Thought of sharing some insights which I received from my grandmom while growing up. I have always admired her wisdom despite her minimal formal education. May be thats what we call the practical knowledge or wisdom! I cannot 100% state that this is "the right thing to do", as most of these are hearsays and I may not be able to furnish scientific documents to support them. But I always try to follow the rule - when in doubt, do no do! So whenever you feel like challenging some of them, please feel free to post your comments and may be we could explore further together!
Also thought of sharing the pregnancy diet tips - knowledge partly from parents/grandparents and partly from the massive google search. Again, there could be challenging items. Also if you have any tips to share, please feel free to share so that it may help someone else.
Food
1. Do not mix curd with hot rice.
2. Avoid having curd in the night.
3. Milk should not be mixed with anything salty.
4. The combination of milk and anything tangy (strawberries, pineapples, kiwi fruit etc etc) is a big no-no.
5. If you are not doing enough physical work, then eating rice twice a day will do more harm to your body than good.
6. Fruits need to be eaten as they are. Juicing removes the fibre content in the fruit (which helps in digestion and avoids constipation) and increases the sugar content (which is definitely not good for your body).
7. Honey should not be heated.
8. Milk and dates make a great combination
9. Its better to avoid the seeds of chilly in cooking.
10. Avoid curd with meat and fish.
11. To get maximum juice out of lemon, place it in warm water for 10 min before squeezing.
12. Lemon juice, curd etc (anything sour) should not be placed / stored in steel containers.
Pregnancy Diet
1. Drink atleast 10-12 glasses of water everyday. This will ensure that the toxins do not get stuck in your body (harming the baby) and are regularly removed in urination process. My grandmom used to give me water boiled with Cheroola (medicinal plant, english name - mountain knots) saying that helps to remove the toxins easily.
2. Reduce rice consumption to once a day. Eating more rice (carbs / sugar) might lead to gestational diabetes in later phase of pregnancy.
3. It is better not to eat too much during the last trimester of pregnancy, as at this stage majority of what you eat adds to the baby weight. The more the baby weight, the difficult your delivery becomes. (I didn't listen to my grandmom and I kept eating...and the result - I struggled during my pregnancy with a 9 hr labour as the baby was heavy. So I did keep a check in my second pregnancy and had a comparatively smoother delivery).
4. Eating lots of fruits keeps your constipation under control, along with needed dose of nutrients.
5. Eating dal with little ghee also helps the above.
6. Its good to avoid meat during the pregnancy as it can lead to constipation.
7. Eating fish is good (if you like), but avoid fishes like tuna and mackerel as their mercury content is high. Higher mercury levels might affect the baby's brain development and nervous system.
8. Fruits like pomegranate contain natural folic acid.
9. It is essential to keep your body cool during pregnancy time. Hence it is important to eat foods with cooling property. Milk is one such. Also the fruits except papaya (some studies have shown that fully ripe papaya isn't dangerous. But isn't is better to avoid when in doubt) & dates. Too much masala in food also quickly heats up your body. So try to have mild, home cooked meals.
10. Hotel / bakery foods are loaded with salt and sugar, both are harmful to the baby as well as you! The former shoots up your blood pressure and latter your sugar levels.
11. Keep moving, keep walking, keep doing the chores, although you feel tired. Your efforts will be paid off in the end, you'll not have to scream too much and probably have a normal delivery!
12. You'll need frequent smaller meals throughout the day. Try having fruits for the in-between meals.
13. For those experiencing muscle cramps during pregnancy, eating one banana (nenthrakaya) a day helps as it contains potassium. Eating green leafy vegetables and food rich in calcium (milk, curd) also helps to reduce the spasms.
Also thought of sharing the pregnancy diet tips - knowledge partly from parents/grandparents and partly from the massive google search. Again, there could be challenging items. Also if you have any tips to share, please feel free to share so that it may help someone else.
Food
1. Do not mix curd with hot rice.
2. Avoid having curd in the night.
3. Milk should not be mixed with anything salty.
4. The combination of milk and anything tangy (strawberries, pineapples, kiwi fruit etc etc) is a big no-no.
5. If you are not doing enough physical work, then eating rice twice a day will do more harm to your body than good.
6. Fruits need to be eaten as they are. Juicing removes the fibre content in the fruit (which helps in digestion and avoids constipation) and increases the sugar content (which is definitely not good for your body).
7. Honey should not be heated.
8. Milk and dates make a great combination
9. Its better to avoid the seeds of chilly in cooking.
10. Avoid curd with meat and fish.
11. To get maximum juice out of lemon, place it in warm water for 10 min before squeezing.
12. Lemon juice, curd etc (anything sour) should not be placed / stored in steel containers.
Pregnancy Diet
1. Drink atleast 10-12 glasses of water everyday. This will ensure that the toxins do not get stuck in your body (harming the baby) and are regularly removed in urination process. My grandmom used to give me water boiled with Cheroola (medicinal plant, english name - mountain knots) saying that helps to remove the toxins easily.
2. Reduce rice consumption to once a day. Eating more rice (carbs / sugar) might lead to gestational diabetes in later phase of pregnancy.
3. It is better not to eat too much during the last trimester of pregnancy, as at this stage majority of what you eat adds to the baby weight. The more the baby weight, the difficult your delivery becomes. (I didn't listen to my grandmom and I kept eating...and the result - I struggled during my pregnancy with a 9 hr labour as the baby was heavy. So I did keep a check in my second pregnancy and had a comparatively smoother delivery).
4. Eating lots of fruits keeps your constipation under control, along with needed dose of nutrients.
5. Eating dal with little ghee also helps the above.
6. Its good to avoid meat during the pregnancy as it can lead to constipation.
7. Eating fish is good (if you like), but avoid fishes like tuna and mackerel as their mercury content is high. Higher mercury levels might affect the baby's brain development and nervous system.
8. Fruits like pomegranate contain natural folic acid.
9. It is essential to keep your body cool during pregnancy time. Hence it is important to eat foods with cooling property. Milk is one such. Also the fruits except papaya (some studies have shown that fully ripe papaya isn't dangerous. But isn't is better to avoid when in doubt) & dates. Too much masala in food also quickly heats up your body. So try to have mild, home cooked meals.
10. Hotel / bakery foods are loaded with salt and sugar, both are harmful to the baby as well as you! The former shoots up your blood pressure and latter your sugar levels.
11. Keep moving, keep walking, keep doing the chores, although you feel tired. Your efforts will be paid off in the end, you'll not have to scream too much and probably have a normal delivery!
12. You'll need frequent smaller meals throughout the day. Try having fruits for the in-between meals.
13. For those experiencing muscle cramps during pregnancy, eating one banana (nenthrakaya) a day helps as it contains potassium. Eating green leafy vegetables and food rich in calcium (milk, curd) also helps to reduce the spasms.
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