The diet of the pregnant woman is of the utmost importance, as it will directly determine the health and well-being of not only herself, but that of her unborn child as well. One very common problem that will appear during the course of pregnancy is where the pregnant woman will develop anemia, which is typically a consequence of a lack of iron in her blood. During the course of pregnancy, the amount of iron that the woman will need is increased dramatically and so it stands at 27mg daily.

What foods should I avoid eating during pregnancy?

Liver is very rich in iron indeed, and more importantly, it is rich in the best type of iron needed for the human body, heme based iron, which is iron derived from an animal (meat source).  However, despite the fact that liver is so rich in one of the most essential minerals and nutritional components needed during the pregnancy process, the simple truth of the matter is that it can actually cause birth defects in the child.

The reason for this is very simple:  liver is very high in Vitamin A content and this can be extremely dangerous not to mention toxic to the unborn child.

Tea and coffee may seem like harmless vices, but in actual fact, they too play a very large part in ensuring that the anemia will occur in the pregnant woman. The reason for this is due to the fact that they contain a large amount of polyphones which have been proven to have a seriously limiting effect on the body’s ability to absorb iron.

Calcium is also to be given a wide berth, and so dairy products of all shapes and sizes pose a problem to the absorption of iron during the pregnancy term.

Final notes

Red meat is one of the best sources of iron, due to the fact that it is extremely rich in heme based iron as opposed to non heme iron which is not as easily or readily absorbed by the body.

Just make sure that the meat has been properly prepared and cooked.