05 Apr
Taking Risks… While Pregnant
I’ve taken many risks while pregnant. I’ve consumed cold deli meats, cheese made with raw milk, and frozen yogurt. I eat spoonfuls of dough/batter containing raw eggs when I’m cooking. I like to eat my eggs sunny side up with yolk running all over the plate. I’ve dyed my hair, rode my bike during the first half of my pregnancy, and didn’t switch to prenantal vitamins until close to my 20th week (which may or may not have been the reason why I had so little nausea my first trimester!). Once I was so congested that I took a cold medicine pill. I ate a hot dog. I didn’t switch to organics, possibly exposing my child to pesticides. I used bleach to clean the tub and made myself sick for an entire weekend. I chose not to get vaccinated for the flu or H1N1. I take baths and don’t worry about the temperature, I just go with what feels right to me. I never consulted my healthcare provider when I wanted to exercise, I chose activities that felt appealing to me at the time. I did some painting during my third trimester. Oh yeah, and I’m choosing to give birth at home, a decision which carries it’s own risks and possible negative outcomes, that I don’t deny.
Though some may place me in the “selfish baby maimer” category for admitting all of this, I don’t feel I deserve the title. We all take risks every single day, whether pregnant or not. These can include going for a run after dark because you *have* to squeeze it in that night, checking your phone while driving, not buckling our seat belt as soon as you begin driving, driving over the speed limit, driving in inclement weather, laying out in the sun in an effort to achieve that oh-so-popular sun kissed look, etc, etc. Though there are certainly individuals who are naturally inclined to play it a bit safer (my husband being one of them) I think it’s important to realize that when a woman learns she is incubating a fetus in her womb her very nature isn’t going to change overnight.
Am I worried that my baby suffered permanent damage because of my choices? For some of them, yes. The weekend of tub bleaching, for example, was an episode of complete irrationality, where I felt that the entire apartment just had to be cleaned or I would go crazy. I also wish I was smart enough to figure out how to fill our house with organic food without breaking the bank, eliminating pesticide exposure completely. I personally think though that these risks were small, and I’m not beating myself up over them after the fact.
Other choices though, were made because I believe in the importance of relying on a little thing called common sense. Exercising and bathing fall under this category. If the activity I’m engaging in hurts, I quit. If the water feels too hot, I cool it down.
Then there were some risks I took either because I am, as all are humans, inherently selfish, or because I carefully weighed my options and decided to go against the common recommendation. Eating deli meats, cheese with raw milk, and frozen yogurt are examples of pure selfishness, as I most certainly did not have to eat any of those things, there are plenty of other options out there, but I chose to consume them anyway. I could certainly stop eating my eggs sunny side up, and life wouldn’t end without spoonfuls of cookie dough on my tongue (although I might argue that it would be a lot less enjoyable 
), but I choose to take the chance the small chance of listeria for my own enjoyment. Dyeing my hair, not switching to prenatals right away, and passing up the flu vaccinations are all examples of deliberate risks I took because I felt I had researched my options, and I made an informed decision to choose something different than what might be recommended for/by others.
I am certainly not a perfect pregnant woman, and I will never be a perfect mother. I’ve made mistakes throughout my pregnancy, some I’m sure I can’t even see the consequences of now, but I feel confident that I can accept the consequences of my decisions, even if those consequences are regrettable in the long run. After reading this article which points out that stressing about one’s pregnancy while pregnant can actually harm the baby, I hope that other women will work to come to terms with the idea that some risks, some selfishness, some mistakes, are a part of life. Know your options, weigh the risks, learn from your mistakes.
Also:
I'm a farm-raised almost-crunchy stroller-pushing picture-taking lifestyle-blog-writing gastronomy-obsessed divine-seeking thrift-store-combing cheese-inhaling pavement-pounding laughter-sprinkling lover of individuality and taking chances.
That’s too funny! It’s probably not funny to everyone who read it, but when you’re almost 6 months along and your hubbie gives you crap about things that you do (and don’t do) while being pregnant…it just makes a girl laugh.
I was really careful (for the most part) when I was pregnant the first time…sure I used spray paint and once painted a bathroom with little ventilation, but other than that I took many, many precautions. One of them being a denial of my most sinful pleasure - a nice, long soak in a hot bath tub full of bubbles.
Like an hour long…or two, if it was a really bad day.
This time around? Not so much. I’ve learned to listen to my body, do what it tells me to do (or not to do) and go with the flow a little bit more. Good for you that you’re doing that from the get go! It will prepare you for all of those millions of “mommy choices” that you’ll make on a daily basis where you just go with your gut!
Great post!
1Haha, I think I’ve turned into one of those “safe people.” I rarely go into the sun except for photo shoots and certainly NEVER to get tan. With all my risk factors for skin cancer I won’t risk it :). And my family used to get mad at my mom for running after dark. BUT I know that I probably do plenty of other dangerous things and I’ll never be perfectly “safe” either, whether now or carrying a baby! Just getting into a car at all is risky! And this weekend we watched all these horrifying airplane crashes on the discovery channel or something.
And I will never give up frozen yogurt (ok, unless my breastfed child is allergic to it, but other than that…never).
2Oh, and my sister always used her pregnancies as an EXCUSE to not paint the kids’ bedrooms :).
3My mom’s biggest craving while carrying me was light beer, which she occasionally satisfied, and I’m fine. I don’t think any mom’s going to be perfect, and we, as a human race, are still around and amazingly resilient. I think your approach of not stressing about it is the right one to take!
4Honestly, good for you. A friend of mine told me recently that pregnant women can’t eat soft cheese. I nearly keeled over right there. No goat cheese?? No brie?? Posts like this are really helping me understand that pregnant women have to do what is right for THEIR pregnancy and that every woman is different. So thank you for that!
Although, I have heard that cleaning litter boxes is a big no-no while pregnant. Since we have 2 cats and I haaate litter box duty, I think that is one risk I’ll take seriously
Amanda W. Reply:
April 5th, 2010 at 9:11 am
That was my favorite pregnancy no no. 9.5 months of NOT having to clean that horrid litter box! Let me tell you, after my daughter was born, cleaning the litter box right for the first time in nearly 10 months was no fun (no offense to my sweet husband for taking care of it for me while I “wasn’t allowed”)!
Brandy Reply:
April 5th, 2010 at 1:23 pm
It’s actually no unpasturised or raw milk cheese, Goats cheese is fine but brie I think isn’t.
I love the cat litter rule though!
christiana (us meets uk) Reply:
April 5th, 2010 at 1:24 pm
I believe it is only certain cheeses. Jenna and I were talking about it one day on gchat and I googled it immediately! I’m a bit of a cheese fanatic… It’s for the possible Listeria Risk - but it certainly isn’t all cheeses. Marion Nestle recently blogged about pregnancy and Listeria risk (and wrote about cheeses)
I am totally passing on the cat box cleaning (like I don’t already)…
Lacey Reply:
April 5th, 2010 at 3:14 pm
Yep - the cat litter rule is because cat feces can sometimes carry toxoplasmosis, a disease which can cause permanent hearing loss in a fetus if the mother contracts it while pregnant.
But, any excuse not to have to scoop is awesome!
Hailee Reply:
April 10th, 2013 at 9:05 pm
Yup the cat litter rule is one to take seriously! I have a good friend who was born legally blind because of toxoplasmosis, his mother didn’t know about that rule while she was pregnant with him. He has minimal vision, peripheral only, and is colour blind.
I agree with this. Although obviously we should always try to be the best incubator possible, some people go waaaay over the top in my opinion. Babies are more resilient than we give them credit for (both in and out of the womb, I think).
6Why didn’t you get the flu vaccines?
Amy Reply:
April 5th, 2010 at 10:14 am
I usually don’t chime in, but…
The opposite is to be asked here. Why would you? There are side effects to the flu vaccinations and sometimes they don’t even work, you know.
rebecca Reply:
April 5th, 2010 at 10:39 am
Why would you receive the vaccine? Because the CDC has openly stated that the 2009 H1N1 flu virus has affected pregnant woman more severely than others who have had H1N1 this year: http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/guidance/pregnant.htm and that the vaccine is recommended for all stages of pregnancy: http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/vaccination/providers_qa.htm. I’m sure Jenna weighed the risks and benefits and made the right decision for her and her baby, but don’t automatically dismiss a very appropriate question.
Amy Reply:
April 5th, 2010 at 11:30 am
Didn’t dismiss it, rather, I presented another one to the commenter.
TJ Reply:
April 5th, 2010 at 10:49 am
I know of the anti-vaccine movement, which is completely unsupported by any scientific evidence. I just didn’t want to assume that that was her motivation for not getting the vaccines.
Amy Reply:
April 5th, 2010 at 10:53 am
I wasn’t talking about the anti-vaccine movement, per se.
I was talking about personal experiences with the flu vaccines. Most people I know who get them (including myself when I used to get them), end up with the flu anyway, since the strain is the best estimated guess as to what will circulate that winter.
H1N1…I wasn’t educated enough on that flu strain, but from who I know who had H1N1, the minute you got your hands on Tamiflu, you were fine. I didn’t want to get a vaccine that was pretty quick to get out to the public, either.
Amy Reply:
April 5th, 2010 at 10:56 am
Oh and this isn’t me assuming what Jenna’s thoughts are about vaccines. I just wanted to chime in my thoughts here.
TJ Reply:
April 5th, 2010 at 10:59 am
Ah, apologies — I read your comment to be about all vaccines, not just flu vaccines. I still am a big flu vaccine supporter — incidentally, I think Tamiflu is generally not recommended for pregnant women since it goes through the bloodstream — but for more specific reasons than the larger vaccinations issue.
I ate soft cheese, occasionally had sips of beer and wine in the third trimester (because I craved it so badly), did 4 12+ hour road trips in my third trimester (blood clot risk), and got the normal flu vaccine (because my MIL was on chemo) but not the regular flu vaccine. There wasn’t a whole lot I could do about stress, however, with all that happened during my pregnancy, but my baby is happy, healthy, and I think incredibly bright.
8Hey, it’s ok not to be perfect. With that many restrictions, I think I would go nuts. I’m also pretty sure ALL of these rules weren’t in place when our mothers were pregnant and heck, babies came out fine back when!
9The bathtub bleach incident was probably the worst thing you did, but your list really isn’t bad at all. It’s not like you snorted cocaine. That Baby will turn out great!
10I ate my meat medium rare the entire time I was pregnant with my daughter and took baths too. She’s beautiful and smart.
11I did give up sushi but…I think it’s all about common sense.
And I labored in the birthing tub for a while and I just have to say, if that water is not hot enough misery is what you get. Make sure the water is warm enough for you- I argued about that with the midwife. I should have just cranked it up…I’m going to be MUCH bitchier next time. (Not that I think it’s bitchy to get what you need.)
just so you know, you didn’t get nauseated because you are one of the lucky ones, if you weren’t it would matter what you consumed, you would be sick. As one of the very unlucky ones, I have to speak up, since the lucky women like to give advice about how they “avoided” being sick. It’s biology, not vitamins.
Kelli Nicole Reply:
April 5th, 2010 at 3:54 pm
I think she just means that she’s heard a LOT of women (including people who’ve commented on this site) say that they had to go off the prenatals because they made them sick and they were fine when they weren’t on them. That being said, my mom was one of those people that threw up every single day for 9 months, and I doubt she took prenatals in the 70′s.
i’ve heard equally cautious, granola-crunchy moms do waaaaaaaaay worse things and have babies that were healthy and happy. i’ll concur, the bleach incident was by far the worst. did you midwife express concern for any of these risks?
13Girl… you posted during your pregnancy about how we shouldn’t indulge in sweets (or encourage our friends to do it) during pregnancy because of the risks & now you’re saying/admitting all this! Shew… that post stirred up all kinds of controversy/bad feeling and was a totally different tone than this.
“why would we want to be a part of galvanizing a pregnant woman into indulging even more often than normal when she is feeding both herself and her baby whatever crosses her lips for 40 weeks”
You made me feel bad for being encouraged to eat a Cadbury egg when I wanted one - yet you were inhaling bleach? I was laughing at this post
… I don’t think you were harming your baby, just like I didn’t agree that people who encourage their pregnant friends to eat a chocolate slice of cake were harming babies, either.
megan Reply:
April 5th, 2010 at 2:58 pm
I agree with you completely on this!
Chelsea McGowan Reply:
April 5th, 2010 at 3:45 pm
I’m with you both here, too! I actually stopped reading for a while after that last post, because it seemed ridiculous to me that someone who was so “I’ll do what’s right for me” would pass judgment on women who enjoyed FOOD while pregnant. The tone of this latest blog was MUCH better. None of us are perfect… my fast food french fries aren’t going to hurt my baby, anymore than dying Jenna’s hair hurt her baby.
Jenna Reply:
April 5th, 2010 at 3:52 pm
Maybe you should go read the post again? I’m just not sure how you could disagree with the message that maybe we should do away with the idea that we “deserve” sweets and treats and indulgences while pregnant. I think we should all stop saying “Oh wow, you’re pregnant honey, have another cinnamon roll.” Or “MMM cadbury eggs, you’re pregnant and I’m sure the baby will love those.”
We don’t say that to pregnant women without a fetus growing in their belly, why do we start doing it during the 40-week gestation period?
This post was about acknowledging that we make mistakes. That post was about not encouraging them to happen.
megan Reply:
April 5th, 2010 at 4:16 pm
I’m not sure I understand the difference between saying “Its okay to indulge in a cadbury egg” and “Don’t worry about taking a hot bath now and again! Listen to your body!”… I don’t think anyone above was particularly attacking but your post comes across very defensive. It just seems that you’re saying that the mistakes *you* make are fine, but not those that others make.
megan Reply:
April 5th, 2010 at 4:17 pm
By “post”, I meant your reply to the original commenter here not your actual post! Sorry if that was unclear!
Erin Reply:
April 5th, 2010 at 5:54 pm
I never got the impression that Jenna’s post about the sweets was judging people who ate those things. She’s eating spoonfuls of cookie dough (yum!!) for goodness sake.
I read that post as her saying that it’s a bad thing to use pregnancy as an excuse to overindulge as so many people do.
If you want the big slice of chocolate cake all to yourself and you feel it’s the best option for you, go forth and eat! But if you start eating a big slice of chocolate cake after every meal because you’re pregnant and you deserve it…well that’s not good!…yet tends to be an encouraged behaviour.
*Michelle Reply:
April 6th, 2010 at 2:26 pm
That’s what I read too! Sweets post saying that we shouldnt shove sweets etc towards pregnant women just because they are pregnant…. this post saying no one is perfect and she’s not willing (and doesnt think its a good idea) to live in a bubble for 9 months. Seemed sane to me.
Kalen Reply:
April 5th, 2010 at 6:48 pm
Jenna, I did re-read the post, just to make sure it was as strange as I remembered & it was, even more so after reading this one.
Just as you received a lot of encouragement about taking a hot bath if/when you feel like it because you deserve it (on this post), that same encouragement applies to a sometimes miserable pregnant woman who has been sick for 16 weeks so her friend says, “Hey - a few Cadbury eggs aren’t going to hurt you, you deserve them.”
The “mistakes” you’ve openly admitted to all went against advice most medical professionals would give you - just like they wouldn’t advise a pregnant woman to over-indulge in sweets. Certainly you’re not more worried about your baby being obese than you are about the neurological dangers of inhaling bleach or over-heating, or the fatality risks involving contracting food poisoning while pregnant?
I’m just saying that this post made me laugh a little because I thought you’d realized that things like eating sweets aren’t really *that* big of a deal during pregnancy, but apparently you still think friends encouraging each other to indulge is worse than the mistakes you mentioned.
So… nevermind
Chris Reply:
April 6th, 2010 at 12:48 am
I dunno…I feel like Jenna’s hypocrisy comes from the fact that she’s very sensitive to weight issues.
Someone Reply:
April 6th, 2010 at 8:31 am
You’re comparing two separate things… In the first post, she was saying pregnancy is not an excuse for indulging and we shouldn’t encourage people to do so just because they are pregnant. Here, it is likely that Jenna would’ve “indulged” in these things had she been pregnant or not. She is certainly not saying she or any other pregnant woman “deserves” these indulgences because they are pregnant. That was the attitude she was attacking in the first post. (At least this has been my interpretation of the posts)
christiana (us meets uk) Reply:
April 6th, 2010 at 1:16 pm
That’s how I read it too? That pregnancy isn’t (or shouldn’t be) an excuse for indulging in every craving or whim. That people heavily encourage pregnant women to “eat for two!”.
For example, my husband is slim and people ALWAYS say “go on you can afford it” to sweets, chocolates, other fatty foods. But should he really just because he is thin? Just because he isn’t overweight doesn’t meant those things aren’t bad for him. So just because someone is “eating for two” doesn’t mean they should be encouraged to eat excessive amounts of foods that will harm them. There is a difference between giving yourself a treat and accepting the consequences, and justifying a behaviour you know isn’t good for you.
I mean really, you let some woman on the internet make you feel bad about eating a cadbury egg? Why would you allow a stranger to influence you so heavily?
Kalen Reply:
April 6th, 2010 at 5:53 pm
Christiana - I was being (very, very, very) sarcastic. There isn’t a person on Earth who could make me feel guilty for eating anything on this planet… so no worries.
*chomps on a peanut butter candy*
My obgyn gave me advice kind of like this. There are lots of lists of what not to do but you really just need to listen to your body.
15I ate lunch meat a lot when I was pregnant (I zapped it though, and guess what I stood close to the microwave while doing it!)
I also had caffeine once a week or more…I was laid back, the only thing that I did was if there was a smoker around (like walking in and out of stores, etc) I would hold my breath until I left that area. 
I was a stickler about that. (Even though I doubt it would have made a difference)
16I love this. First of all, your blog is fabulous and I’ve drawn a lot of support from it. I’m due in September with my first so still pretty early on but in thinking about how I want my pregnancy and delivery to be, I realized that not all of my “supporters” feel the same way I do. At first my husband thought I was crazy for wanting to give birth anywhere outside a hospital. But now he’s supportive of wherever I’m most comfortable.
Reading this makes me smile because I take a lot of risks too. I ate two turkey sandwiches when I was about 8 weeks. I rode my pony on a regular basis. I cannot get enough eggs over easy. They HAVE to be runny. And now I want eggs. I didn’t even know you weren’t supposed to have hotdogs. I ate one a couple weeks ago. I drink soda on occasion. I stay up way too late doing homework. I didn’t get vaccinated either (I also live in VT and there was hardly any H1N1 or flu outbreaks here) and I eat junk food some days and sometimes I forget to take my pre-natal vitamin.
I think the point is that you can’t stop having a life when you’re pregnant. Sometimes life is defined by those little things that make you smile, even if it is a perfect morning with a plate of runny eggs and a bike-ride. Women have been giving birth since forever and I think it’s important to pay attention to your own body and listen to what it says.
That being said, I think you are incredibly in-tune with yourself and your baby. I think that’s what will make you a great mother.
17I’m a long time reader, first time commenter, but I have to say that common sense just makes sense. No need to get overly stressed about everything - you’d think that stress could be harmful, too!
Can I suggest an alternative to bleach? Since we’ve had kitties (not the same as babies, I know, but they’re my babies), I’ve been cleaning with vinegar, or baking soda, or products from a line called “Method” - not sure if you would have it in the States (I’m in Canada). I think it’s much healthier for everyone in our little family, 4-legged and human, haha.
*Michelle Reply:
April 6th, 2010 at 2:30 pm
Method is here! (And I think available at Target?)
Too bad common sense isnt so common! Maybe we woudlnt need all these crazy rules.
Welcome ‘eh!
Good for you for owning it and doing what made you happy and what you felt good about. I ate things I wasn’t supposed to, rode my bike a lot in my 2nd trimester, drank diet soda on occasion and even jumped on the trampoline once ha ha. I think there are so many “small risks” that really have such a small percentage of actually causing any harm, that they are WAY not worth the stress it will cause you in avoiding them. Our parents didn’t know of half the risks we do now and and we are ok. Don’t let people make you feel guilty for not going overboard or being scared of everything.
I love your blog and that you are so open with your readers!
19As my husband would say when I told him about the questions being raised about BPA in plastic bottles and can liners :”if we listen to all the advice we wouldn’t do anything at all”.
As I’ve heard parents say you have to pick your battles.
You can make mistakes with the best intentions anyway, I mean, if we think about the the things that have been discovered since even the 50′s!
While there may be things you did that I wouldn’t do in your situation there is probably things I would do that you wouldn’t. It’s the whole thing about “may the one who hasn’t sinned throw the first stone!” isn’t it?
20But anyhow, Ii do agree on the fact that one shouldn’t stress out about the what you can and can’t do. You have to pick your battles and live with it, stress is not a good thing to deal with.
wonderful post, thank you.
I’m 5.5 months pregnant and I eat soft/unpasteurised cheese and unbaked cake mix, drink the occasional coffee, take hot baths (hadn’t even heard that was ‘bad’ to be honest!) and a whole heap of other things that I don’t consider are worth cutting out for the risk they pose. I think I am sensible - I try to be informed and to weigh up the risks. It’s a hard line to walk because we can’t all be experts and it’s difficult to feel informed ‘enough’, but there is so much ‘you can’t x’ or ‘you must y’ out there, that is absolutist where it needn’t be, and I do agree it’s good to look behind that to the actual risks and to make our own decisions about how we act. To react to it all and cut out everything you heard was ‘bad’ would make for an incredibly stressful time!
Anyway, hooray for you for putting it out there - it is difficult sometimes - so many people seem to consider themselves experts on the shoulds and shouldn’ts without much real reason to at all.
21Wonderful post. It’s like when people get pregnant, common sense goes out the window! thanks for being a breath of fresh air — stop the insanity!!!!
22wow jenna this is so topical for me because just this week i was sitting listening to my pregnant sister complaining about how she had to pick the soft cheese out of the salad at dinner, and how she misses soft serve ice cream and chocolate mousse. i felt like serving her a plate of (listeria free of course) hard love… she’s made her diet choices, now she needs to deal with them and just be grateful to have conceived a healthy child. it was so refreshing to hear a ‘confessional’ post where you took accountability for your choices, admitting taking some risks, as opposed to so many of my pregnant friends who just settle in for a winter of moping about their restricted lives. unsettlingly, the only reason i know about all the ‘thou shalt nots’ of pregnancy is because ive heard my pregnant friends either whine about prohibited items or be openly judged by others for consuming something not allowed. i would be really interested to hear the facts and figures for listeria during pregnancy. the statistics behind the risk. i do not doubt that this is a serious risk to the health of the baby, to the extent of miscarriage. however, i wonder about the details… things like, what is the risk difference between occasionally eating a small slice of brie at a party versus eating brie several times a week? when i reach this stage of life, i plan to thoroughly research these things. i imagine i will conclude that it is worth it to get acquainted with the vast range of pasteurised cheeses for 9 months, however, should a slice of brie unknowingly (or intentionally. who knows) pass my lips, i would like to know how much to panic or not be bothered. i want to act on knowledge and common sense, not fear, and i see this is the way you make your decisions.
23I wonder how much of these things we hear that we can’t eat and do during pregnancy are really true? I mean I have heard them all…but I have never once had my doctor or a trained anything tell me DO NOT do blah blah blah! I took hot baths, I ate cheese (I actually didn’t know you weren’t suppose to) and I ate the lunch meat and the raw cookie dough and cake batter, and runny egg yolks, and painted and yadda yadda yadda! So it would be interesting to see what all of the trained professionals say about it. well I would ask my doctor who is pretty laid back about things and not the uptight guru that thinks he/she knows more then anybody. does that even make sense? So I am glad you did all of these normal things and didn’t make yourself crazy on all of of the do nots during pregnancy.
24No wonder women “need” so many prenatal vitamins - the restrictions take out so many foods that would normally provide them!
25Love this post. Love that you tell it like it is. Love that you are REAL.
26Hey Jenna! I’m catching up on some posts I missed - hope your comment notification is working so you read this!
My aunt is a natural birth advocate, and produced a documentary about all of the things that seem to be important to you - natural birth, bonding with baby, emotional connection with the birthing process, etc. If you’d like a copy, I have a few extras and can send you one. I think you might enjoy it! You can read more here: http://whatbabieswant.com/. Let me know if you’re interested. 
27i really, really, really fail to see how it is acceptable to consume alcohol because you have a “craving”…
and jenna, although i do agree with the fact that we all do things in our daily lives that are considered “risks”, i would hardly equate driving in inclement weather to knowingly exposing your unborn child to chemicals…
MrsE Reply:
November 14th, 2013 at 8:36 am
via Harvard Medical School:
In a new study sure to raise hackles and controversy, an international team of researchers is reporting that pregnant women who drink alcohol during the first trimester of pregnancy and possibly beyond aren’t putting their babies at risk for premature birth or low birth weight, or themselves at risk for high blood pressure complications during pregnancy.
Dr. Fergus McCarthy and colleagues from Ireland, England, New Zealand, and Australia compared birth outcomes among 5,628 women who were pregnant for the first time between 2004 and 2011. More than half of them reported drinking alcohol during the first three months of pregnancy. Rates of premature birth, babies with low birth weight or small size, and preeclampsia were similar across the alcohol consumption categories.
A 2012 Danish study found that low to moderate alcohol consumption during pregnancy did not affect executive functioning among 5-year-olds.
So glad to find this old post! Just thought I’d add that now that I am on my 4th baby, I am a very different pregnant woman than I was 10 years ago (yikes! it’s been 10 years!) Pregnancy is a young woman’s game and nothing makes me FEEL my age quite like this. I joked with my first that he needed to leave me alone- I didn’t need to spend 9 months sitting on a pillow. I’ve taken that back. He bought me a foot spa and a heating pad within the first trimester, a white noise machine, flowers every week. I have to say… I wish I’d let him do this earlier! <3 as for me… this is the last one… and after 3 boys, think pink for me!
29I just found your blog and read this. I think its great!! I went snowboarding through my 1st trimester and everyone freaked out over it! My dr assured me I would be fine and that I could continue to do whatever is my normal. I just couldn’t be crazy snowboarding. I didn’t go off doing tricks and jumping.
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