Carrying a baby inside your belly is a huge responsibility and requires many changes in your lifestyle. If you’re pregnant or if you’re even thinking about getting pregnant, there are a few dos and don’ts you need to adapt to your lifestyle, eating, drinking habits or medications. What you eat and drink impact your growing baby significantly. Therefore, it is important for you to avoid certain habits during your pregnancy. Alcohol consumption especially must be completely stopped as alcohol can disrupt the growth and development of your baby. Similarly, smoking or exposure to second-hand smoking too can cause developmental problems in your unborn baby. These are some of the common precautions your doctor, midwife, family, and friends will tell you once they learn of your pregnancy. However, here is a list of things you should avoid during your pregnancy apart from the intoxicants.
1. Heat
Excessive heat should be avoided during pregnancy. Be it a hot tub, a steam or a sauna, stay away from them. At the most, spending 10 minutes in a hot tub can raise your body temperature to 102 degrees F. This kind of heat can often lead to increased chances of miscarriages and neural tube birth defects. The birth defects can further lead to fatal or life-threatening abnormalities in the growth and development of your unborn baby’s brain and spinal cord. This is more applicable when you’re in your first trimester and your embryo is still not developed completely to a fetus.
2. Caffeine
Cravings are a major part of pregnancy. And the urge to gulp down mugs of coffee or soda is normal in pregnant women. But, caffeine increases the risk of developmental problems in your baby. When you gulp down caffeine, it can pass through your placenta and affect your baby’s heart rate. Many healthcare practitioners or doctors thereby recommend to limit or stop your caffeine intake during your pregnancy.
3. Amusement Parks
A day at the amusement park always seems exciting and tempting, especially during the summer months. But when you’re pregnant, you will have to avoid most of the rides in the amusement park. Most of the amusement parks have their own signs warning pregnant woman not to get on most of the rides that could be dangerous or harmful for expecting mothers. Rides at any amusement parks involve jerky and jarring movements, hard landings, fast or uncontrollable rides which can affect your growing baby. Thus, it is best to refrain from amusement parks when you’re pregnant.
4. Renovations
Getting pregnant might make you want to refurbish or renovate your house according to your baby’s needs and requirements. While it is perfectly normal and exciting to design your home according to your baby’s needs, any renovation should be avoided when you’re pregnant. There are many risks such as the toxic paints, the poisonous metal from the construction metals. These toxic chemicals can pass through your system to your baby causing severe consequences. Sometimes, the repercussions may be as severe as miscarriages, premature births, low birth weight in baby, or damage to the baby’s kidneys.
5. Reptiles Or/And Amphibians
If you have a pet lizard, turtle, frog, iguana or snake, try and keep them away from you. Many of these animals can be harmful to your growing baby as they carry the bacteria salmonella. Salmonella is a dangerous bacteria that can affect both you and your baby. Make sure you don’t come in contact with these animals and also ensure that they don’t come in contact with any of your food or eating surfaces.
6. Cats
Often, doctors and healthcare practitioners advise carrying moms to be careful around cats. Cats’ feces can cause toxoplasmosis. It is a disease that can be transmitted from the mother to the baby through the pregnancy. Toxoplasmosis can lead to epilepsy, brain damage or other severe abnormalities in the growing baby. If you own a pet cat/s make sure you’re not the one changing the litter boxes.
7. Cleaning Products
Any cleaning products or supplies have chemicals or toxins that are essentially harmful to your growing baby. Dry cleaning fluid, spot removers, oven cleaner, and dishwasher liquid all contain chemicals that can be harmful to the baby. These toxins can be inhaled or absorbed through your skin easily and then transferred to your baby. If you’re using any cleaning products or supplies, wear gloves and if necessary, wear a mask too. Keep your house well-ventilated and let the air in your house be circulated well regularly.
Pregnancy is a difficult time when your actions have repercussions on another life. Therefore, it is important to be very careful with what you do, what you eat, what you drink and even what you think at times. You are responsible for your baby’s healthy growth and development. Although, major lifestyle changes such as quitting alcohol or other intoxications help, there are some more precautions you should take in your daily life to have a safe pregnancy and give birth to a healthy bundle of joy. This doesn’t mean you’ve to make major life changes, altering your lifestyle in minor ways can do a great deal for your growing baby.
