed that you are pregnant there are certain matters you really must deal with! One of the most essential considerations is that of eating and more simply eating correctly and healthily during your pregnancy. It is important that you eat a well balanced meal all the time so as to provide your developing baby with the vitamins, nutrients and minerals essential to ensure proper growth. There are a number of foods that need to be avoided since they may cause risk to not only you but your growing baby as well. In the main it can be maintained that most woman know the fundamentals of what they should and should not eat during pregnancy. I am sure you are already aware of what to eat and more significantly what not to eat. That having been stated it is worthwhile running through a few swift “does and do not’s” just to be on the safe side. The strikingly evident “do not’s” are; eliminate caffeine totally or at the very least decrease your intake of caffeine; though not strictly classed as a food you must stop smoking if you are a tobacco user. I would also advocate that you steer clear of smoky atmospheres whenever you can. Legislation in most countries over the last decade has moved smokers out of dinning establishments, cinemas, public buildings and public transport, to name a few instances. This has aided the cause of the pregnant woman enormously. Also it would be prudent to cut down your intake of alcohol. Around the world there are many studies being undertaken to look into the effects of certain foods on the pregnant mother and her unborn baby. Without entering into too much mind numbing depth it would be true to say that there are a variety of foods that scientific evidence is suggesting would be advantageous for the pregnant mother to avoid. Perhaps the most observable piece of advice to emerge from these scientific studies is that pregnant women should avoid consuming uncooked meat. It is highly likely that you currently do not consume raw meat, so that would be fine. Unfortunately there is a bit more to it than that. The studies are informing us that choices such as rare steaks and rare burgers should be avoided. Pregnant women should make certain that all of the meats they eat is cooked through thoroughly. It may well not be a bad idea to request your steak to be well done. The trouble with raw or rare meats is that they may include harmful bacteria. You and your unborn baby are susceptible to such bacteria during pregnancy and as such the risk from these bacteria is elevated. For this reason it may be sensible avoiding cold deli meats for the term of your pregnancy. The main culprit here is listeria which can in a number of circumstances be somewhat threatening to your baby. Listeria raises its ugly head once more when it comes to considering many of the soft cheeses such as brie, feta, camembert and gorgonzola. These cheeses are normally made with unpasteurized milk which is known to sometimes contain listeria. The basic story here is to make sure that any soft cheese you eat is produced from pasteurized milk; you will have to read the packaging thoroughly. Raw eggs or anything containing raw eggs should be stayed away from during pregnancy. There is a potential exposure to salmonella which needs to be to be avoided during pregnancy. This suggests no hollandaise sauce or blue cheese dressing. Fish has always been a controversial topic for pregnant women! The balance is somewhere between getting important nutrients that are needed by the baby and avoiding possibly damaging components such as mercury, which is thought to be found in some fish. So any fish which may have a substantial level of mercury such as shark, swordfish, mackerel, tuna and fish used in sushi should be avoided right through the pregnancy period. Numerous studies have linked mercury to developmental complications in new born babies so it is well worth steering clear of these foods for now. Raw shellfish also should be avoided during pregnancy. There will not be a more important time to be cautious with what you eat now that you are pregnant. Some of the above foods have been associated in medical studies to miscarriages and other birth abnormalities. But don’t be concerned as this only comes about in a minority of cases. The idea is to keep away from foods with a known risk element and take pleasure in a whole selection of other foods for the benefit of you and your baby. If you want to read more from Mike Matthews on the subject of pregnancy visit his pregnancy website
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