I hear you…you do not want to be pregnant RIGHT NOW but are interested in being as healthy as possible for when you DO want to have a baby. Some questions you may have:
1. What foods should I be eating? What foods should I avoid?
2. When should I stop my birth control?
3. I am a smoker/vaper, how will that affect my ability to get pregnant and/or have a healthy pregnancy?
4. If I enjoy smoking marijauna, can I keep smoking during my pregnancy? BTW, I heard pot is good for morning sickness…
5. What is a healthy weight?
6. How will alcohol consumption affect my pregnancy?
7. Are there immunizations / vaccinations that I may need now or when I get pregnant?
8. How old is “too old” to get pregnant?
9. How do I know if I am ovulating regularly or if my eggs are healthy?
We’ll take these one at a time…the first three in this entry, followed by the next three, and finally the last three! So, let’s get started…
1. A healthy diet consists of adequate portions of protein, carbohydrates, and fats. People with diets rich in vegetables and fruit have a lower risk for obesity, heart disease, stroke diabetes and cancer over the course of their lives. As you prepare for pregnancy. your diet should consist of a combination of different foods, including cereals or starchy tubers/roots, legumes (lentils, beans), fruits and vegetables, and proteins from other animal sources (meat, fish, eggs, milk). If you are vegetarian or vegan, you will need to find protein from non-animal sources. I also recommend a multi-vitamin with folate and, if you are a diabetic, you will need extra folate in any vitamin that you are taking in order to prevent first trimester complications with your baby’s formation (current recommendations are 4-5mg folic acid daily).
As for which foods to avoid, ultra processed foods are not good for anyone, so avoid them regardless of your conception desires! Foods high in fat and oils, while in small amounts are good for you, should not be consumed in high quantities. Once you are pregnant, your OB provider should be able to give you a good list of foods to avoid in pregnancy which should include raw fish, raw or runny eggs (may contain Salmonella), fish high in mercury (swordfish, tilefish, king mackerel, shark), raw sprouts (alfalfa, clover, mung bean, radish as they may contain E. coli or Salmonella).
2. This one is tricky. We’ll address this one method at a time:
a. Barrier methods (condoms, diaphragm, cervical cap) – as soon as you stop using them you are able to get pregnant.
b. Birth control pills (as well as Ortho Evra [the patch], Nuva Ring [vaginal insert])– typically you will ovulate and may become pregnant the month after stopping the pill
c. Depo Provera – some women may not ovulate for up to 18 months after stopping Depo, which means it may take you some time to get pregnant; other women will ovulate within a couple of weeks of their next shot being missed, which means you may get pregnant right away – and there is no good way to tell which category you fall into!
d. IUD – whether your IUD is a hormone-containing IUD or a non-hormonal IUD, once it is removed you will be able to get pregnant
e. Nexplanon (inserted in your arm just under the skin) – once the rod is removed (a minor procedure performed in clinic, similar to when it was placed) you may begin to ovulate and may become pregnant shortly after removal
3. No amount of smoking during pregnancy (or ANY time!) is good for you. This includes vaping as well, and we do not know all of the chemicals contained in vape materials so that makes it potentially more risky than smoking tobacco products – we just don’t know. The amount of nicotine in some vape products is now known to be even higher than in tobacco cigarettes, so the addictive potential and the challenge in quitting may be higher. We know that smoking can affect your Fallopian tubes (where the sperm and egg join to form your conceptus, your future baby), causing them to stiffen and this can result in your conceptus getting “stuck” in your Fallopian tube. This is called an “ectopic pregnancy” – it is not salvageable and can be life-threatening. Smoking during your pregnancy is associated with an increased risk for having a small baby, preterm labor and/or preterm delivery, baby with a smaller-than-appropriate head, increased risk for a miscarriage, and increased risk for a dead baby later in pregnancy. Babies born to moms who smoke are also at risk for birth defects such as cleft lip/palate, or abnormalities of the stomach and bowel (“gastroschesis”, where the stomach and bowel may be pushed out of the baby’s abdomen through a defect near their belly button – this will require the baby to have surgery soon after delivery).
OK, there you have it…the answers to the top 3 questions. Stay “tuned” for the next 3, and remember to Listen, Be Present, and Believe!
