Pre-Pregnancy Counselling: 15 Tips For A Healthy Gestation

Every woman needs to take care of their diet and nutrition during pregnancy. But due to lack of information (or for some other reasons), they do not follow some necessary steps (precautions). For the birth of a healthy baby, it is very important to take full care of your health before conception. Here we are providing you with some fifteen important information related to pregnancy. By following this, you can keep yourself healthy without much suffering.

• You should be cautious about your food, at least three months before you want to conceive. Increase the amount of calcium, iron and protein in your daily meals. Consume green leafy vegetables, milk products and fruits in sufficient quantity. 
• If a woman has not been vaccinated against rubella, it is very important to get this vaccine (before she gets pregnant). But after this vaccine, one should not conceive for at least three months.
• Before pregnancy, a woman needs to check for diabetes, because if the mother has then the child is also susceptible to diabetes. (It can also affect the eyes of the child).
• If a woman takes birth control pills, then she should stop taking these pills at least three months before getting pregnant.

• Folic acid intake should start as per the doctor's advice (at least three months before getting pregnant). Because the child's brain and its spinal cord first start to form and folic acid has an important role in making it. It is an essential element for the development of the child and its deficiency can cause problems related to the nervous system.
• Most Indian women have anaemia (haemoglobin deficiency, that can threaten the life of both mother and child. Therefore, the complete blood count test is very important for a woman before conception.
• Before pregnancy, both the husband and wife must get Thalassemia (serious disease) checked. If both spouses have Thalassemia Minor, then the child is at risk of Major Thalassemia (in which the patient needs a blood transfusion every three months).
• Getting an HIV test is very important for both the husband and wife. Because if the mother is HIV positive then the child can also become a victim of it.

• Hepatitis B is a disease spread by sexual infection. Therefore, both the husband and wife should get it checked (and get vaccinated against it).
• It is also important for a woman to check for syphilis before conceiving. It can cause many problems at the time of delivery.
• When planning for a child, expecting parents should stay away from alcohol and cigarettes. A woman should be especially vigilant in this matter because it leads to miscarriage and sometimes a physically or mentally deformed baby.
• If there is a family history of a particular disease, then you must tell the doctor about it.
• If you regularly take medicine for any of your health problems, then inform your doctor about it.
• Every woman should pay attention to her weight before becoming a mother. The weight should be fully balanced according to BMS (Body Mass Index). Overweight or a lean body, both these conditions are considered harmful for conception.
• If both of the husband and wife have depression, hypertension or any kind of psychological problem, then you must tell the doctor about it too.
• Therefore, one should start their family life, only when they are fully satisfied with the pre-pregnancy counselling.

(Based on a conversation with Dr Nikita Trehan, a senior gynaecologist at Sunrise Hospital, Delhi)

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