Pregnancy & Childbirth
Hypertension in Pregnancy – Risks and Treatment
Women at Risk of Developing Hypertension in Pregnancy
- First pregnancy.
- Hypertension or pre-eclampsia in previous pregnancies.
- Family history, with mother or sisters suffering from hypertension during pregnancy.
- Multiple pregnancies, such as twins.
- Women over 35.
- Women suffering from hypertension or kidney disease prior to pregnancy.
Types of Hypertension (High Blood Pressure) in Pregnancy
Having high blood pressure (hypertension) at any time can lead to problems but especially so during pregnancy. It could have dangerous outcomes for you and your baby, particularly the risk of pre-eclampsia, if adequate care is not taken to control it effectively. With proper antenatal care, however, the risks can be greatly reduced.
If you consistently have a systolic blood pressure of 140 or more and a diastolic blood pressure of 90 or more, you will be said to be suffering from hypertension.
Obesity and Risk of Being Overweight During Pregnancy
There is a fine line between being obese and being overweight but the associated risks during pregnancy are almost the same for both. When you have a BMI (body mass index) – which is a measure of your weight in relation to your height – of 30 and above, you are said to be obese, but a person with a BMI between 25 and 29.9 is considered to be overweight. Either way, it means that you weigh more than you should. Obesity is considered as a pregnancy risk and women need to be informed about the complications that are possible if they are overweight during pregnancy.
Gaining Weight During Pregnancy, How Much is the Right Amount
What amount of weight gain during pregnancy can be considered to be the right amount? Everybody knows that you need to gain weight during pregnancy. In fact, putting on the extra kilos is inevitable, but how will you know if you are gaining the right amount of weight? Is it too much or is it too little? There is no hard and fast rule that can be applied to all women. How much weight gain is right for you will depend primarily on your BMI and weight before pregnancy, as well as other circumstances such as if you are pregnant with twins or if you suffer from diabetes.
Morning Sickness, Nausea and Vomiting of Pregnancy
Only a woman who has suffered from, or is actually suffering from, morning sickness during pregnancy can fully appreciate the misery one goes through due this constant feeling of nausea and vomiting even when there is nothing left in the stomach to throw up anymore. Why they call it morning sickness is a mystery to you because you seem to be sick all through the day.
It may give you some consolation to know that nearly 80% of pregnant women suffer from nausea and about 50% of them also suffer from vomiting in early pregnancy. After the first trimester (first 12 weeks of pregnancy), morning sickness may not be a problem anymore for most pregnant women, but there are the unfortunate few who continue with this problem till a much later stage or even throughout pregnancy.