What the Motherhood Mafia Never Told You

The miracle of giving birth has endured a lot of superstition over time. Its important to sift constructive advise from the fallacies. Learn what's true and what's not as some of the most common pregnancy myths are put under scrutiny.
Pregnancy Myth 1 - Eating for two

This erroneous belief has to top the list for its global prevalence! One of the first things a pregnant woman gets to hear is now she will have to start eating for two – which is of course not the truth. You do need extra intake of nutrients when you are expecting a child, but this does not translate into doubling your food intake! What is required is that you pay attention to what you eat.

In the normal course Indian women require 1800 calories daily. During pregnancy this increases by another 300 calories. The nutrient needs are increased in view of the development of maternal organs such as the uterus, placenta, and breast tissue and to build up body reserves that would be utilised at the time of delivery and later on also during lactation. The requirement for calcium, proteins and iron is much more. All vitamins and supplements are also needed in greater quantity. On the other hand carbohydrates and fats do not need to be increased.

The meals need not be large meals but their frequency should increase. Instead of having three large meals you can try having three light meals with 2-3 snacks in between. The last meal you eat at night should be light and be preferably eaten early. About two hours before you go to bed.

Remember eating for two will only make it tougher to lose all the weight that you will gain. During pregnancy your increasing metabolic rate will lead to your having a larger appetite than normal. However, there's no need to over-eat thinking that it will make your baby healthier or bigger. Remember, it is the quality of the food you eat that is important, not the quantity! While it is satisfactory to indulge in food cravings, bear in mind to eat as much as you want without overdoing it. Invest your appetite in healthy foods rather than the fattening ones, which is of course easier said than done!!
Pregnancy Myth 2 - It's dangerous to exert any effort, let alone exercise while pregnant

Doctors recommend and it has been proven that regular, moderate exercise during pregnancy improves your blood circulation, which increases the blood flow through the placenta. It is also known that exercise helps keep your mood elevated.

However, it is not advisable to start a sport routine that you have not tried before. Remember also to always exercise at a pace that is comfortable for you, decreasing the intensity as and when you feel the necessity.

If you decide to exercise, it's important to start a pregnancy exercise program carefully and seek the advice of your doctor. Pregnancy and labor represent some of the most difficult and rewarding work a woman will ever do. It makes sense to prepare oneself physically. If you haven't been participating in a regular program of exercise, walking is a good place to start. Start from day one! Begin with a five-minute warm up with slow gradual stretching of all muscles. Find a nice path and some walking buddies or some good music and walk at a brisk pace for 30 to 40 minutes every day. Finish with five minutes of a slower pace or stretching, which should help you "cool down."

Or, consider joining a prenatal exercise or yoga class and build it into a support group and even future playgroup for your child. Very few women should not exercise in pregnancy, what is important to remember is that it should be always under the guidance of your doctor.
Pregnancy Myth 3 - Swimming is Dangerous

Swimming, walking and prenatal yoga are rated as being on top of the list as far as pregnancy exercises are concerned. Swimming is a great overall body workout and is considered safe as the water makes you feel weightless and you are less likely to sustain an injury or a fall.

As long as the pool is disinfected using the recommended concentrations of chlorine, then swimming in a pool poses no threat to a pregnant woman or her fetus. Care should be taken to avoid swimming in a crowded pool. Congested areas increase the possibility of being accidentally hit in the abdomen by another swimmer. Being hit on the abdomen is not a big concern for the fetus because it is in a comfortable cushion of amniotic fluid. But it is painful for the mother and dangerous in instances of low-lying placentas, in which case there isn't enough uterine wall to protect it and there could be fatal/non-fatal bleeding. For those who are sea aficionados, avoid swimming in rough waters.
Pregnancy Myth 4 - Drinking too much water will cause increased water retention

Au contraire, drink plenty of water! Not only does drinking increased amount of water reduce the possibility of water retention in the body, it also lessens the occurrence of constipation and lowers the load on the kidney by regularly washing it out.

Many women do complain of water retention and swelling of feet, during pregnancy and the blame is ignorantly put on the water they drink. Truth be known that is totally incorrect, because our kidneys can flush out even a bucket of water if the need arises! The edema is actually due to:

* Progesterone - the hormone of pregnancy has water retaining properties
* Veins getting blocked by the pregnant uterus temporarily

So ladies don’t be frugal with the H2O, it’s a good idea to drink more and more of it. On the flip side, rushing to the loo every half hour is not exactly the prenatal exercise you had in mind, is it?
Pregnancy Myth 5 - You can tell your baby's gender by the way you are carrying, or by the fetal heartbeat.

Other than an ultrasound or an amniocentesis or by chorionic villi sampling (side effects of this procedure still not established enough, so not recommended), there is no way to determine the gender of the baby you are carrying.

Pregnant women carry babies differently based on the following features:

* Their presentation (breech, vertex, transverse)
* Their position (anterior, posterior)
* Their gestational age and weight
* The maternal weight and stature
* The mother’s parity (whether or not this is her first or eighth baby)

Judging fetal heartbeat is really no help either. Some say that a fast heart rate indicates a girl, based on the fact that women’s heart rates are faster than men’s. But we have to remember that until about 20 weeks, it is not unusual to have a fetal heartbeat in the 150 to 160 range. As the baby’s heart develops and the neurological system matures, the count may fall to between 130 to 140 (the normal range is 120 to 160). So if we try to guess the gender of the unborn baby, we would all start out as girls and turn into boys!
Pregnancy Myth 6 - Sleeping on your back can hurt the baby

During a normal pregnancy, a woman may assume any position to sleep, which she finds comfortable. It will not harm the baby in any way.

But it is beneficial for the mother to lie on a side and change from one side to the other frequently. How so? Lying on the side when you are pregnant and getting up sideways will prevent strain on the back. This will in turn prevent lower back-pains, which may be mistaken for false labour pains.

Remember if the pregnancy is high risk and there is hypertension, maternal kidney malfunction, severe water retention or fetal compromise is suspected, rest in the manner advised by the doctor.
Pregnancy Myth 7 - You can tangle the umbilical cord by raising your arms above your head

The common person is generally ignorant about the fact that about 20 to 25 percent of all babies are born with the cord around the neck, and many are born with cords around the legs. Some cords are even tied into knots! Therefore, very important to remember that - There is nothing that a mother can do to cause this.

Entanglements occur due to fetal activity during early gestation. Long umbilical cords, defined as longer than about 100 cm (most cords are 32 to 80 cm long), seem to contribute to entanglements. Excessively long cords are actually caused by excessive fetal movement.

This myth is one of the few, which benefit a pregnant mother. Going by this fallacy if pregnant women were advised not to lift their arms above their bodies, they may have been given less strenuous jobs. This in turn would have resulted in a more rested mom, and possibly a healthier baby!

So ladies, lift your arms, turn them around and do the boogie-woogie! Or balle balle as the case might be!
Pregnancy Myth 8 - Having sex during pregnancy can hurt the baby.

In a normal pregnancy, sex is not harmful to the baby. Sex is safe, because as mentioned already, the fetus is in a well-buffered medium. On a lighter vein, the man will have to be unnaturally well endowed for him to disturb the baby!

In fact the sexual experience will reach new heights for the woman in the enhanced ability to orgasm, due to an increase in blood flow to the pelvic floor. Its nirvana ten out ten!
Pregnancy Myth 9 - You lose a tooth for every baby.

Today, with the availability of supplements and fortified foods, no woman should lose a tooth for every baby!

Preconception nutrition is critical for preserving maternal health. It is during the critical pre-adolescent and adolescent years that women build stores of iron and calcium that prepare them for childbearing. If a woman’s diet is deficient in these key minerals, the demands of the growing baby often take precedence. Calcium may be lost from the maternal bones and teeth. Women should take in 1500 mg of calcium each day, either from food sources or supplement. Teeth can be lost if stores are deficient or depleted due to malnutrition or close inter-conceptional periods.

It’s a good idea therefore to prepare a year before you think of conceiving. You can make a start by taking the special nutrients and supplements under the guidelines of your personal doctor.
Pregnancy Myth 10 - Mother and the newborn should go through a 40 days confinement period

In the olden days the benefits of a medical team were still out of reach during birthing time. An age when antibiotics and other such cures were not available, the confinement period was the only way to combat possible infection. The mother also got a much needed rest period, instead of being back on her feet and working as usual.

Now most births take place in the hospital under hygienic conditions and the instances of the mother and child contracting an infection are very rare. There are enough facilities to take care of infections or deal with any medical emergency if need be.

The thought behind this myth might again have been to give some resuscitating period for the woman to recover from the rigors of giving birth. Traditionally, confinement did not mean complete bed rest. The woman would be active as during her pregnancy, and also get all sorts of traditional treatments like oil massages to get her body in shape.
Conclusion

In many cases, hearing predictions about the baby's sex or how much hair the baby will have is fun and harmless. In most cases however, caution is advised. Here's when you should beware:

* When the myth suggests that you contradict your doctor's advise
* Medical treatment (such as discontinuing prenatal vitamins)
* When you have to ingest or inhale something that isn't recommended by your doctor (such as herbs or drugs)
* When the myth makes you extremely fearful for your baby's health (stress on the mother can adversely affect the baby)

Pregnancy myths may vary from generation to generation and from region to region. Myths your grandmother in south claims are true might be different from what your uncle in north swears by. There is no surefire way of dealing with them, when in doubt check with the doctor!

from www.purpleparka.com