eating during pregnancy

i came across this in one of my pregnancy books:

Best avoided during pregnancy

• sweetened beverages
• candy
• white flour
• chocolate
• ice cream
• cakes and pastries
  
• cookies
• white sugar

i saw this comical list early on and had already consumed something from every category. after i got over feeling sick to my stomach in the early weeks, i was just happy to be able to eat at all.

of course, i know how important it is to eat well during pregnancy. and i try to make the effort. but i have also been surprised to find that i'm drawn to less healthful foods. it is very strange to me that it wasn't until pregnancy that i started to eat sugar cereals and macaroni & cheese (though these are the things i was born & raised on so that could have something to do with it... someone recently told me that she always wanted to eat hot dogs in pregnancy- which she hadn't really eaten since childhood).

some people have been curious to know about my pregnancy eating habits/cravings/aversions/etc. so i'll try to explain what i've been experiencing:

from the very beginning, i could not imagine eating salmon or any fish really. this is too bad because i know that my baby's brain is developing and i'd like to get some omega 3s into my diet. on the plus side, there are always mercury scares to worry about with fish so maybe this is one of those food aversions with some biological sense behind it.

carbs of all kinds have had tremendous appeal- even in the beginning of the pregnancy, when i felt sick. crackers, pasta, rice, & bread were all good. for some odd reason, i could always stomach thai food- especially noodle dishes like pad woon sen and pad kee mao. this was true even when some of my most favorite foods held no appeal.

nowadays, my pregnancy diet more closely resembles my usual eating habits. i can eat most things. hunger in pregnancy is a more intense feeling than non-pregnant hunger, like i'm really driven to eat. my main obsession lately has been great american bagels' everything bagels. they are just so good. i seriously have one most days of the week! i am trying to eat as many fruits and vegetables as i can but i also have been eating more random hard candy! bizarre.