Overnutrition is harmful to both mother and child.
During pregnancy, many women often try to nourish themselves "for their children", but gaining too much weight puts mothers at risk during pregnancy and for their babies.
Ms. Vu Huong Giang - 31 years old, in Ba Dinh district, Hanoi - after nearly 3 years of marriage, had good news. Not only Giang and her husband, but also her paternal and maternal grandparents actively took care of and nourished her with the concept of "giving to the grandchildren". Therefore, when she was 8 months pregnant, she gained 24 kg. The doctor said that her weight had increased too much compared to the standard, and the fetus was threatened.malnutrition.
The "eating for two" mistake
Also with the desire to give birth to a plump baby, Ms. Pham Hai Quynh - living in Ha Long City, Quang Ninh Province - has created for herself a dense diet menu according to the motto "even if not hungry, must eat for the baby". For more than 3 months of pregnancy, Quynh could not eat, the fetus grew slowly, making her very worried. In the 6th month, her "nutrition campaign" began to be effective when her body weight increased by 1 kg per week.
Thinking that this was a good sign, Quynh added a few plates of seafood, 4-5 glasses of milk and many other foods every day. However, she gained weight too quickly, along with symptoms of headaches, swollen limbs... In the 8th month, the doctor discovered that she had gestational diabetes, with blood sugar levels 3 times higher than normal. Quynh had to have a cesarean section due to a sudden increase in blood pressure, her baby weighed 4.2 kg but suffered from respiratory failure.
Pregnant women should have regular health check-ups and nutritional advice throughout pregnancy.
According to Dr. Vu Ba Quyet, Deputy Director of the Central Obstetrics Hospital, the rate of overweight pregnant women is increasing due to the misunderstanding of the concept of "eating for two". "When pregnant, many women are overly worried about their child's development, so they try to eat a lot. The mentality of eating more and more nutrients, the better, the more nutritious the baby, the chubby the baby has made it difficult for many women to give birth naturally, and even put them at risk of complications during pregnancy and childbirth" - Dr. Quyet warned.
Many risks for mother and baby
Experts confirm that the "standard" weight gain during pregnancy is about 9-12 kg. If the mother is overweight, this weight is 6-8 kg and for twins it is 15-18 kg. Overnutrition leads to excess nutrients. Excessive weight gain leads to a series of risks for mother and baby such as back pain, constipation, cramps, shortness of breath, exhaustion..., even serious complications such as gestational diabetes, high blood pressure, the baby is too big and needs a cesarean section, premature birth...
Associate Professor, Dr. Ta Van Binh, Director of the Institute of Diabetes and Metabolic Disorders - Hanoi Medical University, said: "When the mother has gestational diabetes, the fetus may be too large or malnourished. The mother herself is also prone to high blood pressure, which if not well controlled will cause preeclampsia, increase the risk of fetal malformations, polyhydramnios, premature birth and many complications during birth, even endangering the lives of both mother and child. Not only that, children born to mothers with gestational diabetes are also susceptible to hypoglycemia, respiratory failure, death at birth and increased risk of metabolic disorders, obesity, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease in adulthood."
According to doctors, the nutritional status of pregnancy is often monitored by the mother's weight gain. Weight gain means that the fetus receives all the nutrients to develop steadily and healthily. However, in reality, there are many mothers who eat a lot and gain weight rapidly, but the mother is obese but the fetus is still stunted.
Dr. Le Thi Hai - Director of the Nutrition Examination and Consulting Center of the National Institute of Nutrition - said that the cause of this condition could be due to the mother eating a lot but not enough foods, leading to the fetus lacking multiple micronutrients and slow development. "Normal women need 2,000 calories/day for light activities. When pregnant, the energy demand increases, in the early stages, an additional 100 calories/day is needed. In the remaining months, pregnant women need about 250-300 calories each day to ensure nutrition for both mother and child. Therefore, you should not eat twice the normal portion" - Dr. Hai recommended.
According to Dr. Quyet, many mothers often feel secure and proud when giving birth to children with outstanding weight. However, cases of large fetuses due to excessive weight mean a higher risk of complications. The average weight of newborns in Vietnam today is 3-3.2 kg, if the weight of the fetus at birth is over 4 kg, the child may have health problems. These babies need much more care than children with normal weight.
According to Laborer - NT
