Things to Avoid During Pregnancy

There are a number of things you can not do during your pregnancy. It is important to follow your doctor's recommendations on what you should avoid in order to ensure the health of both you and your baby. Serious risks can arise from not following your doctor's advice, including severe complications or miscarriage. The following are things you should avoid when you are pregnant.

Smoking and drinking are dangerous for pregnant women. Both these habits harm not only the mother's health, but also the baby. One should even stay away from people who smoke because secondhand or passive smoking can also affect the fetus. Exposure to smoke can lead to spontaneous abortion, pre-term births, low-weight full-term babies, and fetal and infant deaths. Alcohol is another substance that has a variety of negative effects on your developing baby depending on the dose and frequency. Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) can result in severe retardation and other abnormalities. FAS causes birth defects, including prenatal and postnatal growth deficiency, facial malformations, central nervous system dysfunction, and organ system malfunctions.

Pregnant women should avoid illegal drugs as utero drug exposure can lead to a baby with low birth weight, damaged central nervous system and physical malformations such as cleft palate, heart murmurs, eye defects, and abnormalities of facial features and other organ systems. They should also avoid prescription drugs or over-the-counter (OTC) drugs, including aspirin, unless given the go-ahead from their physician. OTC drugs are best avoided during the first 8 weeks of pregnancy when the heart, lung, and brain is being formed.

You should also stay away from hot dogs and caffeine during pregnancy. Caffeine taken during pregnancy may increase the probability of a child contracting diabetes. Hot dog can cause a bad reaction in pregnant women. Also, never forget to inform your doctor if you have any contact with lizards, iguanas, turtles, or snakes as the salmonella virus is transferred through their feces and can affect your pregnancy. Pregnant women should avoid tick bites as they make you vulnerable to the risk of lyme disease, which can severely harm your developing baby.

Pregnant women should also keep away from fish and junk food. While fish can affect the developing child's brain, eating too much junk food prevents you from eating the foods you really need for your and your baby's health. A prenatal vitamin is essential to your health, not getting enough nutrients can lead to a health problems for your unborn baby.

VDTs (video display terminals) and microwaves are two other things best avoided by pregnant women. Working women using CRT-style VDT run greater risk of a miscarriage, and excessive microwave radiation affects fetus development. Electromagnetic fields given off by electric blankets may harm the baby and should be avoided. It is also advised not to use a water bed or drink tap water in areas where the water is not purified properly.

Pregnant women should also try to avoid stress and not expose themselves to pesticides. The latter can have a variety of effects on the unborn baby depending on the type of chemical, the length and intensity of exposure and the age of the fetus. Other things to be avoided include fumes from paint, paint thinner, household cleaning products and so on.

Also don't raise your body temperature or don't use a sauna, hot tub. Cleaning cat litter boxes is a big no-no, and you should make sure that you take care when coming into contact with animals.

The best advice you can take is to trust your instincts. If you have a feeling that something may be unsafe for your unborn child, avoid it.