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Pregnancy: Women
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Pregnancy, birth and the early postpartum period are very special times in women's lives. Women and their families deserve high quality, personalised care by a known midwife whether they plan to give birth in hospital, a birth centre or at home.
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Pregnancy ... increases nutrient requirements. It is important that the mother's diet contains sufficient protein, iron, calcium, folate, and vitamins C and D for the formation of the baby's muscles, bones, and teeth, and to make haemoglobin. Most extra nutrients are obtained simply by eating a balanced diet that satisfies the increased energy requirements. However, all women should take folate supplements to reduce the risk of neural defects in their babies (see folic acid). Pregnant women are advised not to eat liver or liver products although they are rich in folate, because of the possible harmful effects of their high vitamin A content on the health of the baby. Supplementary iron and vitamins C and D are often recommended, but iron tablets can cause constipation and other distressing effects in some people.
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Pregnancy and women's health issues such as infertility, labor, delivery, miscarriage, unplanned pregnancy, and other related topics. Includes everything pregnancy from getting pregnant and choosing a health care provider to postpartum health care.
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Pregnancy produces profound changes in the mother, which may be detected from early stages. There is a marked rise in the output of the heart by 3 months, and it rises further as pregnancy advances, reaching 30-40% above the non-pregnant level by the end. This rise is mainly due to an increase in output with each contraction of the heart muscle (stroke volume), although the heart rate ... increases. The volume of blood in the circulation also increases, with a greater increase in plasma volume than in red blood cells, producing the so-called ‘physiological anaemia of pregnancy’. Although these changes in the circulation can produce serious consequences for pregnant women with certain types of heart disease, they are necessary to deal with the demands of the growing fetus, placenta, and uterus, and have no deleterious effects in healthy mothers.
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