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Expert obstetrician suggests pregnant women should gain less weight
Filed under: Just For Moms, Your Pregnancy, In The News
And then he ducks, as pregnant women everywhere throw handfuls of Doritos his way in disgust.Current guidelines for weight gain in pregnancy recommend that all women, even those who are overweight or obese, gain at least 15 pounds during the pregnancy. No upper limit for weight gain is specified. A new review by Dr. Raul Artal, an expert in obesity in pregnancy, says that's not good medicine.
According to his editorial, overweight and obese women don't need to gain that much weight during pregnancy and should instead be encouraged to watch what they eat and maintain a regular exercise program. He argues that a more moderate weight gain would help prevent complications like high blood pressure and diabetes. Plus, the pounds gained during pregnancy often stay on long after, contributing to the growing epidemic of obesity.
With all due respect for his expert opinion, I think it's fair to say that Dr. Artal has never experienced the weird food cravings and aversions and the sometimes overwhelming fatigue that comes with being a pregnant. Having just gestated my second, I can honestly say that I made every effort to limit my ice cream obsession. I also continued walking and attending my aerobic dance class until I was 30 weeks pregnant, at which point I got too LARGE and ROUND and TIRED to continue. In spite of these efforts, I still gained almost 40 pounds.
Maybe, in addition to counseling women to gain less during pregnancy, they can make it easier to lose the post-partum weight. I vote that they start by making babies much less in need of attention so that mamas can get a workout and a shower too, but that might be asking too much.
What's your take on pregnancy pounds? Anyone want to weigh in? (ha!)
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ReaderComments (Page 2 of 2)
3-14-2008 @ 1:45PM
the goddess anna said...I gained nothing with my first child - I lost 30 pounds in the first trimester (to the point that my friends thought I was anorexic), and gained 30 pounds the rest of the pregnancy. I put on weight after that pregnancy, mostly because my bad knee got worse and I couldn't exercise. With my twins, again, I lost some serious weight in the first four months (morning sickness was killer), about 40-45 pounds, and I gained about 25 after I could keep food down. I was nothing but babies, fluid, and placenta. I gained 40 pounds post-partum (PPD, and PPD drugs). I have lost 16 of those pounds over the last 2 years.
Did I eat whole, organic foods - no, not really. I barely ate period, because I was military and I didn't want to get fat. But I did anyway. I'm morbidly obese, but we were thinking of having another. I'll eat right, and after my morning sickness goes away, I'll gain whatever I need to gain to have a healthy baby. I think women should trust their bodies and their instincts before trusting some male doctor about pregnancy weight gain.
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3-17-2008 @ 11:57AM
Laura said...I'm technically obese (eyeroll on that.. come look at me and laugh). I gained 10kg with my son 5 yrs ago and all was in the last few months. I'm now 25+ weeks pregnant with my 2nd child and I'm still -2lbs! While I'm thrilled I won't take the credit. I am eating whatever I crave (mostly fruit but also sweets.. with my son I didn't crave sweets at all). I get exercise (not because I want to even.. just the way my lifestyle is) and I know my baby is healthy. I believe our bodies know what they need to do and do it. I've hated my body for so long but in times like these, that extra stuff keeps the baby growing well without putting more weight on my body.
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