Custard Apple (Sitaphal) During Pregnancy:Health Benefits, Simple Recipe

By: Ambili S Kartha

During the entire pregnancy time, the mother gets time to savor all the natural fruits. Custard apple has been popular as a highly nutritious and tasty fruit, and you should try during your pregnancy period.

In India, this fruit is popularly called sitaphal. Other than that, it is also known as Sharifa and sugar apple. While the unripe sitaphal is rigid and dark green in color, ripe ones are light green and soft to touch. It is available from August to October.

Owing to its amazing benefits, it must be readily eaten by everyone.

Let’s read further to know some more about how to eat it and what are the benefits of having custard apple at such a crucial time.

Is It Safe To Eat Custard Apple During Pregnancy?

Yes, it is 100% safe to consume custard apple during pregnancy. Loaded with nutrients and energy, it acts as a boon for underweight mothers as it is high in calories and natural sugar. Many of the studies have shown that consuming custard apple during pregnancy alleviates the occurrence of abortions.

Top Benefits Of Eating Custard Apple During Pregnancy

There are a plethora of benefits of adding custard apple into your diet during pregnancy. Do you know it offers around 40%and 10% of daily required vitamin C and fiber, respectively? Some of the benefits of sitaphal during pregnancy are listed below:

• Helps In Treating Morning Sickness: Many of the mothers undergo morning sickness during their pregnancy. Custard apple is a good source of vitamin B6. Studies have proved that vitamin B6 helps in alleviating morning sickness.
• Helps In Growth And Development Of Fetus: Custard apple is a rich source of vitamin A, as well as C. both these vitamins, play an important role in the growth and development of the fetus. Vit A is essential for good vision hair and skin, and vitamin C provides immunity to fight against the radicals found freely in the mother’s body.
• Helps In Reducing Labor Pain: There is no scientific study, but our great grandmothers used to share with us that sitaphal plays a key role in relieving labor pain and reduces the chance of abortions.
• Treat Skin Infection: If you don’t like the taste of custard apple, you can apply its paste on your skin to treat skin infections. This will definitely help to get that pregnancy glow.
• Helps In Relaxing Muscles: Rich in magnesium, custard apple helps in relaxing muscles and prevents cardiac problems. It will bring down your leg cramps considerably.
• Helps In Treating Constipation: Custard apple contains a good amount of fiber that smoothens the bowel moment that helps to treat constipation in pregnant women. Eat 100 grams of sitaphal daily so that you can get rid of constipation.
• Removes Toxins: Antioxidants present in custard apple remove various harmful toxins from the body. Other than that, it deals with numbness and mood swings that are common issues during pregnancy.
• Effective Remedy For Diarrhea: Custard apple is scientifically proven as one of the best sources to cure diarrhea or dysentery.
• Escapes From Agonizing Toothaches: It is a good home remedy to escape from those hurtful toothaches and bad breath in pregnancy.
• Prevents Premature Labor And Birth: A pregnant lady requires 100 milligrams of copper every day. Custard apple will fulfill the daily requirement of copper and prevents premature labor pains. It is known as an exceptional resource to improve hemoglobin levels in pregnant women.
• Minimizes The Risk Of Miscarriage: Being rich in copper content, eating sitaphal during pregnancy will help to bring down the chances of miscarriage. It is also blessed with minerals for a healthy womb.

Nutritional Value Of Custard Apple Fruit During Pregnancy

You will be amazed to know about the nutritional value of custard apple. It is rich in various nutrients fulfilling the daily requirements of a pregnant woman.

Custard apple taken in 100 grams contains the following amount of nutrients:

• Calories: 80 kcal
• Protein: 2.1g
• Fiber: 0.9g
• Fat: 0.5g
• Carbohydrates: 20g
• Calcium: 17.6mg
• Ascorbic Acid: 15mg
• Phosphorus: 14.6mg
• Niacin: 0.528mg
• Nicotinic Acid: 0.5mg
• Iron: 0.42mg
• Riboflavin: 0.08mg
• Thiamine: 0.075mg

Are There Any Side Effects Of Custard Apple During Pregnancy?

Sometimes in some conditions, custard apple could have some side effects. Following are some side effects of custard apple on pregnant women:

1. Custard apple contains seeds. Consuming those seeds is not good for the mother.
2. Many of the mothers undergo gestational diabetes during pregnancy. If you are one of those, do not consume custard apple, as it can higher your blood glucose level.
3. Take care to consume a fully ripe fruit. Unripe can cause irritation in the stomach that results in some digestion problems.

How To Consume A Custard Apple During Pregnancy?

Given below are the necessary steps to consume custard apple:

1. Select a fully ripe custard apple having light green skin.
2. To store them for a long period, choose the dark green ones. You can store it at room temperature until it ripens.
3. Take out the flesh of sitaphal  using a spoon
4. Avoid the central spine and flesh close to its skin as they are bitter in taste.

Top 3 Custard Apple Recipes

1.    Custard apple shake:

Ingredients:

• Custard apple- 100gms
• Milk- 150ml
• Sugar- 10gms

Method:

1. Scoop out custard apple and add all the ingredients to a blender.
2. Blend all the ingredients together and consume it chill.
3. You can add some nuts for enhancing the nutritional value of the shake.

2.    Custard apple smoothie:

Ingredients:

• 1 cup custard apple
• 1 cup yogurt
• 1 tsp honey
• 6 almonds

Method:

1. Blend custard apple and curd into a smooth mixture.
2. Garnish with honey and almonds.

3.    Icecream Custard apple:

Ingredients:

• 4 cups of custard apple pulp
• 1 cup of milk powder
• 2 cups of milk
• 1/3 cup powdered sugar
• 1tsp vanilla essence
• ½ cup fresh cream

Method:

1. Mix all the ingredients together.
2. Blend into a smooth texture
3. Freeze it in a shallow container.
4. Eat it, or you may add toppings of some nuts and dry fruits

Conclusion:

Amazed by all the qualities of this green fruit? My dear future mommies, do not forget to add this nutritious fruit to your daily diet. Your baby will be very healthy and have the right weight.

Source: https://www.beingtheparent.com/custard-apple-sitaphal-during-pregnancyhealth-benefits-simple-recipe/

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