Don’t drink alcohol, coffee, colas or teas
The information on alcohol is cut in stone: Alcohol causes irreversible birth defects. No safe limit has been established.

Coffee and other caffeinated beverages are not quite as clear-cut an issue. Recent studies show no effect of caffeine on birth weight or birth defects. However, studies in the past have found a possible link between caffeine consumption and miscarriage, low birth weight, and growth retardation.

On the other hand, getting enough nourishing fluids, like water, is important during pregnancy to prevent constipation and provide for the expanding blood volume that carries oxygen and nutrients to both the mother and baby. So, carry a water bottle, take eight swigs of water every time you see a water fountain (1 swig = 1 ounce), and drink a glass of water between each meal and snack. Also, drink nutritious beverages, such as reduced-sodium V8, orange juice or nonfat milk to get your fluids.

Do watch your weight
Excess body weight entering pregnancy or accumulated during pregnancy can affect whether a woman conceives and also might increase the risks for pregnancy complications, such as gestational diabetes,  pre-eclampsia, stillbirth, very-preterm birth, and cesarean delivery. Many women are entering pregnancy overweight, gaining too much during pregnancy, and then not losing the weight after the baby is born — a pattern that contributes to this country’s No. 1 health problem — obesity. 

Optimal weight gain is an individual matter. In general, a normal-weight woman should gain about 25 and no more than 35 pounds during her pregnancy. Women who are overweight entering pregnancy (i.e., more than 25 percent of body weight is fat tissue) should gain no more than 15 to 25 pounds during their pregnancies, while underweight women should gain approximately 28 to 40 pounds depending on their height and degree of leanness prior to pregnancy.

Also, it is not just total weight gain, but the pattern of weight gain that is important; with a slow gain in the first trimester of about two to five pounds total (more if you are thin, very active, or tall and less if you are overweight, sedentary, or short), followed by a steady increase to approximately three-quarters to one pound a week in the last two trimesters. Sudden changes in weight should be discussed with your OB-GYN.

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