Diet And Lifestyle Changes - While Planning A Pregnancy

Planning a pregnancy has a lot of benefits as you are prepared and in control of things, making sure that you are ready mentally and financially for child birth. An important aspect of planning a pregnancy is making appropriate dietary and lifestyle changes.

Dietary Changes During Pre Pregnancy Stage

• Diet is a very important aspect that has to be given due attention during pregnancy planning. Doctors recommend eating well balanced meals rich in fiber, vitamins and starch [bread, cereals, potatoes, rice, noodles]. Green leafy vegetables, orange juice, peanuts, fortified cereals, fruits, and foods that are rich in folate are recommended. Supplements of folic acid and multi-vitamins are also prescribed as folic acid is said to reduce birth defects in infants.
• Foods rich in iron such as dry fruits, nuts, bread, and green leafy vegetables have to be included.
• Milk and yoghurt are good sources of calcium and have to be included too.

Foods To Avoid

• Raw or undercooked meat,
• Foods rich in vitamin A,
• Soft cheese, pates,
• Fish such as shark, marlin, sword fish,
• Raw fish,
• Too much coffee

Certain herbs have an influence on male fertility issues such as flax seed, sun flower seed, fish oil, ginseng, saw palmetto etc. ingesting plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables especially green leafy vegetables, oranges etc are said to enhance male fertility. Evening Primrose Oil, Vitex, Flaxseed Oil are said to help in deal with female infertility.

Lifestyle Changes

• It is recommended that the women stay fit physically by exercising regularly, maintaining their body mass index. Going for long walks and other exercises recommended by the health care practitioner can be followed.
• Practicing relaxation techniques such as yoga and meditation will help control stress which is also a major inhibitor of conception.
• It is better to adapt a lifestyle that you will have to follow when you are pregnant while planning a pregnancy. It is a known fact that excessive drinking by an expectant mother can cause the fetal alcohol syndrome where the baby has mental and physical defects. Smoking can result in ectopic pregnancy and low birth weight. Drugs can cause birth defects and miscarriage as well as low birth weight.
• It is said that women should avoid saunas, hot tubs etc. during their pregnancy as it may cause neural tube defect in babies.
• Avoid contact with hazardous chemicals, heavy metals, radiation, solvents etc.
• It is better to avoid contact with cats, lambs, cleaning their litter to avoid complications.
• Fathers have to adhere to pre pregnancy planning lifestyle changes too.

Couples can track the ovulation period which is the most fertile period and make love a few days before ovulation as well as after ovulation. This is because sperms have a longer life of about 72 hours inside of a woman whereas eggs have a life of just 12 to 24 hours. When the sperm fertilizes the egg when it is released and on its way to the uterus, the fertilized egg will implant itself in the uterine lining and this will result in pregnancy.

One of the advantages of planning a pregnancy is that you will not make the mistake of taking medication endangering the health of the unborn child. Planning a pregnancy will bring the couple closer especially if they are compatible, understand each other and have a positive attitude.

Planning a pregnancy will help you get ready for the added responsibility as it can be very expensive to give birth to a child and take care of its needs. It will be better if you are financially prepared, have saved sufficiently to see you through the time when maternity pay stops.