If you are pregnant, your doctor may recommend a special diet to help ensure the health and proper development of your baby while also protecting your own health. Edamame, a type of soy bean, is generally considered to be safe during pregnancy, though consuming high amounts of soy could potentially cause some problems for your fetus.
Edamame
Edamame is a traditional Japanese food that is becoming popular in the United States. Edamame, which is also known as "sweet bean" or "vegetable soybean," is a strain of soybean also known as Glycine max, that has been cultivated to be sweeter, have a larger seed, be more easily digestible and to have a smoother texture. Edamame can be boiled and eaten once the pods have been removed.
Soy and Pregnancy
Soy-based foods, including edamame, are frequently consumed by pregnant women in countries where soy is a staple of the diet. If you are pregnant, getting enough protein is important for providing your baby with the building blocks to make new tissue, and edamame is rich in protein. You also need more iron during pregnancy than you otherwise require each day. Edamame is a good source of iron, particularly if you don't eat meat, as each cup of edamame provides 8.8 mg of iron.
Concerns
Edamame and other foods that come from soy contain compounds known as isoflavones. Isoflavones are similar in structure to human hormones, including estrogen, and there are concerns that the isoflavones in soy could affect the development of a fetus. High doses of isoflavones given to pregnant animals can increase the risk of their offspring developing tumors, but this has not been tested in humans. Soy intake is also not associated with any problems with a child's development including height, weight, development of puberty, head circumference or fertility.
Considerations
Soy is a commonly consumed food in many cultures and there is no evidence that edamame has any serious deleterious effects on a fetus's health when consumed by the pregnant mother. However, as with any food, it is important to not overdo it, as a severely unbalanced diet can cause nutritional deficiencies in the mother that could affect the health of the growing baby.
