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Animal Meat Aversion during Pregnancy
Hi B & Daniel,Do you know if there are some ways to navigate all animal (poultry, red meat), seafood, and egg related aversions due to pregnancy?
Have you come across any research or any something you have seen in your private practice that can help reverse/deal with food aversion? Animal meat is an incredibly important source of bioavailable nutrients, and I’m concerned that not consuming it at all could contribute to a suboptimal diet.
What are some options in combatting potential nutrient deficiencies? The ones I could think of were lab testing and targeted supplementation, consuming higher amounts of high quality dairy, and eating a combination of plant based proteins to get all the essential amino acids.
Thanks!
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1 Reply
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Hey
During pregnancy, cells in the developing placenta make hCG (human Chorionic Gonadotropin). Levels of hCG peak around 11 weeks after pregnancy. Although we don’t know exactly what causes food aversions, it looks like the fast-rising levels can be a reason behind symptoms like morning sickness, food aversions and cravings.
Often, after the first trimester, those symptoms become milder or disappear. In some cases, they can stay longer.
Sometimes food aversions aren’t food aversions. So asking the right questions here is important as well. Sometimes nausea is associated with the food pregnant women see at that time. If this is the case you could focus on reducing the feeling of morning sickness or nausea:
• Avoid smells that trigger nausea
• Drink ginger tea/eat ginger for a few days and see if this helps
• Eat several small meals during the day – and try not to skip breakfast
• Laying down after eating can trigger nausea as well
• Vitamin B6 in studies has been shown to help with reducing feelings of morning sickness as well. If this option is one you like to explore I usually would recommend discussing this with the doctor first.
• Last but one of the most important pieces of advice: taking enough rest and focus on good quality sleep!With food aversions listening to your body while substituting those foods with other nutrient-dense food sources is a good strategy. I think you brought up some excellent ideas to replace high-protein food sources.
With milk products, make sure the products are pasteurized. For some reason, pregnant women have a higher risk of a Listeria infection. Lean cheeses are often high in protein. Nuts can be easy snacks. Adding beans, lentils and protein-rich (pseudo) grains like quinoa and teff to the diet can help as well.
Personally, unless someone knows how many vitamins one consumes from foods, I usually recommend my clients to use a good quality prenatal multivitamin supplement. Just be aware that some pregnant women can experience nausea from swallowing such a supplement. Iron can in some cases irritate the stomach. Taking the supplement with foods helps.
I hope this helps!
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