Natural unrefined sea salt is a very important nutrient for both mothers and babies, and drinking salt water can be helpful with your doctor’s okay. While regular table salt is not the healthiest choice, the better type is sea salt. It contains over 80 nutrients to help develop healthy brain cells, bone health, and prevents dehydration. It may also help keep the bowels moving smoothly. This article discusses how salt water can be used during pregnancy, how to mix it, and cautions to watch out for.
After you have taken a glass of sea salt water, it begins to work on just about every tissue in the body. Salt water very naturally matches the pH of the blood and fluids in your body. It can help keep body processes running smoothly, and assist with the development of healthy tissues in your baby. Here are some of the ways that salt water can help:
1. Nervous System Development
Magnesium bromide helps with the development of baby’s nervous system and brain cells. This element can also keep moms calm and thinking more clearly during pregnancy. While sea salt doesn’t have much, iodine also contributes to healthy mental development. Studies show that premature infants that were given iodine and salt supplements showed higher IQ and coordination levels.
Drinking salt water during pregnancy may also help build strong bones for both you and baby. Without essential trace minerals, your body will strip them from your bones to ensure baby has enough. Sea salt contains calcium, and magnesium that can help with bone mineralization. Small amounts of naturally occurring sulfur helps give growing bone cells the energy to form healthy bone tissue.
Sea salt taken in water can also help cleanse the colon and relieve the constipation of pregnancy naturally. While laxatives and enemas can cause uterine contractions, warm water with a small amount of sea salt can keep things going smoothly. Some people report having a bowel movement within an hour of drinking warm salt water.
Preeclampsia has to do with an imbalance in the body between protein and fluids. The biggest issue is pregnant women who develop preeclampsia with high blood pressure immediately cut salt from their diet. While this should be done with table salt, not eating any salt at all can cause fluids to leak out of the cells and into tissues. Small amounts of sea salt may lower blood pressure and reduce edema (swelling), because it holds it in the circulatory system.
Pregnant women need adequate salt intake to ensure a healthy birth weight in newborns. Mothers with a low-salt intake may have smaller babies. Studies have shown that low-birth weight infants have lower sodium levels in newborn blood testing panels.
Pregnancy is exhausting, and getting a restful night’s sleep can be tough with your growing belly in the way. The minerals in sea salt can help relax your body. Magnesium, calcium, and sodium can all lower your body’s stress responses. This helps you fall into a deep and restful sleep faster. These minerals help the brain cycle through the proper sleep cycles, reducing night waking episodes.
When you’re pregnant, digestion slows to help you get the most nutrition out of your food. Drinking salt water during pregnancy can help improve the absorption of nutrients from your food. It helps to stimulate digestive enzymes in your stomach and pancreas. This can help break down hard to digest proteins, decreases gas, and helps move waste through the intestines faster. It is also alkalinizing, helping to reduce heartburn and night relux that so many pregnant women suffer from.
It is very important to use the right kind of salt. Refined salt, like table salt, is very high in sodium and very low quality. It can cause pregnancy complications and other health issues like; high blood pressure, water retention, and possibly preeclampsia. Unrefined sea salt actually has 33 percent of the sodium that table salt contains. Try using either celtic grey salt, or himalayan sea salt. The recommended salt intake for pregnant women is around 3000 mg daily. It is not recommended to restrict salt intake during pregnancy, unless your doctor tells you to do so.
You can start by just taking a tiny pinch (1 to 2 granules) with water in the morning before breakfast. After about a week, try adding 1 teaspoon of sea salt to a quart of warm water. Mix well and keep it in the fridge. When you are ready to drink it, take it out of the fridge and allow to come to room temperature. Drink one 8 ounce glass once or twice weekly. Make sure you follow with at least 64 ounces of water the day you drink it.
Here is a recipe for making sea salt water:
Cautions
Drinking salt water during pregnancy is generally safe with your doctor’s okay. Using sea salt is safer than refined table salt. However, there can be risks. Too much salt water may stimulate the intestinal walls and cause uterine contractions. Keep intake at one 8 ounce glass every few days. Drink plenty of water after using.
Use salt water with extreme caution if you suffer from:
If you experience any side-effects like; stomach cramping, diarrhea, increased thirst, excessive sweating, or irregular heartbeat, discontinue use and contact your doctor.