Eating Right While Pregnant: Foods to Avoid

Eating Right While Pregnant

Are there foods I should avoid?
Yes, here are some of them:

Avoid alcohol during pregnancy. Alcohol has been linked to premature delivery, mental retardation, birth defects and low birth weight babies.
Limit caffeine to no more than 300mg per day. The caffeine content in various drinks depends on the beans or leaves used and how it was prepared. An eight ounce cup of coffee has about 150mg of caffeine on average, while black tea has typically about 80mg. A 12-ounce glass of caffeinated soda contains anywhere from 30 to 60mg of caffeine. Remember, chocolate contains caffeine—the amount of caffeine in a chocolate bar is equal to a quarter-cup of coffee.
The use of saccharin is strongly discouraged during pregnancy because it can cross the placenta and may remain in fetal tissues. But the use of other non-nutritive or artificial sweeteners approved by the FDA is acceptable during pregnancy. These FDA-approved sweeteners include aspartame (Equal or NutraSweet), acesulfame-K (Sunett) and sucralose (Splenda). These sweeteners are considered safe in moderation so talk with your health care provider about how much non-nutritive sweetener is acceptable during pregnancy.
Decrease the total amount of fat you eat to 30 percent or less of your total daily calories. For a person eating 2,000 calories a day, this would be 65 grams of fat or less per day.
Limit cholesterol intake to 300mg or less per day.
Do not eat shark, swordfish, king mackerel or tilefish (also called white snapper), because they contain high levels of mercury.
Avoid soft cheeses such as feta, brie, camembert, blue-veined, and Mexican-style cheese. These cheeses are often unpasteurized and may cause listeria infection. Hard cheese, processed cheese, cream cheese, cottage cheese or yogurt need not be avoided.
Avoid raw fish, especially shellfish like oysters and clams.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

SOURCE: The National Women's Health Information Center. Reviewed by the Cleveland Clinic Birthing Services and the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology. Portions © The Cleveland Clinic 2000-2002.

E-mail to a friend