fbpx

Things not to Do During Pregnancy

don't take Too much intake of caffeine

Pregnancy does bring a lot of changes to you and your lifestyle. While you are pregnant, you will find a lot of people, experts, and blogs telling you what to do, to have a healthier pregnancy. While you a list of things which tell you what to do. You should also have a list of things that guide you on what not to do.

So, in this particular blog,  we will be covering a few things that you should avoid while you are pregnant.

1 Alcohol

Well, this one comes with no surprise!

If you drink alcohol while you are expecting, it can cause problems related to health for your baby.

It does not matter how much amount of alcohol you drink and at what time during pregnancy. It can harm the development of your baby’s brain and other organs of your baby. Consuming alcohol can cause problems for the baby at any time during pregnancy, even before you don’t have any idea that you are pregnant.

When you drink alcohol while being pregnant, the alcohol affects the fetus by crossing the placenta. Drinking alcohol during the period of pregnancy can cause what is called – Fetal Alcohol Syndrome.

If a fetus is exposed to alcohol in the womb, it may develop extensive fetal alcohol spectrum disorders. These disorders can cause a lot of health issues. A few of them are:

 Physical abnormalities, seizures, poor growth, intellectual disabilities, Premature Birth (It’s the birth in which the baby is born before 37 weeks of pregnancy. These babies may have major health problems at the time of birth and later in life), low birth weight, miscarriage (this is when the baby dies before twenty weeks of pregnancy), stillbirth (this is when the baby dies after twenty weeks of pregnancy), etc.

These are a few reasons why Alcohol is a BIG no-no for women who are expecting.

2 Smoking

No Smoking During Pregnancy

Apart from alcohol, smoking is also not good for pregnant women. Smoking cigarettes during the period of pregnancy is harmful to both woman and her baby. Smoking increases the danger of lung cancer and heart disease.

If a woman smokes while she is pregnant, it can also cause other problems during and after pregnancy. A few of those problems are – issues with the placenta, premature birth, congenital abnormalities, miscarriage, stillbirth, low birth weight, ectopic pregnancy (it is the pregnancy in which a fetus develops outside the uterus), etc.

Women, as soon as they know that they are pregnant, should stop smoking and should avoid exposure to passive smoking as well. Talk to a doctor about the help that is available for women who are pregnant and are struggling to stop smoking.

3) Doing activities that involve a risk of falling

Accidental falls during the period of pregnancy are not uncommon. During this period, as the belly of a pregnant woman expands, the center of gravity shifts. So, if the pregnant lady suffers even a minor fall, it may result in injuries.

That is why, if you are expecting, you should avoid activities that involve a risk of falling like ice-skating, skiing, etc. You can reduce the risk of your falling. You need to condition your body to adjust to changes that have come in your balance. For that, you need to do some easy exercises.

But before getting started with any exercise or exercises, make sure you consult your doctor about your exercises to make sure that these exercises are right for you.

4) Lifting heavy things/weights

If you are expecting, you can carry heavy objects but only up to a restricted weight, but with that as well you need to be extremely careful. The quantity of weight that you can carry depends upon which stage of pregnancy you are in and other factors as well like how often do you lift the weight and the type of lifting that you are doing.

When you are expecting, the ligaments of your body loosen and your joints become less stable, so,  it is more probable that you might get injured. As your belly grows, the center of gravity of your body shifts forward too. This puts further pressure on the lower back of your body and makes it more unsafe to strain – mainly when you are lifting something heavy.

The shift in the center of gravity of your body can put you off balance, making falls more probably. A serious fall is not only jeopardizing for you. But it could also be risky for your baby, perhaps leading to preterm labor or premature separation of the placenta.

Some research suggests that lifting heavy objects oftentimes may slightly increase the danger of having a miscarriage. Not only that but lifting heavy objects can also put you at an escalated danger for joint and back pain.

Also, for some women, heavy lifting can increase the danger of other problems such as low birth weight, pulled muscles, preterm labor, etc.

5) Too much intake of caffeine

don't take Too much intake of caffeine

Just like alcohol, caffeine can also cross the placenta and affect the fetus. While being pregnant, you may be sensitive to caffeine to a large extent (than if you were not pregnant) as it may take you a long time to clear it from your body. Apart from that, it may also make you feel lightheaded or nauseous.

When you have caffeine while being pregnant, caffeine passes through the placenta to your baby. The foods and drinks that contain caffeine are coffee and coffee-flavored products, tea, energy drinks, chocolate and chocolate products, some soft drinks, etc.

The quantity of caffeine in drinks and foods varies to a great extent. For example for tea and coffee, the quantity of caffeine depends on the brand of coffee and tea, the way it’s prepared, what type of beans or leaves are used, etc.

The quantity of caffeine that you get from food and drinks that you take throughout the day sums up. Some expert websites suggest that it is good to limit the intake of caffeine to 200 mg per day. Others suggest limiting caffeine intake to 300 mg per day. Some experts believe that quantities greater than this can be dangerous to the fetus. It may escalate the risk of the loss of pregnancy and low birth weight.

6) Certain Foods

One of the first things that pregnant women learn is what they can and cannot eat. Since this blog is about what not to do. I will cover some foods that you should avoid if you are pregnant.

a) High Mercury Fish

High Mercury Fish

As you might know, that mercury is a highly toxic element. If you take it in higher quantities, it can be toxic to the nervous system of your body, kidneys, and immune system. It may also cause major developmental problems in children, with adverse effects even in lower quantities.

A few examples of High Mercury fish you should avoid are – swordfish, shark, tuna (especially bigeye tuna), marlin, king mackerel, tilefish from the Gulf of Mexico, etc.

However, you should note that only certain types of fish are high in mercury, not all of them.

  1. b) Unpasteurized Juice

It is dangerous to drink unpasteurized juice while being pregnant because it may contain unfavorable bacteria from raw fruits and vegetables that are used to make the juice. These bacteria can cause food poisoning (diseases such as listeriosis and toxoplasmosis), which can be especially threatening for pregnant women.

Other foods that pregnant women should avoid are certain soft cheeses, raw meat, and fish, raw eggs, etc. These above-mentioned foods are a few examples of foods that you should avoid while being pregnant.

 You need to research properly and consult your doctor for the foods that you should not eat in pregnancy to get a better awareness of this matter.

Takeaway –

The above-mentioned points are only a few things that you should avoid while being pregnant. There are other things as well that you need to avoid if you are expecting. So, it is suggested that you do proper research on this topic. And it is always a good idea to consult a doctor so that your doctor can guide you properly on things that you should do during pregnancy and the things that you should avoid.

Hope this article has helped you. Happy Pregnancy.

.

.

This article has been written by Shivali Pandit and the opinions expressed herein are the author’s own and do not reflect the view of 9HappyMonths. You can contact the author at shivalisusheela@gmail.com

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *