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As a mom, I bet many women out there didn’t know much about preeclampsia or hyperemesis gravidarum until Duchess Kate talked about her condition. And, there are many health consequences of pregnancy that no one will tell you about,
While you might be aware that stress, anxiety, excess weight gain during pregnancy, smoking, drinking, and drug use during pregnancy can adversely affect your baby. But how much do you know about the long-term impacts of pregnancy on your body?
We all have a reasonable idea about pregnancy and the long-term consequences that pregnancy can have on our child. We know that smoking and drug use while pregnancy is dangerous; we know that gaining a large amount of weight during pregnancy can increase complications, and we are now discovering that stress and anxiety in pregnant women can impact the baby as well. Did you know that there could be times that you pick to have a baby, which might put you at the risk of cancer? It’s not just this. Read on to learn more about possible health consequences of pregnancy:
1. Pregnancy Affects Vision
The hormonal changes during pregnancy can influence your eyes and vision. It could lead to a swollen cornea and a slight change in its shape due to fluid retention, triggered by hormonal shifts. A swollen cornea refracts images in different ways, thereby distorting vision. Few pregnant women may also experience dry eye syndrome where the eye produces less than normal ‘tear film’ and therefore are less lubricated. Thankfully these conditions subside after pregnancy and once the hormones stabilize, but it could be a good idea to visit your optometrist throughout the pregnancy, especially if you’ve already had vision difficulties before pregnancy.
2. Gestational Diabetes Is Not As Rare As You Presumed
It’s a form of diabetes that develops in women who had no history of diabetes before pregnancy, but occurs due to the interaction between insulin production and hormones. During the advanced stages of pregnancy, your body churns out higher levels of estrogen, cortisol and human placental lactogen that make you less sensitive to insulin. On the other hand gestational diabetes is easier to treat than you think just as its incidence is more than you thought. But, you would need timely treatment to avoid and serious implications for you and your baby. It might call for immediate attention if your baby is born preterm and has its blood sugar issues.
3. Pregnancy May Reduce Risk Of Breast Cancer
Ovaries produce endogenous hormones namely estrogen and progesterone. Studies show that exposure to these hormones, especially over prolonged periods, can stimulate cell growth and reduce the risk of breast cancer, when compared to those who never gave birth or a late age pregnancy, say after 35 because you could accumulate cells to transform into cancer. Pregnancy also seems to lead to cell maturity in a way that they are less likely to develop cancer. Early pregnancies might also reduce the risk of breast cancer by half.
4. Lessens The Risk Of Ovarian Cancer
Women who become pregnant for the first time late in life are less in comparison to the women who had first pregnancies at a young age; The first group of women had a high chance of developing ovarian cancer. The probable reason that scientists can think of is that ovaries of older women are more scarred due to years of menstruation, and a late pregnancy clears off the damaged issue.
5. Blood Clots In Pregnant And Post-Birth Women
It has been found that there is a 10-time higher likelihood of developing blood clots in pregnant women than non-pregnant women of their age. The probable reasons researchers suggest are hormones leading to a slow blood flow, which cause an increased clotting threshold. This is primarily due to high estrogen levels, and possible vein damage in the fetal growth in your abdomen. If these clots break into the blood stream, the can go anchor at a different point in the body, which is a big problem. However, the risks of fetal clots are more in the first trimester and the first six weeks postpartum, after which the risk declines. The risks could be warded off if there has been no history of clotting problems. It’s important that pregnant women keep moving and don’t lead a sedentary lifestyle. They could even consider wearing compression socks that can prevent clotting.
What were the pregnancy related health issues that you were not warned about? Write us back!
