Pregnancy & Childbirth: The Basic Illustrated Guide [Paperback]

Margaret Martin (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1997

For pregnant women and their families, a conception-to-birth guide -- written in clear, easy-to-understand terms with informative two-color illustrations.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Margaret Martin, M.P.H., Dr.P.H., earned her Masters of Public Health degree at UCLA in Behavioral Science, Health Education, and Family Health. She earned her Doctorate of Public Health degree at UCLA in Community Health Science. The focus of Dr. Martin's doctoral dissertation was pregnancy and childbirth education. She is a member of the American Public Health Association.

Dr. Martin enjoys training lay health workers to deliver pregnancy and childbirth education in their own communities. Margaret Martin worked for many years as a lay childbirth educator herself, before returning to school to earn her degrees in Public Health. Now she works as a consultant to a number of community-based organizations. She has worked as an editor for Fisher Books and as a consultant for Parenting Magazine. Dr. Martin is the mother of three children.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Introduction Education provides options. It makes choices possible. Education adds color and dimension to a black-and-white, two-dimensional view of the world.

Some women have asked me, “Why learn about pregnancy, labor and birth? It’s all just going to happen by itself, anyway!”

And these women are right! Something’s going to happen “anyway,” that’s for sure! The question is what?

The following complaints of pregnancy can be prevented entirely, or drastically reduced:

• headaches

• nausea

• heartburn

• indigestion

• constipation

• backache

and a host of others. This is only one reason to learn about pregnancy.

When you learn about pregnancy and good prenatal care (including excellent nutrition and exercise) you can help keep your baby from coming too soon and from being too small. You can do a lot to reduce or eliminate serious risks for the child.

Low birth weight (babies born under 5-1/2 pounds) is associated with a large increase in birth defects. Low birth weight can often be prevented.

You can also learn to eliminate many other risks, which otherwise could lead to a longer, more difficult labor, birth and recovery.

Giving birth without knowing what’s going on is kind of like going on a roller-coaster ride with a bag over your head. Sure, you get to the end of the ride, all right. But flinging along, without knowing what to expect, can be a frightening, even horrifying experience.

It’s important to realize that the emotions of a woman in labor play a very large part in the progress of that labor. Labor is controlled by hormones released within a woman’s body. The release of these hormones is determined to a very large degree by the emotional condition of the laboring woman. If she is frightened and tense, her body can actually work against itself. Labor can slow down. Contractions (of the uterus) can become less effective.

If she is relaxed and in good spirits, her labor can progress more rapidly and easily.

Where Do the Stomach and Other Organs Go during Pregnancy?

As the baby grows larger and larger, the stomach, intestines, liver and other organs are shoved and squished up and back. They have much less room. It becomes especially important to:

• Eat smaller meals more frequently. There is just not enough room for a large meal to digest well.

• Drink plenty of fluids. (Eight large glasses of water each day is best.) Water helps keep the food you’ve eaten moving through your intestines. This helps to prevent indigestion and constipation.

• Eat foods high in fiber. These foods absorb water and help keep your stools soft and regular. Some high-fiber foods are:

whole grains (brown rice, whole-grain cereals, pastas and breads)

beans

salads

other vegetables

raw fruits

• Don’t eat fatty foods. They are hard to digest. These foods might give you indigestion during pregnancy. They take longer to digest than other foods. Some high-fat foods are:

fatty, oily or fried foods

pastries

nuts

nut butters

butter and lard

red meats

Copyright © 2000 Fisher Books. All rights reserved.

Product Details

• Paperback: 126 pages
• Publisher: Perseus Books Group; 1 edition (February 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1555611141
• ISBN-13: 978-1555611149
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 7.4 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,348,687 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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