Pregnant Weight: A Key Element In Premature Births – I’m A Mom
Among the circumstances that can influence the occurrence of a premature birth, we can mention the mother’s age, history of premature birth, multiple pregnancies, physical or psychological stress, alcoholism, drug or smoking addiction, maternal malnutrition or illnesses throughout pregnancy such as high blood pressure or infections.
But many mothers do not even know what the specific causes of preterm birth were. There are many premature births from young mothers and without problems associated with the case.
During pregnancy, one of the biggest concerns that all pregnant women have is the possibility that their child will be born prematurely . A baby is considered premature when born before 37 weeks of gestation. Although each premature child is different from one another, being born prematurely can pose a high risk for both the baby and the mother.
Premature delivery
A pregnancy is considered terminated when it passes 37 weeks’ gestation. Therefore, a normal birth is the one performed between the 37th week and the 42nd week. When the baby is born before 37 weeks of gestation, it is called “premature or preterm”, as explained by APREM, the National Association of Parents of Premature Infants.
The premature baby “is not born with its organs already formed”, the same happens with the respiratory systems, temperature control, digestive system and metabolism. These circumstances make the premature baby more vulnerable to illnesses due to lack of defenses and more sensitive to external agents such as light and noise.
Not all premature babies will have the same problems. Thus, each one should be evaluated by a group of experts to determine which comprehensive treatment should be followed. Normally, babies born with less than 35 weeks of gestation must spend some time in the Neonatology Units.
Babies considered very premature, that is, babies who are born at less than 32 weeks or weighing less than a kilo and a half, will spend a longer period in the hospital and will have a higher risk of developing problems in their development.
For years, attempts have been made to prevent premature births, as they have risen in recent times worldwide . If there were work to prevent risk factors, it would be possible to significantly prevent premature births and infant mortality worldwide.
the pregnant weight
A few years ago, one of the lines of research of specialists and researchers has been trying to discover the causes of premature birth. One of the symptoms that have recently been established as a possible cause of premature births, according to experts, is the pregnant woman’s body mass index.
According to a study conducted by Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center of Ohio State, in the United States, it found that 25 percent of premature births could be linked to the mother’s body mass index before delivery and weight during pregnancy.
The researchers found that the main risks for a preterm birth were in underweight women who gained little weight during pregnancy or who gained weight only for short periods of time during pregnancy.
In addition, it has been found that excessive weight gain in obese women increases the risk of preterm birth. Therefore, it is important to maintain the weight recommended by the doctor and see a specialist if we notice that our weight is below or above what would be considered adequate.
The search
The group of experts studied birth certificates in Ohio from 2006 to the year 2011, including nearly 400,000 cases, and focused on mothers who had only one birth at a time. That is, they did not take into account the births of multiple babies.
The scientific work also found that aspects such as the issue of low weight occurred in 90% of mothers who had children prematurely. In addition, they noted that less than half of women begin pregnancy with a normal weight and only 32 percent achieve ideal weight gain during pregnancy.
The research therefore concluded that mothers should pay special attention to gaining the proper weight before pregnancy and having adequate nutrition to obtain the necessary weight gain during pregnancy.
