Health and Diet
How does diet during pregnancy affect the developing foetus?
Dieting whilst pregnant
Dieting whilst you are pregnant is not advised, there could be risks to losing weight whilst you are pregnant. It is best to loose weight before you become pregnant. If you are overweight when you become pregnant it may not reduce the risks that you would have had when you were overweight. Instead of dieting you could do more exercise such as swimming running or aerobics. Although you should not diet you can still be careful with the foods you eat. You should have a balanced diet which includes things such as:
Starchy foods:
- Potatoes
- Pasta
- Rice
Fruit and vegetables:
- Berries
- Bananas
- Apples
- Pears
- Lettuce
- Cabbage
- Broccoli
- Carrots
Protein:
- Ham
- Cheese
- Egg
- Chicken
- Beef
- Pork
- Bacon
- Lamb
It's not bad to diet?
Some people may argue that it is not bad to diet whilst pregnant because you would do it even if you were not pregnant. It is true that it can increase the risks of an unhealthy baby if you diet but you shiuld still watch and be careful with what you eat.
Some people also think it is ok to drink and smoke whilst pregnant. It isnt, not even one little drink or a little smoke, one glass of alchohol increases the baby's risk.
Ilnesses some foods can cause.
Some foods can cause you or your baby severe ilnesses, here is a list I found on the NHS:
- Some types of cheese
- Pâté
- Raw or partly cooked eggs
- Raw or undercooked meat
- Caffeine
- Liver
- Vitamin/fish oil supplements
- Cold, cured meats
- Fish
- Milk and yogurt
- Raw shellfish
- Ice cream
- Smoked fish
- Foods with soil on them
- Sushi
- Herbal teas (in Moderation)
The ilnesses some of these foods can cause pregnant women are often more severe than what they can be when you are not pregnant.
Caffine can cause a miscarrage, eggs can cause salmonella, if you eat sushi, make sure you freeze the fish first that is used in the sushi because there might be small parasites in the fish which could also cause you illness.
Alchohol and Smoking
When you drink the liquid runs through the blood and to the baby. Because the baby's liver is the last organ to develop in a foetus it is unsafe to drink alcohol whilst you are pregnant. This is because, as the baby's liver is not fully developed the baby cannot process alcohol as you do as the mother, therefore try to avoid drinking alcohol whilst being pregnant.
Smoking is also another risk for the baby's health because the baby will also inhale the smoke, the smoking stops a lot of oxygen from reaching the baby so is harder for the baby to breathe and therefore grow.
If you stop smoking whilst pregnant you will have less morning sickness and have a healthier baby. Most importantly, for you and your baby, it will reduce the risks of still birth.