Life Desk :
Announce the news of your pregnancy and you find your self surrounded by well meaning family members, relatives, friends and even strangers queuing up to give you advice. Wondering who to trust and what not to believe? Here, we bust some common pregnancy myths:
Myth: It’s okay to overindulge because you are eating for two.
Don’t get carried away and let yourself go simply because you’re pregnant. Avoid having double helpings because experts say that an average woman with a normal weight before she got pregnant only requires about 300 extra calories daily to ensure that her foetus remains healthy. Experts recommend a woman should ideally only gain about 27 to 30 pounds unlike celebs like Jessica Simpson and Kim Kardashian, who both admitted that they had let go and had each gained 50 plus pounds while being pregnant. Remember, losing pregnancy weight is one of the most difficult things to do while managing a newborn.
Myth: Don’t colour your hair: While experts do caution women to avoid colouring their hair simply as a precaution, several studies claim that the chemicals from hair dye get absorbed very slightly through the skin -in small amounts that don’t pose any threat.
The ideal way out is to avoid hair colour in your first trimester and also avoid dyes, which contain ammonia.
Myth: Ditch the caffeine completely : If you’re among those who can’t live without their caffeine, worry not. There have been several claims that caffeine may cause miscarriage, premature birth or a baby with a low birth weight. However, drinking less than 200 milligrams of caffeine in a day is said to be okay with no proven risk to the foetus.
Myth: Not having sex: Unless specified by the doctor, there is no need for you to abstain from sex. It is a myth that sex is harmful for the foetus, which is well protected by an amniotic sac, strong uterine muscles and a thick mucus plug. The only things you need to take care against are sexually transmitted infections because they could get transmitted to the unborn child.
– TOI
Announce the news of your pregnancy and you find your self surrounded by well meaning family members, relatives, friends and even strangers queuing up to give you advice. Wondering who to trust and what not to believe? Here, we bust some common pregnancy myths:
Myth: It’s okay to overindulge because you are eating for two.
Don’t get carried away and let yourself go simply because you’re pregnant. Avoid having double helpings because experts say that an average woman with a normal weight before she got pregnant only requires about 300 extra calories daily to ensure that her foetus remains healthy. Experts recommend a woman should ideally only gain about 27 to 30 pounds unlike celebs like Jessica Simpson and Kim Kardashian, who both admitted that they had let go and had each gained 50 plus pounds while being pregnant. Remember, losing pregnancy weight is one of the most difficult things to do while managing a newborn.
Myth: Don’t colour your hair: While experts do caution women to avoid colouring their hair simply as a precaution, several studies claim that the chemicals from hair dye get absorbed very slightly through the skin -in small amounts that don’t pose any threat.
The ideal way out is to avoid hair colour in your first trimester and also avoid dyes, which contain ammonia.
Myth: Ditch the caffeine completely : If you’re among those who can’t live without their caffeine, worry not. There have been several claims that caffeine may cause miscarriage, premature birth or a baby with a low birth weight. However, drinking less than 200 milligrams of caffeine in a day is said to be okay with no proven risk to the foetus.
Myth: Not having sex: Unless specified by the doctor, there is no need for you to abstain from sex. It is a myth that sex is harmful for the foetus, which is well protected by an amniotic sac, strong uterine muscles and a thick mucus plug. The only things you need to take care against are sexually transmitted infections because they could get transmitted to the unborn child.
– TOI
