Is it good to like to eat sweets during pregnancy?

Food made from sugar always makes us irresistible, especially for pregnant mothers. A preference for sweets during pregnancy is a common occurrence. However, if pregnant women eat a lot of sweets, it is not good for both mother and child.

Sugar is an essential material for the body, but it can also be a potential hazard if your body has too much sugar. So pregnant women eat a lot of sweets during pregnancy, how does it affect your baby's health? Let's learn with aFamilyToday Health through the following article.

Can you eat sweet while pregnant?

Of course yes, you can eat sugar or sweets as long as you don't overeat. If you have diabetes, you need to be more careful about your sugar intake.

However, be aware that refined sugars in candies, cakes, or soft drinks provide no nutrition for you. These foods should be replaced with more beneficial foods like whole grains, fruits and vegetables that contain natural sugars.

How much sugar can I take in during pregnancy?

There are no specific standards for how much sugar you can eat during pregnancy. Your sugar intake should depend on your body's metabolic rate, your blood sugar level and your weight. Under no circumstances should you consume less than 25g of sugar per day.

Eating too much sweet can harm the fetus?

Pregnant women eat a lot of sweets or carbohydrates can affect the development of the fetus. At the same time, the excess sugar in the blood due to gestational  diabetes or uncontrolled type 2 diabetes will adversely affect the baby.

The excess sugar crosses the placenta and increases fetal blood sugar. As a result, your baby will have to increase insulin secretion, a hormone that regulates sugar levels in the body, making them grow bigger. Therefore, the childbirth process also has more complications. You need a caesarean or even a premature birth . ( 1 )

Eating a lot of sweets can cause heartburn during pregnancy

Sugar won't directly cause heartburn, but it can make it worse. Sugars found in chocolate, citrus fruits, mints, and foods high in fat and caffeine can cause heartburn. Therefore, you should limit your intake of these foods.

Harmful when pregnant women eat a lot of sweets

Eating a lot of sweets will increase the number of calories but less of the nutrients you need during pregnancy

More severe pregnancy symptoms. Symptoms such as vomiting, heartburn or mood swings will get worse when you have excess sugar in your body.

Fatigue. Foods high in sugar will only provide empty energy to the body. They are high in sucrose that can cause you to experience a sudden hypoglycemia, make you tired and fall asleep.

Lack of nutrition. Food cravings are a normal phenomenon in pregnancy, but if you crave more sweet than other foods, you will eat nutritionally imbalanced, lack of nutrients, but gain weight and obesity because of excess energy.

Causes weight gain. Excess sugar will cause weight gain, while pregnant, the mother's body will gradually increase weight, eventually obesity and cause many complications during childbirth.

The baby craves more sweetness. When pregnant women eat a lot of sweets during pregnancy, it will affect the baby's taste in the future. Your child may have a craving for sweet as he grows up, causing child obesity and risk for many other health conditions.

Fatty liver in pregnancy. A pregnant woman's diet high in fructose can cause fatty liver syndrome. This can affect metabolism in the fetus and lead to obesity or type 2 diabetes later in the baby. (  2  )

Increased risk of pre-eclampsia. Eating plenty of sugar increases the risk of preeclampsia . ( 3  ).

Therefore, to avoid the above risks, you should minimize your sugar intake.

The secret to not eating a lot of sweets during pregnancy

To limit your sugar intake, you should:

Limit sweets and snacks. Stop eating refined sugar. If you can't do this, cut back on cakes, ice cream, pasta and other sweet snacks.

Replace with sweet fruit. If you crave sweet, you should replace it with fruits good for pregnant mothers such as mango, strawberry, and pineapple. Avoid fruits that are too sweet because they are high in sugar.

Do not use chemical sugar. The harmful effects of the chemical sugar can last long after pregnancy. You should replace it with a natural sweetener like honey.

Take care of the ingredients in packaged foods. Pay attention to the amount of sugar that foods bring in such as cereals, peanut butter, sauces, and many more. Choose foods low in sugar.

Do not leave any candies, ice cream, cakes or sweets in the house. When you crave, you buy these foods.

Reduce the amount of sugar taken into the body or replaced. You can avoid eating a lot of jam or bread, use 1 tablespoon of sugar instead of 2 tablespoons when drinking tea or coffee, and limit chocolate or ice cream.

In addition, you can replace white sugar with artificial sweeteners and still have health benefits.

Foods that help lower sugar levels

Improving your diet and exercise can help you lower your sugar naturally. Healthy foods you should eat include:

Low-sugar foods: Includes low-sugar foods like whole grains, beans, barley, oats, fruits and vegetables. These foods help with digestion longer and prevent the spike in blood sugar.

Probiotics: Probiotics are live bacteria that benefit the stomach and help improve digestion. They help regulate carbohydrate metabolism and help maintain blood sugar effectively. Natural yogurt is one of the good probiotic-containing products you can eat.

Fiber: Insoluble fiber is good for the digestive system and soluble fiber improves blood sugar levels. Oats and legumes are high in soluble fiber, while insoluble fiber is abundant in wheat. Fruits and vegetables contain both types of fiber.

Protein and healthy fats: Eat foods high in protein like nuts, eggs and poultry. Protein helps control blood sugar, helps you feel full and energizes. The healthy fats found in nuts, olive oil and avocado will help you reduce your cravings for sweetness.

You may crave sweetness during pregnancy, but if pregnant women eat a lot of sweets, it affects both mother and baby. So, learn to control cravings during pregnancy or replace refined sugary sweets with natural fruits and vegetables for better health.