Ever heard of pregnant women craving stale cigarette butts? You can’t make this stuff up. Ah! Pregnancy: such weird and wonderful side effects. Crazy cravings should get a special category of their own on the grand scale of weird-itude.
And yet it’s important not to write them off as wacky anecdotes to be shared at parties years down the road. To do so underestimates the amazing power of the human body, which, during pregnancy, is performing arguably the most miraculous act there is.
Why Pregnant Women Crave
The science behind why women crave is shaky. Some health professionals insist that cravings are insignificant happenings caused by the flood of hormones women experience during pregnancy, which cause all sorts of wonky brain activity including some important changes in appetite.
How you’ll treat your body’s cravings during pregnancy depends heavily on what you believe about your body. Do you believe in its incredible ability to ask for what it needs, to act as an early warning system when something isn’t right and to send clear signals to the brain about what it needs? Or do you believe you are simply a slave to the molecules that make up your physical body, firing out random signals any old way they choose?
For the sake of argument, we’re going to assume the former. The data goes both ways. On the other hand, anecdotal evidence supports the theory that cravings are meaningful and important.
Studies show many cravings can have biological, psychological and cultural roots. A few examples:
Biological Causes: Craving ice is a strong indicator of iron deficiency or anemia. Craving bizarre non-food items like gasoline or dirt is another indicator of low iron levels.
Cultural Causes: A study in Tanzania showed that pregnant women craved foods that were regionally and culturally available. American women rarely crave mango, for example, since it’s not locally available. On the other hand, pickles and ice cream are culturally available, which explains why so many American women crave them.
Psychological Causes: Pregnant women are still human, after all. If your grandmother used to serve apple pie on lazy summer afternoons, you might experience a craving for apple pie without knowing the body is simply looking for comfort and love.
Aversions and cravings go hand in hand. Women who had aversions to certain foods before becoming pregnant are likely to have strange cravings during pregnancy.
Managing Those Crazy Cravings
Now, if only all women craved spinach and quinoa with chia seeds during pregnancy! What a good life it would be. Some experts say our bodies have lost that deep connection to nature and to our roots as hunter gatherers, which helps to explain why instead of craving a glass of cold milk, a woman might crave a pint of Häagen-Dazs.
Take a big picture look at the food you’re craving and ask yourself what nutrients – however insignificant – that food may contain that your body needs. Chances are there’s a better way to get those nutrients. In some cases, the body may be craving something it’s trying to rid itself of, as in one of the examples below.
Eggs and red meat: Both significant sources of protein and fat. Many pregnant women are deficient in essential fatty acids – a fish oil or flax oil supplement may be helpful.
Pickles: Pickles may be a simple salt craving, but it could also have deeper implications. Candida overgrowth is fed by vinegar and sugar. When candida dies off, it sends powerful messages to the brain to collect more food.
Cheese or milk: Skip the mac and cheese and look for a healthy source of calcium.
Chocolate: This could indicate a lack of magnesium. Skip the milk chocolate and select the dark variety. Try consuming more beans, nuts, seeds and dark green vegetables.
Peanut butter: Before scarfing down a pint of Skippy, try some vitamin B and/or fish oil.
Ultra-weird non-food items such as clay, coffee grinds, paint thinner or worse: The phenomenon of craving non-food items is called pica, from the latin for Magpie – a bird that’ll eat almost anything. Some believe it stems from an iron deficiency. Either way, exercise restraint and see a doctor, midwife or alternate health professional if cravings get too strong.
Many women report that cravings subside in the fourth month of pregnancy. If not, there may be an underlying emotional issue at play. Consulting a therapist may offer some insights, as would meditation, EFT or tapping.
Nothing the body does means nothing. It would be foolish to think so. Trust your body’s ability to tell you what it needs. Ignoring it won’t make the cravings go away. It may even have the opposite effect. Nobody wants to be a slave to the whims of their physical body, especially during pregnancy.
Lastly, remember that a pregnant woman is also a human woman. Cravings are something we all deal with every day. Don’t beat yourself up for craving a bag of potato chips. Accept your body and politely ask it why? Why do I crave what I crave? What message is my body trying to send me? What can I do to give it the nutrients it needs to thrive?
If you’re at all confused about what your body is craving, just listening to it is a good place to start. Chances are it’s already sending you messages; you just haven’t been paying attention.
For more pregnancy related information, check out our maternity page.
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