Avoid ultra-processed foods and their packaging if you’re pregnant
It comes as no surprise that pregnant women — and all the rest of us — should avoid ultra-processed foods that are loaded with unhealthy fats, excess salt and sugar and a slew of coloring, preservatives, texturizers and other additives that Mother Nature never put into whole, healthy foods. But there’s a new twist from researchers at the University of Washington. In their study published in Environment International, they’re sounding an alarm about the dangers posed by the phthalates in the plastic packaging that most highly processed foods come in.
Turns out phthalate-containing plastics can leach into food from the wrapping and packaging and even from plastic gloves worn by fast-food handlers. The phthalates then travel through mom’s bloodstream into the fetus’s circulatory system. There, they increase the risk for everything from low birth weight and preterm birth to disorders such as autism and ADHD.
The researchers tracked more than 1,000 pregnant women for five years. They found that, on average, ultra-processed foods made up more than a third of the participants’ diet and every 10% greater amount of ultra-processed foods that a pregnant woman ate led to a 13% higher concentration of one of the most common and harmful phthalates in a pregnant woman’s urine.
To protect your fetus — and yourself — the smart move is to stick with minimally or unpackaged fresh fruits and vegetables and whole grains and to avoid plastic-packaged desserts and treats and prepared meals, fresh or frozen. For healthy, fresh and tasty recipes, check out iherb.com’s blog and Longevityplaybook.com.
Dr. Mike Roizen is the founder of www. longevityplaybook.com, and Dr. Mehmet Oz is global advisor to www.iherb.com, the world’s leading online health store. Roizen and Oz are chief wellness officer emeritus at Cleveland Clinic and professor emeritus at Columbia University, respectively. Together they have written 11 New York Times bestsellers (four No. 1’s).
King Features Syndicate