You will be awaiting the birth of your child as the scheduled delivery date comes near. Both childbirth and labor require a lot of physical effort. Your body needs a certain amount of energy to get through the labor process since it lasts for several hours. Moreover, the mother’s body and mind will be focused on the labor process, so she will not feel the need to eat during labor. The most frequently asked question among women is, “What can I eat during labor?”.
Many healthcare professionals believe that eating is acceptable during labor (especially in the early stages, and frequently throughout i.e., diet in pregnancy), although some still advise against it once contractions start. In this blog, let’s know about food consumption during labor in more depth.
Types of labour
You must first understand the stages of labor i.e., identifying labor pain in order to know what foods to eat while giving birth. The Labor process can be categorized into the following two stages.
Early labour
This is the stage when the contraction is mild. You can eat and drink normally at this stage.
Active Labour
In this stage, the contraction becomes more frequent and strong. Even though you don’t have the desire to eat, you need to eat to keep up your energy for the next stage. Try consuming electrolyte-rich fluids at this stage so that you can push effectively during the baby’s birth.
Food during labour
The uterus is mostly made of muscle tissues. Muscle use fuel to work and hence enough nutrition is needed to meet their energy needs. Different women need different carbohydrate requirements to meet their energy needs during labour. This usually depends on their body nature. Larger women may need more.
Some of the commonly suggested food during labour include
*Oatmeal, steamed rice cake (idly, idiyappam)
*Vegetables
*Fruits
*Tender coconut water
*Smoothie
*Scrambled eggs
*Soup
*Fruit juice
*Cereals and nuts
*Low-fat yoghurt
Thus, you can eat easily digestible foods that are affordable and culturally grounded.
Maintain a healthy diet
Giving birth is comparable to a marathon in terms of energy needs. Thus, a laboring woman needs adequate hydration and energy. You should able to drink and eat according to your desire without negative impact in case of emergency. Additionally, most mothers are unwilling to eat during labor because their digestion slows down at this time.
A healthy well-balanced diet consumption is good during labor. It should be a mix of proteins, fruits, vegetables and whole grains. You can also have fruit juices like apple, orange, cranberry or whatever you like. Thus, these juices or food will give you the calories and energy you need during labor. Further, avoid intake of foods like fries, high-fat foods, sugar foods, pastries and cakes
Notes to make when giving birth
*Labor has a glucose-lowering effect, just like exercise. So, a woman with GDM (gestational diabetes) should stop insulin at the start of labor.
*A good glycemic status (Blood sugar level) throughout labor is a happy environment for the baby (newborn)
*If you are a low-risk pregnant mother, you could choose to eat or drink according to your choice during labour.
*On the other hand, if you are a high-risk pregnant mother you should strictly follow the advice given by the healthcare team.
To summarize:
Well, you now know the answer to your question, “What can I eat while in labor. Thus, have nutritious foods and drinks on hand so you can run the labor and delivery marathon with strength and power. This will help you be ready in advance.
