Can pregnant women eat pineapple?

Exotic sweet pineapple attracts future moms with its unique taste. Many pregnant women say that they really want to enjoy the juicy flesh, or at least knock off pine juice with pineapple juice.

This fruit is a valuable source of nutrients, among which is a rare enzyme bromelain, which maintains normal weight and metabolism. However, future mothers should not be concerned about the issue of weight loss, so it is advisable to examine all the useful and negative properties of pineapple.

Chemical composition

The pulp of a tropical fruit consists mainly of liquid and coarse dietary fiber, which is indispensable for digestive processes, peristalsis and motility.

Also, pineapple has the following components:

• vitamins (A, B, C, E, D);
• minerals (iron, phosphorus, sodium, calcium, potassium, magnesium, zinc, copper and others);
• organic acids;
• antioxidants;
• enzymes (bromelain);
• tannins;
• ethers.

Bromelain is an exceptional compound that performs several functions at once:

• improves mood;
• improves the tone of the vascular walls and clears them of atherosclerotic plaques, toxins, "bad" cholesterol;
• prolongs the youth of the skin and promotes cell regeneration;
• stimulates the secretion of hydrochloric acid, providing high-quality digestion;
• kills pathogens in the intestines;
• breaks down proteins of animal origin, contributing to their more complete absorption.

Iron produces the prevention of anemia and hemoglobin deficiency, which often occurs in pregnant women. And in combination with ascorbic acid the microelement is absorbed more fully.

Pineapple also contains folic acid, which gynecologists prescribe to women during pregnancy planning, as well as in the first trimester.This vitamin provides the formation of the child's neural tube, prevents the development of pathologies and defects of the nervous system, the brain.

In addition, the sweet dish is not high-calorie, because 100 g of the product contains only 48 kcal.

Useful properties of pineapple during pregnancy

Exotic fruit is very useful for the future mother and baby, of course, in adequate quantities. It produces the following positive effects on their organisms.

1. Removes excess fluid from the body due to the diuretic effect and activation of the kidneys. As a result, the expectant mother reduces edema, which can cause severe discomfort and even provoke pregnancy complications - preeclampsia.
2. Quickly satisfies hunger and nourishes the body with energy. At the same time, future mothers are happy to eat pineapple even during toxicosis, as the fruit reduces nausea and normalizes digestion.
3. It raises the level of hemoglobin, a blood substance that transports oxygen to tissues and cells.
4. Regulates blood clotting. Useful components in the composition of pineapple gently thin the blood, reducing the risks of thrombosis and varicose veins,characteristic of pregnancy. As a result, the blood does not stagnate in the lower extremities, swelling and numbness of the legs disappear.
5. A positive effect on digestion, stimulating the secretion of gastric juice, reducing flatulence and bloating, colic. Pineapple is successfully used for the treatment of chronic constipation and hemorrhoids of pregnant women, because due to the abundance of dietary fiber, it perfectly cleans the intestines from metabolites, toxins and slags.
6. Reduces blood pressure. Exotic fetus allows you to deal with hypertensive conditions during pregnancy: hypertension, eclampsia and preeclampsia.
7. Produces prevention of beriberi. Pineapple is supplied in hypermarkets all year round and contains a significant amount of essential vitamins and trace elements. It is ideal for the prevention of seasonal vitamin deficiency.
8. Strengthens the central nervous system and brain. Vitamins B and magnesium in the composition of the fruit have a positive effect on the nervous system, eliminate irritability and anxiety, nervousness, depression. Also, the fruit stimulates the brain, improves performance, improves memory.

How to choose and use

In our countries, pineapple is not a local fruit, so you can only find it in supermarkets or specialty stores.

A good ripe pineapple should be hard enough, but elastic. Each scale should be tightly soldered on the other, as the looseness indicates the old age of the fruit. Carefully rotate the fruit in your hand, inspect the surface for the presence of soft zones, scuffs, spots.

The smell of pineapple should be characteristic, but not strong. Too pronounced aroma suggests the use of flavors and esters. Also, no smell of rot, acid, mildew or staleness should be present in the smell.

Only the correctly chosen fruit will benefit the future mother and child. But from canned pineapple, candied fruit or industrial nectar of a pregnant woman is better to refuse, because these products contain sweeteners, preservatives, dyes and flavor enhancers.

As for the use of fruit, it is undesirable to combine it with animal fats, for example, milk and dairy products. The fruit is preferably consumed separately from other dishes, but not immediately on an empty stomach, because organic acids can corrode the gastric mucosa, increase the risk of gastritis and ulcers.If fresh pineapple is too tart and concentrated for you, then you can freeze it, which will make the fruit softer.

Contraindications

Expectant mothers should exclude tropical fruit from the diet in the presence of the following pathologies:

• acute hypotension;
• bleeding disorders;
• increased acidity of the stomach, as well as colitis, gastritis, ulcer;
• damage to the oral mucosa (stomatitis, ulcers, glossitis, candidiasis, periodontal disease, periodontitis, and others);
• hypertonia of the uterus;
• allergic to citrus, yellow or orange fruit;
• acute food poisoning, diarrhea.

Bromelain really provokes muscle contraction, which can cause a feeling of “stone belly” and uterine tone in the second trimester.At the third such false labor can provoke an early onset of labor.

Pineapple is a useful fruit for the future mother in the case, if it is properly selected and eaten. But to abuse the product in the last trimester is not worth it, because it may increase the risk of premature birth, as well as atopic dermatitis in the newborn.

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