Things You Didn’t Know You Can’t Do While Pregnant

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When you have a little bundle of joy on the way, you quickly scramble to learn what you should be doing during your pregnancy. Despite this, there are also many things that you shouldn’t be doing while pregnant.

Cat’s Litter Box Your midwife will inform you of everything you should avoid, but whether you’re attending your ultrasound in Brentwood or your check up in NYC, you often won’t go to appointments until you’re 12 weeks pregnant. As a result, it’s good to know everything you should be avoiding from the get-go. We all know you shouldn’t be smoking or drinking, but what about the more obscure things?

Clean the Cat’s Litter Box

Firstly, you can cuddle with your kitten all you like (as long as you wash your hands afterwards) but you can’t clean out its litter box. Cat waste contains plenty of parasites and bacteria, with Toxoplasma gondii being the most hazardous to expecting mothers. The real danger of this parasite is that if you contract it, you won’t know until you experience pregnancy complications. In fact, stillbirths and miscarriages can even come from being exposed to this bacteria and babies who are contracted to such can suffer from severe health complications, such as mental disabilities and seizures.

Sit in a Sauna or Hot Tub

You may think that saunas or hot tubs would be beneficial to expecting mothers due to their relaxing nature, but the opposite is true. In fact, the elevated heat of saunas and hot tubs can present a hazard to expecting mothers. It’s even said that sitting in one of these hot environments during the first trimester of pregnancy can double the risk of miscarriage. This is because sitting in hot water can raise the body temperature, which can lead to problems for the baby.

Eat Deli Meat

You want to hope that you don’t crave smoked salmon or salami during your pregnancy, as the consumption of deli meats isn’t allowed. This is because deli meats can cause foodborne illnesses, including toxoplasmosis and listeriosis due to the increased surface area that facilitates bacterial growth. As a result, if you can’t resist deli meats, you should be cooking them thoroughly before eating them, as this will kill any bacteria that may have been sitting on the surface.

Unpasteurized Milk Products

Eat Unpasteurized Milk Products

All expecting mothers need calcium to enable the growth of the baby; however, it’s not recommended that this calcium comes from raw milk. This means that it hasn’t been heated to kill the bacteria that can lead to illness. The specific bacteria that you want to be careful of when it comes to raw milk is Listeria, as this can result in illness, miscarriage, and even life-threatening effects.

Drink Too Much Caffeine

While one or two cups of coffee shouldn’t affect you too much, any more than this can increase your baby’s heart rate as it runs through the placenta. Therefore, an excessive amount of caffeine shouldn’t be ingested during pregnancy. If you’re a keen coffee drinker, you should make the switch to decaf. Despite this, if you’re someone who drinks energy drinks daily, you’ll have to strip these from your diet completely. The amount of caffeine in these are far too much for a baby to take.

Wear Stilettos

As your baby grows, your belly will balloon with them, changing your center of gravity. As your center of gravity adjusts, you’re likely to feel a little unsteady on your feet, especially when wearing skinny high heels. On top of that, your swollen ankles probably won’t fit in your once favorite pair of stilettos.

Sophia Charlotte
Sophia Charlotte
Sophia Charlotte has been writing for many years. She does creative and informative work. She writes on different topics.

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