Does fasting pregnant women affect the fetus?

This is an automatically translated article.

Nutrition during pregnancy has an important influence on the development of the fetus. Pregnant women need to have a balanced and complete diet. Therefore, pregnant mothers often fast or skip meals not only affecting the mother's health but also affecting the development of the fetus.

1. The role of healthy nutrition in pregnant women

The role of a healthy, adequate diet during pregnancy is one of the factors that help answer the question of if it's okay for pregnant women to fast. Accordingly, many studies show that the mother's nutrition during pregnancy affects the fetus as follows:
Nutrition affects the birth weight of the child: During pregnancy, the mother Pregnant women who are supplemented with an adequate and balanced diet will help the fetus gain weight well, even if the mother is underweight or malnourished. In contrast, pregnant mothers who are not supplemented with an adequate diet, lack of food or eat an unbalanced diet will increase the risk of babies being born with low birth weight, premature birth. Birth weight is a reflection of your chances of survival, and your ability to develop physically and mentally. Accordingly, children born underweight or malnourished from the womb will have a weakened immune system, an increased risk of infection, low cognitive ability and IQ, affecting their ability to study, job opportunities in adulthood; Nutrition during pregnancy is related to some birth defects: During pregnancy, especially the first trimester, if the pregnant mother is not supplemented with adequate nutrients, it will make her immune system stronger. , increase the risk of infectious diseases and birth defects for children at birth such as cleft lip and palate, congenital heart disease,... Inadequate supplementation of folic acid during pregnancy is the cause. causes of neural tube defects in newborns; Nutrition during pregnancy affects the intellectual development of the child: The development of the child's brain while in the womb determines the memory and ability to acquire later. The above development process requires groups of substances such as vitamin B6, vitamin B12, folic acid, zinc and iron... The last 3 months of pregnancy is the time when the brain grows and matures the most. supplement energy, nutrients with higher content. Therefore, fasting pregnant women affects the fetus in terms of both weight and intellectual development because it is not provided with adequate nutrients for development; Nutrition in pregnancy is related to some chronic non-communicable diseases of children in adulthood: Many studies show that undernutrition in early pregnancy increases the risk of chronic diseases. do not infect children as adults, such as cardiovascular disease, obesity. A poor diet during late pregnancy increases the risk of impaired glucose tolerance in the baby at birth.

2. Is it okay for a pregnant mother to fast?

The role of adequate and safe nutrition of pregnant women during pregnancy affects both physical and intellectual development of the child at birth. Therefore, pregnant women need to build a regular diet and not skip meals or go hungry. In addition, during pregnancy, the energy required for pregnant women increases to about 300 calories per day. For pregnant women who are overweight or malnourished, it is necessary to consult a doctor about supplemental nutrition to avoid excess or deficiency of nutrients.
The diet for pregnant mothers needs to be balanced and should be divided into many meals a day to help maintain the highest energy and stable blood sugar levels, a diet divided into many meals also helps pregnant women reduce symptoms nausea, vomiting due to morning sickness in the early stages of pregnancy.

Morning sickness makes many pregnant women fast, skip meals and often ask the question, is it okay for pregnant women to skip breakfast? The answer is that breakfast plays an extremely important role, especially for pregnant women. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, providing abundant energy for a new day of activities, supplementing nutrition for the fetus after a long night. Besides, breakfast also helps pregnant women reduce the symptoms of morning sickness. In case a pregnant mother skips meals, fasting breakfast can lead to health problems as follows:
Low blood sugar, easy to cause miscarriage: During pregnancy, the mother's health is weaker than usual , especially during the first trimester. Therefore, pregnant women fasting, skipping breakfast easily leads to the risk of hypoglycemia, which adversely affects health and increases the risk of miscarriage; Increased risk of digestive diseases: Pregnant women fasting breakfast means emptying the stomach for a long time (from the night before to noon the next day), leading to an increase in gastric acid secretion and increased blood pressure. the risk of stomach ulcers ; Fatigue, lack of concentration: Breakfast helps to replenish abundant energy for the new working day, so skipping breakfast will lead to lack of energy, fatigue, slow reaction and lack of concentration; Effects on the fetus: If breakfast is not supplemented, the pregnant mother does not have enough energy and nutrients to supplement the fetus, affecting the development of the fetus. This influence is also an important factor when answering the question of fasting pregnant? Constipation: Pregnant women who skip breakfast increase the risk of gastrointestinal disorders and easily lead to constipation.

3. Measures to improve skipping meals in pregnant women?

Besides issues related to the question of whether pregnant women or fasting are okay, measures to help improve skipping meals in pregnant women are also of great interest. Accordingly, the state of skipping meals in pregnant women can be improved by the following measures:
Establish a regular and punctual diet; Choose healthy foods that contain many nutrients; Nutrition every day needs to be rotated to avoid boredom when eating one dish for a long time; You can set an alarm for each small meal to avoid forgetting.

4. Healthy diet for pregnant women

Building a healthy diet will help pregnant women supplement adequate nutrition during pregnancy and limit anorexia or skipping meals. Accordingly, a healthy diet in pregnant women can be implemented as follows:
Food choices serve many purposes: Pregnant women should choose foods that contain a lot of nutrients, because they will meet the nutritional needs of pregnant women at the same time. For example, milk with more calcium and protein; beef is rich in iron, zinc, vitamin B and protein; Limit eating foods that contain only calories: Cookies, candy, ice cream ... contain only calories and sweets containing a lot of sugar, pregnant women should only eat in moderation, by consuming too much. more calories will reduce the absorption of other nutrients; Do not focus too much on the diet for two: Too much diet also causes many serious health problems for pregnant women. Pregnant women only need to add 300 extra calories per day, too much diet can lead to a high risk of gestational diabetes, preeclampsia; Drink a lot of water, eat a lot of fiber-rich foods: Pregnant women need to drink enough 8 glasses of water a day, add fiber-rich foods (about 24-36g fiber per day) to help prevent the risk of constipation; Do not eat uncooked or unpasteurized food: Eating uncooked foods such as raw salads, canned fish... increases the risk of digestive diseases. At Vinmec International General Hospital, there is a package maternity service as a solution to help pregnant women feel secure because of the companionship of the medical team throughout the pregnancy. When choosing Maternity Package, pregnant women can:
The pregnancy process is monitored by a team of highly qualified doctors Regular check-ups, early detection of abnormalities The package pregnancy helps to facilitate convenient for the birthing process Newborns get comprehensive care

Please dial HOTLINE for more information or register for an appointment HERE. Download MyVinmec app to make appointments faster and to manage your bookings easily.