Baking Soda During Pregnancy – Pros and Cons

Pregnancy is one of the best times of your life and one of the most confusing stages too. You have doubts regarding every food that you consume. As there will be medicines in your daily routine, you have to be careful about food reactions with the medicines. Baking soda is one of the few ingredients that may be helpful at this stage.

Sodium bicarbonate is the chemical name of baking soda. All of you know, in general, how to use the substance while cooking. But do you know whether baking soda during pregnancy is safe or not? The following write-up will help in analyzing the point.

In This Article

• Is Baking Soda Safe During Pregnancy?
• Advantages of Baking Soda During Pregnancy
• Disadvantages of Baking Soda During Pregnancy
• Baking Soda For Cooking
• Baking Soda in Food Products
• An Effective Cleaner
• FAQ’s

Is Baking Soda Safe During Pregnancy?

Most pregnant women have a few symptoms in common, one of them being heartburn. It is a primary symptom of gastroesophageal reflux disease. The symptoms can show up any time during pregnancy. And it can get worse as you reach the advanced stage.

• The cause of heartburn is usually the hormones that your body secretes during the developmental stage of the fetus.
• The digestive system will slow down.
• The set of muscles that alternatively contract and relax to gently push the food down the esophagus will also start to move slower.
• As the uterus grows, there will be pressure on the stomach too.

So why are we telling you would-be-mommies about this? The reason being that such conditions accelerate acid formation in the esophagus frequently. Based on data in ACS Axial, the consumption of baking soda in a mild dose can contribute to lowering the symptoms. But consumption in higher proportions can have a negative impact too. Consultation with your gynecologist is a great idea to start with.

[Read : Natural Remedies For Heartburn During Pregnancy]

Advantages of Baking Soda During Pregnancy

Experimental and practical studies have proved the common hypothesis that there is no adverse impact of baking soda on babies growing in the mother’s womb. If you know the right dose, it is safer than many of the medicines available over the counter.

Some of the advantages of baking soda include:

1. The baby produces acids that add to the heartburn. With the consumption of baking soda, you can control the acid formation and get some relief from the constant burning sensation.
2. The substance is good even for lactating mothers as it does not have any impact on milk formation.
3. When you get severe acidity, it can work better than any antacid.

Disadvantages of Baking Soda During Pregnancy

Sodium bicarbonate, or baking soda as you all know it, contains sodium. So there may be a few disadvantages of having baking soda during pregnancy.

1. Intake of baking soda instead of antacids can definitely reduce heartburn, but it will also increase the sodium level in your body. As a result, you will have more swelling, leading to conditions like edema.
2. The FDA has labeled baking soda to be under the category C rating. It means that a consultation with the doctor is mandatory for pregnant women before they decide to intake the substance.

Baking Soda For Cooking

All of you love to use baking soda in your kitchen, isn’t it? Even if you don’t take it as a medicine, you can always use it for home baking sessions.

• It is absolutely safe to use baking soda for cooking.
• When you mix it with other ingredients, there will be no chance of any other harmful impact.

But always keep a watch on the quantity of consumption and the frequency of use. If you are baking on a daily basis and using considerable quantities of baking soda, then it can turn out to be a risky affair, leading to underlying issues. So bake the cookies, but keep control.

[Read : Is Hajmola During Pregnancy Safe To Consume?]

Baking Soda in Food Products

Baking soda is technically a leavening agent, and you can use it to make cakes, cookies, and muffins. The white crystalline powder is naturally basic or alkaline.

The fluffy nature of the cakes is due to the use of baking soda. When you activate the substance by combining it with both liquid and an acid ingredient, it will produce carbon dioxide. This gas will cause the baked goods to rise and add to the fluffy nature. You will notice that any food product that has the use of baking soda also contains a list of acidic ingredients like buttermilk or lemon juice.

Baking Soda as a Cleaning Agent

If you invest a lot of money to buy fancy packaged cleaning solutions and powders, then baking soda can definitely be a surprising find. If you soak the clothes in baking soda and water for around 12 to 15 minutes, you can easily bid farewell to almost 96% of the germs. The same applies to washing your fruits and vegetables too.

• It is able to degrade the insecticides present in the treated fruits or vegetables.
• It can effectively kill germs.

An Effective Cleaner

If you are looking for an effective but non-abrasive cleaner, then here is your solution:

• Mix baking soda in water and watch the old food residues vanish in minutes from the inside of the refrigerator or the microwave oven.
• Why not sprinkle some baking soda down the drain of the sink or basin and add some hot water? It will clear out all the residues inside the pipe, leading to smooth passage of the wastewater without the help of plumbers.

Well as far as baking soda during pregnancy is concerned,  as long as you can control the intake quantity, there is no harm in the ingestion of baking soda. But again, the doctor is the best person for your queries. If you have some condition that baking soda can aggravate, it should be wise to stay away from it.

FAQ’s

1. Is Baking Soda a Deodorizer?

Baking soda is just the substance to serve as the best deodorizer. Sprinkle some baking soda on the carpet. Allow it to settle down and then vacuum it. The stink will be off.

2. How Can Baking Soda Ease Cancer Discomfort?

Cancer is painful, and the growing discomfort can sometimes be hard to live with. But if you can swish your mouth with a combination of 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1-quart water, and one teaspoon of common salt, you can get relief from any discomfort in the throat, and it is good when you get the Covid-19 virus too. The mixture will help to prevent the mouth sores from spreading and further infection.

Read Also: 5 Harmful Chemicals You Need To Avoid During Pregnancy