Beat pregnancy cravings the way this IAS officer did

The family’s involvement in “Mission Craving”, as Nagpal terms it, means that the mother and baby are set to be pampered. It’s a great time indeed, for families to come together, but it’s not without risks. “There’s a thin line between craving and loading,” she says. When expectant mothers have a craving, they can end up eating excessively to satisfy it, but, in the process, end up hurting their body and their overall well-being.

Durga Shakti Nagpal with her book.

Nagpal suggests a Japanese diet rule of mindful eating, called hara hachi bu, meant to be a simple formula for a long and healthy life. You satisfy your stomach until it’s 80 per cent full and you leave 20 per cent empty. She says, “It’s a particular belief that is even more valid when you’re pregnant.”

The approach sounds counterintuitive, especially since there is a lot of pressure on pregnant women to “eat for two”. Family and society encourage her to do so, and that means that the craving overtakes everything else and she ends up eating more than necessary. Nagpal says while it’s important to eat for two people, it’s almost equally important to remember that the second person you are eating for is “the size of a walnut”.

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