The TV show I Didn’t Know I Was Pregnant details the stories of women who go through entire pregnancies without ever knowing they are expecting a child. It’s scary enough to suddenly realize you’re about to have a baby without ever knowing you were pregnant, but imagine if you also knew that not only did you not have any prenatal care, but you had been living an unhealthy lifestyle. There are many things that pregnant women change while they are pregnant, such as not smoking, not drinking, eating healthy foods, taking prenatal vitamins, and avoiding vigorous exercise. What kind of risks do pregnant women face when they do not live a healthy lifestyle or receive prenatal care?
Not Taking Prenatal Vitamins
When you are pregnant, you are supplying vitamins to both your both and yourself. The most important vitamins the baby receives are folic acid and calcium. If a woman eats a nutritional, well balanced diet, not taking a prenatal vitamin may not make much of a difference unless she is a smoker, a vegetarian, or is carrying multiples. Vitamin deficiencies are going to hurt the mother before they hurt the baby. I’ll let you in on a little secret. When I was pregnant, the prenatal vitamins made me sick and I wasn’t able to eat enough, so my doctor told me to take children’s chewables instead. I ate a well balanced diet and ended up with a perfectly healthy baby. I think it’s safe to say, that although prenatal vitamins are highly recommended to pregnant woman for good reason, not taking them is not likely to be a deal breaker when it comes to mother and baby’s health.
Continuing to Take Your Birth Control
This is probably one of the most common scenarios depicted on I Didn’t Know I Was Pregnant. Many of the women continued to take their birth control, and that was one of the reasons they did not suspect pregnancy! Taking birth control pills during pregnancy doesn’t increase the risk of birth defects, according to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. However, it may increase your risk for low birth weight or preterm delivery. The use of certain birth control pills during pregnancy potentially may induce developmental problems with a female baby’s sexual organs.
Tomorrow I will cover the risks of smoking, drinking and other risky physical activities such as vigorous exercise. Stay tuned!