At what age is it better to give birth and why?
If 20 years ago women were giving birth for the first timeover 25 were called "elderly", and those who decided to have their first child after 30 were generally old, but now this threshold has shifted to 40 years. Of course, this age is not the limit, but despite the fact that after forty the reproductive functions of the body work almost as well as at a younger age, there is a high probability that the expectant mother already has some kind of chronic disease. In addition, after forty, conceiving a child becomes more difficult, and the risks of various disorders increase significantly. On the other hand, this is not a reason to refuse pregnancy - if a woman leads a healthy lifestyle and takes care of herself, then at any age, bearing a child can go normally. However, it is worth remembering that adult women are more likely to have congenital anomalies in the development of the fetus, spontaneous miscarriages, premature births and pregnancy complications, but even these risks can be minimized.Photo: Getty Images
What time of year to plan for conception
You can and should give birth at any time of the year,the main thing is to properly prepare for conception. Do not believe the myths that in winter or summer something happens differently, and childbirth is easier, and children cry less. In Russia, motherhood is generally planned by only about 4% of women, pregnancy often occurs by chance. I urge you not to catch the "lucky" seasons, but to prepare your body: quit smoking, do physical exercise (especially swimming) and monitor your health, visiting not only a gynecologist, but also a therapist or another specialist you need - this definitely works. Unfortunately, the joke "there are no healthy ones - there are under-examined ones" as applied to the "birthing contingent" contains more truth than, in fact, a joke! Our research ten years ago established a sad fact: young women aged 23 have a total of more diseases than their 46-year-old mothers! But both daughters and mothers are of reproductive age (15-49 years).
When to start preparing for conception and pregnancy
Ideally, start preparing for pregnancyIt is necessary from birth - not to smoke, eat healthy food, do physical exercise - but in reality this is difficult to achieve, so it is necessary to start preparing at least six months before the expected conception.
What examinations are needed for future parents
First of all, I want to say that anyreferrals for tests and medications prescribed by doctors should be assessed critically - objectively, a woman at the preparation stage only needs to visit a therapist and a gynecologist, check the condition of internal organs and treat teeth. Those who have hereditary diseases or fetal abnormalities in the family need to visit a geneticist. If you have any chronic diseases, you should pay special attention to your pregnancy from the first days and visit the doctor with the frequency that he prescribed for you. In addition, if a woman has chronic diseases due to which she is registered with a dispensary (diabetes, diseases of the cardiovascular system, gastrointestinal tract, etc.), then she needs to be observed not only by a gynecologist, but also by a specialized specialist!Photo: Getty Images
What to eat when you are preparing to become a mother
If we are talking about diet, then in no caseyou can't starve yourself. Anorexia is a real killer of the female reproductive system, the diet of the expectant mother should be complete, so that the body is always saturated with complete protein (meat, fish, cottage cheese). In addition, when a woman plans a pregnancy, she should give up alcohol and smoking, and also replenish the lack of vitamins in the body. Informed women should at least know that the concept of "pregravid preparation", i.e. a conscious attitude to future pregnancy, all over the world provides for the elimination of folate deficiency, saturation of the body with folic acid. This simple and cheap method is the only proven measure that reliably reduces the most terrible fetal defects by more than 90% - neural tube defects! There is nothing more terrible than these anomalies, and prevention is nearby, simple and reliable!Photo: Getty Images
And how to prepare dad
There is nothing in preparing for fatherhood either.supernatural - the future dad is also recommended to give up bad habits and lose excess weight, if any. By the way, you need to start preparing no later than 90 days before conception - that's how long it takes for sperm to mature.
What vitamins are needed
The World Association of Obstetricians and Gynecologists does notinsists on the mandatory intake of vitamin complexes - the most important thing is that the body of the expectant mother does not have a deficiency of protein, vitamins A, D and B9 (folic acid). The latter, as already mentioned, is one of the most important micronutrients - its deficiency leads to an increased risk of not only neural tube defects, but also the development of cardiovascular defects, cleft palate, limb defects, and urinary system defects in the fetus. The worst thing is that all this is laid down in the early stages of embryonic development, when a woman may not even know about her pregnancy. That is why I strongly recommend starting at least three months before pregnancy and continuing to take it for several months after childbirth. On the other hand, randomized studies confirm that those who took a balanced vitamin and mineral complex containing folic acid in the amount of 800 mcg per day, both before and during pregnancy, the risk of neural tube defects decreased by 92%, and it took the subjects only 1 month to do this. Moreover, the studies showed that folic acid is very effective in combination with other vitamins of group B, C and PP. It is also worth taking additional vitamin D - this is not only an essential vitamin, but also a new hormone that regulates reproductive functions, among other things!