Pregnant women in China avoid cold foods
1. Cold food intake might damage the fetus's brain
According to Dr. Rongzhang Wu, a professor at Peking University School of Public Health, and his colleagues, pregnant mothers who eat foods stored inside refrigerators or freezers have a higher risk of giving birth to children with lower IQ levels than those who did not.
According to their study published in the British Medical Journal, researchers analyzed data collected from two studies conducted between 2003 and 2005, including 1,836 people in Beijing. The results showed that compared with participants who consumed no chilled foods, the group that ate less than three servings per week had a 15 percent lower average score on the intelligence quotient (IQ) test, while those who ate four to six servings weekly scored 2 points lower. Those who ate seven or eight servings per week scored even lower, scoring 5 points lower on average than those who didn't consume any chilled foods.
The researchers think that eating foods stored in refrigerators could lead to an increase in mercury levels in the mother's body. According to them, mercury damages the developing fetal brain, resulting in lower IQ scores among babies born of moms who ate more of these foods.
However, the authors admitted that they couldn't determine if the association was causal. Also, the study wasn't able to establish whether or not the link was specific to mercury.
2. Cold foods may harm the baby's immune system
Dr. Wu and his team also noted that babies whose mothers ate foods kept in refrigerators were more likely to suffer from respiratory infections, ear infections, diarrhea, and urinary tract infections. Additionally, the infants of these mothers tended to spend longer times in hospital than those whose mothers hadn't eaten any chilled foods.
Wu explained that the effects weren't confined to babies. He said that after examining the health records of nearly 4,000 women before and after pregnancy, he discovered that those who ate fewer chilled foods before and during pregnancy were more likely to contract infections.
Wu concluded that the findings indicated that pregnant women should limit their consumption of cold foods. He added that while some experts say that the connection between cold food intake and poor outcomes isn't conclusive, they add that further research is necessary.
3. Cold drinks affect blood sugar level
Another study published last year revealed that drinking cold beverages led to high blood sugar levels among pregnant women. Researchers led by Sarah E. Lappas, PhD, of the University of California-San Diego School of Medicine, evaluated the blood glucose levels of nearly 300 women who took either 100 or 200 milliliters of lemonade each day. The results showed that both groups experienced similar increases in blood sugar over time. However, the group who drank 100 ml of lemonade daily had a greater increase in blood sugar than the group who drank 200 ml of lemonade.
The researchers believe that temperature changes the chemical structure of certain ingredients in lemonade, making it easier for the glucose molecules to enter the bloodstream.
Lemonade contains citric acid, which raises blood sugar levels, and aspartame, an artificial sweetener known to cause adverse reactions. The researchers note that the effect was strongest when lemonade was cold and diluted.
If you're thinking about starting a diet plan today, try to keep yourself away from cold drinks.
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