Is eating sour food during pregnancy bad?

Last Update:

Is eating sour food during pregnancy bad? No, it’s not, but do not exaggerate. Eating any food, even the healthiest ones too much can lead to hypervitaminosis. 

Do you know that people or just that period of time when you have such a bad craving for sweets? Well, this can also happen when ladies are pregnant, but not only for sweets, for sour things as well. These foods can help women have a varied diet later in pregnancy while getting enough nutrition and calories. 

It is very often to see pregnant ladies eating these types of foods. Especially pickles, potato chips, and other salty snacks. Why is this so often to see? Is eating sour food during pregnancy bad? It’s very common because your body is trying to retain fluids and compensate for the loss of sodium during the first trimester. As a result, progesterone levels may cause you to lose more sodium in your urine during this time, which explains the cravings. 

Is it bad to eat sour food?

Is it bad to eat sour food? No, it is not bad to eat sour food at all. In fact, the acid in sour foods can help you balance out your body with a slightly alkaline pH. Despite their sour taste, many of these foods are actually quite safe and healthy to consume.

You are probably wondering why this is a question. I mean, there is no doubt that eating less sour foods would be beneficial for the mother and the baby. Why risk it? Well, before you completely write off the idea of eating sour food while pregnant, it’s important to understand what exactly goes on in your body during pregnancy. As your body grows to a much larger size during pregnancy, it needs more fluids to work properly. So, that means you need more calcium and magnesium – two minerals that are plentiful in most sour food sources like lemon juice and yogurt.

To sum it up, it is not bad to eat lip-puckering food while pregnant. An occasional bite of something sour is perfectly fine. That said, it is important to be mindful of what you’re eating and how often you’re eating it. Pickles are good for digestion, but too many could lead to over-acidity and cause problems for you or your baby. 

So, the balance is what matters. 

Why do I crave sour food in pregnancy?

There are a lot of things to wonder about when pregnant. One of them is, is eating sour food during pregnancy bad? As mentioned above, it’s not bad to eat sour food. But, another question pops up here. Why do pregnant ladies crave sour food? It’s because of the loss of gastric juice. Let’s explain.

When you are pregnant, a lot of different things are going on in your body. This especially refers to hormones that can change greatly. Pregnant women can experience changes in appetite and digestive function caused by chorionic gonadotropin. Sour foods can help you with this. They can increase the production of gastric juice, improve your appetite, and stimulate digestion.

This actually means that eating lip-puckering food is not forbidden nor bad but rather recommended and beneficial to the health of both mother and the baby.

What does it mean if you crave sour food?

It simply means that your body lacks stomach acids. That’s why you have needs and cravings to eat something sour. Anytime you feel this, eat sour things to make up for lost fluid. If a pregnant lady doesn’t eat a sufficient amount of acidic foods, the stomach acid levels drop, clogging the stomach’s ability to sterilize and digest food with ease. 

There are a lot of different foods with acid that can help you with your cravings. The most recommended ones are fruits like grapes, cherries, oranges, lemons, as well as vegetables like pickles and tomatoes. 

The fruit to avoid during your pregnancy is papaya. Why?

If you eat papaya raw or even semi-ripe it can cause premature contractions. Due to the latex content, this fruit is best to be avoided. You want to intake only what’s best for you and your unborn baby. 

What foods can harm your unborn baby?

While most fruits and vegetables are good, there are foods like unpasteurized dairy products as well as coffee that should be limited from your diet. 

Is eating sour food during pregnancy bad? Sour food is not bad but many foods that don’t contain the “pasteurized” approval, should be omitted from your everyday menu. Furthermore, certain fish and meats are also not recommended during pregnancy time. 

The pregnant lady shouldn’t eat undercooked or raw meats, such as beef, poultry, and pork, as well as other greasy food.  When it comes to eating hotdogs or deli meat, the best thing to do is cook them until they are steaming hot. If not, then it’s best not to eat this food at all. 

Another thing to avoid is fish, especially raw fish like sushi. Why? Because these fish are high in mercury therefore your baby may be exposed to metal during the pregnancy.

Summary

Is eating sour food during pregnancy bad? No it’s not. Eating sour food can actually help pregnant ladies to make up for lost sodium and stomach acids in the first trimester. Progesterone can cause sodium loss in the urine, which may explain the cravings during this time. At this point, eating these types of food can only be beneficial to the mother and its fetus.

If, anyhow, the mother does not receive enough craving nutritions it can lead to bad digestion and no ability for the stomach to sterilize the food. Therefore it is good to eat sour food but of course, everything in moderation. This does not mean that mother should eat everything she craves, including junk food. 

There are certain types of foods that should be avoided. Including junk food, mothers should also eliminate raw fish, uncooked or deli meats, from their diet. Due to high levels of mercury, pregnant ladies should not eat these, in order to avoid baby exposure to these metals. Aside from that, another thing that pregnant ladies should not have in their menu is papaya fruit. Due to the high level of latex, it can cause premature contractions. 

As regards sour foods, especially fruits and vegetables, in this period of life, mother and the baby are totally safe while receiving these nutrients. 

Leave a Comment