Q: Good day Doc. recently, babies are dying in the womb of their mothers with her knowing. Please Doc what can I do to keep my wife & unborn baby alive & healthy & at what stage of pregnancy can she take routine drugs?

A: Here’s an excerpt from my book, Just For The Health Of It, that speaks to a variant of this question. If this is your wife’s first pregnancy, then you’re probably more worried than most. But the practical truth is that she should register for Antenatal care as soon as she realizes she is pregnant.To prepare for that visit, she should remember the date of her last menstrual period, family history of birth of child with abnormality, sickle cell disease etc. She needs to be generous with information about any and everything that may affect the baby’s health such as lifestyle habits like smoking and alcohol drinking etc.Ultrasound scan and other screening tests will also be carried out on urine, blood, blood pressure etc to confirm genotype, rhesus group, Diabetes, presence or absence of anaemia, high blood pressure, abnormalities etc. HIV screening will also be done after voluntary counselling.

You both should choose a center that you feel confident with as regards the quality of the medical personnel and you should freely discuss the birth plan with them.In the first instance, antenatal care will be scheduled once every 4 weeks until the pregnancy is 28 weeks. Thereafter, the appointments are scheduled every 2 weeks until 36 weeks and thereafter, every week till delivery. This is the normal schedule, but your wife’s care giver may decide to give her shorter appointments if there are other factors to be considered like the presence of hypertension in pregnancy or indeed to review results of tests you had been sent to do.Then, those drugs that she is given? If she’s like me and hates to take meds, then this is a big deal! 😀 But she does have to take them. The folic acid ensures that the baby does not end up with abnormalities of the spine and also helps build up her red blood cells in combination with the other meds given. She has got to be religiously committed to taking these drugs to give her pregnancy the greatest chance of a good outcome.

So, has she taken today’s dose? Encourage her to go do it now

For nutrition, here are 5 tips for a pregnant woman:

• Eat a balanced diet with a variety of foods from different food groups.

• Be sure to include a lot of high fibre foods like vegetables, whole grain cereals etc to deal with the constipation associated with pregnancy.

• Ensure you take your antenatal medications (prenatal vitamins) in addition to eating well.

• Be sure to also take foods rich in iron eg and foods rich in folic acid eg green leafy veggies and beans. Folate prevents deformities of the spine.

• Drink at least 4 servings of milk, other dairy products or calcium rich foods. If you don’t eat enough, your baby will start drawing on your own stock from your bones. So, drink up your milk!Pregnancy provides an opportunity for a mother to adequately prepare her baby for life in 9 months. Make sure that you get all the nutrients that give your child a great health boost.

Have a good night, everyone 😀