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Preventing Birth Defects
10 Ways to Prepare Your Body
for Pregnancy
for Pregnancy
By Kelly Burgess
One entirely avoidable birth defect is fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS). Damage from alcohol can range from mild intellectual and behavioral issues to profound disabilities or premature death. According to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), there is no safe level of alcohol consumption during pregnancy.
According to the March of Dimes, if all pregnant women avoided smoking, the United States would see a 5 percent reduction in miscarriages, a 20 percent reduction in low-birth-weight births and an 8 percent reduction in premature deliveries. While smoking has not been proven to cause birth defects, it does deprive the fetus of oxygen and is the most harmful of all environmental toxins.
Chemicals have long been suspected of causing birth defects. Avoid daily, heavy exposure to chemicals. If you work in a cleaning business, art studio or factory where there is unavoidable exposure, use gloves, masks and adequate ventilation. Avoid exposure to lead, important when buying and restoring old furniture or renovating an older home. Those who work in the medical field should take special care to take precautions against radiation.
Good nutrition is one of the most crucial factors in a healthy pregnancy outcome, says Elizabeth Somer, a nutritionist and author of Nutrition for a Healthy Pregnancy (Paperback Owl Books, 2002). "In spite of the massive information campaign for folic acid, there's a huge population of women who still don't take supplements," Somer says. "But folic acid isn't the whole story; there are other nutrients that can also help prevent birth defects."
Overall, Somer says she hates to isolate one particular nutrient; rather, she encourages women to focus on eating a variety of healthy foods, with a particular emphasis on richly colored produce, whole grains, beans and legumes and lean protein sources. She also recommends taking a supplement fortified with DHA, which is the nutrient provided by foods rich in omega 3 fatty acids. The problem is that many of the best food sources of omega 3s are fatty fishes, which may have unacceptable levels of mercury. Instead, look for a supplement from a vegetarian source made from marine algae. This helps ensure healthy brain and vision formation.
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