Medical expert of the article
New publications
Chips in pregnancy
Last reviewed: 04.07.2025

All iLive content is medically reviewed or fact checked to ensure as much factual accuracy as possible.
We have strict sourcing guidelines and only link to reputable media sites, academic research institutions and, whenever possible, medically peer reviewed studies. Note that the numbers in parentheses ([1], [2], etc.) are clickable links to these studies.
If you feel that any of our content is inaccurate, out-of-date, or otherwise questionable, please select it and press Ctrl + Enter.

Chips are definitely harmful products. In large quantities, such products are harmful to everyone, and chips during pregnancy threaten two organisms at once: the mother's and the child's.
Can you eat chips while pregnant?
Despite the possible harm, many women want chips during pregnancy. To the question of whether it is possible to eat chips during pregnancy, the correct answer is no.
But categorical prohibitions are not always followed without question. In this case, the rule "if you can't have them, but you really want them, then you can" applies. That is, nutritionists are ready, as an exception, to allow chips, but with some conditions, namely:
- if it is really unbearable for a pregnant woman to refuse them;
- only for absolutely healthy women;
- a very small portion;
- not earlier than after the first trimester;
- if the chips are fresh, home-made, from potatoes, in natural oil.
In other cases, you shouldn't tempt fate, because there are cases when women, having tasted the "forbidden fruit", are unable to stop and buy chips every day. The birth of a healthy child is worth it, not to get carried away with questionable products and treats, to give up bad habits and unhealthy addictions.
Harm from chips during pregnancy
The harm of chips during pregnancy is varied. Firstly, because of the composition - ready-made chips contain:
- 30% dry puree,
- 60% starch,
- 10% synthetic additives.
Secondly, because of the cooking method. The semi-finished product slices are deep-fried at a temperature of 120 degrees, as a result of which all the useful components disappear from the product and only harmful components are formed. Repeated use of vegetable oils during frying leads to the formation of "bad" fats that have a negative effect on the heart and blood vessels, as well as a dangerous carcinogen, which, in addition, disrupts the structure of DNA molecules.
Subsequent processing involves saturating the chips with salt, preservatives, and flavor additives, which are by no means dietary components. The excess salt obtained with the chips disrupts the water-salt balance in the body, which causes edema and increased blood pressure in pregnant women. This can even provoke an abortion.
Chips, crackers and various fast food products often cause heartburn, nausea, stomach pain and gastrointestinal dysfunction, and if consumed frequently, they contribute to the deposition of excess fat. When digesting such food, the stomach, liver and kidneys work hard, cleansing the body of toxic ingredients. Whether the organs of a pregnant woman, already working with a double load, need this is, of course, a rhetorical question.
Due to their questionable quality and obvious harm, some doctors suggest removing chips from production and sale altogether.
Chips in early pregnancy
According to research, frequent consumption of chips during pregnancy leads to the birth of children with insufficient weight and head volume. The first indicator is fraught with many diseases, the second is associated with slow development of the child.
Why are chips harmful? At least for the following reasons:
- the product does not contain natural substances;
- this is too fatty food;
- a large amount of salt provokes swelling and additional stress on many organs;
- Flavor enhancers, flavorings and other additives can overcome the protective barrier of the placenta and can harm the fetus.
During the process of making chips, with rapid heating, a highly dangerous chemical substance is formed - acrylamide, which provokes cancer (confirmed by experiments on rats), and after penetrating the fetus, it negatively affects DNA molecules. The carcinogen is especially dangerous for women, since it provokes tumors in female organs.
In addition to carcinogens, chips also contain other substances that are harmful to the mother and fetus. When consumed by a pregnant mother, cardiovascular problems, a tendency to type 2 diabetes and osteoporosis, bronchial asthma and allergies, autoimmune diseases in her future child are quite likely.
Chips are especially dangerous in early pregnancy. So much so that you absolutely cannot eat them. After all, during this period, the organs and systems of the small organism are formed, and any harmful substance contained in chips, crackers, fast food and fried foods can play a fatal role in this important process.
Ideally, a pregnant woman can completely refuse everything harmful and eat only properly prepared dishes from natural products. But in real life, this does not happen. In order not to harm yourself and the baby, you can replace, for example, chips during pregnancy with home-cooked fried potatoes, cut into thin slices, without excess salt and artificial additives.