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7 Most Common Misconceptions About Pregnancy

Is it dangerous to dye your hair during pregnancy? It is okay to have sex during pregnancy? Clinical professor of medicine Nancy Chescheir will free you of your unnecessary fear about pregnancy.

Flu vaccine is dangerous if you are pregnant

On the contrary, Nancy Chescheir says that flu vaccination is very important. A lot of pregnant women worry that the vaccine will give them flu or the preservatives in the vaccine will harm their babies.

According to Chescheir, there is no evidence that vaccination harms the fetus. The risk of getting flu and dying of flu is higher among pregnant women than regular people.

Pregnant women eat for two

Eating for two does not mean that you need to eat twice the amount of what you normally eat. The extra calories required for the development of your baby is only 300 calories and you can provide it with one glass of skimmed milk and half a sandwich.

A woman with normal body weight should only gain 10 – 15 kg during pregnancy, and if the woman is overweight, this number must be even lower. Excess weight gain of either you or your baby does not only make the delivery more difficult, but it also increases the risk of obesity for the baby in the future.

Avoid dyeing your hair

Wrong! It is true that the chemicals in the hair dye penetrate the skin, but Chescheir says that it is not enough to harm the baby. Some pregnant women may experience nausea because of the smell of the hair dye. For this reason, it is better to dye in a well-aired place.

Completely abandon caffeine

It is said that caffeine increase the risk of miscarriage and preterm birth. But Chescheir says that there is no connection between caffeine and them. If you do not exceed 200 mg daily, there is no problem with drinking coffee.

Flying triggers some complications

The radiation exposure in the airports make a lot pregnant women worried. Chescheir says that the radiation that we are exposed to while flying is slightly higher than we normally do, but that it does not penetrate the body enough to harm the baby.

Besides this, if you have any lung or heart problems, try to avoid flying without consulting with your doctor first.

Do not eat fish

Eating two portions of fish is very healthy for both mother and the baby. The omega-3 content of the fish plays an important role in the eye and brain development of the baby. On the other hand, you need to avoid fishes that contain a high amount of mercury, such as shark, tile fish, and you should avoid raw fish since it contains bacteria and parasites. According to Chescheir, salmon, shrimp and tuna fish are good choices.

Do not have sex

It is a misbelief that sex hurts the baby. The baby is protected by the amniotic sac and uterine muscles. Despite of this fact, if you have a sexually transmitted disease, the risk of giving it to the baby is high.

A lot of pregnant women believe that orgasm can cause miscarriage. But if your pregnancy is normal, if you do not carry any risk of miscarriage, it is okay to have sex.