Club de Bébé Blog

What’s With the Cravings?

2009-09-03T11:07:00.000-07:00

By Ingrid Wells
Whenever pregnancy is discussed, the topic of cravings is sure to follow. TV sitcoms love to play up this aspect of pregnancy with husbands shown running out in the middle of the night to pick up crazy foods to appease their wives’ desperate cravings. But why all the fuss about cravings?

This is a question I often asked myself during pregnancy. My cravings never materialized. Not during either of my pregnancies. I wondered where they were. Was there something wrong with me or with my pregnancy? The thought of having a silly craving seemed sort of fun. But for me it was a real head scratcher.

I wondered if having cravings was just one of those old wives' tales that was perpetuated to allow women to eat the foods they had forgone prior to pregnancy to maintain their weight. Or were cravings hyped so much that women just imagined they were having them when they weren’t?

I’ve since learned that cravings are real. According to Your Pregnancy™ Week by Week, the most medically up-to-date pregnancy guide available, many pregnant women do in fact have cravings. Cravings, which are believed to be caused by hormones typically center on salty and or sweet foods. In a study cited by the book, 33% of pregnant women craved chocolate, 20% craved sweets of some sort and 19% craved citrus fruits and juices.

Pregnancy Cravings, an article on parents.com, notes that in addition to cravings, pregnant women also experience an increased perception of bitterness during their first trimester. This may be the body’s way of protecting the fetus from harmful foods or beverages during critical stages of fetal development.

Cravings can also be a signal that your body is in need of something, such as calcium or iron. A less commonly occurring craving called Pica may be caused by a nutritional deficiency. Pica is a craving for unusual non-food items such dirt, chalk, charcoal and other substances. Consumption of non-foods is not healthy for you or your baby. If you fall into this category, see your physician right away to try to get to the root cause of the unusual craving.

Indulging Your Cravings
So what should you do when you have a craving? Eating with wild abandon is not the answer. Though a food may be yummy going down, if you indulge too much you’ll have to work harder to take off pregnancy weight. The more weight, the more work. It’s as simple as that.

Don’t panic! Cravings usually subside or at least diminish some by month 4, according to Food Cravings and Aversions During Pregnancy, an article on whattoexpect.com. Just keep your health and the health of your baby in mind and focus on eating a healthful diet. The article offers these helpful tips for keeping cravings in check:

Try to go easy on the indulgence by keeping the treat size within reason. For example, have a small chocolate bar instead of a super sized one.
If you do give in to your craving, try to eat healthy for the rest of the day.

Your Pregnancy™ Week by Week suggests that instead of indulging, try treating yourself once in a while with a little sample of your craved food. The book notes that you can help reduce your cravings with low fat, low sugar snacks.

Clubdebebe.com offers wonderful pregnancy gift sets that focus on having a healthy pregnancy. Below are links to some of these sets which make very considerate gifts:

Some other articles you may enjoy:

Please join us in sharing your craving experience!

When Your Belly Button Pops

2009-08-03T11:43:00.000-07:00

By Ingrid Wells
There are so many changes that your body goes through while you are pregnant. Some of the changes are welcome and cute, while others are more...interesting in nature. One of the changes that you may face while pregnant involves your belly button. That’s right ladies, some women find that their belly button pops out and becomes an outie during pregnancy.

While a popped belly button may bring to mind images of roasted turkeys—it is nothing to be alarmed about, nor is it a permanent condition. Not all women experience the outie button. In fact, there are many women who have had multiple pregnancies and never had an outie.

Opinions run the gamut regarding protruding belly buttons. Some expectant moms find it cute and take it to signify their little one being that much closer to greeting the world. Other moms-to-be think their changing belly button is unpleasant to look at or experience discomfort from clothing rubbing up against it. While still other moms don’t have a strong feeling one way or the other, but simply don't want their belly button to show through their business attire or dressy clothing.

The timing of one’s belly button popping also varies by person, and can occur any time starting in your second trimester. Some women begin noticing a tightening of their belly button or a shallower belly button at around 15 weeks. Changes in your belly button can range from a tightening or flattening, to a slight protrusion, to a full outie button.

If your belly button’s appearance bothers you, there are ways to hide it: You can wear loose clothing or a maternity band such as a Bella Band or a Boppy Support in Style™ Maternity Band may help. Another option is to wear a Miss Oops Popper Stopper. Popper Stoppers are latex free covers that you can affix to your belly button area to conceal a protruding belly button or to protect a sensitive one. As always, it is good to discuss what’s best for you with your own doctor.

One word of caution—If you decide in a pinch to use a bandage to cover your belly button, be sure to use one that is made to be easily removed so that you don’t end up pulling off dry, delicate skin along with your bandage when it’s time to take it off. Some moms have learned this lesson the hard way.

For a chance to win a free Boppy Support in Style™ Maternity Band, included in our Pregnant Belly Giveaway, click here to enter before August 15, 2009.

Has your belly button popped? Tell us how you feel about it and what if anything you do about it?

Other Articles You May Enjoy:
Protruding Navel in Pregnancy, on whattoexpect.com
Week 26 of Pregnancy: Protruding Navel, on whattoexpect.com

How Club de Bébé was Born

2009-07-20T17:32:00.000-07:00

By Ingrid Wells

Getting to know someone is an important part of any good relationship. So we wanted to begin our blog by introducing ourselves and sharing a little bit about who we are and how Club de Bébé came to be. Here’s our story:

Pregnancy is an exciting time, but with baby on the way and physical changes taking place it can also be a challenging time. Following our own pregnancies, we wanted to make the pregnancy journey more pleasant and fun for other expectant moms. We also believe that all moms-to-be deserve special care and pampering during pregnancy. So we created ClubdeBebe.com with the mission of helping women feel as special as they are, as beautiful as can be, and as comfortable and prepared as possible.

What makes our site unique is that it focuses on meeting the special and changing needs of moms-to-be throughout their pregnancy. Club de Bébé offers wonderful gifts to delight expectant moms—from luxurious spa and comfort products to help her feel great and look radiant from head to toe; to fantastic books and CDs that prepare her and ease her mind about having a healthy pregnancy; to lovely delivery gowns for beautiful pictures when baby arrives.

Gift givers and expectant moms alike can choose from a variety of exceptional gift series with gifts that are geared toward expectant moms’ different stages of pregnancy. So mom-to-be gets just what she needs right when she needs it. Club de Bébé also offers lovely individual gifts and stylish sterling silver and hand stamped maternity jewelry that adds sparkle during pregnancy and makes for precious keepsakes after baby arrives.

So what about our blog, you ask? Our blog is an extension of our Club de Bébé mission. Our posts will discuss the incredible journey through pregnancy, with all of its ups and yes, sometimes downs too. We’ll cover everything that is part of pregnancy from your rosy glow to your swelling feet. It is a place where expectant moms can come together to share their experiences and insights and learn and laugh with each other. We hope you will too.

We are simply moms, sharing the joy of mom-to-be(hood) and not medical doctors. What you won’t find here, therefore, is medical advice. There are many other wonderful pregnancy sites that already have that covered. We wish you a happy, healthy pregnancy and invite you to join us often.