30 brief prenatal care measures

1. Count fetal movements 3 times a day, 1 hour each time. If you move 3 times, you will be qualified.

2. During the second and third trimester of pregnancy, you should mainly sleep on your left side. When you are tired, you can switch to the right side. Do not lie down for too long.

3. Drink 1500-2000ml warm water every day, do not use milk tea drinks instead

4. For pregnant mothers with a standard weight, the most suitable weight gain is 0.3-0.5kg per week, and the best weight gain during the entire pregnancy is about 12.5kg.

5. Don’t take medicine randomly before 12 weeks of pregnancy. Ask your obstetrician before taking medicine.

6. Eat 400 μg of folic acid every day, at least until 3 months of pregnancy, and if possible, until birth.

7. Start regular calcium supplementation at 4 months of pregnancy, 1000-1200 mg per day

8. If you are deficient in iron, follow your doctor’s advice and take iron supplements. Don’t just rely on red dates and brown sugar. The efficiency of iron supplementation is extremely low.

9. Don’t perm or dye your hair during pregnancy. Try to choose formaldehyde-free manicures and do them as little as possible.

10. Daily moisturizing skin care products can be used normally, just avoid functional products containing alcohol and salicylic acid.

11. Sexual intercourse is allowed during pregnancy. Try to avoid it during the first 3 months of pregnancy and the third month of pregnancy. It should be avoided during the entire pregnancy if there are abnormalities such as placenta previa and threatened abortion.

12. Walk for 30-40 minutes every day unless there are special circumstances. As long as you are not tired, don’t run or jump vigorously.

13. Don’t stand or sit for long periods of time. Get up and move around for 2 minutes every hour.

14. Don’t just think about calcium supplements when you have leg cramps. Sometimes it’s caused by catching a cold or being tired from walking too much.

15. If you have edema, avoid high-salt foods. Elevating your legs by 15 degrees when lying down can alleviate the problem.

16. For constipation, eat more prunes, dragon fruit, and crude fiber vegetables, and don’t drink laxatives indiscriminately.

17. If morning sickness is severe, eat some soda crackers to suppress it, and drink warm water in small sips frequently. If you vomit and become dehydrated, go to the hospital immediately.

18. Do prenatal check-ups on time, and don’t miss the four major items: NT, Tang screening/non-invasive, four-dimensional, and glucose tolerance.

19. Don’t go on a diet or overeat sweets in the three days before you become diabetes-tolerant, otherwise you won’t suffer in vain.

20. Always keep small bread and hard candies in your prenatal check-up bag to avoid feeling dizzy due to hunger on an empty stomach.

21. Don’t believe in the B-ultrasound metaphysics of “turning a boy into a girl and turning a girl into a boy”. Baby’s health is more important than anything else.

22. There is no need to sign up for expensive classes for prenatal education. Talking to the baby and playing soft music is enough.

23. If you feel bad, cry and don’t hold it in. It’s normal for hormones to fluctuate during pregnancy and to have bad moods. You’re not being pretentious.

24. Don’t listen to others who say “natural delivery is definitely better than caesarean section”. The best delivery method is the one that suits your own situation.

25. Prepare your delivery bag in advance during the third trimester, and check with the delivery hospital in advance to see if there are any necessary items.

26. After 36 weeks of pregnancy, do fetal heart rate monitoring once a week. Don’t be lazy.

27. If you see redness, water breaks, and regular contractions (pain once every 5 minutes), don’t wait, go to the hospital quickly.

28. If your water breaks, don’t stand and walk around. Lie down quickly, raise your buttocks, and call an ambulance to take you to the hospital.

29. Don’t smoke or drink during pregnancy, and try to avoid second-hand smoke.

30. If you have any doubts, ask your obstetrician immediately. Don’t frighten yourself by blindly searching on Baidu.

After finishing the list, some pregnant mothers will definitely want to ask, why are there no mentions of internet-famous items such as eating bird's nest and DHA supplements? To be honest, there is a lot of controversy between these two in the industry. One group of studies believe that the sialic acid and DHA in bird's nest can promote fetal neurological development. There is no harm in supplementing it if the budget is enough. ； The other group believes that deep-sea fish, eggs, and dairy products in the daily diet can already cover nutritional needs. Spending several thousand on bird's nests is not as cost-effective as eating two more pounds of eggs. My usual advice to pregnant mothers is: If you have a budget, you can eat what you want. If you don’t have a budget, you don’t have to worry at all. You can still give birth to a healthy baby by eating normally.

I once met a pregnant mother who was 28 weeks pregnant. In order to survive the glucose tolerance, she drank plain porridge and ate vegetables for the first three days. However, the glucose tolerance was indeed passed, so she turned around and started drinking milk tea and eating cakes every day. Within half a month, her fasting blood sugar soared to 6.2, and she was almost diagnosed with gestational diabetes. Don't you think this is tormenting yourself? So point 19 is really not what I said casually. The glucose tolerance test is your usual blood sugar level. If you cheat deliberately, you are deceiving yourself.

Some people say that you should lie down more during pregnancy to protect the fetus, and some people say that you need to exercise more to have a better birth. The most extreme example I have seen is a pregnant mother with twins. The elders in the family said that she could not move during pregnancy, so she lay in bed every day and even brought her meals to her. As a result, she was diagnosed with pre-stage venous thrombosis in the lower limbs at 34 weeks of pregnancy. Afterwards, she followed the doctor's advice to walk slowly for 20 minutes every day and wear elastic stockings to slowly relieve the condition. In fact, there is really no standard answer to exercise. If you have threatened miscarriage or cervical insufficiency, just lie down as directed by your doctor. If there is no problem, just take a walk every day. Don’t follow the trend of lying down or doing high-intensity pregnancy yoga. Your own comfort is the most important.

There are still many pregnant mothers who are confused about whether they can eat hot pot and ice cream. Let me put it uniformly: as long as your gastrointestinal problem is normal, you don’t have diarrhea or stomachache after eating it, it’s perfectly fine to eat it once in a while, and you don’t have to feel sorry for your baby if you eat it cold. When I was pregnant with my girl, I secretly ate popsicles several times in the summer while hiding from my mother, and the prenatal checkup was given the green light. Of course, if you have a weak intestines and gastrointestinal irritation when you eat something cold, then don’t touch it. Your body knows best.

In fact, prenatal care really doesn’t have so many bells and whistles. These 30 points are the most basic bottom line. The rest will be as comfortable as you want. Don’t make yourself too anxious. When you feel comfortable, the baby in your belly will be comfortable~