Food

If you’re pregnant you’ll need to watch your diet. Your diet is your baby’s diet. Here are some foods to avoid and why.

Sushi and other raw fish
Raw fish contains bacteria or parasites that could cause serious gastrointestinal distress which can be dangerous for yourself and the baby. Make sure to only eat cooked fish.

Alcohol
Consuming alcohol or doing drugs during pregnancy can cause a variety of problems ranging from premature birth to birth defects. Excessive alcohol intake during pregnancy can cause fetal alcohol syndrome and significantly increase the risk of still birth.

Caffeine
Even though Health organizations haven’t agreed on how much caffeine intake  is safe but most recommend no more than 200-300mg daily of caffeine consumption during pregnancy. Excessive caffeine intake can increase the risk of miscarriage and is associated with growth restriction.

Unpasteurized dairy products
Unpasteurized dairy products include milk and cheese. Remember to avoid  items made with unpasteurized dairy as foods during pregnancy.

Under-cooked milk and eggs
Under-cooked meat as well as eggs increase the risk of a number of food-borne illnesses which can adversely affect your baby’s health. Cook the meat to an appropriate internal temperature and cook the eggs until the yellow and white parts are pretty firm.

Liver
This one will not at all be difficult to avoid as most people dont eat liver. Liver contains high levels of vitamin A which is not recommended during pregnancy.  High levels of vitamin A early in pregnancy has been associated with an increased risk of birth defects.

Big Fish
Avoid longer-living big fish including swordfish, shark, tilefish and king mackerel because they contain higher levels of methyl mercury which can harm an unborn baby’s immature nervous system. FDA recommends no more than 12 ounces of low mercury fish including shrimp, salmon, catfish and canned light tuna within a whole  week.

Raw vegetable sprouts
Clover, alfalfa, mung bean and radish are just some of those.  These items may carry certain bacteria that can lead to food-borne illnesses.

Herbal supplements
Because their safety during pregnancy is not known yet, it’s best to avoid herbal supplements during pregnancy for now. Consider talking to a healthcare provider before continuing herbal supplements during pregnancy.

Luncheon meats, deli meats
Pregnant women are 20 times more likely of getting listeriosis, a food-borne illness.  Because this bacteria is transferred to the fetus through the placenta, problems such as still birth, premature delivery or miscarriage can occur therefore these are to be avoided at all costs.

People develop cancer everyday in America. A lot of people don’t realize that food causes cancers. What we eat creates an environment that allows cancers to grow out of control. By controlling your diet you can ward off cancer risk. Here’s our list to stay away from as they cause cancer. 1 in 4 people will get cancer in America.

Canned Tomatoes
Canned tomatoes are a concern not for the tomatoes, but because of the lining inside of the can. The chemical called bisphenol-A or BPA – this chemical has the FDA concerned. Fresh tomatoes or get tomatoes from a glass jar.

Processed Meats
Who doesn’t love a fresh cold cut sandwich? We all do right? Unfortunately, these processed meats are filled with sodium nitrates which are well known carcinogens.

Farmed Salmon
Farmed salmon are fed diets consisting of chemicals, antibiotics, pesticides, and other known carcinogens. This type of salmon also has far less of the healthy omega-3 that we would normally get with fresh salmon.

Potato Chips
Potato chips are fried in high temperatures to make them crispy, but doing this also causes chips to make a material called acrylamide (a known carginogen). This material is also found in cigarettes.

Foods Highly Salted, Pickled, or Smoked
While these foods may taste so good, they are also very bad for your health. N-nitroso is associated with increasing the risks of cancer – this type of nitrate can be found in all of these types of foods.

Highly Processed White Flours
Food consisting of white flour are delicious, but they also can be cancer causing. In order to bleach white flour, mills much use a chemical called chlorine gas.

Refined Sugars
These sugars are not only known for spiking insulin levels, but also promoting growth in cancer cells.

Alcohol
Alcohol is the second leading cause of cancer. Excessive consumption of alcohol can lead to cancer of the mouth, esophagus, liver, colon, rectum, and female breast cancers.

Sannakji(Live Octopus)
In Korean Cuisine, Sannakji, is a raw dish which you can eat live.  In this there is live octopus, which is chopped up and seasoned while still alive. The only danger in eating is the suction cups, which are still active and can stick to the throat. There is a risk of suffocation.

Fugu Puffer fish(blowfish)
In Japanese cuisine fugu(blowfish), is a real delicacy. It is so poisonous that a little mistake in its preparation could be fatal. Only highly trained and licensed chefs are allowed to serve the dish.

Ackee ( Ackee apple)
In Jamaica, the ackee fruit, is the national fruit. If unripened, improperly eaten, ackee fruit can cause Vomiting Sickness which can lead to coma or death.

Cassava
Cassava is eaten widely in Africa and South America – but must be very thoroughly cooked before being eaten. Chew it raw, and an enzyme in the tuber converts into cyanide.

African bullfrog (Pyxicephalus Adspersus)
Those thrill seekers trekking across southern Africa may come across this amphibian on the menu in places like Namibia. But be warned: the African bullfrog contains a variety of substances toxic to humans.

Elderberries
While some varieties are safe to eat, those that aren’t ripe or cooked properly can cause diarrhea and seizures.

Casu Marzu
Sardinians call tradition rotten maggot cheese made from sheep’s-milk. It is laid outside in the open to allow flies to lay eggs inside which then hatch into maggots and feed on the cheese causing fermentation. When eating, wearing eye protection is recommended because the maggots can jump six inches into your eyeballs.

Raw cashews
Raw cashews contain a toxic substance that can be fatal if eaten in large quantities. Raw cashews can cause illness even if you don’t have nuts allergy. The raw cashews in supermarkets have been steamed to remove the dangerous chemical.

Hakarl
Hakari, is a national dish of Iceland consisting of a Greenland shark. It is a worst tasting food on earth. If not well prepared, it is essentially a recipe for food-borne illness.

Blood Cockle
Even if you don’t have a shellfish allergy, blood clams are best avoided. The clams can harbor hepatitis A, typhoid and dysentery because they live in lower-oxygen environments. Blood clams from Chinese waters have been linked to hepatitis outbreaks.

Would you eat any of this stuff? Somebody eats it!

Dog penis
This is a popular food in China. It is said to be low in cholesterol.

Fugu
A notorious food in Japan which can be poisonous if its toxic parts are not well removed. Only chefs with a special license are allowed to prepare this dish.

Balut
Balut is a popular dish in Philippine which is prepared by boiling a fertiliized duck embryo in the shell. It is typically eaten with a little seasoning of chili, garlic and vinegar.

Fried Spider
A popular food in Cambodia. The spiders are deep fried in garlic oil until they are crunchy on the outside and gooey on the inside.

Rocky Mountain oysters
A popular dish in North America made of bull, pig or sheep testicles. The organs are deep-fried after being peeled, coated in flour, pepper and salt.

Haggis
Haggis is the national dish of Scotland. It is a pudding containing sheep’s pluck (heart, liver and lungs); minced with onion, oatmeal, suet, spices, and salt, mixed with stock.

Sannakji
This is a Korean cuisine comprising of live octopus that has been cut into small pieces and served immediately. It is served raw (with the octopus still squirming on the plate) and usually only lightly seasoned with sesame and sesame oil.

Surstrˆmming
A fermented Baltic Sea herring with a strong smell that is eaten in Sweden. It is ordinarily eaten outdoors because of its Putrid smell.

Hakarl
This dish, also called rotten shark meat is a national dish of Iceland. The shark is buried to ferment in its own fluids for several months, then cut into strips and hung up to dry.

Escamoles
Often called insect caviar, Escamoles is an ant larvae dish that is widely eaten in Mexico city. They taste buttery and nutty, with a texture akin to that of cottage cheese

Kimchi
Also spelled kimchee or gimchi, is a traditional fermented Korean side dish made of vegetables with a variety of seasonings. It is often described as spicy and sour.
Bulgogi
One of Korea’s most popular beef dishes that is made from thinly sliced sirloin or another prime cut of beef (rib eye)

Bibimbap
A nutritious rice dish of steamed rice and pre-cooked[ vegetables (usually spinach, bean sprouts, carrots, mushrooms, egg and lettuce. It can also contain ground beef but can be ordered without meat.

Japchae
A Korean dish made from sweet potato noodles, stir fried in sesame oil with vegetables, sometimes served with beef, and flavoured with soy sauce, and sweetened with sugar.

Potbingsu
A Korean shaved ice dessert with sweet toppings such as chopped fruit, condensed milk, fruit syrup, and Adzuki beans.

Sundubu-Jjigae
The dish is made with uncurdled dubu, vegetables, sometimes mushrooms, onion, optional seafood, optional meat, and gochujang or gochu garu.

Hoetteok
A popular Korean street snack and dessert pancakes filled with hot brown sugar syrup. It is usually eaten during the wintertime.

Tteokbokki
A popular Korean snack food made from soft rice cake, fish cake and sweet red chili sauce; gochujang. It is commonly purchased from street vendors or pojangmacha.

Seolleongtang
A Korean broth tang made from ox bones, brisket and other cuts. Seasoning is generally done at the table according to personal taste by adding salt, ground black pepper, red pepper, minced garlic, or chopped spring onions.

Naengmyeon
A Korean noodle dish of long and thin handmade noodles made from the flour and starch of various ingredients: buckwheat, potatoes, sweet potatoes, naengmyun made with the starch from arrowroot, and kudzu.