Pregnancy and Juicing

A healthy diet and lifestyle is important, but especially so when you’re pregnant. Today, there’s no shortage of stores that sell green juices, freshly made juice concoctions, and healthy smoothies and drinks like Kombucha. What a great way to get some of your fruits and vegetables, right? But is Pregnancy and Juicing safe?  I found myself grinning at the thought of drinking Green Juice (instead of dreading it), just think my baby would be a superhero or baby genius reading before he was One with the amount of vegetables I was going to drink every day.  As I started gulping down a very green concoction, freshly made of course, I read the list of goodness I was drinking and then got stuck on the word: unpasteurized.  It suddenly occurred to me that Pregnancy and Juicing of course meant consuming unpasteurized food, and so perhaps it wasn’t a good idea after all!

There’s a whole list of things that expecting moms shouldn’t eat (or eat sparingly) during pregnancy, including blue cheese, deli meats, and raw sushi – but drinks (besides alcohol, coffee and soda) don’t usually make the list. The drinks I’m talking about are usually considered the “healthy” drinks – the raw juices, smoothies, Kombucha, and things like that. The drinks we see at Whole Foods or Organic Avenue. Kombucha is a fermented drink that contains bacteria, tea, sugar, and yeast. While it can be healthy and is said to ease constipation, high blood pressure, joint pain, and increase metabolism, the fermentation of the drink makes it a no-no for pregnant women, and even for those who are nursing, as well. Fermentation can result in natural alcohol, and while the percentage is likely very, very small, there’s no way to tell just how much alcohol is in it. The drink is also not pasteurized, which the FDA warns against for pregnant women. Pasteurization uses heat to kill bacteria, and milks and juices are often pasteurized to kill any harmful germs that might be lurking around. This is especially important if you’re pregnant, when your immune system is compromised. Normally, these germs might not affect you, but when pregnant, bacteria like toxoplasma and Listeria can cause things like blindness or mental retardation in the fetus, as well as miscarriage or fetal death.

Fresh-pressed juices and green drinks are also things to be wary of while pregnant. Juices that are fresh-pressed, including some bottled juices, are not pasteurized. If there are bacteria on the fruits and vegetables, some of the bacteria can get into the juice and cause harmful side effects to the fetus. Since you don’t know how well the store washes the fruits, vegetables, or machines they use to make the juice, it’s usually better to be safe than sorry, and pass on the juices.  So, just like unpasteurized cheese, unpasteurized juices are on the ‘things to avoid’ list.

If you’re looking for an easier way to get some nutrients, why not mix pasteurized juices like apple juice or cider, or orange juice, with some sparkling water? Drinks like V8 are good, too – just watch out for sodium levels. Whole fruits and veggies are always a good choice, as long as they’re washed thoroughly.