Are you pregnant and wondering what’s good for you now? Or vice versa: what could endanger your pregnancy?
The fact is, there are some things you should really keep an eye on during your pregnancy.
► Above all: smoke and drink You NOT!
Both are bad for your baby’s development. If you continue to smoke cigarettes and drink alcohol, there is also a great risk of long-term consequences that will limit your child’s life.
What you also get during pregnancy always should note:
Sleep enough, be physically active, avoid stress, drink enough and eat a balanced diet.
If you are planning to become pregnant, consult your doctor in good time about all possible precautionary measures and any pending vaccinations.
You should protect yourself against these diseases.
► Flu, viral diseases, corona (Covid-19).
Even if there is no direct danger to the baby, you cannot use these infections as a pregnant woman and at birth.
How to avoid contagion:
- Avoid shaking hands or kissing as a greeting. Go to public facilities when possible outside of peak hours.
- Do not touch the nose, mouth and eyes too often, as this can cause the pathogen to enter the body.
- Wash your hands regularly. Especially before cooking, eating, after going to the toilet or coming home. Hold your hands under running water, rub soap between your fingers for 20 to 30 seconds, rinse carefully and dry in public places with a paper towel if possible.
- Do not blow your nose or cough, but in a handkerchief or your bent arm or on your sleeve. Because the viruses are spread faster through the hands. Also keep your distance from other people when coughing and turn away. In any case, dispose of the handkerchief after use.
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► The infectious disease Toxoplasmosis can cause birth defects in babies.
Toxoplasmosis can be dangerous for unborn babies if the mother first becomes infected with the pathogen during pregnancy and also transmits it to the child.
Depending on how early a pregnant woman falls ill, it can be too Miscarriages or severe, permanent nerve damage. However, this only happens in a fraction of the cases.
The pathogen is mainly spread through cats or the consumption of raw and undercooked meat.
The infection is usually harmless in healthy people, and they often show no symptoms. It is estimated that 30 percent of the world’s population carry the parasite. After the first infection, the body builds protection against a new illness
► Vaginal infection – Half of all premature babies are caused by vaginal infections. The hormonal changes during pregnancy make the vaginal flora more permeable to viruses and bacteria.
The danger: If these migrate up the uterus, they can cause premature labor. A life-threatening risk. If the pathogens penetrate the child’s brain, they can cause severe disabilities.
Infection is easy to avoid:
Regular smears from the vaginal mucosa show whether the pH is in the normal range. The gynecologist should always do this in pregnant women.
► Chlamydia – Chlamydia infection is one of the mostly undetected and underestimated diseases. They are the most commonly sexually transmitted pathogen these days. Around 500,000 women in Germany contract Chlamydia trachomatis every year.
The danger: the bacteria rarely make themselves known through discharge or burning when urinating, which is why they often remain untreated and take a chronic course.
Ectopic pregnancies or infertility may result. In the case of an acute or chronic illness of a pregnant woman, there is a health risk for the child to become infected with the mother during birth and to develop conjunctivitis or, more rarely, pneumonia.
★ Chlamydia are the most common cause of newborn blindness worldwide, explains the Institute for Laboratory Medicine in Berlin.
► Cytomegaly – This infectious disease is hardly known, although it affects about 70 percent of the population. Cytomegaly is caused by viruses (CMV) that belong to the herpes virus family. The transmission takes place through blood, saliva or sperm.
The danger: In healthy people, this infection usually goes unnoticed. For immunocompromised people or newborns, however, cytomegaly can take a serious course.
If the pregnant woman is infected with the virus in the first or second third of pregnancy, the unborn child may be damaged. The most common are abnormalities in the cardiovascular, circulatory and digestive systems. The rate of miscarriages and stillbirths in the uterus is increased.
► Ringed rubella – Ringelrötchen occur less often than the “real” rubella, but are also a typical childhood illness with mostly harmless course.
About 40 percent of all women of childbearing age do not have immunity to the disease. This can lead to an initial infection with the Parvovirus B19 during pregnancy.
The danger: An infection in particular within the first eight weeks of pregnancy can lead to serious complications: anemia up to stillbirth.
► Zika virus – Rising infection numbers in Central and Southern Europe have unsettled pregnant women. In many cases, an infection is asymptomatic. However, if a pregnant woman becomes infected, it can have serious consequences, especially if she is infected in the first trimester of pregnancy.
The danger: Experts believe that the pathogen in embryos in the womb can lead to skull malformations. In so-called microcephaly, the child’s head circumference is smaller than normal, which results in intellectual disabilities.
► Raw foods – Expectant mothers should avoid some foods during pregnancy and breastfeeding: raw milk and raw milk products, raw fish (e.g. sushi) or products that contain raw eggs (e.g. tiramisu). These foods can contain pathogens (listeria, salmonella) that are bad for both mother and child.
The danger: With an infection, flu-like symptoms such as fever, muscle pain, vomiting and diarrhea can occur.
► Cured from the grill! Pregnant women should especially avoid cured items from the grill. A spatial distance from the grill is also advisable.
The danger: Nitrosamines are formed, the absorption of which can lead to malformations of the baby. When fat drips into the embers, polycyclic hydrocarbons are created, which are proven to be carcinogenic.
► Whooping cough
What many do not know: children are protected after infection or vaccination – but very often their parents are not.
In the 1930s, 10,000 infants died in Germany each year from the highly contagious infection – then the vaccination for children was introduced.
In adults – depending on their age – there is only every fifth to tenth vaccination protection. Only a third are vaccinated in young parents, and only a fifth in pregnant women. If a young mother is not vaccinated, her baby will have no protection until the first immunization option at the age of two months – carelessness that can be fatal to the baby.
► Sunscreen with Nano-particles – or nanoparticles in deodorant, cell phones or in car paints. Nano particles are now used in a variety of ways. The tiny particles, which are just a millionth of a millimeter in size, can negatively affect the brain development of fetuses.
The danger: they can damage the immune system and destroy cells. In addition, the tiny particles can penetrate living cells, cross the blood-brain barrier and even penetrate into the central nervous system.
Why you should be careful with nanoparticles:
So far, researchers have not yet been able to assess the risk to humans. But nano-particles have long been suspected of being hazardous to health. What is certain is that the particles can penetrate the body via the skin or the respiratory tract, and that they are very similar in shape and function to asbestos.
According to the Federal Environment Agency, the greatest risks for people and the environment come from nanomaterials that are contained in products as free particles (e.g. cosmetics). As long as nanoparticles are firmly embedded in materials, a hazard is hardly to be expected.
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