Dedicated to women's health and well-being

HerArticle

Sponsored By

Eight Blunders Even Smart Pregnant Women Make

March 23, 2009 - 12:51pm 1169 reads 0 comments

By Laura Roe Stevens / www.divinecaroline.com

You’re on top of things. Responsibly, you take folic acid every day and have been since you started trying to have a baby. You happily avoid alcohol and other drugs. Likely, you read one or two pregnancy books and see your doctor regularly. But you may be making avoidable mistakes that can put you and your baby at risk. Here are some that experts say happen quite a lot by expecting women.

1. Not buckling up
According to a recent study, many women will stop buckling up in cars fearing that the strap could harm their fetus. This is often done later in pregnancy as the bump gets bigger. Don’t fall for this mistake! Car accidents kill more fetuses than babies each year in America—most experts say could have been avoided had seat belts been worn. If the seat belt is uncomfortable, be sure that you have the waist strap below the bump and across your pelvis. If you are expecting multiples, you may opt to get a seat belt extender.

2. Not continuing medications for pre-existing diseases
A lot of women think that all prescription drugs can cause birth deformities and stop taking them when pregnant.

Add A New Comment

We value and respect the experiences of all of our HerWriters, but everyone is different. Many of our writers are speaking from personal experience, and what's worked for them may not work for you. Their articles are not a substitute for medical advice although we hope you can gain knowledge from their insight.

Start Asking & Sharing

Add A New CommentComments

There are no comments yet. Be the first to get the conversation started.

Log in

Are you a member? Log in first to track your posts

Not a member? Join us. Membership is not required to post.

More information about formatting options

We never share email addresses with third parties. Your email address will be used to notify you of activity on your post and send you our newsletter if you choose to sign up for it.
Verify that you are a human (not a computer):
This is necessary to prevent computer programs from automatically posting spam or other irrelevant content on EmpowHer.com. Enter the characters in the box to the left (case sensitive). Do not enter spaces between the characters.
Image CAPTCHA

EmpowHer's Health Newsletter

The latest women's health news delivered to you each week

Featured Provider Discover more about the nation's top provider.

Ethicon Women’s Health & Urology

Ethicon Women’s Health & Urology

Ethicon Women's Health & Urology is dedicated to providing innovative, minimally invasive treatments for common urologic and women's health conditions.

Health News Read up-to-the-minute medical news & stories.

Guidelines Delay Start of Mammograms to Age 50, Then Every Other Year

(HealthDay News) -- Women don't need to start having mammograms to screen for breast cancer until they're 50, and they only need to have those exams every other year, new government guidelines ...
Read more