Pregnancy Week by Week | Pregnancy Stages

During your pregnancy, there are some harmful substances which have to be avoided or fewer intakes of certain food items.

How should I avoid hazardous or harmful items, if it is risky for my baby?

 Alcohol during pregnancy

Mental and physical birth defect causes abnormalities in a developing fetus due to alcohol. It may seem harmless to have a glass of wine at dinner or a mug of beer out with friends but consumption of large quantity of alcohol leads to problematic situation during pregnancy. Its better to avoid drinking during the pregnancy time rather having unwanted complications.

Caffeine

Miscarriage can be one of the cause due to caffeine. Pregnant women have to cut down the intake more than 150 mg a day is safe more than that amount go to higher risk

Certain Foods

Life threatening food borne diseases like listeriosis, toxoplasmosis and salmonella leads to miscarriage and also cause damage to the developing brain of fetus because they contain high level of mercury which is not good during pregnancy time for the baby. Uncooked fish, raw meat, unpasteurized milk, juices etc are not to be taken. Healthy fish meat properly cooked and the food which contains high quantity of proteins, carbohydrates are preferred at that time.

Prescription Medications

Before taking any kind of medicine one should first consult the doctor. The other common medicines are sometimes safe which has potential effects on fetus or babies. Certain prescription medication can also cause problem to the developing baby. Many herbal remedies are harmless but slow in process but much safer to use during pregnancy period. During pregnancy if you feel discomfort like backache etc then you must consult the doctor so as to avoid further complication if arise.

Smoking

The problems which can arise due to smoking are SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome), prematurity, Asthma or respiratory problems etc by which it passes nicotine and carbon monoxide to the developing baby or fetus. Mother to be having to quit smoking if they want healthier baby.

Artificial Sweeteners (Sugar Substitutes)

Artificial sweetener can cause birth defects and illnesses ranging from multiple sclerosis to Parkinson’s disease. Mother should avoid aspartame if you or your partner has a rare hereditary disease called phenylketonuria (PKU), in which the body can’t break down the compound phenylalanine, which is found in aspartame. In rare occasion mother can take the low moderation