Factors Associated With Fetal Health
Why is it so important for people to watch what they eat, and what they do when they’re pregnant?? To understand the answer to this question we must realize that everything we do when we’re pregnant may affect our baby for the bad or for the good. What were looking for is to have a healthy pregnancy, thus leading to (hopefully) a healthy, normal infant, and later on a healthy adult. Expectant mothers must know what affects the pregnancy.
Nutrition is a very important factor for a healthy pregnancy. Expectant mothers must know what is dangerous for her to eat and what is necessary to eat. The first month of pregnancy is called the critical period. During this time the expectant mom has to be extra cautious of her nutrition. At the end of the first month the baby is shifting from an embryo to fetus. The mother should start taking folic acid three months before she gets pregnant which may help prevent spina bifida. This is when there is a defect in the spine which can lead to learning disabilities. Spina bifida is a defect in the neural tube which is the part of the fetus that will become the brain and spinal chord. The expectant mother also has to make sure she has a well balanced diet. There is such a thing as a mal nourished fetus which can lead to retardation. Babies below 5 pounds are considered low birth rate, and have a higher risk of a learning problem. When the baby gets below 3 pounds he’ll need NICU. If the mother is mal nourished the fetus cannot grow properly. When the pregnant mother is smaller than expected and the baby is born early that means he was stunted at growth. They are usually called premature. A pregnant woman should know what her diet should contain. The fetus need...
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...e child should bond. This is a new idea to promote attachment mechanisms. The baby is placed on the mom’s abdomen, directly on the skin, this brings them close together. Slowly the baby will begin to crawl towards the breast. This is referred to the breast crawl. This will only happen if you don’t rush and let the baby reach the breasts on its own for its first feeding. This is the first step of the bonding process. The mother has high levels of oxytocin, the love hormone; this promotes a strong bond to form between the mother and child while they are bonding whether through touch, nursing or other attachment mechanisms. Breast feeding promotes strong anti-depressant effects and secures attachment mechanisms.
To conclude, pregnancy is a very crucial time. We must always remember what we do when were pregnant will affect the baby either negatively or positively.
it is proven that a bond between a baby and one who feeds it is very
The mother-infant bond is the familiarity and attachment a mother forms with her offspring. These helpless babies are reliant on their mother’s nurture for survival. This dependence reaches farther than a physiological need. Infants rely on their mothers for a wide variety of demands. The mother-infant bond is critical to maximizing the fitness of each individual, as well as the growth of the species.
Infant Children most always feels very secure with their mother or guardian. When carrying for a child you always have to give them their basic requirements, but you also have to show them love and affection. Love and affection can have more affect on a child than just giving them basic needs. In my psychology class, we talked about a psychologist named Harry F. Harlow. He performed an experiment at the University of Wisconsin which was on the mother/ child bond with monkeys. I will review some of that experiment and explain how this experiment was very true within my life.
The attachment style that a child endures with their mother initially begins before the child is even born. In the mother’s womb, the infant becomes aware of their mother and father’s voices, where they begin to develop a bond with them and feel nurtured and comforted by the things they hear their parents sing and speak to them. According to Bowlby, the development of attachment takes place in four different phases and are reinforced as they grow older from the Preattachment (birth to age 6 weeks), attachment-in-the-making (age 6 weeks to 8 months), clear cut attachment (between 8 months to 1 ½ years of age) and the reciprocal relationship (from 1 ½ or 2 and on). As the child grows older, then begin to understand their parent’s feelings and motives and are able to organize their efforts and reciprocate the same i...
medications, proper prenatal care, and consulting with doctor about medications are effective precautions during pregnancy. Also, if suffering with diabetes, anemia, hypertension, seizure, or nutritional deficiencies during pregnancy, then these must be controlled. After birth, do not shake baby, which can lead to shaken baby syndrome and brain damage. Do not expose children to lead, this can also lead to brain damage, and give proper immunizations at the right time for the child (Bachrach, 2012).
Infant attachment is the first relationship that occurs between infants and their mothers or other primary caregivers (Craig & Dunn, 2010). The mother-infant attachment begins at birth and is considered by a group of...
It is important to understand what women commonly experience during pregnancy. With a better understanding of what happens during prenatal development and childbirth, physicians can competently develop the best plan for the mother and baby. I interviewed two women who have been previously pregnant in order to evaluate how the ideas in the book translate into real-life experiences.
Infant attachment is the first relationship a child experiences and is crucial to the child’s survival (BOOK). A mother’s response to her child will yield either a secure bond or insecurity with the infant. Parents who respond “more sensitively and responsively to the child’s distress” establish a secure bond faster than “parents of insecure children”. (Attachment and Emotion, page 475) The quality of the attachment has “profound implications for the child’s feelings of security and capacity to form trusting relationships” (Book). Simply stated, a positive early attachment will likely yield positive physical, socio-emotional, and cognitive development for the child. (BOOK)
It is a recognised certainty that nutrition is a fundamental requirement to sustain a healthy lifestyle and is also extremely valuable when recovering from an illness or an injury. Nutrients are absorbed in the body and this physiological process is essential for homeostasis and ensuring equilibrium is sustained within the body as without enough food and drink the body will not function correctly (Edwards & Thomas, 2009). This essay will provide information on folic acid and its properties, its role and the midwife’s role and responsibility in informing women in the early stages of pregnancy and the importance that it has.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, one out of every eight babies each year in the United States is born premature. This affects approximately 500,000 babies yearly. Premature babies are defined as babies born more than three weeks before the baby’s due date. Full term babies are born at approximately forty weeks, and premature babies are born at less than thirty-seven weeks. In the final months and weeks of pregnancy, important growth and development occur in the fetus. This is why premature babies are considered to be at-risk for a number of issues. The earlier that a baby is born, the baby’s risks drastically increase for developmental issues.
Dr. Sigmund Freud thought the experiences in the first five years were the most critical for the development of personality. It is where it all begins. We all go through stresses in life but it is the well-developed adult that is able to handle stress and how they handle it. It all starts with attachment between the caregiver and the infant. The emotional bond that forms between an infant and a primary caregiver is called attachment. Bonding is a continuation of the relationship that began during pregnancy. The physical and chemical changes that were happening in the body of a mother remind her of the presence of that little person who was growing inside her. Birth reinforces that bond and gives it validity. Now she can see, feel, and talk to the little person that she knew only as a movement in her belly and the heartbeat she heard through the ultra sound. Bonding allows her to transfer her love for the infant inside to the outside. Inside, she gave her blood and outside, she gives her milk, her attention with her eyes, hands and voice. Bonding brings mothers and newborns back together. Attachment is a very important development in the social and emotional life of the infant, usually forming within the first six months of the infant’s life and showing up in a number of ways during the second six months, such as wariness of strangers and fear of being separated from the caregiver. According to psychologist Mary Ainsworth, attachment is a connection between two people that creates a bond. It is that bond that causes the desire for contact with that person and the feeling of distress when separation occurs from that person. This special tie between two human beings that bind them together is what attachment is. Attachment aids a n...
A healthy diet is very important because the deficiency of some nutrients can cause various adverse effects for both, mother and the fetus. It is know that the mother and the baby compete for the same nutrients and calories, and for this reason it is necessary that mothers have a balanced diet of nutrients for you and your baby. Most nutritional and metabolic needs can be met by eating a balanced daily diet containing approximately 35 kcal for each kilogram of optimal body weight plus an additional 300 kcal/day during the second and third trimesters. An inadequate diet can cause impaired growth of the fetus and it may be born too small and even underweight. Thus to be nourished properly makes the pregnant woman has a healthy life and to develop less risk of suffering premature deliveries, giving birth to more babies healthy. In addition some changes that occur during the pregnancy such as nausea, vomiting, constipation, hemorrhoids, heartburn and swelling can also be minimized with a proper diet.
One of the primary prevention methods in maternal health is the utilization of prenatal care. During the provision of prenatal care, a healthcare provider counsels and discusses information with the expecting mother. Conversations about smoking and alcohol use, what to expect during pregnancy, when to seek help, and limitations on activities are put in place (Kirkham, Harris, & Grzybowski, 2005). Discussions about possible complications and potential warning signs are also an important part of prenatal education. Providing supplements, such as, calcium (1,000 to 1,300 mg per day), folic acid (0.4 to 0.8 mg), and iron (30 mg per day) to an expecting mother is also an important part of primary prevention, as they aid in the fight against blood pressure disorders, anemias, and defects in the unborn child (Kirkham, Harris, & Grzybowski, 2005). Additionally, the vaccination of expecting mothers has been shown to keep mothers and the unborn child healthy during pregnancy. Certain vaccinations, such as Tdap (tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis) and inactivated influenza vaccinations, have been shown to be protective to the fetus, as the mother’s antibodies against the disease are transferred to the unborn child (Esposito et al., 2012).
The prenatal period is considered the period between the conception of a baby until its birth. During this time embryo's and fetus go through major changes to prepare for their life after birth. In the years after they are born, what we call infancy and toddlerhood, while as adults we don't seem to change much in a year or two, children go through many changes that are crucial in developing the patterns of their futures.
The responsibility of being pregnant is surely not as sever as actually having a baby but it is truly a preparation course. I feel almost scared when I go to the doctor. I keep close eyes on my food intake and eating habits, so that I can have enough supplements for both of us. I have to keep my baby safe because she can not do it on her own. I have to prepare myself for life with my baby; it is not only a mind set but also a physical one. I have to be prepared to make sacrifice and present stability in a child’s life even though I am still young. I have to face responsibility and understand it and achieve it. I have to face my fears, and run at them so that I may conquer life to the fullest. I must stand on my own feet and make my own decisions because this is my life; no this is our life.