Weird Pregnancy Cravings That Aren't Actually Weird At All

Pregnancy is having a palate that gives you mixed signals every few hours. One minute, you're craving a sugary glazed donut, and the next, have the urge to bite into a super salty dill pickle. What's more, you may even end up yearning for a juicy slice of steak despite being a vegan! It may be hard to keep up with your rogue taste buds, but it would give you solace to know that it's an experience pregnant women everywhere deal with. Per the BBC, expecting mothers worldwide develop an intense attraction for hard-to-resist foods from their culture. Research published in Frontiers holds that in the United States alone, 50-90% of pregnant women encounter some kind of food craving. The reasons suggested are plenty — it could be a need for comfort food or your body talking to you about its immediate needs. 

An ice cream craving, for instance, could signal a nutritional deficit — would you believe it? "Ice cream is a wonderful treat, but desiring it could also indicate that your body needs something," like iodine and calcium, Dr. Aaron Gelfand notes (via Very Well). At times, your cravings may end up in bizarro territory. Cupcake with hot sauce, anyone? But unusual pregnancy cravings are far more common than you'd think. So if you find yourself pregnant and hankering for something random like ketchup only to dismiss it as strange, stop and scroll through all the weird and wonderful foods that make women's mouths water when they're expecting! 

On certain days during your pregnancy, you may feel the urge to relish a big bowl of freshly cut fruits, while on others, all you would want is to flop onto your bed with a huge slice of chocolate cake in hand. You go on and enjoy both since they are normal cravings that surface when one yearns for sweet foods during pregnancy. Studies show that in the United States and the United Kingdom, sweets like chocolate and fruits are among the most common pregnancy cravings (via Healthline). Though research isn't conclusive on the subject, it is believed that pregnant women develop a taste for certain foods during pregnancy owing to changes in the body, including a heightened perception of taste and smell. 

A craving for sweets could possibly indicate mineral deficiencies or low blood sugar, per Peanut. Intense sweet cravings could also be an early symptom of gestational diabetes, a condition that affects 10% of reported pregnancies in the United States, the American Diabetes Association states. So maybe consider not sneaking chocolate from the refrigerator every half an hour. Switch out carb-heavy foods like cake for low-calorie fruit snacks such as mangoes, bananas, and berries to get some important vitamins and satisfy that sweet pregnancy tooth in the process! Even so, try not to get your health freak on too hard since the goal is to keep your blood sugar levels at equilibrium and consume all sugars within limit. 

Don't tell us you haven't reached into your freezer to fish out a cube (or two) of ice to treat yourself to a cold, crunchy, tasteless treat. While the occasional icy snack is no biggie, craving it much too often is a whole other beast. Incessant chewing of ice, a phenomenon known as pagophagia, that lasts more than a month in pregnant women may point to a disorder called pica (via Healthline). Pica is not a condition exclusive to pregnant women; children experience it, too. It is more or less benign but since it involves craving non-food items — including mud, chalk, coal, ash — being cautious is crucial. Experts hold that pica could indicate certain deficiencies in the body, such as zinc or calcium. Traditionally, pagophagia in pregnant women has been linked to iron deficiency or anemia, per Mayo Clinic. 

Ice eating may seem like a harmless enough pastime — it's just frozen water, after all, isn't it? Unfortunately, your habit won't help you hit your daily limit of water intake but could carry some risks instead. As noted by Medical News Today, pagophagia is not the best for dental health since crunching hard ice cubes could chip away at enamel or even cause oral sensitivity. Moreover, it may also be a sign of mental health stress or depression. So if you catch yourself eating way too much ice than your teeth can take, address it with your doctor at the earliest. 

The mere mention of sauerkraut is enough to make your taste buds tingle. During pregnancy, this sensation can reach its peak if your cravings begin kicking in. It's quite common to desperately pursue sour foods like sauerkraut when you have a little human growing inside you. Made of shredded cabbage that has been fermented, sauerkraut is a tangy preparation exalted for its nutritional benefits and probiotic properties, per the BBC. Fermented foods aren't just safe but advantageous to pregnant women, too, since they "can help improve mom and baby's immune system and overall gut health," according to dietitian Natalie Allen (per Romper). While you may have enjoyed this flavorful veggie by the spoonful pre-pregnancy, it's important not to go overboard when eating it as an expecting mother.

Contrary to dairy items, which are better off pasteurized for pregnancy consumption, unpasteurized varieties of sauerkraut are most beneficial. Per Healthline, market-bought sauerkraut is usually pasteurized, which kills off the very element that makes this mouth-watering preparation so distinct: good bacteria. To get the most out of all the fermented goodness that sauerkraut offers, consider making it at home! It will be a great way to keep a sour snack handy, with your craving for this taste presumably growing during later stages of the pregnancy and also helping with morning sickness. As observed by Dr. Valerie Duffy, wanting sour foods when you're pregnant is a good way to expand your dietary choices throughout your term (via Parents). 

Pregnancy comes with more than the mother's share of compromises — such as sacrificing soda. If you're lying on the sofa with a growing belly and a glass of water in your hand that you wish was a can of soda, you're not alone. Before giving into those soda cravings, you must be informed about the canned risks of your favorite fizzy. Medical research warns against excessive consumption of the components that go into making soda. The top culprit? Caffeine. The American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology has set the daily caffeine limit for pregnant women at 200 milligrams per Parents. A can of soda may contain anywhere between 30-60 milligrams of caffeine, which is far below the red line. And yet, sodas aren't advisable during pregnancy because caffeine isn't acting alone. 

There are generous amounts of sugar in soda. Baby Center notes that drinking very sugary beverages while pregnant may negatively affect your child's cognitive, verbal, and motor abilities, as well as lead to poor physical health with issues like asthma. Artificially sweetened drinks are not good for your or your baby's health. If you think diet soda varieties are any better, think again! According to WebMD, studies have linked diet soda to poor development in children whose parents enjoyed their cans well into their pregnancy. Health sciences professor Dr. Juliana Cohen cautions pregnant mothers "to watch and limit added sugar intake, especially sugar-sweetened beverages like fruit drinks, sports drinks and sodas." 

Pickles and ice cream have been the predominant archetype of weird pregnancy cravings for as long as weird pregnancy cravings became a thing. It's the ultimate pairing that accurately captures the irrationality of odd food combos women feel the urge to seek out when they're pregnant. And for good reason — this particular sweet and salty duo touches extreme ends of the taste spectrum all at once. Don't go by the old myth that proposes that sweet cravings indicate you're carrying a girl, while salty cravings signal the birth of a boy (via Parents). The fluctuation of hormones, and the possible lack of sugar and sodium in your system, are causing you to experiment with surreal food combos. 

Some experts believe that part of the experience begins in the head: "If a woman has been raised to believe that during pregnancy one craves pickles, then ... she's likely to crave pickles," according to Dr. Roy Pitkin (per WebMD). The mainstreaming of pickles and ice cream as a pregnancy cliché supposedly came about in the mid-20th century, when it emerged in pop culture, most notably in the classic 1950s sitcom "I Love Lucy" (per Slate). Pickles and ice cream, by themselves, are understood to be common pregnancy cravings, shifting from trimester to trimester according to your needs through nine months. With the quirky invention of something called pickle ice cream, per Taste of Home, you can now enjoy the best of both worlds in a single swirl! 

Is peanut butter your favorite go-to snack during pregnancy? If this is your choice of craving, you're in luck because experts recommend a healthy peanut butter consumption in this nine-month term. "There are a lot of healthy fats and nutrients in peanut butter, and you can combine it with other healthy foods," recommends gynecologist Dr. Diana E. Ramos, encouraging pregnant mothers to enjoy that spoonful of delicious spread (via Very Well Family). Again, as with any other food, moderation is key when it comes to peanut butter. While it's definitely the more nutritious alternative in the butter family — it aids in keeping away heart diseases and issues like diabetes, per Harvard Medical School — it's a calorie-rich condiment that deserves to be eaten in balance. 

If you have a nut allergy, it goes without saying that you're probably better off without this sweet-salty snack on your menu. Also, eating peanut butter during pregnancy does not mean your child will be born with a nut allergy. Yes, it's been a long-held misconception that the consumption of nuts by pregnant mothers will pass on allergies to their babies. If anything, the latest research has indicated that the exact opposite could be true (via USA Today). Enjoying peanut butter while pregnant (only if you aren't allergic) may possibly cut down the risk of allergies in your child. Care.com recommends slathering some peanut butter on slices of fruit for a quick fix for both sweet and salty cravings together.