Foods that Pregnant Women Should Avoid at Iftar and Sahur

Basically there is no prohibition for pregnant women to fast. It’s just that pregnant women have to be extra careful in choosing what intake they consume. Therefore, it is important to recognize what foods need to be avoided when breaking the fast and sahur.
List of Foods that Pregnant Women Should Avoid During Fasting
Foods that are prohibited for pregnant women during fasting are generally the same as prohibited during pregnancy in general. However, there are several types of food that must also be considered so that pregnant women do not consume them at the wrong time.
The following are various foods that pregnant women should avoid when breaking the fast and sahur, including:
1. Foods that Trigger Stomach Acid to Rise
Foods that taste quite strong, such as spicy or sour, are foods that are prohibited for pregnant women during fasting. Avoid consuming it, both at breaking the fast and dawn.
Consumption of these types of food will trigger excessive stomach acid to be produced so that it will interfere with the pregnant woman’s health condition during fasting. This applies not only to dishes with strong spices, but also to other foods such as fruit.
Pregnant women who are fasting should avoid consuming sour fruits such as oranges or kiwi fruit.
Also Read: Can Eating Pineapple During Pregnancy Cause a Miscarriage?
2. Too Sweet Food
Even though fasting is always synonymous with sweet food, it doesn’t mean that pregnant women can just eat it. Make sure pregnant women choose processed sweet foods selectively.
Avoid consuming sweet foods from simple carbohydrates such as syrup, sweet chocolate, or liquid sugar. This not only makes the pregnant woman’s body really crave these sweet foods, but also causes the body to become weak during fasting which causes an increased risk of diabetes during pregnancy.
Sweet food for pregnant women should come from natural sugar, for example fruit sugar or dates.
3. Packaged Foods
During fasting, it is difficult to resist the temptation to consume savory packaged foods such as chips, instant noodles or corned beef.
Unfortunately, these foods have a high salt and fat content. Therefore, packaged food is a type of food that pregnant women need to avoid when breaking their fast or sahur.
As is known, pregnant women’s blood pressure must be maintained. Consumption of foods with high salt and fat will only interfere with blood pressure during pregnancy.
If you want to consume it, consume it after the tarawih prayer so as not to interfere with your appetite when breaking fast and dawn. Also, don’t forget to limit portions.
Also Read: 8 types of nuts that are good for pregnant women
4. Fast Food
Apart from containing bad fats, hamburgers or meat sandwiches do not provide the nutritional content needed by pregnant women.
This type of food is also at risk of not being perfectly cooked in cooking its animal protein ingredients. In addition, it is feared that the ingredients used are not fresh so that they can increase the risk of bacterial infections.
If pregnant women want to consume it, make fast food yourself with a healthier method. Choose a cooking method by grilling or boiling meat rather than frying flour.
Don’t forget, also balance it with the consumption of other complete and balanced nutritious foods, okay?
5. Raw Food
Consuming raw and undercooked foods such as sushi risks increasing exposure to salmonella bacteria which are harmful to pregnant women and their fetuses.
In addition, raw fish and shellfish can also cause bacterial, viral and parasitic infections.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), pregnant women are at 10 times greater risk of infection Listeria (bacteria) than ordinary people.
To keep your pregnancy healthy, make sure to avoid consuming raw fish or shellfish. No need to worry, you can enjoy this type of food again after the baby is born.
Also Read: 10 Iftar Menus for Diet, Tasty and Healthy
6. Caffeine and Alcohol
In addition to foods that are prohibited for pregnant women during fasting, drink intake must also be considered. During fasting, pregnant women should avoid consuming caffeine and alcoholic beverages.
Consumption of caffeinated drinks, both when breaking the fast until dawn, will increase the risk of disrupting sleep patterns to health problems.
Improper sahur will cause pregnant women’s daily nutritional needs to be less fulfilled. In the end, this could interfere with your health and the growth and development of the fetus.
In addition, consumption of caffeinated drinks, such as coffee, energy drinks, or chocolate drinks, is closely related to increased blood pressure and blood sugar levels. This condition can trigger hypertension and diabetes during pregnancy.
Meanwhile, alcoholic beverages should be avoided by pregnant women because they can increase the risk of miscarriage and stillbirth. In fact, even a little alcohol consumption can have a negative impact on the baby’s brain development.
Now, that’s a list of foods that pregnant women need to avoid when breaking the fast and sahur. Avoid these types of food for the smooth running of fasting and the health of the pregnancy that is maintained. Hopefully this information is useful, Healthy Friends.
- Anonymous. 2020. Foods to Avoid in Pregnancy. https://www.nhs.uk/pregnancy/keeping-well/foods-to-avoid/. (Accessed April 10, 2023).
- Bjarnadottir, Adda. 2020. 11 Foods and Beverages to Avoid During Pregnancy – What Not to Eat. https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/11-foods-to-avoid-during-pregnancy. (Accessed April 10, 2023).
DoctorHealthy | © 2023 PT Media Kesehatan Indonesia. Copyright Protected