According to statistics, of all the couples trying to conceive, only 30% get pregnant within the first month. And almost every mother-to-be, no matter how much time it took to conceive, reads everything and anything about pregnancy to ensure her baby’s well-being. Unfortunately, there is a lot of false and inaccurate information on the internet that sometimes can be harmful.
We at Bright Side have collected several popular “scientific” facts and recommendations that pregnant women may find on the internet and explain why they should not be followed.
Wider hips mostly refer to a wider ilium — the largest and uppermost part of the hips. But in fact, the distance between the iliac crests has nothing to do with the size of the birth canal. It is the form and size of the round hole in the middle of the pelvis that counts. It is called the pelvis inlet and can be the same whether a woman has very large or very small hips.
It would be very convenient to identify the gender of a baby this way, but, unfortunately, it’s not as simple as that. There are 2 things that can affect the shape and size of a pregnant woman’s bump: the size of the fetus and its position in the womb.
There is no scientific evidence that a properly performed prenatal ultrasound can harm a mother or her unborn child. An ultrasound does not use radiation; it uses high-frequency sound waves that bounce off the baby to produce an image. But the intensity of those waves is very low, and the procedure is pretty fast. So the only risk the pregnant woman has is an unnecessarily prolonged procedure or when untrained users operate the device.
The baby is hidden deep inside the muscular uterus and protected. A pregnant woman can lie and sleep on her belly as long as it’s comfortable. If it feels OK, it won’t harm the baby.
Being pregnant doesn’t mean you should give up running. If a woman has an uncomplicated pregnancy, it is safe and healthy for her to run during all of the trimesters. Of course, you should avoid running if you have complications like elevated blood pressure, a multiple gestation pregnancy, or you simply didn’t use to run before.
Morning sickness is the most frequent symptom of pregnancy. Up to 80% of pregnant women experience this problem in some way, but only 2% suffer only in the morning. Despite its name, it can occur at any time of the day. Some experts have even proposed calling it “all-day-sickness.” In the majority of cases, it ends after the first trimester, but up to 20% of pregnant women experience it until delivery.
Raising your hands can’t cause the umbilical cord to wrap around your baby’s neck — that’s certainly a myth. The truth is that your movements can’t have an affect on the umbilical cord. Besides, many babies are born with the umbilical cord wrapped around their neck, and the doctor usually removes it with one or 2 maneuvers.
Everyone thinks that pregnancy is the happiest time in a woman’s life, but many pregnant women experience stress, confusion, fear, and other unhappy feelings. 14%—23% of women even struggle with some symptoms of depression during pregnancy. This happens because hormone changes can affect the brain and its chemicals. Depression should be treated, or it can have potential risks to the mother and the baby.
Pregnancy weight is a combination of the weight of the baby, the placenta, the growing uterus and breasts, an increased blood and fluid volume in the woman’s body, and some extra fat. Right after giving birth, you will immediately lose the weight of the baby, the placenta, and the amniotic fluid. Over the next few weeks, you should lose the weight of the fluid. And what remains is the extra fat that a woman gains during pregnancy. And the time you’ll need to lose this depends on how much you’ve added.
Many pregnant women prefer a C-section to a vaginal delivery, even if there are no medical reasons for it. This happens because many believe a C-section is less painful and safer. At least this is what some unreliable information sources say. In reality, a C-section is painful, but, unlike natural birth, the pain starts after the baby has been born. Also, it can be associated with future complications. A C-section is recommended by doctors only when it can save the mother’s or the baby’s life.
For years, it was considered that babies were born without any knowledge of the outside world. Doctors now realize that a baby can hear sounds, especially their mother’s voice, which calms them down. They can see the light outside your belly and turn away if it’s too bright. They can taste the food you’re consuming by sniffing and licking the placenta and the uterine wall. And they can have dreams and react to the world around them. So they are pretty much affected by everything that happens outside.
So don’t believe all the do’s and don’ts you read online or your grandmother tells you...if she’s not an obstetrician, of course!
Do you know some other myths everybody believes that you think are ridiculous? Share them with us in the comments section.
I've heard that when your pregnant that you can shave your belly hair, you know your "happy trail" and that if it comes back darker that you're pregnant but doesn't all hair come back darker when you shave? Oh and they say when you're trying to go into labor and get the baby out that you should drink castor oil. But that's actually so bad to drink it it makes you vomit and have diarrhea but it does NOT help you go into labor. I also hear it's actually bad for the baby.
