As soon as you (or your belly) announce to the world that you are pregnant, the flow of unsolicited advice from everyone – even complete strangers – begins. As you are bombarded with this “information” on a daily basis, it can be hard to sort out what is true and what is not. It is also important to realize that much of what is said is based upon the opinion of the person saying it and that you are the best judge of what is right for you and your baby.
Here are a couple of the more common pregnancy myths that you may encounter. The biggest one by far is that you are eating for two. Your prenatal care provider probably already covered this one with you, but it bears repeating. It takes about three hundred extra calories per day to help a pregnant woman grow a healthy baby. Sometimes, you may not be very hungry. That happened to me during my first trimester of my second pregnancy and my midwives told me that it was actually a form of nausea. I’m glad that I listened to my body and did not eat when I was not hungry or I may have gotten sick. If people are trying to load up your plate when you simply are not hungry, politely remind them that you do eat when you are actually hungry.
If someone glares at you while you sip a cup of coffee at brunch, they may not realize that recent research has shown that one small cup of coffee a day is okay during pregnancy. Excessive caffeine intake is not great for your body or your baby, but a little is not as bad as it was once thought to be. Feel free to glare right back and say whatever snappy comment comes to mind.
Likewise if someone looks sideways at you at the gym, let them know that exercise is good for pregnant women. Before you hit the gym or continue your prepregnancy workout routine you should certainly clear it with your prenatal care provider. They can make appropriate recommendations for exercise during pregnancy, and they are likely to be thrilled that you are interested in exercising. After all, the healthier Mommy is, the healthier baby is likely to be.
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