What you should not do when you are pregnant. See what you should avoid!
The body of a pregnant woman is governed by completely different rules. What is allowed at any other time, can be forbidden during pregnancy. See what you should avoid during pregnancy to minimise the risk of falling ill or of premature birth.
Activities forbidden in first trimester of pregnancy
The first pregnancy trimester is the time of the robust development of your baby. During this time, the risk of miscarriage is the highest, so you should take care of yourself as much as possible.
What should you avoid in the first pregnancy trimester, and what is forbidden throughout entire nine months? We prepared for you a list of things that may negatively affect your pregnancy. Read it thoroughly, to ensure that this special time passes without any greater problems or unnecessary stress!
What you should not do when you are pregnant. Below you will find the list of most important activities.
What you should not do when you are pregnant. Time to be specific! Below you will find some details which are definitely useful to any future mum or a woman planning to become pregnant.
Smoking
Let’s start with the most important thing, i.e., no smoking. You should avoid this throughout pregnancy, but it should be mentioned here that preferably, you should first limit, and then completely quit smoking even before you start trying for a baby.
Do we have to say why smoking is so harmful to health of the mum and the baby in her belly? When a mum takes a drag on a cigarette, the baby’s pulse accelerates, and this is very dangerous for its health. Furthermore, when a woman smokes while she is pregnant, frequently, this leads to foetal hypoxia, and drastically restricts baby’s development.
Tobacco smoke contains thousands of highly toxic substances. Do you really want to poison not only yourself, but especially your baby? Do not join the group of as many as 15% of women regularly smoking during pregnancy and be aware of hazards associated with this harmful habit.
Drinking alcohol
Another habit that is extremely dangerous for future mums is drinking alcohol. Even very small quantities of it can damage the foetus.
Ethyl alcohol can penetrate through the placenta to your baby’s body very fast. Did you know that already 30 minutes after the future mum drinks alcohol, its blood levels in foetus are nearly the same as in her blood? Additionally, foetal metabolic processes are much slower than those of the young mother.
Alcohol consumption is particularly dangerous during first weeks of pregnancy. It may cause a number of developmental defects in the foetus, including brain, liver, or heart damage, or problems with the muscle tension.
FAS - Foetal Alcohol Syndrome
Mother’s ingestion of alcohol during pregnancy causes the Foetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS). Furthermore, it is a frequent cause of miscarriages or premature birth.
So if you hear that having an occasional glass of wine is advantageous both for the future mum and for her baby, you should definitely explain that actually it is the other way round. Even the smallest quantity of alcohol during pregnancy may negatively affect development of your baby! And, unfortunately, there is no treatment for FAS...
Eating/drinking specific groups of products
It is also very important to avoid eating specific product groups. Below you will find a list of things that you cannot eat when you are pregnant.
Forbidden products, which should definitely be avoided, include:
unpasteurised milk and its products,
raw meat,
raw fish and seafood,
raw eggs,
blue and mould-ripened cheeses.
Are you wondering why you should not eat raw meat or fish, or seafood? There is a risk of becoming infected by a bacterial or protozoan pathogen. In the case of products from unpasteurised milk, this is associated with their uncertain microbiological quality. Thus, even if you really would love steak tartare, carpaccio or yolks beaten with sugar, it is better to wait until you give birth.
Having certain cosmetic procedures performed
What do cosmetic procedures have to do with advanced pregnancy? Although it is not so obvious, many of them are forbidden at that time!
Cosmetic procedures contraindicated during pregnancy include cavitation, sonophoresis, or salicylic acid. Even those acids, like almond or lactic, which are considered safe during pregnancy, cannot be used at higher concentrations.
Do you always need to make sure which care or cosmetic procedures can be performed during pregnancy? Remember, it is a professional cosmetologist who should complete a questionnaire with you each time, to exclude possible contraindications to the procedure. So it is very important to choose a good beauty parlour with professional personnel.
Also during certain treatments performed at home, you should exclude cosmetics containing specific substances, for example, retinol. High vitamin А levels may cause defects in the foetus.
Using sunbeds
The use of sunbeds also exposes a pregnant woman to a great risk. The skin of future mums is frequently prone to being hypersenstivite and to pigmentation disorders. So if you do not want to have unsightly spots on your body, you should avoid them.
And what about normal sunbathing? It is allowed, provided you use cosmetics with a strong screen (preferably, SPF 50+). Furthermore, it is much better to tan “actively”, e.g., during long walks. It is a perfect combination of things that are pleasurable (sunbathing) and healthy (physical activity).
Using saunas
You do not like using sunbeds, but love long sessions in a sauna. Similarly as in the case of sunbeds, you should not do this when you are pregnant!
Exposure to the high temperature means a great risk of fainting or triggering contractions. And there is just one step from regular contractions to premature birth, so it is not worth the risk!
Taking hot baths
Similarly as using sunbeds, taking hot baths is also forbidden, especially when you are heavily pregnant, as this may cause premature birth, and you certainly do not want this! A high temperature frequently triggers uterine contractions and/or bleeding, which pose a direct hazard to a future mum.
Is there any alternative to hot baths? Remember, you can always lie in a bath of a slightly lower temperature. This should not harm either you or your baby. A quick shower is also allowed.
Getting a tattoo
Is it really true that when you are pregnant you are not allowed to get that tattoo you desire so much? We know that this issue gives rise to many emotions, also because the experts differ in their opinions on this subject.
However, it is true that getting a tattoo is associated with a relatively high risk of being infected with HIV or hepatitis B or C. Therefore, you should definitely wait with this until your baby is born. Furthermore, frequently the hygiene standards at tattoo parlours are insufficient, so the risk of getting the above diseases is even higher.
Furthermore, future mums frequently have a lower pain threshold and are hyperensitive to touch. For this reason, when getting a tattoo, they may feel every touch with a much greater intensity than before pregnancy or after giving birth to a baby. So, maybe at least for this reason it is worth to wait a bit...? Every pregnant woman thinking about getting a tattoo should consider these aspects.
Using strong chemicals
Have you ever heard that using large quantities of chemicals is not allowed during pregnancy and wonder what you should do about this? Although chemicals are slightly dangerous to the future mum, they should not be harmful when used in “reasonable” quantities.
When you clean your house and need to use chemicals, wear thick rubber gloves and prevent a direct contact of chemicals with your naked skin for maximum protection. Then you are not exposed to any hazard and you do not have to be stressed about this!
Things you should avoid during pregnancy if you are afraid of premature birth or a risk of miscarriage!
Everything we listed above is more or less dangerous to pregnant women and their babies.
Of course, not every of these activities will immediately result in miscarriage or premature birth. However, it does not mean that you should take a risk, hazarding potential negative consequences. You should remember that now you have to think not only about yourself, but also of your baby. Making decisions for two is quite a responsibility, but we are sure that you will handle it perfectly!
So what can you actually do during pregnancy?
After discussing what you should avoid during pregnancy, it is time to show what you can do during this period. Fortunately, there are really plenty of things to choose from, so you do not have to worry that your life during pregnancy will only involve sadness and stress.
Be active
If your pregnancy is physiological and nothing worrying happens, physical activity is not only acceptable, but recommended! You can go for long walks, do yoga or aerobic for pregnant women. Of course, before you start to exercise more intensely, you should always consult your gynaecologist. Only then you can do more.
During first weeks of pregnancy, future mums often cease to be physically active “for a while”. But if they trained regularly before pregnancy, in most cases they can continue doing this during those exceptional nine months. As we have already mentioned, in general, the future mum does not have to, and actually should not avoid physical activity during pregnancy.
Eat well-balanced meals
A well-balanced diet should be fundamental not only during pregnancy, but also at every other step of your life. It is good for health, both yours and your baby’s.
Follow a diet that is not deficient in any valuable nutrients, positively influences baby’s development and makes you feel better. Then, you will not experience hunger attacks, and crave unhealthy food less often, and fast food will not be a foundation of your diet but only a so-called recreational meal, eaten simply for pleasure, and not to supply yourself with valuable nutrients.
You can develop a well-balanced diet yourself e.g., on a basis of recommendations available in a pregnancy application
, or use a support of a dietician. Everything depends on your individual preferences and your strong will.
In our application, HiMommy, you will find many useful information on the diet during pregnancy. Using this functionality, you will learn which food products are completely safe, and which should be avoided. You will also learn basic assumptions of a well-balanced diet, which may be useful not only during pregnancy, but also after giving birth and at every other stage of your life.
Rest a lot
Although it is good to be active during pregnancy, it does not mean that you should forget about resting. Rest is very important, both at the beginning of pregnancy, and at its further stages. And it also is very good after you give birth, but we must admit that it is much harder to get then.
Which type of rest is the most effective? We cannot give a clear answer to such question, because it is a very individual issue. Some future mums relax best when lying on a sofa with a book, while other prefer active rest.
Travel
Can future mums travel? Much depends on where you want to go and how you are going to get there.
Let’s analyse several types of journeys.
Travelling by car
Are you looking for maximum flexibility and freedom from train or flight schedules? Travelling by car may prove to be an excellent solution! However, you should remember that as a future mum you should take breaks from time to time, to stretch and change your position. Another thing is that definitely you will need to use a toilet, so stops are highly recommended!
Although you do not have to wear a seatbelt when you are pregnant, it is better, for your and your baby’s safety, to wear it using a special adapter. It can be purchased at any bigger store with accessories for children, or even rented (this is an option offered, e.g., by some antenatal classes).
Travelling by train
If not by car, then how...? Travelling by train may take longer, but is definitely more comfortable, as you can stretch or walk around a carriage at any time.
Unfortunately, you cannot get everywhere by train, and nobody can guarantee you’ll be there on time. Furthermore, train stations are frequently located far away from city centres, so reaching a hotel or other accommodation may be a real challenge, which can be a source of great stress for a pregnant woman suffering from mood swings.
Plane journeys
A plane as a transport vehicle is definitely much faster than a car or a train. However, travelling by it is not comfortable, especially taking into account the available leg space.
If you fly regularly, you are possibly aware that at the certain stage of pregnancy it is no longer possible. In that case, much will depend on a selected carrier the services of which you are going to use. In general, you can fly until the end of the 36th pregnancy week in the case of a single pregnancy, and four weeks less when it is a multiple pregnancy.
Similarly as in the case of physical activity, also in this case you should always consult the doctor looking after you. In some cases, they may forbid you flying throughout these nine months due to comorbidities or a risk of premature birth.