Pregnancy is a sign of wonderful things to come, but the process of carrying a child is certainly not easy. Pregnancy is full of various aches and pains that cause irritation and suffering.
In particular, stomach issues are common during pregnancy. Frustrating and uncomfortable conditions like indigestion, constipation, diarrhea, bloating, and morning sickness are a few ailments that soon-to-be mothers face.
Constantly enduring digestive issues like these will make pregnancy an awful experience. While it isn’t possible to prevent all stomach problems, you can reduce how often and how severely you are affected by them.
Considering your digestive system involves food, this entails moderating your diet. We’ll take a look at a few powerful dieting tips for easing your pregnancy tummy woes below!
Eat Smaller Meals
You should begin by eating smaller meals.
During pregnancy, it’s natural to feel hungry often. Not only are you eating for yourself, but you’re also eating to sustain your growing baby inside you.
Considering this, you’re eating for two with the stomach of one. As you can imagine, this places a lot of strain on your stomach and digestive system.
The solution to this is eating smaller meals. The less you eat at one sitting, the less food your digestive system will need to physically work through. As a result, you’ll feel less discomfort and stomach pain.
If you still feel hungry, you can consider eating several small meals spread throughout the day. Rather than eating a meal of two pancakes, two eggs, and four pieces of sausage, you might switch to an egg, two pieces of sausage, and a side of toast.
Small adjustments like this throughout the day will make a big difference to your digestive system. Spreading out your food is an excellent way to reduce digestive problems!
Increase Fiber Intake
During the day, you should make a point to increase your fiber intake.
Fiber is one of the most important nutrients for digestion. This is due to how it affects your bowel movements.
Fiber adds substance to your bowel movements, which helps them form. It also absorbs water, which makes your stools softer and easier to pass.
In other words, fiber makes it easier for your digestive system to do its job. As a result, you’ll experience less pain and indigestion.
Fortunately, adding fiber to your diet is extremely easy. Great sources of fiber include oatmeal, bran, beans, whole grains, and various fruits. There’s plenty of variety so you never need to force it!
As your body acclimates to more fiber, you’ll slowly begin to experience relief and fewer painful episodes.
Drink More Water
Another great tip is to drink more water throughout the day.
Water is very important to your digestive system. It does this in two ways; by breaking down food and making your bowel movements softer.
When you eat meals without drinking water, your body is forced to work without lubrication. This is harsh on your digestive system and can quickly lead to aches like heartburn.
Drinking water frequently throughout the day will greatly help digestion. It will also keep you hydrated and can help limit hunger, which can further reduce stomach discomfort.
Try to drink water throughout the day. You should never feel thirsty. Remember that you’re hydrating yourself and your child!
Avoid Problematic Food
Lastly, you must avoid problematic food if you want a happy stomach.
This primarily includes anything that is particularly fatty, greasy, sweet (real sugar or artificial sweeteners), carbonated, and fried.
The problem with being pregnant is that you often crave some of these delicious, yet problematic foods. They’re problematic because they destroy your stomach.
Problematic foods are loaded with ingredients that are difficult to digest. Not only that, they often offer little nutritional value and only add empty calories.
Considering this, any time you eat fast food, sweets, or anything similar, you’re setting yourself up for tummy problems.
It can be hard to eliminate it, but at least try to avoid eating problematic food regularly. Remember that your growing baby doesn’t need a whole chocolate cake!
Closing Thoughts
One of the most frustrating parts of pregnancy is the stomach pain and discomfort you experience. The hormonal shifts that happen when you’re pregnant cause changes to your body, which includes your digestive system.
Because of this, tummy aches, indigestion, and other digestive ailments are common in pregnant women. You can limit your chance of experiencing these problems by eating smaller meals, increasing fiber intake, drinking more water, and avoiding problematic food.
As difficult as it may be to change your diet, keep in mind that it’s only for nine months, but makes a world of difference to your child’s life. Do your best to eat healthily for your wellbeing and your baby’s!