10 Things to Avoid During Pregnancy

In her book, The Zygote Chronicles, Suzanne Finnamore very rightly describes the feeling a mother gets when she holds her baby for the first time. The line in the novel, "You are the closest I will ever come to magic." became the favourite quote for mothers around the world for years. There is no better feeling than being a mother for the first time. But the pre-delivery period of 9 months requires that mothers take a lot of care to ensure that their baby is safe from any problems.

While traditionally, there has been a long list of restrictions for would be mothers, most of them were mere myths. But it does not mean that there are no points women should consider or restrain while their pregnancy period. There have been a number of researches which pin point a few things which pregnant women should avoid during the tenure.

In a recent study on pregnancy and the associated problems, doctors have listed down the 10 crucial things which the ladies should avoid in the pregnancy period:

Smoking and Drinking: Although it is known to all, many women tend to ignore this warning. You must not smoke at all during pregnancy, and especially not in the first trimester. While the hard alcoholic drinks are strictly prohibited, soft drinks and cola can be a good alternative, but that too minimal.Illegal Drugs: Even without a baby in your womb, illegal drugs are bad and must be avoided. But if you use drugs, let this pregnancy be a changing point in your life and give up the harmful drugs for the health and wellness of the baby.Raw Meat: Avoid consuming the meat which is raw or not properly cooked. Contrary to the common notion, the raw meat does not provide energy to the mothers, but increases the work of digestion system and is not good for the health of the baby.High Doses of Caffeine: Coffee is like a slow poison for the baby and consuming high doses of caffeine during pregnancy generates adverse effects on the health of the baby.Junk Food: Yes! Junk food, especially Hot Dogs are not good for the baby. In fact, prefer taking a healthy diet for these 9 months. It is just a small sacrifice for the wellness of your angel.X-Rays: Avoid any kinds of X-Rays and scans during the period of pregnancy as much as possible. Inform your doctor or dentist about your baby and postpone the x-rays until delivery. If very urgent or severe, you can have a scan after the first trimester.Sauna and Hot Tubs: Even though they are a great way of relaxing, sauna and hot tubs are not good for pregnant ladies. The weak body of the baby inside your womb cannot withstand the high temperature of the sauna spa. The baby might develop some severe skin or body damage.Changing body temperature: Like sauna and hot tub, avoid any such activity that causes a sudden change in the body temperature. Frequent changes in the temperature of the body prove dangerous for the soft skin of the foetus.Vitamin Supplements: You need nutrients during pregnancy, but not from the supplements. Avoid consuming chemically and synthetically formulated medicines for vitamins and other nutrients.Stress: Undoubtedly the most important thing to do is AVOID STRESS. Stay relaxed and do not undertake any activities that expose you to any kind of stress.

This Not To Do list is not only good for your health, but also ensures that your baby stays fit and fine inside your womb. You can find many other suggestions and advices on a pregnancy blog or website and stay happy and healthy during this lovely phase of your life.

Adams Hall is an experienced journalist and the editor on Women Health topics, but he is a specialist in Pregnancy information write-ups. Adams writes on various matters such as first trimester pregnancy, baby stages week by week, baby and pregnancy and etc. He has been appreciated for his quality work by many reputed health magazines. Rate this Article

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Adams Hall Bee has published 11 articles. Article submitted on September 23, 2013. Word count: 613

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Foods to Avoid in Pregnancy

For the first few weeks of your pregnancy you probably carried on with your life, happily eating a variety of foods you enjoy. But as soon as you learned you were pregnant flashing warning signs went off in your head.

Now there are certain foods you know you need to cut back on or avoid entirely. So what foods are on the "no" list?

Cheese

AVOID

Mould-ripened soft cheese, like Brie and Camembert also Danish Blue, Gorgonzola, Roquefort and unpasteurised cheeses like some mozzarella. Hard and some pasteurised soft cheeses are fine as long as they are kept refrigerated.

WHY?

Soft cheeses are less acidic than hard cheeses and contain more moisture so they provide the ideal environment for harmful bacteria, like listeria, to grow. Even a mild dose of listeria in pregnancy can result in a stillbirth or miscarriage.

Pate

AVOID

All types of pate, including vegetable pates.

WHY?

They can contain the listeria bacteria.

Eggs

AVOID

Partially cooked or raw eggs (found in some homemade sauces like mayonnaise)

WHY?

Uncooked eggs can cause salmonella food poisoning which is unlikely to harm the unborn baby, but it can cause mum severe diarrhoea and vomiting.

Meat

AVOID

Raw or undercooked meat. All meat should be cooked thoroughly so there's no trace of pink or blood. Be particularly careful with poultry, pork, sausages and minced meat, including burgers.

WHY?

Toxoplasmosis is an infection caused by a parasite that can be found in meat, soil, cat faeces and untreated water. It often has mild or even no symptoms but it can damage an unborn baby during pregnancy.

Liver products

AVOID

Liver or liver products such as liver pate or liver sausage.

WHY?

They can contain a lot of vitamin A. Too much vitamin A can harm your baby.

Fish

AVOID

Shark, marlin and swordfish, and limit the amount of tuna you eat to no more than two medium-sized tuna steaks a week or four medium-sized cans of tuna a week.

WHY?

These fish can contain high levels of mercury that can damage an unborn baby's developing nervous system.

Shellfish

AVOID

Mussels, lobster, crab, prawns, scallops and clams should NEVER be eaten raw, but are usually safe as long as they are thoroughly cooked.

WHY?

They can contain harmful bacteria and viruses that can cause food poisoning. Any bacteria or viruses are usually killed by thorough cooking. However, if toxins are present, they won't be completely removed by cooking.

Sushi is safe as long as the fish has been frozen first as any parasitic worms will be killed by freezing.

Milk

AVOID

Raw (unpasteurised) milk

WHY?

Untreated dairy products carry the risk of salmonella food poisoning so drink only pasteurised or UHT (ultra-heat treated) milk. If only unpasteurised milk is available, boil it first.

Debra Aspinall is an experienced journalist and the editor and leading writer for the Emma's Diary website, one of the UKs foremost pregnancy and baby websites. Debra writes on pregnancy related topics such as pregnancy , pregnant, symptoms of pregnancy and etc. She also writes on women's health and beauty issues and contributes travel articles to glossy magazines in London and the Home Counties.