The Benefits of Eating Avocado in Pregnancy
Avocado is a food that not only contributes to your diet but also contains nutrients that help your baby grow. Consuming it regularly will help you have an optimal and much more bearable pregnancy.
Indeed, the contributions that this South American fruit can make are really amazing. In fact, the ancient Aztecs considered it to be an aphrodisiac.
Avocado provides both the mother and the unborn baby with doses of vitamins, healthy fats, calcium, magnesium, and even folic acid.
It contributes to the development of your baby
In 2017, a study was published that claimed eating avocado during pregnancy helps the formation of the fetus. That’s due to its folic acid content. This nutrient reduces the risk of autism in the baby. It also improves the closure of the neural tube.
In addition, this fruit contains a large amount of omega-3 fatty acids. According to a study published in the journal. The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, these lipids help to improve the mother’s cardiovascular health. Furthermore, they contribute to the reduction of the risk of neurological problems in the baby.
Avocados also contain vitamins A and E . These vitamins are indispensable for the healthy development of the developing baby. They contribute to the creation of tissues and to the proper development of the sense of sight.
As well as the nutrients mentioned above, avocados also contain:
- Potassium.
- Magnesium.
- Copper.
- Selenium.
- Sodium.
- Iodine.
- Zinc.
All of these minerals help the body’s physiological processes to be carried out correctly. This has a direct impact on health.
Avocado helps reduce cardiovascular risk
Avocado is a great protector. Its consumption helps to control cholesterol levels and blood pressure, which generally tends to increase during pregnancy. For this reason, it’s recommended that pregnant women include it in their diet. As a matter of fact, these health benefits suggest that avocado should be included in most people’s diets.
However, it’s a fruit with a high caloric value, so you shouldn’t eat too much. Otherwise, you could run the risk of losing the caloric balance of your diet and gain weight.
Helps control pregnancy symptoms
Avocado is extremely useful for reducing certain symptoms of pregnancy. Indeed, some of the discomfort experienced during this wonderful but often difficult period can be controlled with the help of avocado.
- Nausea. If you suffer a great deal of nausea, there’s good news. Because consuming avocado will help you to reduce this unpleasant and repetitive feeling of the gestation process.
- Cramps and colic. The same goes for pregnancy cramps. Your legs will suffer less and you’ll be able to prevent cramps. That’s because of the large amount of potassium that this food provides to your body.
How should you eat avocado?
Avocados can be quite heavy to digest if accompanied with carbohydrates or very fatty dishes. For this reason, the best way to eat them is with light foods:
- Snacks or salads. Making avocado snacks is a great idea for snacking or to satisfy cravings. Another option is to make salads with avocado as the main ingredient.
- Smoothies. Some women don’t like this rich and nutritious fruit. For them, it would be advisable to make smoothies with avocados and mix them with other citric or sweet fruits. It all depends on individual taste.
Include avocado in your regular diet
Avocado is a food that can do a lot for you. First of all, its omega-3 fatty acid content protects your cardiovascular health. On the other hand, it contains doses of folic acid that contribute to the correct development of the fetus.
It’s a fruit that’s recommended in any diet. However, if you’re pregnant, it’s a good idea to eat it regularly. As we mentioned earlier, you can include it in salads as well as in smoothies. You can even mash it and put it on whole-wheat toast. In fact, avocados also help to reduce constipation problems thanks to their high fiber content.
All cited sources were thoroughly reviewed by our team to ensure their quality, reliability, currency, and validity. The bibliography of this article was considered reliable and of academic or scientific accuracy.
- Wang M., Li K., Zhao D., Li L., The association between maternal use of folic acid supplements during pregnancy and risk of autism spectrum disorders in children: a meta analysis. Mol Autism, 2017.
- Abdelhamid AS., Brown TJ., Brainard JS., Biswas P., et al., Omega 3 fatty acids for the primary and secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease. Cochrane Database Syst Rev, 2018.