Loaded with vital nutrients and brimming with fibre, fruits and vegetables have a significant role while planning a healthy diet. However, while pregnant, you can’t have all the fruits and vegetables you love, and you have to exercise caution with your diet.
Though there are some fruits you should avoid, there are some others that can be had in moderation. Here, we discuss the safety of eating muskmelons or Cantaloupe during pregnancy.
In This Article
- Is it Safe to Have Muskmelons(Cantaloupe) During Pregnancy?
- Nutritional Values of Muskmelon
- Top 10 Super Benefits of Eating Cantaloupe During Pregnancy
- Why Are Cantaloupes Tagged as ‘Food to Keep Away From During Pregnancy’?
- How Can I Ensure That Cantaloupes Are Safe For Me?
Is it Safe to Have Muskmelons(Cantaloupe) During Pregnancy?
Are you craving for muskmelons? Muskmelons or Cantaloupe during pregnancy is perfectly safe and extremely advantageous in the course. With minimum calorie and maximum nutritional value, cantaloupes are excellent for pregnant women and the developing baby.
Nutritional Values of Muskmelon
Muskmelon has a more amount of important vitamins and minerals in it. It is rich in vitamins like A, B1 and C and mineral iron, calcium, and also phosphorous. This fruit carries a more amount of folic acid or vitamin B9 also. It is an important vitamin required during the pregnancy period as it prevents neural tube issues in baby.
It contains zinc also, which is the need for the proper development of tissue in the foetus. Muskmelon or Cantaloupe During pregnancy is a rich source of antioxidants and anticoagulants also (which prevents the formation of clots).
Top 10 Super Benefits of Eating Cantaloupe During Pregnancy
Muskmelons or Cantaloupe during pregnancy is considered as the perfect summer fruit. Cantaloupes have high water, minerals, and vitamin content. This helps to prevent fluid balance and loss of electrolyte during the hot summer season. It also manages the body heat because of its cooling impacts. Other than keeping the pregnant body super hydrated, here are ten important benefits of having Muskmelon and Cantaloupe during pregnancy:
1. Offers Relief From Constipation
Cantaloupes are high in roughage and water content. Thus, including Mushmelon or Cantaloupe during pregnancy in the daily menu will help the pregnant women get relief from constipation, a recurrent issue in the course of pregnancy.
2. Boosts Immunity
Cantaloupe is loaded with vitamin C. This helps expecting mothers to keep away from minor infections like flu and cold. Muskmelons also help in the strengthening of the immune system of the fetus. Vitamin C also prevents the oxidative damage of the cells of the expecting mother. Besides vitamin C, Carotenoids (Beta-carotene and Lycopene) present in this fruit is excellent for boosting the immune system of both mother and child.
3. Provides Relief From Morning Sickness
Cantaloupe provides generous amounts of B complex vitamins like B1, B3, B5, and B6. Vitamin B1 (thymine) helps to control the morning sickness, which bothers most of the pregnant women during the first trimester of pregnancy.
4. Helps in Regulating Blood Pressure
The high potassium content of the Cantaloupe during pregnancy helps in regulating blood pressure in the course of pregnancy.
5. Helps in Preventing Blood Clots
Anticoagulants are the blood thinners that keep the blood from clotting. The blood clot formation during pregnancy increases the danger of stroke, heart attack, and kidney failure in expecting mothers. Muskmelon for pregnant women is useful on the grounds that they have a decent measure of anticoagulants.
6. Good For Overweight Pregnant Woman
Being overweight during pregnancy possesses risk like premature delivery, miscarriage, high blood pressure, etc. The intake of essential nutrition is also equally important. Muskmelon is ideal for such mothers, as it is fat and cholesterol-free. Therefore, the intake of calorie will be negligible. At the same time, Cantaloupe provides most of the essential nutrients, minerals, and vitamins in the course of pregnancy.
[Read : Gestational Hypertension During Pregnancy]
7. Prevents Baby From Birth Defects
With a good source of folic acid, the neural tube defect in the fetus can be prevented to certain extend by adding Cantaloupe in the weekly menu of the expecting mother. B1 active component of vitamin B, which is found in muskmelon helps in the formation of the central nervous system of the fetus. Vitamin A helps the embryonic growth of the developing fetus and helps to ward off birth defects.
8. Provides Relief From Acidity
This fruit helps in proper digestion of the food. Thus, including Cantaloupe in the daily menu helps to keep acidity or heartburn, another recurring problem in connection with pregnancy, at bay.
9. Helps to Prevent Pregnancy Anaemia
Bless with high iron content, Cantaloupe helps in haemoglobin production, which helps in increasing the count of RBC. This prevents the most commonly found pregnancy anaemia. It also improves the blood flow so that more oxygenated blood reaches the fetus.
10. For the Baby’s Healthy Bone and Healthy Teeth Formation
Calcium is important for the mother and child in the course of pregnancy. Cantaloupe is a good source of calcium and helps in the development of fetal bones and teeth.
[Read : Know Everything About Your Baby’s Skull, Skeleton, and Bones Development]
Why Are Cantaloupes Tagged as ‘Food to Keep Away From During Pregnancy’?
Muskmelon, as we have already learnt, is an extremely healthy fruit, which provides a lot of significant minerals and vitamins during pregnancy. Nevertheless, if you find this fruit tagged as ‘keep away from while pregnant’, the reason has nothing to do with what is inside the fruit, on the other hand, it needs to do with what could be on the outside of the fruit.
In 2011, the United States experienced an exceedingly terrible Listeria episode, that had not happened in the last 10 Years. The health department was dumbfounded to find that the episode has originated from muskmelon infected by bacterium Listeria monocytogenesis. The bacteria, which develops on the outer skin of the fruit, get inside when it is cut open and may spread inside the melon, thereby initializing the infections. Therefore, as a safety measure, the fruit was tagged as ‘keep away while pregnant.’
How Can I Ensure That Cantaloupes Are Safe For Me?
By going through the following safety measures, the melon can be kept out of contamination:
- Prior to cutting, eating or cooking the melon, wash it thoroughly. First, immerse it in vinegar-water solution and then wash it under running water.
- Use a scrub brush to wash the melon while holding it under the running water.
- Use a clean cloth to dry the fruit.
- Wash hands, knives, counter-tops and cutting boards thoroughly.
- Now you can start cutting the melon.
Therefore, as long as you have no allergy toward this fruit, properly cleaned Cantaloupe during pregnancy possess no risk at that time.
Read Also: 10 Benefits Of Watermelon During Pregnancy
