While some foods may be healthy for you during pregnancy, others might be unhealthy. Hence, if you wish to know if eating papaya during pregnancy is safe for you, this post is for you. Papaya is high in nutrients and is known to help with digestion, but most pregnant women are unsure whether or not they should consume papaya. In this post, we discuss the safety, benefits, and side effects of eating papaya when pregnant. Read on.
Is It Safe To Eat Papaya During Pregnancy?
It is safe as long as you are consuming ripe papaya in moderate quantities. But semi-ripe and unripe papaya may cause complications in pregnant women. Raw papaya is high in latex, a substance responsible for uterine contractions (1). Hence, doctors do not recommend consuming the green fruit as it may lead to adverse effects on expecting mothers. You should be careful about what you are eating during pregnancy, especially in the first and third trimester as these are considered crucial stages.
Can Papaya Cause Miscarriage In Early Pregnancy?
An unripe and semi-ripe form of the fruit might increase the risk of miscarriage. The risk is high during the early stages of pregnancy as the latex in the fruit might trigger unnatural contractions leading to miscarriage.
Can You Have Papaya In Pregnancy Third Trimester?
Avoid raw papaya in the third trimester. The latex in it could stimulate hormones responsible for contractions. Furthermore, eating green papaya might lead to hemorrhaging and bleeding from the corners of the placenta (2). Therefore, unripe papaya is not recommended during the last months of pregnancy. In fact, papaya is given to induce labor during the third trimester, in rare cases.
Why Should You Avoid Latex In Papaya?
Latex (the milky liquid) is a mixture of papain, endopeptidases, and chymopapain (3). This substance is considered unsafe because:
The enzyme papain is known to stimulate contractions that can cause abortion (4). Also, it hinders the production of progesterone hormone, which is significant for a healthy pregnancy. Latex acts like oxytocin and prostaglandin, the hormones that could start labor (5).
Latex is found in unripe and semi-ripe papaya, and also in the leaves of the fruit. Hence, try to avoid unripe or semi-ripe papaya throughout your pregnancy. But the proportion of latex diminishes as the fruit ripens and hence, the ripe fruit can be eaten to enjoy its goodness.
Nutrients In Papaya (Ripe)
The ripe papayas are rich nutrients, including:
Antioxidants such as beta carotene Minerals such as potassium (6) Vitamins Iron Calories Folic acid (7) Although ripe papaya is good for pregnancy, there are conditions when you should avoid it.
When Not To Eat Papaya During Pregnancy?
The doctor may advise you not to consume the fruit during pregnancy, if:
you have allergies to latex (8) you have gone through any infertility treatment and are conceiving after a long time you had a miscarriage, abortion, premature delivery, or such concerns previously.
Also, as mentioned earlier, you should avoid raw papaya as it might lead to some adverse effects.
Effects Of Eating Papaya During Pregnancy
Unripe and semi-ripe papayas are not recommended for pregnant women for the following reasons. In the next section, we answer a few more queries on papaya during pregnancy.
