“Is African mango safe during pregnancy?” – It’s one of the most common emails I receive these days and I believe it’s time to address this issue. In my opinion this is not even an issue about African mango, it’s about whether you should lose weight or not during pregnancy.

Pregnant women are concerned about their weight gain and it’s no surprise if you think about it. Add the weight of the baby, the placenta, the amniotic fluid, breast tissue, the increased blood supply, the fat stores for baby delivery and breastfeeding afterwards, and you get at least 25 extra pounds.

But it doesn’t stop here. We all have to eat for two during this time and not all of us started with a normal weight. To make things worse, some mothers need not to eat just for two, but for three. So how do you deal with this weight gain during pregnancy?

Let’s take a step back, breathe deeply and take a look at the big picture. The most important thing you have to consider is that the baby you’re carrying needs to get all the nutrients and calories in order to grow properly. Losing weight could potentially cause the baby to be delivered with a low birth weight and it also increases the chances to a premature delivery.

Secondly, during pregnancy, a mother stores some of the weight she gains to use it later while breastfeeding. Not gaining enough weight could impair her abilities to breastfeed.

Thus, losing weight should not be a priority at this time as it could potentially harm your developing baby.

How much weight should I gain?

A woman of average weight should gain around 25-35 pounds during her pregnancy, while underweight women should gain a bit more, around 28 to 40 pounds. Overweight women should put on less weight then a woman with normal weight. They only need 15-25 pounds. But how is that possible, to gain only this little?

Well, first of all, “eating for two” – is nothing like that. During the first 28 weeks, you don’t have to eat extra. You just need to, as usual, pay close attention to what you eat and not as much as to how much. You should eat 5-6 healthy meals a day.

The last weeks of pregnancy, women only need 200 extra calories – that’s about two slices of bread. Think more of how to control the weight gain, rather than losing your weight.  Besides, in the first trimester, it’s even possible to lose some weight due to the morning sickness.

If you do see value in this and want to stop adding unnecessary weight during your pregnancy and control your weight gain, have a look at this website. Michelle Moss, the owner of the website, is a Health and Nutrition Coach and has a powerful formula for weight maintenance designed specifically for Pregnant and new Moms.

Why African mango is NOT safe during pregnancy

Well, to begin with, as I mentioned before, losing weight could potential harm your baby. If you do wish to lose weight you should consider using African mango before pregnancy or after you stop breastfeeding.

Another thing to consider would be the other nutrients the African mango supplement could contain even though there are no African mango side effects. Some of the supplements containing African mango also contain green tea extracts (which does contain caffeine) and even caffeine. Point being, some capsules do contain caffeine or other form of stimulants.

Stimulants cross the placenta and just as it can increase your metabolism and blood pressure, it will also increase the baby’s heart rate keeping you and you baby awake at nights. The baby is not fully developed to handle these stimulants.

Some studies also suggest stimulants like caffeine could increase the chance of miscarriage. Even though there are other studies saying differently, it’s best to limit the caffeine intake during pregnancy.

As a conclusion, think more of how to control your weight gain (have a steady pace), exercise more and eat 5-6 healthy meals a day. If you did gain too much weight, talk you your doctor as he’s the only one in position to give you advice on how to lose weight during your pregnancy.

Before you leave, I would once more remind you that during pregnancy you should focus on weight control and consider losing weight as a last resort. For this, I do recommend you have look at what Michelle Moss has to say.