Prenatal Health
Five things your unborn baby wants to tell you

with Kathryn Kostic, M.D., Obstetrician and Gynecologist, Advanced Healthcare

Posted: Jan. 1, 2004

If your unborn baby could talk, he or she would likely have a lot of opinions about how you take care of yourself during your pregnancy. After all, every morsel of food you put into your mouth (or don’t put in) affects him or her directly. So take a moment and listen to what your baby’s first words would be – if only he or she had the chance.

Kathryn Kostic, M.D., Obstetrician and Gynecologist, Advanced Healthcare "I very rarely see an undernourished baby. Eating too much is more of a problem in our society than not eating enough."

1. “Give me healthier food, not necessarily more food.”
Kathryn Kostic, M.D., an obstetrician and gynecologist with Advanced Healthcare, said pregnant women only need an additional 100 to 200 calories a day. Cutting down on junk food such as sweets, chips and fast food, while upping the servings of fruits, vegetables and whole grains is a good plan.

Dr. Kostic recommends that most women should gain between 25 and 30 pounds when pregnant. Gaining more than that can put a woman at risk for gestational diabetes or having a Cesarean section because the baby is so large.

Dr. Kostic said that because developing fetuses use so much calcium, the bone density of pregnant women can be very low. Women should try to make sure they get enough calcium by drinking skim milk or eating low-fat dairy products. Calcium supplements also can be taken.

Anemia, or iron deficiency, also is more common during pregnancy. Women who feel fatigued during pregnancy should discuss this with their doctors, as the cause of fatigue may be due to a lack of iron. This can be corrected quite easily with an iron supplement.

2. “Please pass the folic acid!”
Women who have adequate levels of folic acid can lower their chances of having a baby with a neural tube defect — the most common type of birth defect — by 30 to 50 percent.

Ideally, women planning to start a family should take a multi-vitamin that includes folic acid two to three months before becoming pregnant. Folic acid is most important during the early stages of pregnancy, when the fetus’ brain and spinal cord are forming. Green leafy vegetables, strawberries and breakfast cereal contain high levels of folic acid.

3. “Stop smoking, Mom. And tell Dad to stop, too.”
Cigarettes are one of the most harmful things a woman can put into her mouth while she is pregnant. Smoking increases the risk of premature birth and having a low birth-weight baby.

Children of smokers are much more at risk for developing respiratory problems and will visit the doctor 20 to 50 percent more than their peers who have non-smoking parents. Even parents who smoke only on the front porch or in the backyard increase the risk for their children because smoke is brought in on their clothes.

Dr. Kostic stressed that women who feel they can’t quit entirely should know that cutting down is beneficial to the baby. “Some people think it’s all or nothing, but that’s not true,” she said. “If you can get down to fewer than five or 10 cigarettes a day, that will help your baby.”

4. “You can have a cup of coffee, but not the margarita.”
Studies have shown that small amounts of caffeine (up to about two cups of coffee per day) will not harm the fetus. There is a link between high consumption of caffeine (about six cups a day) and miscarriage. Alcohol, however, can be damaging. Studies cannot determine what level, if any, is safe for pregnancy, so doctors recommend cutting alcohol out entirely.

5. “Go light on the fish.”
Unfortunately, women today bring their babies into a world where waters are so polluted that many fish have dangerously high levels of mercury. Levels of mercury are worst in dense fish — like swordfish — and lake fish. Mercury is a toxin to the developing brains of unborn babies, so Dr. Kostic recommends no more than one serving per week of fish to her pregnant patients.

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