Pregnancy is an exciting time, whether you’re carrying your first baby or bringing a new member into a larger family. But there are elements of pregnancy that can cause some women concern, including weight gain:
· Are you gaining enough weight
· Have you put on too much
· How will you lose the weight once you’ve given birth
About three out of four women aren’t gaining healthy amounts of weight while pregnant, with nearly a quarter of women not gaining enough weight, and almost half gaining more than a healthy amount of weight.
Gaining a healthy amount of weight is an important part of keeping you and your baby healthy during pregnancy and after birth.
What’s a healthy weight?
How much weight you should gain while pregnant will depend on your pre-pregnancy weight and your pregnancy (if you’re carrying multiple pregnancies, expect to see those scales rise a little more!).
Body Mass Index (BMI) is a tool used to determine if you are underweight, have a healthy weight or are overweight. Your BMI is a number, and gives an idea of how much weight you’re carrying across your frame by dividing your weight by your height. A healthy BMI is between 18.5 and 24.9.
If you were in the healthy weight range before becoming pregnant, then ideally you should gain between 11.5 and 16 kilograms during your pregnancy. You should expect to gain 1–1.5 kilograms in the first three months, then 1.5–2 kilograms each month until you give birth.
If you’re overweight or underweight, the goal posts will shift a little. Women with a low BMI (under 18.5) should gain between 12.5 and 18 kilograms throughout their pregnancy. Women with a higher BMI (above 25) should gain between 7 and 11.5 kilograms.
Why worry about weight?
Being underweight or overweight during pregnancy can have an impact on your and baby’s health. Being underweight can increase the risk of low birth weight for your baby and preterm (early) birth.
Gaining too much weight while pregnant can increase both short-term and long-term health risks for you and your baby, including:
gestational diabetes during pregnancy
type 2 diabetes after pregnancy
pre-eclampsia
depression
difficulties during birth
miscarriage or stillbirth
large for gestational age baby
requiring caesarean birth
later life obesity and metabolic syndrome for baby
shorter duration or no breastfeeding.
What can expectant mothers do to achieve healthy weight gain?
Pregnancy is a great time to develop or maintain healthy eating habits. Healthy eating will keep you feeling good and give your baby the essential nutrients they need. Overall, aim for a balanced diet, with a wide variety of nutritious foods.
Speak to your doctor, who can guide you about your dietary intake or refer you to a dietitian.
Exercise is also important while you’re pregnant. You should aim for 30 minutes of physical activity on most days of the week. Keep in mind that you can split these 30 minutes over the day – three, 10 minute walks can replace a 30 minute stroll on a busy day.
Exercises like walking, swimming and light aerobic classes are all suitable while you are pregnant. Aim for moderate exercise, which means you could still talk normally during your workout, but couldn’t sing.
The yellow card which is used during pregnancy care provides information about appropriate weight gain- this information is generally discussed by your Obstetrician during your antenatal care.
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