The Nation Newspaper

Tag: pregnancy

  • What pregnant women should know before travelling

    What pregnant women should know before travelling

    Planning a trip while pregnant? Whether it is an essential family visit, a critical business trip or just mind-clearing ‘babymoon’, the idea of travelling when you are pregnant can be frightening. How do you manage a plane or a strange hotel room when it is hard to get comfortable in your own bed?

    The fact is, this period is one of the best times for you to get away and yourself as it is usually safe for women with low-risk pregnancies to travel as long as they prioritize their comfort and health while on the go.

    Before you start squeezing your over-sized maternity wear into your carry-on however, click on the picture below and hover over the red dots to see tips for taking a trip when you are expecting.

  • Pregnancy: How to get a healthy mother and child

    The outcome of a planned and desirable pregnancy is a healthy mother and baby.

    Nevertheless, most of the necessary steps to be taken that will ultimately lead to a happy outcome rest squarely with the pregnant woman or woman desiring to be pregnant, her husband and healthcare professionals.

    Steps to take should include:

    • Eat balanced diet

    • Avoid exposure to infections and treat or control all forms of infections (common cold, herpes, chest infections, stomach, food, urine, vagina, HIV infections. See our previous articles on this).

    c) Avoid exposure to excessive radiations. Radiation may kill or deform the baby.

    d) Have adequate and appropriate vitamins and minerals (folic acid, vitamins and iron if not enough is taken in the diet).

    e) Avoid exposure to illegal drugs such as cannabis, alcohol, chemicals and non-prescribed medications. They may damage the cells and your baby.

    Time is everything. While individual situations differ, the ideal age bracket, for the woman, to have children is between 20-35 years. While, pregnancy is possible at the extremes and beyond the quoted age bracket, there are higher risks in having babies, with such pregnancies at extreme age brackets.

    Example: Chances of Down’s syndrome is much higher at age of 40 than at 30 years.

    B. Have all forms of infections and illnesses, detected and treated or be put under proper medical control. HIV, High blood pressure, diabetic mellitus, and thyroid problems must be treated and or controlled. Otherwise, they may cause you and the baby serious problems.

    C. The woman will need to get vaccinated against some infections (for example, tetanus depending on the country where you live) if you have not done so in pre-pregnancy (rubella, chicken-pox, tuberculosis, hepatitis B and C). Preferably, all vaccinations should be done before pregnancy.

    D. During pregnancy, be vigilant to your baby movements from 16 weeks onwards. Note any reduction in or excessive movements of the baby. It may be a sign of distress.

    Report to your carer or doctor immediately: if there is any reduction in foetal movement or if there are excessive movements.

    Also, are you feeling unwell? Report it now to your nurses/midwife or doctor no matter how mundane the illness may be.

    The birth

    We must remember that the process of birth is the most dangerous journey anyone coming through the birth canal can ever undertake. Apart from the pain of labour, that the woman experiences, the baby is hugely at risk too. The risks include physical injuries from pressure of labour through the narrow birth (vagina) canal. Others are chemical injuries to the brain from inadequate supply of oxygen to the brain, possible blockage of wind pipe from aspirations of the birth materials. Bleeding from possible injuries sustained by the baby during birth may lead to brain and organ impairment. Excessive bleeding during birth, by the mother may affect the baby too as it may starve the baby of needed oxygen and food. Brain damage may therefore result from inadequate oxygen. All these may either cut short the life of the baby and the mother or reduce either person’s life span.

    All these require planning and vigilance by both the doctors and the care receiver — you!

    For example, if oxygen had been inadequately supplied to the baby before or during birth or shortly after birth, there may be brain damage and this may lead to seizures later in life which in turn reduces the quality of life of the person. Seizure may also lead to early death, thus defeating the lofty objective of healthy living ideals. If the baby has been exposed to dangerous substances (cocaine, cannabis, alcohol) while in the womb, and before birth, this may determine the quality of life that the baby may lead later on in life.

    The child may not grow properly, brain may be damaged and his personality may suffer.

    The life span may also be reduced as a result of poor delivery even if delivered by surgical intervention.

    The main things that parents can do are:

    • Ensure preventive measure is in place even before pregnancy occurs

    • Get screened for any preventable illness (infections such as HIV, for example) before pregnancy:

    Any defects that may affect you or the baby.

    • Get screened for genetic diseases (cystic fibrosis, sickle cell) before pregnancy. This will help the individual to determine if passing such diseases to others is worthwhile.

    • Be alert to risks or dangers that may harm the baby during pregnancy such as maternal falls and physical trauma.

    • Be alert to dangers of radiation, chemotherapy, strong magnetic fields, illegal substances, cigarette/nicotine, alcohol and so forth.

    • Be alert to deficiencies of vitamins and minerals.

    •Be alert to dangers at birth time (during labour). The professionals will be very vigilant on this however.

    As a parent, be even more vigilant too. Professionals are humans. Error does occur.

  • ‘My wife is carrying another man’s pregnancy’

    A businessman, Samson Muse, yesterday urged an Ojo Customary Court in Lagos to dissolve his three-year-old marriage because his wife is carrying another man’s pregnancy.

    Muse said his wife, Tunrayo is unfaithful, adding that such a woman should not be seen as his wife.

    “My wife fights a lot, uses dangerous weapons to attack me, she is too troublesome, does not take care of our son, I’m no longer in love with her.

    “A woman that sleeps about with different men is not worthy to be a wife; in fact, the seven month-old pregnancy she is carrying is from an unknown source.

    “I cannot live with a woman who has become promiscuous, sleeping around, in fact, she has become too troublesome and does not have any regard for me,’’ Muse said.

    He said he would obey the court’s order to pay N30,000 monthly feeding allowance for their two-year-old son to ensure the divorce.

    “I need this court to dissolve our marriage and also grant me permission to be in possession of my son because she cannot take good care of him.

    “My son, legally named Faruk is currently referred to as ‘Park well’ at the motor parks, I cannot take it any longer, I need quick action,’’ he said.

    Tunrayo, 38, however, denied Muse’s claims, saying her husband abandoned her and she had to seek help from other men.

    “My husband does not take care of me, he has carried out deals of over N2 million in my presence. His sister is the Deputy Iyaloja of Okoko Market, yet he cannot even pay my dowry, I cannot say who owns this pregnancy, but I cannot release my son to him,’’ she said.

    The court’s president, Chief Joseph Ogunmola, advised the husband to keep his promise of giving feeding allowance to his son.

    Ogunmola adjourned the case till June 29 for judgment.

  • My husband maltreated me during pregnancy’

    A 37-year-old woman, Oluwashola Kehinde, has sought the dissolution of her 18-year-old marriage to her husband, Moruf, before the Alakuko Customary Court in Lagos, alleging that her husband is callous and irresponsible.

    Mrs. Kehinde, a food vendor, said: “My husband started committing adultery a few months after our wedding. He sent me out of the home because I accused him of womanising. It was most saddening because I was already carrying a seven-month pregnancy then. His attitude is somewhat strange. He always blows hot and cold; he is very unpredictable. My sister, out of anger, once bit him hard because he is fond of beating me. That is the story behind the deep cut on his back.”

    She added: “At some point, I returned to his house after several pleas from his relations who assured me that he had changed. But the situation got worse as he formed the habit of disappearing from the house whenever I got pregnant. He would leave home for over two months on the excuse that he was broke. Even when he had money, he would only buy his own food and eat it alone, not minding how we survive. He is a callous man.

    “My husband once came home 12 days after he angrily left the house, pleading for forgiveness. He said if I wasn’t ready to forgive him, he would kill himself. I went to bed, thinking he was joking. Surprisingly, my husband hung himself to the ceiling fan in the room. He kicked the jerry can he stood on and urinated on his body. By that time, he was almost lifeless. So, I quickly used a knife to cut the rope before I called on our neighbours. My husband came around about 30 minutes after. Till date, I keep asking what would have happened, if he had died in the process.”

    Mrs Kehinde said they were given a quit notice when for many months, her husband couldn’t pay rent. She added: “It was at that time that he took a few clothes and left the house. For almost two years that we have lived as a couple, my husband doesn’t ask after the wellbeing of our children, thus prompting my sister to take custody of two of our children. I am tired of accepting him back. None of his relations knows what I am going through. I don’t want the marriage anymore; I only want him to cater for our children’s education.”

    However, Mr. Kehinde, a 45-year-old commercial driver, said: “Frustration led me to attempt suicide. I wasn’t happy for the fact my wife was the only one responsible for our children’s upkeep. But I give her money when I have. When I was driving a private vehicle, we never had problems and everything was almost perfect. Money is always the cause of our argument.

    “I left the house after the incident because her mum said my wife needed some respite. At times, she doesn’t give me food. Each time I sleep beside her, she leaves the bed. Contrary to what she said, there is no scar on my back.

    “The rope I used in hanging myself was the one my wife asked me to buy for the clothes line. I was psychologically tortured. But I have learnt my mistakes. I still love my wife because she has been good to me and I promise to turn over a new leaf.”

    The marriage, which was sealed under Native and Customary Law, is blessed with five children.

    The court President, Chief Awos Awosola, advised the couple to maintain peace and obey the law. He adjourned the case till October 30.

  • Stopping teenage pregnancy

    Vesicovaginal Fistula (VVF) is an abnormal tract extending between the bladder and the vagina that allows the continuous and involuntary discharge of the urine into the vaginal vault. This occurs when there is a prolonged labour.

    In the process, the unborn child is tightly pressed against the pelvis, cutting off blood flow to the vesico vaginal wall and therefore affecting the tissues. This leads to a hole between the bladder and the vagina, resulting into an uncontrollable leakage of urine through the vagina.

    Teenage pregnancy has been so rampant in our society today. According to statistics, about 16 million girls of ages 15-19 years give birth yearly. That is about 11 per cent of all births worldwide. Half of these teenage births occur in just seven countries, which are India, Ethiopia, Brazil, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia and Nigeria. Teenage pregnancy poses serious health risks that can even lead to death, as most teenagers indulge in unprotected intercourse. This is because of lack of proper orientation.

    VVF occurs in teens because their pelvic bones are yet to be fully developed. According to a radiology study of early 1990s on teenagers in the United States, it was found out that the actual size of the birth canal was smaller in the first three years after menarche than at age 18, and that the dimension of the inlet, midplane and outlet of the birth canal of these young adolescent were contracted.

    In Nigeria, of 241 fistula and 148 that were controlled, it was found that 27 per cent occurred  in girls of age 15 years and below, 59 per cent occurred in girls of age 18 and below. This shows that early age at marriage was significantly associated with fistula. Malnutrition of these young mothers also contributed to the risk of fistula.

    Teenagers involved may face some social challenges, such as isolation from the society due to the putrid smell brought about by the urine leakage and lack of supports by family members. Teen mothers are less likely to complete their education. They also suffer depression.

    Fistula can be treated either transvaginally or laparoscopically. Some possible complications may occur afterwards and these include recurrent formation of the fistula, injury to ureter, bowels or intestine and vaginal shortening. But laparoscopical has become more prevalent due to its greater visualisation, higher success rate and low rate of complications.

    Everyone has a role to play in curbing this disease. Parents need to educate their kids, both male and female about intercourse and dignity. Girls may be the only one at the physical risk, but both are responsible for another person’s life. Parents should also avoid the habit of early child marriage to protect the lives and future of their children.

    The government must provide adequate facilities to hospitals to treat fistula cases. It must enact a legislation to stop child marriage and punishment should be meted out to those engaging in the act. The vulnerable, which are the teenagers, also have the important role to play. They must resist peer pressure and focus on educative write-ups and videos produced against VVF.

    The media will help by educating teenagers on why they must not engage in premarital intercourse. I believe this health risk can be reduced and stop if these measures are put in place.

     

    Oyebimpe, ND II Food technology, ADO POLY

  • Why pregnant women should avoid smoking

    Why pregnant women should avoid smoking

    If your health isn’t enough to encourage you quit smoking, then the health of your baby should be. Smoking while pregnant increases the possibility of stillbirth, miscarriage and low birth weight – especially in teens and young adults.

    Teens and young women have the highest reported smoking prevalence, and it’s only getting worse. The problem is kids experiment with tobacco and it often turns into a lifelong habit. Nearly 90 per cent of adults say they started smoking by the age of 18.

    This is a reflection of aggressive tobacco industry marketing to girls. Tobacco companies advertise in magazines, market their brands through direct mail and adverts, promote their products in convenience stores and coerce youth through Internet websites and social media sites.

    They fail to mention that tobacco smoke contains more than 7,000 chemicals and at least 60 cancer-causing compounds. Two compounds are especially hazardous to a mother and child: highly addictive nicotine and carbon monoxide.

    Pregnant women often have intensified desires for cigarettes due to increases in their metabolism. The addictive effect is very strong and often proves extra difficult to cut cravings.

    However, according to a new study, a brisk walk has been shown to temporarily reduce the effects of nicotine. Exercise was known to interrupt nicotine cravings for men and women, but it was still unclear for expecting young mothers.

    “This was the first time we have been able to replicate the findings with pregnant smokers,” said Harry Prapavessis, director of the Exercise and Health Psychology Laboratory at Western University in Ontario, who led the research.

     

    As little as 15 to 20 minutes of walking at a mild to moderate pace was found to ward off cravings. Additional benefits included less irritability, restlessness, tension and other withdrawal symptoms.

    There’s no safe amount of smoking for pregnant women of any age, the more you smoke, the worse the outcomes for your baby. This is not true for exercise; it’s good for you and your baby.

    Exercise can prevent excess weight gain during pregnancy, prevent gestational diabetes and lower the risk of birth complications. Being more fit can also help with pregnancy-related aches and pains, which makes labour and recovery a bit easier.

    Even if you don’t quit, regular exercise is still beneficial to you and your child. When you exercise, your lungs and blood vessels expand which increases circulation of oxygenated blood throughout you and your baby’s body.

    Regular exercise during pregnancy has been proven to reduce stress, improve sleep and prevent depression as well. Just don’t exercise too close to bedtime, or you may be too energized to fall asleep and experience insomnia.

    Barring certain pregnancy related risk factors, pregnant women can continue to exercise throughout their pregnancy, right up until delivery. Isometric, or contract and relax exercises are recommended for expecting moms to improve core strength and support pelvic ligament laxity, particularly during late pregnancy.

    Remember to check with your doctor before starting a new exercise programme, especially if you have any health concerns.

     

    Couillard is an international health columnist that works in collaboration with the World Health Organization’s goals of disease prevention and control. Views do not necessarily reflect endorsement.

    Email: drcorycouillard@gmail.com

    Facebook: Dr Cory Couillard

    Twitter: DrCoryCouillard

     

  • Fear not for my pregnancy, says Kaffy

    Fear not for my pregnancy, says Kaffy

    The crowd shuddered at the energetic way she threw her body around during the grand finale of ‘MTN Project Fame’ which saw diminutive Olawale Ojo lifting the laurel. Kafayat Shafau-Ameh, a professional dancer and honcho of Imagneto Dance Company took her turn, during the show’s interval to entertain guests, carrying a five-month pregnancy.

    From Makossa to Soukus, Fuji and the highly revered Michael Jackson’s dance steps, she led her group in an enthralling choreographic display that earned them thunderous applause. But perhaps more captivating was the pregnant state of the artiste during the performance. Voices ‘struggle’ above the music volume as audience members pass comments, trying to hear themselves out. “She is five months pregnant,” you could hear that assertion from a few who appeared to be so sure. And as if she got hint of the argument, the dancer jacked her belly with both palms, feigning some cyclonic rumbling that earned her a louder ovation.

    Kaffy, as she is fondly called is expecting her second baby, and she has assured her fans that her stunt is nothing to worry about. But perhaps she is even concerned about her female fans; most of whom she said may not understand the advantage of being very active during pregnancy.

    “Exercising during pregnancy is very relative to the woman. Whatever activities a woman does before pregnancy, she can continue during pregnancy, as long as she does not belong to the high-risk pregnancy category, which has to do with women who are carrying pregnancy at a very late age.”

    Kaffy, who took some of the public’s concern for criticism said; “apart from being a dancer, I am a fitness consultant. So I will not do anything to harm my child. Apart from being a dancer, I am a healthy person, so people should get that clear and not jump into conclusion, thinking I just want to go and dance, because it is my job. Pregnancy is not a disease, neither is it cancer. Some women even go to the farm with their pregnancy in the village and they give birth without medical help. Maria Carey performed on stage dancing with twin pregnancy. It is not a new thing; it is just in this part of the world that whenever a woman is pregnant, they treat her like an egg. And that can be detrimental to her and the baby. A child whose mother is active during pregnancy is always active, less fat and at normal size.”

    How long does she hope to continue dancing? The dancer snapped; “It is nobody’s business how long i want to continue. It is my body and it is my child. All that you people should pray for is the safe delivery of mother and child. I am not a baby, the fact that i am dancing does not mean that I am a toddler and that I don’t know how to take care of myself and my family.” She recalled that, two years ago, she had performed on the same ‘Project Fame’ stage exactly 10 days to the delivery of her first child without any qualms.

    “Everything is according to pace. I will not do more than my body can take. There are a lot of techniques to dancing which somebody who is not trained might not know. You see me winding, but you don’t know the technique I am using to wind, in a way that it doesn’t disturb my baby. You see me dancing and you don’t know how I am able to land on my face that it doesn’t make me get abdominal pain. That is why I am a professional at what I do.”

    The dancer noted that while some people are expressing fear for her, others have been a source of motivation. She said she has started a campaign called ‘Pregnancy and Child Health’ where she gets to educate women on how safe a society can be when certain medical criteria are met.

  • Alleged sex scandal: Female inmates undergo pregnancy test

    Following the report of the alleged sex scandal, which rocked Owerri prison, female inmates have been taken to the Federal Medical Centre, Owerri for pregnancy test to ascertain their status.

    The convicts, whose results are being awaited, were said to have been taken to the hospital on the directive of the Comptroller- General of Prisons, Zakari Ibrahim, who sent a delegation to the Owerri prison after the report of the alleged sexual misconduct between prison officials and the inmates was made public.

    It was also learnt that the pregnancy test became imperative after a particular inmate, who was not subjected to the compulsory test for female inmates, was allegedly discovered to be pregnant a few months after she was convicted.

    According to a source, who pleaded for anonymity, the parents of the inmate, who came to visit their daughter, were shocked to see her in advanced stage of pregnancy.

    The source said: “When the girl was brought to the prison, no one noticed that she was pregnant until a few months later. When her parents came to visit her, they were shocked to find that she was pregnant. I think this is why the management is conducting the pregnancy test.”

    Efforts to confirm the development from the Federal Medical Centre were unsuccessful.

    A source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the centre was used in the past for pregnancy tests by the prison authorities, but could not confirm the latest development.

    The state Prison Comptroller, Mr. Isaiah Amaliri, could not confirm or deny the report.

  • ‘Adolescent pregnancy rooted in poverty, gender inequality’

    Adolescent pregnancy is not only a health issue; it is also rooted in poverty, gender inequality, violence, forced marriage and power imbalance between adolescent girls and their male partners.

    The Special Adviser to Lagos State Governor Babatunde Fashola on Economic Planning and Budget, Mrs. Iyabowale Aluko, said this in Lagos at the World Population Day.

    She said this year’s theme: ‘Adolescent pregnancy’, described the need to undertake steps to ensure the development of the girl-child.

    She said the state government would protect the rights of the girl- child to meet the set target.

    The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Economic Planning and Budget, Mr. Bayo Sodade, said statistics showed that millions of adolescent girls face discrimination and exclusion, which prevent`them from claiming their rights and living out their true potential.

    He said the day is designed to increase people’s awareness on population issues, such as the importance of family planning, gender equality, poverty, maternal health and human rights.

  • Annie Idibia waves aside pregnancy tales

    Annie Idibia waves aside pregnancy tales

    WEEKS after tying the nuptial knots with 2face, news began to make the rounds about Annie Idibia being pregnant. The newly weds had barely gotten the honeymoon over with when reports began to surface that Annie had taken in again for 2face.

    But the actress waved aside the report asking if she looked pregnant when probed at an event recently. “Do I look pregnant to you? No, I’m not” was her blunt response. The couple currently have one daughter, Isabella (aged 6) together. It has been about six weeks since 2face and Annie tied the knot.

    And after performing traditional rites in Eket, Akwa-Ibom, Dubai was the next port-of-call with some of the biggest names on the Nigerian entertainment scene flying all the way to the UAE (United Arab Emirates) to celebrate with the couple at their fairy-tale white wedding.