Table of contents:
- Eating instant noodles when pregnant makes you hungry quickly
- Healthy tips for eating instant noodles while pregnant
Instant noodles are the favorite fast food of a million people - cheap, easy to cook, and delicious too. Eits… Although delicious, instant noodles are not nutritious food. But if you have cravings, can you eat instant noodles while pregnant?
Eating instant noodles when pregnant makes you hungry quickly
Actually, instant noodles should not be consumed as a single side dish for anyone. This is because instant noodles are minimal in protein, minerals, vitamins and fiber. A number of these nutrients are especially important during pregnancy to support the health of the mother and the baby in her womb.
Instant noodles have a very salty taste because they contain a lot of salt and monosodium glutamate (MSG). Consumption of high and sustained amounts of salt has been shown to increase the risk of pregnant women developing high blood pressure, especially those who are especially at high risk. High blood pressure during pregnancy is not always dangerous, but it can sometimes lead to serious health complications. Having a risk factor for hypertension and coupled with eating instant noodles regularly during pregnancy can be very dangerous for the health of both mother and baby.
On the other hand, instant noodles make you hungry quickly. This is due to the high content of processed carbohydrates in instant noodles which can raise blood sugar quickly, but takes a long time to digest. The long time to digest food makes the digestive tract work even harder because it is forced to break down the nutrition of the noodles for hours. In fact, processed foods that are not fibrous should be digested faster. The slow digestion process of the noodles also has an impact on the absorption of nutrients the body gets from the noodles, while the nutrients obtained from the noodles themselves are very lacking.
This nutrient deficiency triggers the body to fire hunger signals while also releasing large amounts of insulin which causes your blood sugar to drop rapidly. A short drop in blood sugar leaves you feeling sluggish, so you may want to eat more to restore your energy levels. This can create a cycle of overeating that is often difficult to break. Overeating can lead to the risk of excess body weight during pregnancy which can harm pregnant women and their fetuses.
However, in general, eating instant noodles during pregnancy is still allowed as long as it is consumed properly.
Healthy tips for eating instant noodles while pregnant
If you want to eat instant noodles while pregnant, consider the following tips when cooking noodles:
- Use only half a sachet of spices to reduce salt intake
- Add other ingredients, such as eggs, chicken / meat pieces, meatballs, and a variety of green leafy vegetables, such as kale, mustard greens, pak choy, or tomatoes and carrots, to boost their nutritional value.
It's okay to eat noodles every now and then while pregnant as a snack, but don't make instant noodles a staple food. Remember, instant noodles are actually junk food, fast food and are not considered to bring any benefit to you and your baby. The best advice from health experts is to limit the amount of instant noodle consumption to a minimum.
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