What Not To Eat When Pregnant? Foods To Avoid

What not to eat during pregnancy: a list of foods to avoid in the first trimester to avoid Toxoplasmosis and not gain too much weight.

What Not To Eat When Pregnant

The eating routine to follow during pregnancy isn’t dependent upon specific limitations: the counsel of presence of mind is to eat in a fluctuated and adjusted manner, most notably to try not to get excessively fat and to forestall difficulties like diabetes or toxemia. In any case, a few food varieties are not suggested or even taboo during pregnancy: the limitations predominantly concern new food varieties that can be a vehicle for food poison diseases, like Toxoplasmosis. Here, then, at that point, is an outline of what not to eat during pregnancy.

What Not To Eat When Pregnant In The First Trimester

It is common to suffer from morning sickness in the first months of pregnancy; therefore, the first piece of advice is to have frequent, light meals, favoring liquids and dry foods. Here is an example of a first-trimester diet recommended by our dietician:

1. Breakfast: the cup of semi-skimmed milk, rusks and apricots
2. Snack: low-fat yogurt with cereals
3. Lunch: pasta with tomato and basil and some cheese and mixed vegetables
4. Snack: strawberries with a scoop of fiordilatte ice cream
5. Dinner: omelet without oil with asparagus and bread

List Of Foods Not To Eat During Pregnancy

Here is a list of foods that are to be avoided or to be consumed with particular attention, for example, when cooking:

1. Soft cheeses made with unpasteurized milk because they can harbor listeria bacteria;
2. undercooked meat: raw or undercooked meat can carry Toxoplasmosis and other bacteria, such as salmonella and E. Coli;
3. Sushi: avoid raw fish and seafood, which can be a source of parasites and harmful bacteria. Fish and seafood should be consumed only after adequate cooking;
4. Raw eggs can transmit salmonella, so they should be avoided altogether. Therefore, also avoid desserts prepared with raw eggs, such as those with zabaglione creams or Tiramisu;
5. Raw vegetables or fruit with peel: they should be eaten cooked and only after washing them properly;
6. Cured meats and sausages: they can transmit Toxoplasmosis, as well as being invalid from a nutritional point of view and high in fat and salt;
7. Large fish: may contain excessive amounts of methylmercury. There is no problem with eating a slice of swordfish now and then – as long as it has been well-cooked – but don’t overdo it with tuna or swordfish. Therefore, prefer smaller fish with low mercury content such as anchovies, salmon, cod;
8. Homemade pate and sauces.

Alcohol In Pregnancy

Alcohol should be avoided altogether: even in tiny doses, it is a teratogenic substance and can cause severe problems for the unborn child, even in the long term. These include the fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS), a complex malformation condition diagnosable already in the neonatal period, characterized by specific facial malformations (short eyelid rims, thin upper lip, flat and elongated nasolabial filter), microcephaly, growth failure weight-bearing and neuro-psychomotor retardation.

Coffee In Pregnancy

Coffee should be consumed in moderation: the maximum recommended dose of caffeine in pregnancy is 200-300 mg per day. This quantity is achieved by drinking two or three cups of espresso, but it can easily be overcome by drinking a can of cola or an energy drink. 

What To Eat During Pregnancy So As Not To Gain Too Much Weight

According to the indications shared in the first trimester of pregnancy, a woman of average weight should gain weight by a maximum of one and a half kilograms or a little more. The advice of the experts is not to eat for two, but to diversify the weekly diet, consuming cereals, fibers, vitamins and minerals, proteins and fats, giving up above all junk food. Ten responsible behaviors in terms of nutrition during pregnancy:

1. Check your weight and blood sugar.
2. A diet rich in folate and supplementation with folic acid, in the right ways and times, against some malformations of the nervous system
3. Vitamin B12 is essential to make the best use of folic acid and folate.
4. Iodine is essential for the growth of the child and the development of the brain.
5. Supplements, supplements, health foods: only if there is a specific deficiency
6. Prevent toxoplasmosis and listeriosis
7. Avoid wine and alcohol when pregnant.
8. Eat fish the intelligent way (EFSA recommendations)
9. Attention in the kitchen: cooking and containers
10. Cut back on caffeinated drinks.

What Not To Eat To Avoid Toxoplasmosis

Toxoplasmosis is caused by an intracellular parasite, present in many domestic mammals and is transmitted orally by contact with feces or meat. Toxoplasmosis infection is harmless for the mother but very dangerous for the fetus. For this reason, the recommendations of the experts and the Ministry of Health are to avoid foods that can potentially be a vehicle for the infection. The foods not to eat, therefore, are above all raw:

1. unwashed raw vegetables (potentially contaminated with carrier animal feces)
2. raw meat (unless it has been frozen for a few days)
3. Slightly seasoned sausages and smoked meats.

Listeriosis

Listeriosis is an infrequent bacterial infection, a risky pregnancy for the fetus. Foods that represent a potential vehicle for the disease are:

1. fish
2. raw meat and vegetables
3. unpasteurized milk and dairy products (soft cheeses, butter)
4. prepared foods (ready to use): cold meats, prepackaged salads, sandwiches
5. Soft cheeses, unless they are made with pasteurized milk.

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