Papaya Safe Or Unsafe During Pregnancy?

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When you get pregnant, you are advised to think twice before eating anything. As there is a small foetus developing inside you, you have to be very careful. The pregnancy diet includes and excludes a list of foods. According to doctors and old wives tales, papaya is one of the fruits that you should avoid during pregnancy. It is believed that the fruit leads to miscarriage or natural abortion.

Is having papaya unsafe during pregnancy? Lets find out the truth.

Ripe issues: The ripeness of the papaya is a big concern in the pregnancy diet. There are many people including doctors who suggest that eating ripe papayas is safe during pregnancy. Ripe papayas are a rich source of vitamins A and B, beta-carotine and potassium that is required by the body. During pregnancy, soothe your indigestion by having ripe papayas. According to British Journal of Nutrition report, unripe papayas can be unsafe during pregnancy because it has pepsins in their latex that induces contractions in the uterus and lead to miscarriage.

Unripe problems: Unripe papayas are unsafe during pregnancy. Apart from having pepsins, it has papain that decreases the foetus's growth and development. In worst cases, papain stops the overall growth and survival of the foetus. Papain weakens the vital membranes that affect the survival of the foetus. However, papain in ripe yellow papayas is very less and helps in digestion. If the woman had a history of abortion or premature labour due to contractions in the uterus, papain can be really harmful. So, avoid papayas if you have had such pregnancy problems before.

Abortion: Latex concentration in unripe papayas causes uterine contractions that leads to abortion. Women who do not wish to get pregnant use unripe papayas as a natural contraceptive to avoid pregnancy. Even oedema (a latex like substance in papaya) is bad for pregnant women. It leads to hemorrhage and bleeding of the placenta. The latex can lead to miscarriage if consumed in the earlier stages. If a pregnant woman eats unripe papaya during the later stages, it can lead to early labour (pre-mature delivery).

Allergic: Many women are allergic to papayas. Latex allergy is the technical name of this allergy. If a woman has latex allergy, she finds it difficult to digest papayas. Women with latex allergy are also allergic to foods that contain plant latex like bananas, chestnuts, wheat and apples to name a few.

Due to the ripe and unripe issues, women avoid papayas completely to be on the safer side. Consult your doctor before including this juicy fruit in your pregnancy diet. Do not go by what people say. Ask the expert doctors to have a safer pregnancy.