As promised, let’s tackle the next 3 questions:
4. If I enjoy smoking marijuana, 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?
4. I do not recommend (nor does the American College of Obstetricians & Gynecologists) smoking weed during pregnancy. While it is common knowledge that smoking pot can help with nausea, it is not safe to use it to help with morning sickness when you are pregnant. There is good evidence that when you expose your baby to all of the toxins and chemicals in today’s weed, your baby is at increased risk for withdrawal (miserable symptoms in an adult, just Google it, so why would you want to put your baby through that??) and increased risk for long-term effects on your baby’s brain development (don’t you want to maximize your chances to have a smart kid?) and his/her future mental health.
In addition, the same risks that come with smoking tobacco or vaping during pregnancy are true for smoking pot during pregnancy. You are at increased risk for a low-birthweight baby, preterm birth and stillbirth. BOTTOM LINE: no amount of pot smoking during pregnancy is considered safe.
5. Your healthy weight for conceiving a baby and being healthy during pregnancy is based upon your BMI (you can Google “BMI Calculator”, it’s based on your height and weight).
Underweight = <18.5
Normal weight = 18.5–24.9
Overweight = 25–29.9
Obesity = 30 or greater
Your goal is 18.5 – 29.9 for a “healthy” pre-conception weight. We recommend this range based upon your risk for being unable to conceive when outside this range as well as your ability to have a low-risk pregnancy. Obesity is associated with increased risk for complicated pregnancy and poor pregnancy outcomes, such as miscarriage, gestational diabetes, gestational hypertension (high blood pressure), pre-eclampsia (a pregnancy-unique condition associated with high blood pressure), eclampsia (seizures associated with unrecognized and/or untreated pre-eclampsia), pre-term labor/birth, low birthweight babies, shoulder dystocia (your baby gets “stuck” in the birth canal after his/her head delivers – this can cause nerve damage to your baby, may result in a broken bone during delivery, and if your baby is stuck too long, can result in brain damage or death). Your risk for having to delivery via cesarean also goes up when you are obese.
The best way to plan for a healthy pregnancy is to set your goal for a pre-pregnancy BMI between 18.5 – 29.9. AND, once you are pregnant, PLEASE do not think you have to “eat for two”. That myth is why some women gain WAY TOO MUCH weight during pregnancy, which results in the risks noted during the previous post for “obesity.” The healthy diet noted earlier will serve you well as you grow your precious baby for success in life!
6. As with smoking pot and tobacco products, NO ALCOHOL during pregnancy!! You say “well, I was drinking before I knew I was pregnant, what do I do about that?” My recommendation, once you know you are pregnant STOP. You cannot “go back” but you can mitigate further risk by discontinuing alcohol consumption for the remainder of your pregnancy. There is no known “safe” amount of alcohol for your baby, so why risk it? You may get lucky and have a perfectly healthy baby, but you may not…the ultimate risk is that your baby develops Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, a terrible (and completely avoidable) condition that can result in the following problems for your baby:
- Brain and central nervous system: a small brain or changes to specific brain regions, and functional issues like cognitive and behavioral deficits, motor and coordination problems, and learning and thinking issues
- Abnormal face: Small eyes, a thin upper lip, a flat nose bridge, a smooth skin surface between the nose and upper lip, and a single palmar crease
- Growth problems: Low birth weight and small head, and poor growth before and after birth
- Developmental delays: Taking longer to reach milestones like sitting, talking, and walking – and may never be age-appropriate depending upon the severity of the brain damage
- Vision and hearing problems
So, JUST SAY NO!! Pregnancy only lasts a few short months, it’s an investment in your baby’s future!
This concludes the second 3 questions about pre- and pregnancy care, please tune in for the final 3 questions in this particular series.
And remember to Listen, Be Present, and Believe!
