Jaggery During Pregnancy: Safety, Health Benefits And Side Effects

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Jaggery is a sweetener made of sugarcane juice. Although it is commonly used to prepare several sweet dishes, you might not know if it is safe to consume jaggery during pregnancy.

Jaggery is a rich source of iron and mineral salts and consuming it during pregnancy is safe for the mother and baby. If taken in the right amount, jaggery acts as a good nutritional source that helps in a healthy pregnancy.

Read the post to know more about the nutritional value of jaggery, its health benefits during pregnancy, and its side effects if taken in excess amounts.

Is It Safe To Eat Jaggery During Pregnancy?

You can eat jaggery (gur) in pregnancy but in limited quantity. Jaggery is rich in iron and contributes to your daily iron requirement(1). The natural source of sugar boosts the overall health of the expectant mother.

It is also known to purify blood and breast milk, thereby offering nourishment to the baby during pregnancy and even出生后.Therefore, you may replace refined sugar with jaggery in your diet.

Nutritional Value Of Jaggery

Jaggery is referred to as “superfood sweetener,” that is mostly made of sugar cane, and alsodate palm.Good quality jaggery contains more than 70% sucrose, less than 10% glucose, and fructose, and less than 5% minerals. The nutrition may vary, depending on the source used to make it (cane or palm).

According to a study published in the Journal of Food Processing and Technology, half a cup (100g) of jaggery contains calcium (40 to 100mg), potassium (1056mg), magnesium (70 to 90mg), sodium (19 to 30mg), iron (10 to 13mg), phosphorus (20 to 90mg), zinc (0.2 to 0.4mg), manganese (0.2 to 0.5mg), copper (0.1 to 0.9mg), and chloride (5.3mg). It also contains trace amounts of vitamins(2).

Do You Need Jaggery During Pregnancy?

Jaggery not only adds sweetness to your food but is also believed to offer benefits because of its nutritional profile. The sweetener is believed to be beneficial in the following ways. However, there is not enough scientific evidence to back these claims:

• Iron helps in reducing thechances of anemiathat is commonmanbet安卓版.

• Potassium helps instabilizingelectrolytic balanceⁱXA balance of minerals in the body, which is essential for normal body functioning.in the body and treating水肿ⁱXNoticeable swelling resulting from excessive fluid retention in the body..

• Vitamins and minerals helpnourish bones and joints.

• Unrefined sugars are believed to solve digestive issues by triggering digestive enzyme secretion, thereby aidingdigestion. It could help smooth bowel movements without even containing fiber.

• Minerals and antioxidants in jaggery are said tosupport immunityand treat illnesses such as colds and flu.

Possible Side Effects Of Jaggery During Pregnancy

Although jaggery could be beneficial, consuming it in large amounts is not a good ideasince it is the same as sugar just unrefined. Also, adulterated or impure jaggery may lead to some problems. Therefore, exercise caution before including jaggery in your prenatal care diet.

• Eating jaggery excessively will increase the calorie count and might lead toweight gain.

• Jaggery has a glycemic index of 84.1 at one hour after consumption. Sugars in jaggery canraise blood sugar levels, which will be problematic if you already have gestationalgestational diabetesⁱXPregnancy-specific condition characterized by high blood sugar levels, which may pose a risk of complications..

• Impure jaggery may havemicrobes.

In order to make sure that you are not having excessive amounts of sugar, replace the regular sugar with jaggery.

Ways To Include Jaggery In Your Pregnancy Diet

Jaggery is a versatile ingredient that can be used in several ways.

• Add to milkor tea.

• Include it in desserts and puddings

• Make healthy snacks by mixing it with peanuts or grated coconut to make sweets and satisfy your cravings.

• Add to toffees, muffins, and cakes

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