I never realised how much food would play a big part in my pregnancy, in every way, not just cravings but how much I eat, what I eat and when I eat!
In my first trimester, I suffered from terrible nausea, I was not actually being sick but felt sick constantly and to top it off, I was dead ill with diarrohea and a winter cold! Alongside this, I suffered a little with a slight metallic taste in my mouth which changed the way I could taste things. According to the Hipp Organic website, this is not uncommon and this is what they have to say about it in particular:
Metallic Taste in Mouth (Dysgeusia) in Pregnancy
A persistent metallic taste in the mouth otherwise known as dysgeusia is a surprisingly common pregnancy symptom and occurs even when you are not eating. Like a morning sickness it should settle down in the second trimester when the hormones settle down a bit. Liz the expert midwife at HiPP Organic, talks about this symptom in more detail and offers some practical advice for mums to be.
The pregnancy hormone, oestrogen seems to play a role in controlling the sense of taste. Also in pregnancy, the sense of smell can become very heightened because these two senses are closely linked so the taste changes may be connected to the smell changes. There is also some suggestion that the taste can be attributed to increased iron levels in the blood stream.
Try sucking sugar free mints, or combating the taste with acidic foods if your stomach can take it such as citrus juices and lemonade, foods marinated in vinegar or even pickles. These foods are strong enough to break through metallic tastes and increased saliva production which may help wash the taste away.
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I have to say the taste of metallic put me off my favourite food item, chicken, and a paranoia that every time I cut into it, I thought it was raw! At the moment, I am able to eat breaded chicken but the thought of eating bare chicken such as a roast, still puts me off! I did try ginger biscuits to help with the nausea and this worked for a period of time until I got sick of eating them!
In my second trimester, the metallic taste subsided and my cravings for all things spicy began including Nandos medium sauce to go over my chips! I fell in love with savoury items such as scotch eggs and rice, and went off chocolate a little, but had a taste for cake icing! I would also think about food constantly, even when I was eating it I was wondering what I would be having afterwards right up until bed time! I would have huge portions of food too which I know is not recommended but my appetite was ridiculous and I was eating new foods too.
To incorporate a healthy diet, I would have an apple a day, some veg where I could and try to have a mixture of protein and carbohydrates. I have found it a bit of a struggle to remain healthy as I have been enjoying my food too much, but it is not all junk food, I have to say!
Now that I am in my third trimester, the heartburn has kicked in big time so eating spicy foods is beginning to hurt even though I want them even more now! I have increased my intake of curry, pizza and salsa sauce but I cannot help it! Plenty of Rennies are sortng me out though!
I am hoping my chicken aversion does not last long as I miss it, and I am worried that once I have had the baby, I will go off my food as I did with my first son and practicaly had to start again!
The saying, 'eating for two' seems true except I think I just hav a huge appetite and have read that being pregnant does not mean you have to eat for two! Maybe a little extra but nothing crazy like an extra meal. So I am bearing this in mind and continuing the way I eat.
Food has played a big part in this pregnancy and I hope that this wont reflect in my weight after having baby! I have been lucky in the past to have a slim figure and not have to watch what I eat, I hope this does not change and go back to my junk food diet after!
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