Style2

Style3[OneLeft]

Style3[OneRight]

Style4

Exercise in the 1st Trimester

In the 1st trimester the body does not goes any noticeable change in the pregnant lady. But there are some changes that will alter the capability and desire to exercise. This could be due to increase in urination, increase in blood volume, nausea, morning sickness, vomiting, weight gain in minor way, tender breasts, fatigue etc.

Also in the body there is increase demand of cardiovascular system to pump blood and oxygen for the developing baby. Due to this the heart rate increase and breathlessness might be experienced.

Effects of exercising during pregnancy

There are numerous benefits that are linked with physical activity in pregnancy. With regular exercise the circulatory system of the body improves and ample blood and oxygen reaches the baby’s body. Muscle cramps and nauseas can be lessened, the weight gain is balanced and the mother is protected by gestational diabetes. It also helps in alleviating stress and makes the body ready for physical labor, the chances of abortion also gets reduced.

Safety and comfort- these two issues become of prior importance. The clothes should be loose and comfortable and must allow heat loss. The bra should be well supportive. Shoes should be cushioned, snug and well fitted with more room in the front.

Nutrition and diet- make sure that you carry a water bottle while exercising. Consume water in small and frequent manner. The expectant moms may fell sick, in case of more discomfort seek the medical advice. Stay away from drinking and smoking.

Guidelines for exercise- the 1st and the 2nd trimester resemble a lot when it comes to exercise sessions. While exercising it is important to monitor duration and sessions. Your just talk session must be comfortable which means you should be able to talk with complete comfortableness. See that you exercise for about 30-45 minutes not more than that. Consume fluids throughout the day. In case of swelling, dizziness or discomfort stop immediately and take the medical advice. Breathe properly and take sufficient rest in between the sets.

Top Ten Steps to Take Before Conceiving

Pregnancy is a stage wherein the mother needs to be very strong physically as well as emotionally.

To have a healthy pregnancy period and healthy baby, you need to take extra care of yourself. If you want to have a healthy pregnancy than you need to understand the first few basic steps required right from the time of your decision to conceive.

Planning is the key to an efficient pregnancy period. Follow these simple and basic steps, to make your pregnancy period and your baby healthy...

Choose the best doctor
A good doctor is essential for a good pregnancy and healthy baby. A good doctor means - one who has been recommended by your close ones, who is friendly, with whom you can build a relationship and whose clinic is somewhere near to your residence.

Watch what you eat
Keep a very close eye on what you eat, because now you are not eating only for yourself, but also for the baby. Hence, ask your doctor to recommend a good healthy diet plan for you, so that the growing baby gets all the required nutrients. To avoid harm for your baby avoid uncooked food, cold meats, raw food and unhealthy foods. Also pay attention while eating fish, as some fishes have a high level of mercury and other contamination in them.

Avoid alcohol and cigarettes
Both these substances can cause huge damage to the health of your baby. Hence, to have a safe and healthy pregnancy kicks both these harmful items away from your life.

Go for an overall health checkup
Go for an overall health checkup, so that you evaluate your health well in advance. This will help you to find out any obstacles which can affect your pregnancy. Go for x-rays before planning your pregnancy, so that the harmful rays won't harm the baby's health.

You need a healthy body weight
If you are too thin or overweight than this point applies to you. Check in with your doctor and achieve a moderate weight to have a safe pregnancy period and to avoid complications.

Check if you have received all vaccinations
Before conceiving, check if you have received all vaccinations. As occurrence of vaccine-preventive diseases like chickenpox during pregnancy can have severe birth defects. If you haven't received immunization than immunize yourself, before conceiving.

Eat well
The most important thing for a healthy pregnancy is eating a healthy well balanced diet. Include protein rich food in your diet. Never skip breakfast, keep yourself very well hydrated, and include lots of fresh fruits and vegetables in your diet.

Take prenatal vitamins
Include folic acid and iron in your diet, before conception and during early pregnancy. Consuming adequate folic acid helps to prevent development of neural tube birth defects. Start taking in at least 400 micrograms of folic acid before you become pregnant. Never increase the dosage of folic acid as it can lead to complications.

Make sure health problems are under control
If you have any health problems, than make sure that they are under control or else they can lead to complications. Hence keep a check on your obesity, asthma, diabetes, cholesterol before conceiving.

Think before you pop a pill
Consume only the pills that your doctor has prescribed, avoid popping pills unnecessarily as it can harm you and your baby's health.

Five Proven Ways to Prevent Stretch Marks


Pregnancy brings another turn of experience to an eager parent. Physical changes tag along with emotional changes throughout pregnancy..Among the physical changes are nausea, fatigue, backaches, and constant urination to mention a few. But the majority eager mothers cannot miss out the development of unpleasant stretch marks. This is an absolutely problem to deal with. According to studies, 70-90% of pregnant mothers develop stretch marks. Approximately Ninety percent Americans have it.

Stretch marks begin as raw, scarlet, brown, purple lines in parallel at the bulging stomach, normally occurring throughout the sixth or seventh month of pregnancy. And afterward grow fainter as silvery or white lines. But these lines are not local at the stomach. They may also extend in the arms, breasts, thighs and buttocks that likewise enlarge in the course of pregnancy.

They are caused by changes in the expandable supportive tissue in the deeper layer of the skin. Skin is really elastic, then again the swift stretch along with weight addition, that comes with pregnancy can oftentimes be over the skin can deal with hence the appearance of lines. Stretch marks are not painful but they are occasionally scratchy or stinging.

According to Alexa Boer Kimball, a dermatology professor from Harvard University, an individual might be more likely to develop stretch marks if:
  • Expectant parent gains a lot of weight
  • Hopeful parent has compound pregnancy
  • Hopeful parent carrying a big baby
  • Hopeful parent has excess amniotic fluids
How to avoid stretch marks?
It is now a given fact that stretch marks do not really actually go away. It can only be treated until it is less striking. So what can be done to put a stop to stretch marks? Many studies done in the past have contrasting ideas regarding stretch marks. Yet, what was determined is genetics is a determinant factor if one predisposes stretch marks or not. It means that if the mother had stretch marks previously, the possibility of her daughter having stretch marks during her pregnancy is high. Fortunately there are things that can be done to improve an eager parent's general wellbeing and condition of their skin, essentially preventing stretch marks:
  • Eat healthy, mixed but balanced diet. This will discourage unnecessary weight gain. The suggested weight gain for pregnant women is 25-30 pounds only.Let ones skin stretch at a constant rate without any unforeseen jolts to prevent scarlet marks. Moreover, it is helpful not just to the skin but to the growing baby as well.
  • Use a bath scrub to massage the areas where stretch marks more likely to be found, such as arms, breasts, thighs, and buttocks. This will increase the circulation to the area.
  • Increase liquid ingestion (water, fresh juice). Hydration is critical to the overall well being of the skin, as well as to the growing baby.
  • Take vitamins every day or as recommended by the physician. Correct nutrition is critical to both parent and baby.
  • Keep the skin liberally and effectively moisturized beginning from pre-pregnant and first trimester period until the recovery of pre-pregnancy weight. These moisturizers (containing shea butter and olive oil), will keep the skin soft and elastic, thus preventing overstretching of the skin. These moisturizers give more vitamins and nutrients that help increase collagen production that is greatly critical to the skin throughout this stage. They also care for the dermis to keep the skin intact despite severe stretching.
Bear in mind that stretch marks may also develop during post partum stage. The sudden weight loss makes the skin susceptible to stretch marks once again..

If one has done the suggestions mentioned above, and still develops stretch marks, one should not despair. With modern technology, there are already various treatments available that can lessen the appearance of stretch marks. Consult your dermatologist after one has recovered from pregnancy..

Credit : Clivir Team

Skin Tags During Pregnancy

Skin tag is a condition during pregnancy period in which soft tumors may appear on various parts of the body. They are not considered harmful by skin specialists but in case of too severe cases they can be surgically removed.

What are Skin Tags 
Skin tags are benign tumors hanging on your skin during pregnancy. It is benign as in it is a tumor which is incapable of converting to a cancer. Therefore in general they are harmless. But if they become too painful to handle and itchy then one can get them removed by surgery. Pregnancy skin tags look like small soft spots of flesh hanging from the skin by a small stalk. They are more prudent to adults who are heavy weight. Women suffering from obesity will have more probability of facing skin tags during their pregnancy period. The medical name for skin tag is “Acrochordon”. Skin tags usually fall off on their own but in some cases they stay for some time and take quite a long time to fall off. They usually appear on that part of body where skin is in contact with some jewelry or watch or in armpits, groins, genitals.

Where Do Skin Tags Appear?
Pregnancy skin tags basically appear under the breasts in women. They can also appear under armpits, eyelids, buttocks, necks, torso (breasts), groin folds, genitals. Skin tags can appear to people of any age group but pregnant women are more susceptible to it. They can appear anywhere in body on skin but are mostly found on neck and armpits. During pregnancy genitals is the most favorite area for skin tags to occur. Genitals skin tags can cause vaginal infection if proper hygiene is not maintained. So, genital skin tags should be cleaned properly so that infection can be avoided. Any fluid secretion from the mentioned area should be cleaned properly.

Causes of Pregnancy Skin Tags
  • The main reason of skin tags appearing during pregnancy is hormonal advancement. This hormonal advancement cause hyperactive growth of skin. A lot of hormonal changes take place during pregnancy but the body needs time to adjust to all of the changes. Skin tags can be viewed as a direct result of hormonal changes which causes abnormal skin growth.
  • Overweight middle aged women are more prudent to it. Pregnant women had to undergo a number of hormonal changes during pregnancy and apart from skin tags there are a number of other side effects that are caused in this period.
  • In non pregnant women vaginal skin tags usually develop during the menstruation period.
  • Skin tags usually stay of the same size until they are rubbed or played with. Else they are painless and seldom cause any problem. In the initial stage women don’t even realize they have skin tags growing.
Problems Caused by Skin Tags
The basic point to be kept in mind is that skin tags are not supposed to be treated. People use all kinds of chemical and natural skin creams to get rid of them. The chemical creams are obviously harmful but that doesn’t mean the natural creams are an ultimate solution. Sometimes they can react too and cause your skin tags to get worse. So it is advisable that skin tags are left as it is and women should put more focus on what’s going on inside them. Women should enjoy the full beauty of the natural miracle on child birth in spite of spoiling the beauty by focusing on mere physical beauty and what one sees in the mirror.

Treatments for Skin Tags
Although there is no proper treatment for pregnancy skin tags and they are advised to be left alone but in severe cases certain medical treatments can be used.
  • The treatment is first tag off at narrow base with a piece of dental floss or string, then freeze tag with liquid nitrogen.
  • Once frozen it has to be burned with electric cautery or Hyfrecator.
  • After burning it can be removed with a pair of scissors with or without anesthetic as per your wish.
Pregnancy skin tags are common in pregnant middle aged women. It is nothing to be scared off, as they are least dangerous and do not cause any kind of harm or pain. The only required thing is to take proper care of your body and the conceived woman should enjoy the new life as much as it is possible.

Benefits of Exercise During Pregnancy

There are innumerable benefits if you are able to keep yourself active throughout your pregnancy phase. You can ensure that the progress of your pregnancy is going on well and you do not end up developing complications that might prevent you from exercising.

But above all, the sole point to remember is that one must check with the doctor and your fitness instructor simultaneously, on whether your body is in a condition to do workouts and what type of workout is permissible. You need to act on expert suggestions to ensure your well-being as well as your unborn baby.

Benefits of Exercising During Pregnancy

Given below are some of the benefits of exercising during your pregnancy term:

Deal with Pregnancy Fatigue Better – During the first and the later part of the third trimester most pregnant women suffer from exhaustion and low energy levels. It is but quite a paradoxical condition and too much of rest can make one feel even more drained out! Then one must also take care not to push oneself too hard during pregnancy. So the way out is, a little workout. Maybe you can go for a walk in the garden or outside or stroll around the entire house. Even a small physical activity will make you feel better and soar up the plummeting energy levels.

You Can Sleep Better – Often pregnant women are found to complain that they cannot fall asleep easily. But it has been noticed that if you do a regular exercise, your body will feel the necessity to rest and you will find it easier to fall asleep. But you must take note that you do not exercise just before bedtime as higher energy levels just post exercise will actually keep your sleep away.

Deal with Constipation and Gestational Diabetes – Most women experience constipation during their pregnancy term. Regular workouts, even a daily walking regimen will perk up your metabolic system and encourage active bowels. You will find that even your digestive system will show marked improvement. Gestational diabetes during pregnancy is quite normal. Exercising regularly helps one to lessen its impact, even avert it and even if it happens, come out of it postpartum, more easily.

Specific Back Exercises Help – Back pain is the common issue with most pregnant women. And the best way to prevent the back ailments is to have or develop strong abdominal muscles, and regular exercise can help you in this endeavour. There are specific back exercises that are for strengthening the back muscles and abs of pregnant women and which do not affect the tummy. Seek the advice of an expert fitness instructor and consult your doctor before you begin with them.

Stretches Help a Lot – Muscle cramps, especially in the legs affect most pregnant women. You will find that a little bit of stretching will do a world of good and bring in much relief from the persistent pains. You can do some simple stretches like flexing the toes upward and not downwards, and you will discover that the sore muscles in the legs and cramps are slowly warded off. If you are prone to get these cramps before bedtime, a toe or leg stretching exercise will help you get an undisturbed sleep.

The Possibility of an Easy Labour Increases – Although regular exercising is no guarantee that your labour would be a painless one, but it can ensure that the labour complications are less. The most important fact is that it helps your system to prepare for the stress of labour and helps you deal with it with ease.

Finally, give birth to a healthy baby through regular exercising. This is perhaps the most beneficial aspect of regular exercising. The chances of a healthy mom giving birth to a healthy baby are very high. Such women are found to be better equipped to deal with labour and delivery and as such their recovery period is also a lot smoother and lesser too, compared to women who are not into the habit of regular exercising. Thus, the postpartum recovery is also enhanced.

Financial Planning for a Baby Before Pregnancy

Life could be very enjoyable when you plan your living well. As a woman who is anticipating pregnancy, there’s every need for you to plan well even before your baby is conceived.  Financial planning is very vital if you must have a smooth ride while pregnant and even when the baby finally arrives.  Here are some tips to guide you.

• Begin Saving on time
You need to start saving some cash before the pregnancy comes. Yes, your husband might be there making some plans too, but you don’t need to depend on that alone. This is exactly where most women make mistakes. They keep hoping on their husband to provide all the comforts they need before and after pregnancy. Every responsible woman ought to plan ahead. You must have some private savings in order to tackle some emergency situations that may arise in the course of your pregnancy.

• Budget Your Medical Expenses
You need to plan all your medical expenses before hand. You can make the budget with the help of your hubby. Take time to create a list of all the possible aspects that must be attended to. This gives you an idea of the amount of cash to be made available. Always make sure the budget is within the threshold of your financial strength.

• Check out Your Health Insurance Policy
If your health insurance covers pregnancy, you need to make sure you utilize the opportunity.  Make sure your insurance company knows all the vital aspects of your medical history.  Using your insurance policy when it covers pregnancy issues can be very helpful in planning for your pregnancy financially. Note that most insurances companies may not be there to know whether you’re pregnant or not. It’s your duty to let your insurance company on time. This helps you to enjoy all the benefits due to you.

• Take a Maternity Leave
If you’re a working mum, you need to take a maternity leave with all the rights that comes with it.  This is usually a profitable period that will help you to plan every other aspect you need for your pregnancy period.  Make sure your employer is well notified on time through appropriate means.

• Don’t be Idle
You don’t need to be idle as a pregnant mother. Depending on your level of education, you can take up a work-at-home job. This ensures you earn some bucks while at home.  It also serves as an exercise medium to help your pregnancy period. Work-at-home jobs are indeed available in diverse forms. You can save lots of cash from such avenues. All you need is a laptop and an internet connection. These are very common these days.

In all, the bulk of the whole issue lies of adequate preparation. If you lack wisdom on all how to go about it, you can always consult a reliable financial adviser to help you out.  You’re sure of having a smooth ride all through your pregnancy period and even after the baby is born.

Healthy Diet During Pregnancy

For any woman, pregnancy period is the most precious time in life. It is more important when she becomes pregnant for the first time. During nine months of pregnancy, she can make all wonderful efforts to conceive a healthy and intelligent baby. During pregnancy or planning a baby, it is most essential for mother to become healthy. She should follow healthy diet in her daily meal.

Pregnant Woman must Eat

Follow a diet is depending on your body weight. It is very important to take balance diet as per your weight. If you are overweight, then you should avoid food that contains fat to maintain unnecessary increase of calories. If you are underweight, then you need to put on some weight. You can eat as per your capacity, but always remember do not keep your stomach overloaded.

Some important tips to prepare perfect diet schedule. You need to take care of your health from first day of your pregnancy. Iron, Calcium and Folic Acid is the basic necessity in your daily meal.
  • Fresh vegetables such kale, broccoli, leafy greens, carrots, sweet potatoes etc. and green vegetables are good source of folic acid.
  • Fresh fruits, it is helpful to take atleast 2 cup fruits daily. You can take banana, orange, apple, dried apricots or peaches or you can also take fruit juices.
  • Starchy foods like potatoes, whole grains, one bread slice, 1 cup cereal, half cup of cooked rice, pasta, brown rice and fortified cereals contain folic acid.
  • Proteins like fish, egg, meat for non-vegetarian and beans, pulses, nuts, peas for vegetarians.
  • Food contains calcium like fat free milk or yogurt. You can also take low fat cheese. 3 cup of milk everyday is essential. You can take calcium fortified foods or lactose free milk product if you don’t like milk.
  • Nuts are also considered as healthy diet. You can take five ounce of nuts during a weak. Try some less fat nuts like almonds, walnuts, and hazelnuts [unsalted] with good nutrients.
  • Other additional vitamin supplements are folic acid and vitamin D, which is must for every pregnant woman.
  • You can control your weight by avoiding fat-free and sugar free food. You can measure calories of your food and check that which food contains how many calories. Thus you can control your weight and maintain your diet accordingly.
Protections against infections

You need to take precaution if you are not immune.
  • If you are planning for a baby, then rubella vaccine is advisable to take under guidance of your doctor. If you take rubella, you should avoid pregnancy for three months. You should take blood test and check for your immunity before getting pregnant.
  • Protects yourself from food poisoning. You should eat hygienic food and mineral drinking water to protect yourself from bacteria and germs. Wash your hand before eat.
Important Things
  • You should have full [pre-pregnancy] blood test for diagnosis of disease if any such as diabetes, hepatitis B, HIV, etc.
  • If you have any problems such as dental related or any other, when you consult your doctor, you should inform them about your pregnancy and take medicine under guidance of your gynecologist.
For pregnant woman, healthy living, healthy environment and healthy diet are very important. Born a healthy child is the first step towards building healthy society.
Therefore, as a mother always try to keep yourself healthy for bringing happiness in your life with arrival of healthy baby.

Foods To Avoid During Pregnancy

A baby is every woman’s dream which completes her life. The health and strength of the baby is of the utmost importance. A pregnant woman needs around 300 calories more than a routine before pregnancy. The nutrient’s for the unborn baby is through what the mother eats. So thus there are few restrictions regarding the eating habits for a healthy and fit child. Fruits and vegetables, iron, proteins, folic acid, calcium and lots of water are must for a woman and her growing child. It is true that a woman feels the vigor and need to taste different varieties and try various foods even during 2 am at night and it is not a problem unless your husband can wake up and get you what you order for. But there are set of seven fruits a women should avoid during pregnancy listed below;

i) Green or unripe papaya;
A papaya contains vitamins and nutrients. It is the source of vitamin A and b- carotene which are used for the feto-maternal growth. But an unripe or a semi ripe papaya is restricted for pregnant women as it contains an enzyme called latex. This latex leads to uterine contractions and further to miscarriage or still birth. An unripe papaya acts like the enzymes oxytocin or prostaglandins which are the initializes for the body labor. Papaya though ripe or unripe has abortifacient and teratogenic effects. It is to be noted that a ripe fruit helps against constipation and heat burn.

ii) Catapple;
It is good to avoid cat apples, green apples during pregnancy. It excites the uterus and might lead to miscarriage. It is also found by researchers that apple cats which are sour, sweet or bitter lead to premature delivery.  Unpasteurized apple juice or apple cider juice is restricted.

iii) Pineapple;
Pineapple is a tasty fruit with numerous vitamins and minerals. It contains bromelain enzyme which contracts uterine and also might cause allergic problems.  It is said by researchers to avoid this fruit during the first three months of pregnancy.

iv) Fish;
Raw or uncooked fish dishes should be avoided. Uncooked dishes of even oysters, clams and mussels should be kept away from pregnant woman. These substances once cooked might kills the toxins in them but the natural toxins they would liberate cannot be halted. 

v) Peach;
Peach is said to increase the temperature of the body due to which over bleeding might happen. The hairy peel on the fruit irritates the stomach and the throat.

vi) Peanuts;
Peanuts cause allergic diseases to the fetus. Long term use during pregnancy might also cause allergic diseases for the child during childhood. 

vii) Ginger or chilli;
Ginger and chill are the spices which are every day used in Indian foods. The gingerol enzyme in ginger leads to blood clot consequently long term use of ginger for women is avoided. It is believed that it might also lead to constipation. 

These nine pregnant months are those days where a mother should be healthy enough for a healthy child. Avocados, Broccoli, carrots, DHA eggs, mangos, lentils, yogurt, and spinach are few of the nutritional overachievers which need to be added in the daily meal.