PREGNANCY
I love talking about all things pregnancy! This is going to be a very general post and I will link more in-depth posts on certain topics below. This post just covers general pregnancy.
For a deep dive on specific items please click on the links on the main resource page!
GENERAL PREGNANCY INFO
Lily Nichols Just Ingredients Podcast
Real Solutions Podcast with Elizabeth Parsons
@LindsayTuttleNP Heartburn Highlight
Coffee & Consent List of Pregnancy Books
Doing it Different Podcast with Taylor Dukes
@InnateFunctionalNutrition Prenatal Highlight
The following photo & caption are from @hellomama.nutrition.
Cravings, another bodily signal.
Pregnancy and it’s infamous range of food cravings.
Fast food cravings - your body may be in need of fats, carbs, salt, and or/protein. If you commonly consume fast foods then this could be why you’re body is craving this vs a home cooked meal full of the same nutrients.
Meat/protein cravings - this is common among women who are plant-based or do not consume meat on a regular basis. Your body needs protein during pregnancy! After all, it is the building block to every cell in the body. A lack of protein can lead to gestational diabetes, pre-eclampsia, fatigue, and gestational hypertension.
Fruit/sweet cravings - this may be your body’s way of signaling that it may need a calorie increase, more vitamin C, or to give the body natural sugar for an energy boost.
Dairy - this is common during the third trimester when baby’s growth is exponentially increasing during the last 6 weeks.
Salty - blood volume increases greatly during the 2nd trimester and sodium/potassium(electrolytes) are essential for the body to maintain proper levels. Too much or too little can cause fluctuations in blood pressure.
Carbs - breads, cereals, starchy vegetables, etc. We are naturally drawn to sugars and that is perfectly okay! We need carbs as a source of energy but unfortunately most of the carbs we are presented at the grocery stores are refined and stripped of all nutrients.
Sour - the famous pickle craving. This craving is most likely signaling that it needs a little extra help with digestion.
Ice - a form of pica. This is your body’s way of telling you that it may be iron deficient.
Over the next few days I will go into greater detail about pregnancy cravings.
Mamas, always listen to your body 😊
The following photos & caption are from @madison.yount.
If you have experienced or are experiencing HG, I am so sorry. I had HG during my pregnancy, and I was convinced I was dying. It was one of the hardest things I have ever endured. It’s actually what started me on my root-cause practitioner journey.
While vitamin B6 is important for addressing nausea and vomiting, research suggests Thiamine and vitamin K are the primary deficiencies linked to HG (Thompson, 2002 and Shigemi et al., 2015).
Research also indicates that treatment-resistant HG is directly related to a thiamine deficiency (Thompson, 2002). Because these deficiencies will be severe in HG, research shows high doses are necessary to reduce symptoms and ensure absorption (Thompson, 2002).
While there is research linking these deficiencies, you can almost guarantee there are other deficiencies that need to be addressed.
HG is also directly linked to h. pylori (an overgrowth of bacteria). But H. pylori is not a root cause. There’s a reason the bacteria is proliferating—life-long deficiencies, mold, metals, pathogens, trauma.
I’ve shared what I personally wish I would have taken during my HG pregnancy if I had known what I know now. This is not medical advice—just what I personally wish I would have done. Work with your trusted provider to see what’s best for you.
If you’ve had HG and want to get pregnant again, there’s hope. Work with a root-cause practitioner. Address deficiencies and figure out what’s causing the h. pylori to proliferate.
Did you have HG? What helped you get through it?
The following photos & caption are from @alliehobsonwellness.
What to eat during pregnancy is incredibly important for both baby and mama. Our nutrient intake during pregnancy can affect the development of our babies and it also plays a huge role in how we feel (so do those nutrient reserves you build up prior to conceiving). When we have a craving most likely we are actually in need a specific nutrient. Our bodies are so smart.
Unfortunately, most western practitioners + conventional nutritional guidelines are so focused on telling pregnant mama what’s NOT to eat (most of which isn’t scientifically proven), when really we should be focusing on what TO EAT.
Lucky for you, we have dug into the science alongside the ancient wisdom of the ancestral cultures / traditions and the things we are telling women to stay away from are the cornerstones to what women truly need! We can see this too with prenatals now days, ensuring mamas get what they might be missing from food. But why not have both!?
Some craving examples from our experience:
Oysters- zinc, selenium, copper
Citrus - vitamin c
Dairy - (raw) A, D, E, K2, b vitamins, magnesium, calcium, selenium and phosphorus (plus a great balance of fat, carbs, protein)
Simplified…eat REAL food. That means if you don’t have to read a label it’s real! Listen to your body. Eat more protein and eat it within 30 minutes of waking up, it will help balance your blood sugar All DAY. Snacks are essential. We burn way more glucose and that means it’s okay to eat natural sugar (quality matters of course), pairing it with protein helps with breaking it down.
It’s disappointing that this idea of staying away from these nutrient dense foods is the norm for most people, but that’s why you are following us, right ?!
What have you noticed you crave the most? Does it give you any insight to what your body is asking for?
For us.....
Allie = Oranges / Runny Eggs!
Torie = Raw Dairy & Citrus
And don’t get us wrong we also crave things like sourdough & cereal too! Simple carbs are important too = quick glucose! All about quality and ingredients and making sure your blood sugar / insulin handles it well :)
Xoxox, A&T
The following photo & caption are from @graceoflifedoula.
Seems simple enough
Some of the most common (if not all) illnesses, issues, and complications during pregnancy are directly linked to nutrient deficiency. Including but not limited to:
•Morning Sickness
•Swelling
•Preeclampsia
•Fatigue
•Gestational Diabetes
•Placental Insufficiency
•IUGR
•Birth Defects
•Hyper/Hypotension
•Anemia
And every single one of those (and all the other ones not mentioned) are linked to not one single nutrient deficiency but multiple, a combination.
Anemia for instance is only an iron deficiency 1/3 of the time and even when it is iron deficiency, you still need other minerals like zinc and copper to support the bodies ability to maintain balance and absorption.
The solution? Focus on eating more. A larger variety of food. Instead of a lot of one food, eat a little bit of everything as well as a whole food multivitamin AND multi-mineral
The following photo & caption are from @environmentaltoxinsnerd.
This graphic visually explains why it’s soo so sooooo important for pregnant women to minimize exposure to environmental toxins.
When a pregnant woman is exposed to an environmental chemical, it's not just *her* that's getting exposed. Her fetus is also being exposed. And inside that fetus are the germ cells that will become her eggs or his sperm as they mature.
*note: it's not just chemicals that can have an impact here; stress, trauma, etc can be just as impactful.
It's likely that many health issues that manifest in adulthood have their origins in fetal life - this hypothesis is referred to as the Fetal Origins of Adult Disease (FOAD), or the Fetal Basis of Adult Disease (FEBAD).
This is why it's SO important for women (and men) to minimize exposures to environmental toxins PRIOR to conception and DURING pregnancy.
The following photo & caption are from @korimeloy.
this is a hot topic in my community & one I get questions about on a weekly basis from you guys, so I figured it deserved its own post!
first and most importantly, no I don’t think you’re making a “bad choice” if you take prenatal vitamins. I took a high quality prenatal with my first pregnancy 4 years ago, but once I dove deeper into metabolic health, minerals, & nose-to-tail eating, I was like wait sooo what’s the point of prenatals again….?? and I simply made an informed decision to not take them in the future. after all, I knew with confidence I was getting 99% of what I needed from FOOD🍉🥥🍊
there’s a second part of the story with prenatal vitamins though- how they can potentially do more harm than good by pumping your body with synthetic or less bioavailable forms of vitamins & minerals that can disrupt the way that your body processes the real deal from real food or create a mineral imbalance. a few small examples of these would be vitamin D (which is really a hormone, not a vitamin), absorbic acid, and iron.
this is why big-picture supplement education vs blindly supplementing is SO important to me, and why I dedicated an entire lesson to it in my online course!
I take an approach of food first, then minimal supplements second. when you’re eating nutrient & mineral powerhouses like grass-fed beef liver, pastured organic eggs, raw milk, bee products, and more, you’ll find that the need for prenatals or multivitamins just doesn’t make much logical sense.
for my complete blueprints on how to nourish yourself with real food, check out my online course Freely Rooted, and for more on prenatals, check my “prenatals” highlight💛
*not medical advice, and more importantly, doesn’t replace YOUR innate ability to decide what’s best for your body*
The following photo & caption are from @3littleplums.
In yesterday’s post I mentioned a new study that found 109 chemicals in a baby’s umbilical cord blood- that brings the count to about 387 🤦🏼♀️
We know that chemicals cross the placenta from mom to baby. We also know that many of these chemicals are coming from consumer products.
While we cannot live in a toxin free bubble, mothers do have the power to decrease their own exposure to everyday toxins, thereby decreasing our developing baby’s exposure too. THIS IS HUGE 💪🏻
Having said all of this: i know from personal experience that pregnancy can be particularly hard- especially that first trimester for some women. Sometimes it takes all your energy just to deal with the nausea and morning sickness. Do what you can. Don’t think you need to do everything in this list. Start with what you can and when you feel better try incorporating more.
Finally: the time to incorporate these habits - ideally- is prior to conception! So if you are planning on having a baby: start now!
(Full blog post- via link in profile- has the detail on my product recommendations ie fav water filters etc)
🌿Invest in a high quality water filter
🌿Eat organic foods as much as possible ( ⬇️ pesticides)
🌿Eat fresh foods, minimize processed & canned foods ( ⬇️ BPA & phthalates)
🌿Cook & eat at home, minimize takeout & eating out ( ⬇️phthalates)
🌿Avoid high mercury fish
🌿Avoid excess rice products ( ⬇️ arsenic)
🌿Avoid plastics: use stainless steel and glass
🌿Avoid nonstick cookware: use cast iron or stainless steel( ⬇️ PFAS)
🌿Limit daily use personal care products
🌿 .. and Read ingredients, choose personal care products that are truly non-toxic
🌿Dust often (⬇️ flame retardants, phthalates & more)
🌿Use non-toxic cleaners (when in doubt water & vinegar or castle soap more recomendations on blog)
🌿Open windows daily
🌿If air pollution is a factor invest in a high quality air filter
🌿Avoid synthetic fragrances
🌿Wash hands often
🌿Don’t handle thermal store receipts ( ⬇️BPA)
🌿Avoid home renovations
So many more but this is a great start! #nontoxicmunchkin
The following photos & caption are from @3littleplums.
The umbilical cord carries the building blocks of life, &, sadly also a steady stream of chemicals that cross the placenta.
Sometimes, chemicals found in umbilical cord blood are found in HIGHER amounts than in mom’s blood.
In utero exposure to toxic chemicals puts the developing baby at risk for adversely health impacts throughout their life, including neurodevelopmental delays & deficits, diabetes, obesity & cancer.
In 2005 EWG found 287 chemicals in 10 baby cord bloods. Among them, well studied, harmful toxins linked to neurodevelopment issues, endocrine disruption & more.
This year, scientists tested both maternal blood & cord blood of 30 pregnant women/newborn pairs. They detected 109 different chemicals from those found by EWG.
Among them: 55 chemicals never before reported in people & 42 “mystery chemicals,” whose sources & uses are unknown.
The known chemicals detected are/ are found in:
plasticizers (like phthlates) , cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, pesticides, flame retardants & PFAS compounds, which are used in carpeting, upholstery and other applications.
Among the chemicals not previously reported in people (perhaps because they are ‘newer’ technologies):
1 used as a pesticide
2 are PFASs (likely from replacement chemicals used in newer non-stick cookware & waterproof fabrics)
10 are used as plasticizers ( phthalates used in food packaging, paper plates etc)
2 are used in cosmetics
And more…
➡️𝗧𝗔𝗞𝗘𝗔𝗪𝗔𝗬⬅️
1️⃣chemicals in everyday consumer products can cross the placenta from mom to baby.
2️⃣mystery chemicals: if we don’t know where these chemicals are, we can’t avoid them. industry needs to be held accountable for new chemicals they developed (& forced to conduct safety testing prior to use). The federal gov’t needs to be pressured (by us) to step up & regulate new chemicals
3️⃣😫⭐️These figures can cause anxiety, but the reality is that in modern day society we cannot live in a bubble.
⭐️BUT that does not mean that cannot decrease the toxin load during pregnancy! It CAN be done
💫Check back tomorrow for easy tips to lower you & your baby’s toxin exposure during pregnancy
FOLLOW ME @THETOXINFREETEXAN for more tips and tricks!