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Common Pregnancy Cravings
Sweets, salty and spicy foods, and sour foods are the most common cravings during pregnancy.
1. Salty Foods:
A hypothetical belief says that if you have a low sodium level in your diet, you might crave for salty and spicy food during pregnancy. Various researches show that repeated bouts of sodium depletion might lead to an increase in sodium intake. This seems to be a plausible cause and effect as your blood volume increases during pregnancy. This change needs proper management of the intake of sodium and potassium.
Some of the foods that you may crave in pregnancy are French fries, popcorn, different sauces, mixed nuts, and chicken tenders with extra salt added.
2. Sweet Cravings:
A pregnant woman craving sugar will most likely show affinity towards chocolate, ice cream sugars, sugary sweets, and doughnuts. A research study has shown that pregnant women with gestational diabetes show more liking towards sweets than mothers without gestational diabetes. This preference towards sweet foods is linked to the serial rise and fall in the pregnancy hormones. However, the research studies to support this reasoning are limited.
3. Spicy And Hot Foods:
Though not as popular as sweet and salt cravings, spicy food is also in the cravings list. You may desire hot wings, curries, and red peppers. Some old wives’ tales say that women carrying boys crave spicy foods, whereas those carrying girls crave sweet foods such as chocolates.
4. Unique And Weird Combinations Craving:
Sometimes, pregnant women also crave for some strange food combinations such as marmite on ice cream, pickle with ice cream, sponge cake with tomato sauce, fried eggs with mint sauce, pickles with peanut butter, or tuna with bananas. These cravings are highly individual and may/may not be linked to any specific physiological change happening during pregnancy.
5. Cravings For Citric Foods:
Lemon, lime, vinegar, and pickles are some of the citric food cravings. Craving citric acid foods could be a sign of low stomach acids. Stomach acids help sterilize the food by breaking it into proteins. The desire for citrus can indicate your body’s requirement of some vitamins, such as vitamin C, contained in these foods. However, there are no research studies that support the belief.
6. Craving For Non-Foods:
Some women crave non-food items. The pathological act of eating non-food items is called PICA. Due to the unusual appetite, it is considered a dangerous disease that poses a considerable risk for the expecting mother and the fetus. Pica during pregnancy could indicate iron deficiency or malnutrition.
7. Unhealthy Cravings:
Craving unhealthy foods during pregnancy is often linked to psychological factors. A research study conducted at the University of Albany showed that these foods are craved during pregnancy as they are prohibited otherwise. Examples of few of such are coffee, alcohol, pizza, potato chips, fast foods, and more.
8. Healthy Cravings:
Some women may crave healthy foods. Foods you would mostly crave for are fruits (apples, watermelon, pears, grapes), vegetables (leafy greens, legumes, garlic), meat (red meat, lean ground meat), seafood (crab, fish), juice (orange, grapefruit), and dairy (milk, yogurt, cheese). During pregnancy, you should try including more of these foods in your diet.
Source: https://www.momjunction.com/articles/simple-ways-deal-food-cravings-pregnancy_0010077/ |