If you’re to become a mother soon and finding it difficult to judge whether is watercress good for pregnancy or not, then this article is a must-read for you.
Overview of Watercress
Watercress is a green, leafy vegetable that is in use by historians for many purposes than just as a garnish like today. It is said that Watercress is a staple ingredient in the diet of Roman soldiers. Watercress belongs to the cruciferous family like broccoli, arugula, and many more belonging to the same family. It grows above the ground, and you can use it in medicinal amounts to be on the safer side. Lately, people have started researching about the vegetable and its origin deeply.
In this article, you will find the facts and myths of Watercress researched so far. Besides knowing whether is watercress good for pregnancy, you’ll know some of the alternatives that you can try!
Is watercress Good for Pregnancy?
According to the research of United States Department of Agriculture Food Data’s Central Database, if you take one cup of Watercress, it provides you with the following nutritional values:
- 0.782 g of Protein
- 0.034 g of Fat
- 0.439 g of Carbohydrate
- 0.17 g of Fiber
Besides this, watercress has the following minerals and vitamins:
- Vitamin K, C and A
- Calcium
- Manganese
- Potassium
- Vitamin E
- Thiamin
- Riboflavin
- Vitamin B-6
- Magnesium
- Phosphorus
Although they provide all the above-said minerals, vitamins, and nutritional values, it causes harm to the stomach when taken in large amounts for long term. That is why the intake of Watercress is advised only in medicinal doses during pregnancy. It has been proven to be an inferior treatment for chronic diseases like cough, constipation, arthritis, flu, and many more.
Here’s everything you need to need to make a note about the positives and negatives of Watercress in your diet. Make sure that you DON’T involve it in your diet when you are pregnant. Instead of consuming watercress during pregnancy, you can use the below-mentioned alternatives to reap similar qualities.
Alternatives of Watercress
It is really important to have a healthy diet during pregnancy and avoid things like watercress that may lead to adverse effects. Here are the food items that can compensate for the nutritional value of watercress during pregnancy.
1. Folic Acid
Folic acid helps to prevent birth defects and it is best to add it to the breakfast. The best source of Folic acid during pregnancy is green leafy vegetables, eggs, red meat, and breakfast cereals.
2. Iron
Iron is a good option to prevent anemia. When you know that you cannot take watercress during pregnancy to overcome the need for iron, you can take lean meat, green leafy vegetables, dry fruits, and nuts.
3. Vitamin C
You can extract Vitamin C from oranges and orange juice, Black currant, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, potatoes, strawberries, etc. These vegetables and fruits will give you the required vitamin C that you need for the health of your baby and you.
4. Calcium
It is vital to make the baby’s bones healthy and strong. You can take things like milk. cheese, yoghurt, vegetables, tofu, Soya drinks, things made of fortified flour, etc. to provide your baby with adequate amounts of calcium.
Why Avoid Watercress During Pregnancy?
Here is a list of all the protection that you need to take care of while using Watercress during pregnancy:
During Pregnancy
There is a chance that Watercress might make your menstruation cycle start again and thus, leading to miscarriage. Therefore, it is the best option to avoid using Watercress for nine months when you are pregnant. It should NOT be taken even in medicinal amounts.
While Breastfeeding
No evidence of Watercress being harmful during pregnancy has been traced so far. Yet, it is an excellent option to avoid its intake during the period when you are breastfeeding your baby.
Stomach, Kidney, or Intestinal Ulcers
When you face stomach or intestinal ulcers, it is not an excellent option to take Watercress in your diet as it is harmful to the stomach, kidney, or intestinal ulcers.
These are certain precautions that you need to take while consuming Watercress.
Recipes to Follow If You Want To Add Watercress to Your Diet
Here are four recipes that you can enjoy at home if you’re going to extract the goodness of Watercress.
Gruyère and Watercress Omelet
Ingredients
- ½ tablespoon olive or vegetable oil
- One handful of roughly chopped Watercress
- Grated Gruyère cheese
- 2 to 3 large brown eggs, seasoned and lightly beaten
Procedure
- Firstly, you need to heat the vegetable oil on a low flame.
- Add eggs to the frying pan and add chopped watercress and cheese on top.
- Keep cooking till the base of Omelette is golden and the cheese starts melting.
Spicy Tuna Wrap
Ingredients
- Two cans chunk light tuna
- ⅓ cup low-fat mayonnaise
- One tablespoon hot sauce, such as Sriracha
- One scallion – chopped
- 2 cups cooked brown rice
- Two tablespoons rice vinegar
- Four whole-grain wraps
- 3 cups watercress leaves
- One ripe avocado
- One small carrot
- Reduced-sodium soy sauce for dipping (optional)
Procedure
- Take a bowl and mix tuna, mayonnaise, hot sauce, and scallion.
- Take another bowl and mix rice and vinegar.
- Spread tuna mixture on the top with rice and Watercress.
- Add avocado slides and carrot to the cross.
- Roll up the rap and dip it in soy sauce to make it tastier.
Cucumber and Watercress Salad
Ingredients
- One large cucumber – peeled and diced
- One bunch of Watercress – trimmed
- ½ cup chopped parsley
- Two tablespoons honey
- Two tablespoons white wine vinegar
- Splash of water
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
Procedure
- Mix cucumber, watercress, and parsley in a bowl.
- Add honey, vinegar, and water and drizzle the dressing on the vegetables.
Watercress Pesto Pasta
Ingredients
- One bunch watercress, about 5½ cups, tough stems removed, divided
- Two tablespoons toasted pine nuts
- Pinch of red pepper flakes
- 10 ounces farro spaghetti or whole-wheat spaghetti
- Zest of 1 lemon
- One clove garlic, chopped
- Three tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- Coarse salt
Procedure
- Add pine nuts, lemon zest, and garlic to 5 cups of Watercress in a food processor.
- Add oil to it and mix.
- Top it with salt and red pepper.
- Bring a big pot to boil the mixture. Simultaneously drain pasta by reserving 1 cup of the cooking water.
- Pour the pasta into the hot pot and stir it well.
- Top the pasta and the sauce with salt and the remaining Watercress.
End Notes
It is essential to be aware of about everything that goes inside your body during the pregnancy. There is no window for carelessness as the consequences are pretty worse.
You need to keep an eye on your diet and the food items that you intake. Watercress is not something that you can consume during your pregnancy. So be careful and stay tuned as we are going to present more such informative articles to you.