I'm sure many women suffering from infertility or who are TTC have heard or read that pineapple assists in implantation. The theory is that pineapple contains bromelain, an enzyme that breaks up proteins that inhibit the implantation of a fertilized egg onto the wall of the uterus. This notion is even being encouraged by some practitioners in naturopathy and TCM.
Because of my recent suspicions about pregnancy at my TCM's clinic recently, I asked the doctor if it would be a good idea to eat pineapple, as I had read that it would encourage implantation. My TCM doc exclaimed without any hesitation, a big
"NO! It causes abortion!"
I was shocked - that was the LAST thing I wanted. How could there be such controversial uses for the same fruit! He got quite upset about how scientific lab tests have been taken out of context by people. He said that bromelain was only a very small component of the whole pineapple. When its benefits were discovered, people only focused on the bromelain part of the pineapple and failed to address the other components of the pineapple, which can also trigger abortion. Its use has been documented as an aid for abortions for thousands of years in TCM!
I completely understand what he's saying and I am not going to refute thousands of years of pineapple-induced abortion practices in China!
This practice apparently doesn't end in China either. Many other cultures such as in Hawaii also use it to trigger abortion. Pineapple can cause contractions in pregnant women, accidentally causing a miscarriage.
So I am writing this as a caution to women who are trying to conceive about the dangers of pineapple. Our spark of life trying to grow in our tummies could unknowingly be destroyed by this humble tropical fruit. Do yourselves a favor and find another source of bromelain that is less harmful! We IF women are trying so hard to conceive, often spending thousands of dollars on treatments, not to mention our huge emotional investment. We do not want to endanger any chance we might have of getting pregnant.
I really have no idea how much of the pineapple you need to eat, what parts of it or how often you need to eat it for implantation or abortion to happen. I do not have any proof of any of these theories, but...
Why take that risk with abortion? I certainly won't! Would you?
