Health Benefits of Nuts during Pregnancy
This article is an endeavour to uncover the health benefits of nuts during pregnancy. Pregnancy creates many health issues that are dangerous for both mother and child. By these lines, I tried to investigate nuts’ benefits for mother and child’s health. This research found that whereas nuts offer lots of health benefits there, they protect against various diseases. If you include nuts in your pregnancy diet chart, surely you would get impressive health benefits.
Being pregnant is a common word, but pregnancy creates several complications and challenges. The body has a great deal to perform in pregnancy. Sometimes the changes which take place create annoyance or discomfort, and sometimes you may be disturbed. Some common pregnancy problems are high blood pressure, gestational diabetes, preeclampsia, anemia, infections, feeling faint, incontinence, skin problems, nausea, and vomiting.
Including nuts in your pregnancy diet chart won’t only relieve your health issues but also improve your baby’s health. Nuts prevent us from various diseases as they contain healthy nutrients like protein, fibre, calcium, omega-3, vitamin D, E, L-arginine, and many more. We know nuts’ general health benefits, but many don’t know their benefits during pregnancy. Mostly women include many foods in their pregnancy food chart, which are difficult to prepare and eat daily. If you are thinking about the best nutritional superstars, you should include nuts in your pregnancy food chart. They contain plenty of nutrients in a few bites, and you can eat them anytime, anywhere.
According to the study of the European Journal of Epidemiology, eating nuts during early pregnancy helps improve a child’s neuropsychological development. It was also found that mothers who take an average 74 grams of nuts per week, their children’s IQ, memory, and concentration were found better than those whose mothers do not consume nuts during pregnancy.
Can you eat nuts in pregnancy?
Before some opinions eating nuts during pregnancy causes allergy in babies. But there is no real evidence proving the above opinions. Moreover, NIH denied these controversies and advised that you can eat nuts during pregnancy. According to famous dietitian Dr. Emma Derbyshire, “if you don’t have any history of allergy, then you can eat nuts in pregnancy. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists also approved using nuts during pregnancy. Keeping all of the above in mind, the good thing is that you can enjoy nuts during pregnancy. However, if you are already allergic to nuts, then you should not use them during pregnancy.
Health benefits of nuts in pregnancy
In general, everyone knows the impressive benefits of nuts. They are excellent in fiber, protein, vitamins B and E, omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, which are essential for health. Similarly, their consumption during pregnancy provides benefits to both mother and baby. They play a vital role in reducing pregnant women’s health issues.
Nuts are rich in iron, and iron is helpful to develop red blood cells in your baby. Blood volume increases in pregnancy and causes anemia. Iron is the best safeguard against anemia. You may face back pain as ligaments in the body become softer to prepare you for delivery. In that case, including nuts in your diet can be helpful to avoid backache. Also, amino acids in protein make healthy every cell in the mother and child’s body. Pistachios are rich in iron, protein, vitamin E, calcium, and magnesium.
Nuts offer a significant quantity of Vitamin B and folic acid, which form your baby’s nervous system and brain. Folic acid is also effective against neural-tube defects like spina bifida. Nuts are also high in fiber, keeping your digestive system active and help to protect you from pregnancy-related constipation. Walnuts are high in folic acid, omega-3 fatty acids critical to overcoming prenatal depression that is harmful to babies’ eyes and brains. Eating walnuts during pregnancy is helpful for neural development because they are rich in omega-6. Moreover, fatty acids are helpful during delivery and birth weight of babies.
Your baby needs a regular supply of calcium for his growing bones. Nuts rich in fiber, calcium, and vitamin-D like almond can form the strong bones of your baby. Moreover, their good bacteria will protect your stomach upset and yeast infections. Candida or yeast infections are common issues in pregnancy that occur due to hormone changes and disrupt the pH level of the vagina. Most women get preeclampsia in pregnancy due to high blood pressure, which affects their liver or kidneys. Eating almonds during pregnancy can reduce the risk of preeclampsia as it contains vitamin E.
Protein plays a crucial role during pregnancy since it helps to keep your baby’s growth regular. It also helps develop other essential organs like repairing damaged tissues and making robust the immune system. Peanuts are rich in protein and folate, contributing to the baby’s brain and spine development. Nausea and vomiting are very common in pregnancy first 16 to 20 weeks. Peanuts also consist of vitamin B6, which helps you to overcome vomiting and morning sickness.
Mostly women face mental illness in their first pregnancy. They feel more weak and anxious and get into depression. Eating nuts can protect you from mental illness during pregnancy. Nuts such as walnuts, brazil nuts, hazelnuts, and cashews are rich omega-3 fats that protect overall mental health.
Incontinence (urine leakage) is common during pregnancy in many women. Growing a baby in your womb puts pressure on your pelvic floor muscles. You can overcome incontinence by taking enough fiber in your diet. Almonds, Pistachios, Sunflower kernels are a great source of fiber. Nuts help in the improvement of memory and other cognitive functions. Studies showed that eating nuts in early pregnancy provides long term benefits for a child’s cognitive development.
Due to hormonal changes and the growing baby pressure on the stomach, women cause indigestion or heartburn. Eating a few almonds after a meal can provide relief to you from heartburn. These nuts neutralize the juices in the stomach and help to avoid indigestion. Nuts can prevent you from skin and hair issues during pregnancy. Mostly women get dark spots on breasts, nipples, or brown patches on the cheeks and forehead. Eating walnuts can counter your skin problems because they are rich in omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids.
Conclusion
A healthy diet in pregnancy is crucial for mental development and birth weight, and it can also avoid the risk of various congenital disabilities. Nuts provide a superstar pack of nutrition that covers all your diet needs. They also offer all these benefits, protective against various health issues and essential for a baby’s health.
