Stop Neglecting Yourself & Actually Take Control of your Health in Pregnancy
Are you tired of going through the mundane of life? You know your suppose to be healthy in pregnancy but not really sure why or how to start? This will give you a glimpse of why your daily habits shouldn’t be taken lightly.
We are constantly seeing videos or hearing about what's “healthy” or “bad” for us as humans. We watch a video and someone says oats are bad so we cut them out completely or we cut out an entire food group. How does someone random on the internet dictate our choices if they're not living our lives and knowing how we feel. You know what works best for your body and mental clarity.
I know we can agree that in pregnancy we need to prioritize our nutrition, water intake and movement to prepare our bodies for labor. It’s safe to say, when the mother takes care of her overall health, she is planting a seed that will benefit her in pregnancy and into motherhood. Women are like vines, they need to be poured into to ensure fruit will grow. What you do before, during and after pregnancy will determine how you will feel. How do you expect to serve your family if you aren’t serving yourself? How do you think generational health is built? It’s built on consistency and daily habits.
I am tired of people only talking about the baby. Yes, of course your unborn child is a blessing and I'm not saying otherwise. However, oftentimes the mother is overlooked because the baby becomes the focus. If no one is checking in on you, who is going to? The simple answer is you. You are in charge of your overall health.
You may be asking yourself, how does my health determine how I raise my children? I bet you didn’t know that what you eat while you're pregnant plays a role in how your child will adapt to food groups outside of the womb. Yes, if you eat lots of vegetables and fruits while pregnant, your child is more likely to eat those in the future because they were exposed via amniotic fluid. What you consume before and while pregnant will play a huge role in the development of your baby's brain health, and physical health. Evidence from The Dutch Famine Birth Cohort Study, 2021 has shown that poor nutritional habits during the preconception period could lead to long term health effects. The first trimester is a delicate time, when there's a lack of healthy nutritional habits babies struggle a lot more with lifelong physical and mental outcomes compared to those babies that lacked nutrition in the second trimester and third trimester. This is most likely because the first trimester is when your baby's organs start developing and that is why if they don't have the nutrition they need to thrive they will have a higher chance of struggling with long term health effects.
I know not everyone is actively trying to get pregnant. That is why I recommend eating nutritional dense foods even before conception or leading up to conception if you are trying to conceive. Nutrient dense meals play a role in regulating your hormones, which assist in conceiving. This is not only for your own health but the development of your future baby. If you find out you are pregnant, I would immediately make it a priority to start eating foods that are going to support the development of your baby.
I mean it’s obvious hydration plays a role in how you feel overall, which means if you're pregnant, your baby is getting everything you consume. So if you aren’t making it a priority to stay hydrated by intaking roughly 96 oz of water per day, your baby could be at risk of development issues, preterm labor and reduced amniotic fluid. You could be putting yourself at risk of maternal discomfort such as nausea, headaches, upset stomach, urinary tract infection and extreme exhaustion. Water helps support energy levels and works as a lubricant to filter out your body aiding in digestion, protecting your organs and tissues and carrying nutrients and oxygen to your cells. Staying hydrated doesn’t have to be difficult, it takes consistency. Consistency means creating habits that are suitable for YOU! Does that mean drinking out of a cup that you love? Drinking water before you go in for a coffee? Drinking x amount of water before a certain time of day? Tracking your water intake may feel like a chore, but I encourage you to track the amount of water you drink per day and see if you were getting as much as you thought you were throughout your day. If not, I challenge you to track your water intake until you build that routine that feels natural to you to ensure you are getting roughly 8-12 cups or more of water per day.
I help my clients build a strong foundation for their pregnancy through nutrition planning that supports mother and fetal development. Address how to tackle common pregnancy discomforts, pregnancy anxieties and prepare for labor. Mothers deserve to feel confident and capable during pregnancy and that is what I strive to help them achieve. If you are ready to start implementing healthy habits grab my free seven day pregnancy challenge guide! This will give you a baseline of what to prioritize during pregnancy.
Get my seven day pregnancy challenge here:
https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/893760/117615132000913092/share
References
“Nutrition before Pregnancy Is Critical for Fetal Development and Lifelong Health | OHSU.” Www.ohsu.edu, 2021.
