Can I drink ensure shakes during my third trimester?

Question

I have GERD (gastrointestinal reflux disease) and lately with the hormones on top of that, I’ve been having really bad reflux in the middle of the night that causes extreme pain for 15m-1hr. So I’m going to try something different before bed. NOTE: I always give myself 3 hours after eating before I go to bed but still have reflux. I’m wondering if there would be any issue in drinking an ensure shake for dinner.

Answer

I was always told not to replace a meal with anything by my doctor. But, I totally understand the gerd situation. By my third trimester, I was up to 2 Zantac a day. What would always help me is almond milk 30 minutes before I ate and not drinking anything with my meals. I would also dink some before bed and I never had any trouble once I started drinking it. Hope it gets better for you, momma!

Answer

Nothing wrong with the ensure shakes themselves, but be careful about replacing a meal. If you’re going to do that I’d suggest making sure you have a later/bigger/highly nutritious lunch. I have GERD myself and Eosinophilic Esophagitis, so I toootally get the pain 😫 I actually find that having a little something in my stomach before bed helps, because otherwise you’ll just have a ton of stomach acid with nowhere to go. A glass of almond milk is great, and you can bump up to a PPI like Omeprazole if you haven’t already - talk to your doc about alternatives and the Ensure idea as well!

Can I drink ensure shakes during my third trimester?

The Top Baby Tracker App: Embrace New Beginnings with Tender Care

The Top Fertility Tracker App: Your Path to Achieving Pregnancy

The Top Pregnancy App: Nurturing Your Journey to Motherhood

The Top Period Tracker for Empowering Your Menstrual Health Journey