Garcinia Cambogia, a tropical fruit, has gained popularity in the past few years as a weight loss supplement. Women who have gained more than expected weight during pregnancy might want to know if they can safely consume Garcinia Cambogia for weight loss. It is important to lose weight gradually and be in the desirable BMI range to avoid pregnancy-associated complications. But still, you may wonder if it is safe to use such supplements for weight loss when pregnant. Read this post to learn more about the safety, side effects, and tips on avoiding unhealthy and excessive weight gain during pregnancy.
What Is Garcinia Cambogia?
Garcinia is a plant, and you use the rind of its fruit to make medicines. Garcinia or Garcinia Cambogia is a medication that helps promote weight loss. While there isn’t much research available on the same, garcinia cambogia can prevent the storage of fat in the body, resulting in weight loss. Some also feel that it can control your appetite, cutting down the urge to eat and thus preventing additional weight gain (1).
Is It Safe To Take Garcinia Cambogia While Pregnant?
There is not enough medical data to support whether or not garcinia cambogia is safe during pregnancy. To be on the safer side, you should avoid using the same while you are pregnant or breastfeeding. If you would still wish to go ahead and give it a try, it is important to first speak to your doctor and get a go-ahead on the same. Weight loss via medications or any other way is not recommended, improving upon your dietary intake is the best option to control rapid weight gain during pregnancy, keep a good control over fats and sugars and that will be a start to some weight control.
What Does Garcinia Cambogia Do?
Garcinia Cambogia is a supplement from a naturally growing plant found mostly in Africa, Asia, Australia and Polynesia. The supplement is popular due to the following reasons:
It blocks the fat from getting stored in your body, preventing excess weight gain.
Taking the supplement will help cut down your appetite, which means that you feel less hungry and eat less. The same will also contribute to controlling your weight and preventing excess weight gain.
The Garcinia Cambogia supplement will give you additional energy that will keep you feeling fresh and healthy even as you lose weight.
Side Effects Of Consuming Weight Loss Products During Pregnancy
When you are pregnant, your body is the sole source of nutrition and nourishment for your baby. Whatever you eat and drink or do not, will directly affect your baby.
Eating a healthy and well-balanced diet is extremely crucial during your months of pregnancy, as it will help your baby grow and develop properly.
The fat in your body is also important when you are pregnant, as it will help your unborn baby’s development. Your body has both good fat and bad fat. The different types of fats you consume will help in the proper development of your baby’s eyes and brain. Not having enough fat in your body or not consuming enough fat will hinder your unborn baby’s proper development and growth.
In your first trimester and sometimes even a few weeks into your second trimester, you may still experience nausea during pregnancy. While you are nauseous, it already reduces your appetite, which means that you are not able to eat properly. If you try to reduce your weight at this stage or curb your appetite, it may lead to a deficiency of nutrients in your body. The same can hinder your unborn baby’s proper growth and development.
How To Avoid Gaining Excess Weight While You Are Pregnant
While pregnancy is a great time of joy and excitement, you may also be concerned about the extra weight that you gain. It is extremely important to maintain a healthy pregnancy weight, to ensure that both you and your baby are healthy and avoid any health complications. If you want to lose some weight, or want to make sure that your weight does not go over the recommended number, go for natural and safe ways to lose that weight. Here are a few tips that can help you:
1. Divide Your Meals Into Smaller Portions And More Frequent:
While you are pregnant, or if you want to lose weight, it is always a good idea to break up your meals into smaller ones and increase the frequency.
Break up your meals into smaller portions. It will help the food get digested easily and will not make you feel too full or bloated.
Once you increase the number of times you eat, it will prevent hunger pangs. You will not feel hungry in the long stretches in the middle of meals. Smaller and more frequent meals will also ensure that you do not snack up on junk.
2. Eat A Balanced Meal:
Eating a balanced meal will provide you with overall nutrition without adding unnecessary weight.
Include lots of proteins, calcium, vitamins, some fats, fresh fruits and vegetables in your daily diet.
Make sure you eat as much as home-cooked meals as possible and avoid the packaged and ready-to-eat variety. Packaged foods come loaded with extra sodium and other preservatives that are not good for your health and will only add up those extra calories.
3. Have Lots Of Water:
Water is one miracle drink that you should have as much as you can while you are pregnant, and even otherwise.
It is important to hydrate yourself while you are pregnant. Drinking enough water will also keep you feeling full in between your meals and snacks, and prevent your urge to snack unhealthily.
Drinking enough water will keep your digestive system healthy and prevent constipation which is a very common condition when you are pregnant. It will prevent bloating and additional weight gain too.
4. Add-In Exercise:
The key to staying fit and healthy while you are pregnant is to include some form of exercise.
Speak to your doctor about what kinds of exercise you can perform.
Be active and try to include some open air exercises in your daily routine, something even as simple yet effective as a daily walk.
