Papaya During Pregnancy: How Safe Papaita is For Newly Moms? Here’s The Truth!

There is a lot of dilemma in pregnant women about the consumption of papaya. Is it true or not? Here’s what you should know

Pregnancy is the time for family’s joy and excitement. But it also brings a lot of care and awareness towards mother’s dietary choices to ensure her and baby’s well-being. While there are numerous foods that doctor’s aware newly moms to not consume during pregnancy, out of which one includes Papaya. Papaya has been a subject of debate for years that whether it should be avoided or not by moms-to-be. So, today we’ll explore the potential benefits and risk of consuming papaya during pregnancy to help expectant mothers to make informed decisions about their diet.

Papaya is known for its abundance of minerals, vitamins, and antioxidants. During pregnancy, it has been out that ripe papayas are good but unripe papayas aren’t. Here’s why:

Benefits of Ripe Papaya (yellow skin) in Pregnancy

1. Full ripe papayas are considered safe during pregnancy as these contain vitamin A,B,C, potassium and beta-carotene, all of which have high antioxidant content and boost immunity.
2. Papayas also contain folic acid, which is essential during pregnancy for the neurological development of the baby.
3. Having the right amount of ripe papayas help increase milk production
4. Vitamin supply from papaya improves immunity, which prevents against various infections.
5. Ripe papayas are a healthy source of choline, fiber, potassium, vitamins A, B and C.

Risks of Unripe Papaya (Green Skin) in Pregnancy

1. Latex in unripe papaya has papain, which may stimulate prostaglandin and oxytocin, hormones that can lead to uterine contractions and premature labour.
2. Papaya can cause miscarriage, as it is a potent emmenagogue, which stimulates and increases menstrual flow.
3. Leaves and seeds of papaya contain carpine, a toxin that is determinal to the central nervous system.
4. Women who have experienced premature labour or abortion can be at increased risk of suffering pregnancy complications due to papaya. However, it is advisable for such women to avoid papayas during pregnancy.
5. If a pregnant women has a history of gestational diabetes, then papaya is unsafe to have during pregnancy.
6. The type of latex in unripe papaya should be avoided as it can trigger a dangerous reaction.

Conclusion

Consuming small quantities of ripe papaya is beneficial for pregnant women. Unripe papaya can be very dangerous. It is a common myth in India that papaya causes miscarriage, but this has not been proven scientifically. A pregnant women can benefit from the consumption of ripe papayas in moderate amounts.