Food restrictions during pregnancy

[AliGrylls]

I just need to get this out of my system.

During my pregnancy I have found it a little much because everytime I order certain things in restaurants people look at me as if to say "should you be eating that?"

In addition, at my ante-natal booking in appointment I was asked "do you drink?" - honestly 2 small glasses of wine per week. I was told I needed to stop completely. The list of foods I was given to avoid seemed endless. Even things I had never thought about (mayonnaise being one).

AIBU for thinking that pregnant women are treated like idiots nowadays and as if they are incapable of working things out for themselves. Why can't they just tell us the risks (which are usually so minute anyway) and then let us make the decisions?

I appreciate that maybe there are some thickos out there but personally I find the attitude that people take towards pregnancy really patronising.

What's the WHOs advice on Red Bull?! I'm not PG, but would miss Red Bull if I was!

And anyways I'm having a section

Guess red bull is just the same guidelines with caffeine as coke etc? I drink a lot of coke and was cheerful to see that the caffeine guidelines meant I could still have about 32 litres a day!

"though if the pelvis is big enough they can come out spine to spine but it is very uncomfortable."

I have to mention that thats a severe understatement! I've had two posterior (POP) deliveries and its absolutely excruciating to an absurd degree

Serves you right for not spending your entire pregnancy lying down on your left hadn side jopie

JoPie, that sounds grim and to get it twice!

Re: sleeping on left / not on back. I am a sensible woman but I rang the antenatal clinic in tears when my friend sent me something from a website saying that if you sleep on your back / right side you squash the arteries that supply the foetus and deprive them of oxygen.

I must have had a pregnancy related failure of intelligence.

I also hated people going on about drinking tea.

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HellHathNoFury and others who can't digest fish and chips...it might be that our gallbladders can't cope! People I know who have later been diagnosed with gallstones have assumed they have had food poisoning from fish and chips before the diagnosis - because some of the symptoms of gallstones are the same as food poisoning. For some of these people cutting down on all types of fat in their diet has meant that their painful gallstones symptoms have disappeared. Though others have preferred to have their gallbladders removed as usually recommended by the hospital.

another one was when a girl at work nearly spat out her coffee when i told her i was still wearing an underwired bra at 4 months pg (she asked me - i didnt offer the info). she went on a right old rant about my milk ducts etc, made me feel quite sick!! I only went onto non-wired when it became to uncomfortable for me, not when i was told to

I am wearing an underwired bra and having a glass of wine

I am now lying down on my left side (and wondering how to spend the next 4 months doing the same) and having a pinot grigio/

If I lie on my left side later will it counteract the wine and bra?

Oh gosh, I had forgotten about all the bra restrictions, and I was so careful last time... It has been so hot this week that when I'm at home I haven't bothered at all.

I like your thinking, Lovely. Maybe we can eat ANYTHING if we lie on our left sides with our feet up and our maternity bras on.

Message withdrawn

I think that no bra means milk will gush in manner of erupting volcano.

It is bras that make you feel normal ie stop your norks being arouhnd your waist which are evil

I reckon it's a 2 wrongs do make a right.

Have goats cheese only with champange
Consume smoked salmon while wearing a bra
Enjoy a bottle glass of wine while lying on your right hand side

etc

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Oh I'm glad it's not just me!

As DH has asthma I've been told no nuts at all (he's not allergic to nuts) - I'm missing peanut butter and really, really missing cashew nuts. And overcooked well done beef is just rubbish.

so I didn't know about sleeping on the left side (but then I'm only 9 weeks, i guess I'm yet to experience full scale nagging) and what's this about bras?

You have to walk around topless for your pregnancy. If you want to do it properly.

No it's that you're not supposed to wear underwired bras as they can obstruct the milk ducts or something as your breasts get ready for the off.

However if you were planning on bottle feeding then it's not a problem I suppose.

And I BF last time no probs and am in underwire this time. Went into maternity bras last time but my larger norks end up around my waist without underwire and it makes me feel really miserable. I've counteracted the wearing of underwire when out by not wearing a bra at home at all.... Bit of a random idea but fingers crossed everything will be alright!

When are you supposed to not wear an underwired bra from? I'm 35 weeks and still wearing one; will I be OK to go into a maternity bra in a few weeks or should I start finding one now?

info here

Looks like you get a mat bra when you grow out of your normal ones. Also pleased to see the jury is out on whether underwire really causes problems - looks to me like if your bra fits well ie the wire is really under - it should be OK...Another case of a silly blanket rule by the look of things...

ROFL @ go into mat bra in a few weeks - won't you have a baby then

I didn't avoid anything in either pregnancy food wise. Only drank a couple of wines at functions such as weddings/ balls etc though.
There is a risk of food poisoning with certain foods more than others and it can cause potentially serious complications and miscarriage of the baby. My view was that I had only had D and V once in 33 years and therefore the risk was minimal for me. I didn't get anything and both dds were born overdue and healthy. The advice is there to protect those who aren't sensible and put themselves and their baby at risk. Nobody knows the mothers risks better than the mother because she knows her medical history of d and v etc. If I had had lots of d and v and caught every bug going then I would have been more cautious eating foods which might increase the risk of it iyswim.

i dont drink, but thats personal choice, as i dont drink when not pg regularly either(birthdays, christmas and the occasional summer eve). I have had dippy eggs though and thats not allowed... and a few nuts, and soem shop bought mayo. I reckon a little bit of what you fancy does you good!

will be having a feast of rare steak, blue cheeses and ripe brie and parma ham and all the other stuff rounded off with a nice glass of celebratory white grenache when LO comes though!

I saw advice on an American site that pregnant women should not be in the same room as a microwave oven when it was on.

I snorted champagne all over my 7-month bump.

Ninedragons a lot of the advice in USA says don't drink any alcohol at all if you are TTC - given that it can take years to get pg that seems ridiculous! USA it's no caffeine at all either when pg....

Some people have suggested that alcohol should be banned entirely for women of childbearing age just in case. Happily it is only loons that are subscribing to that view AFAIK...

Luckily I had a lovely GP and midwives last year who told me to enjoy my holiday in France and have a glass of wine with dinner each night.

My GP said buffets and dodgy salad bars were the main things to avoid as if I got food poisoning the baby would be fine but I'd feel like deah and not be allowed drugs to help.

I did have huge tantrum when friend cooked me a fry-up, asked how I liked my eggs, and then gave me a hard yolk instead of runny like I'd asked!