Prenatal Care Definition, Reason, Symptoms, Treatment & Prevention
Understanding
Prenatal care or antenatal care is aimed at checking the condition of the candidate and the mother and fetus, so that when there are problems it can be treated early. This examination also serves to prepare the mother physically and mentally during pregnancy. If done regularly, this examination can reduce the number of defects and death, both for the mother and the fetus.
During the pregnancy examination, a 9T examination will be carried out, namely: upper uterine height, blood pressure, tetanus vaccine, weighing and measuring height, administering iron tablets, testing for sexually transmitted diseases (STD), interview, laboratory tests for certain examinations, and determine the fetal presentation and fetal heart rate.
Therefore, it is natural for pregnant women to pay attention to the following points:
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Nutrition during pregnancy
During pregnancy, it is important to eat a nutritious diet that has lots of variety. Especially folic acid, iron, and calcium.
The caloric needs of pregnant women are 300-500 kcal per day. This depends on your pre-pregnancy weight, activity, type of pregnancy, and whether you are carrying one baby or twins.
Increased food calories can be obtained through a variety of healthy food choices and vitamin supplements. However, do not just eat to avoid obesity.
Normal weight gain during pregnancy is 6.5 to 16 kg. For pregnant women who are underweight, the optimal weight gain is 18.2 kg. Meanwhile, pregnant women who are overweight cannot gain more than 6.8 kg.
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Medicines during pregnancy
Avoid using drugs that are purchased freely without a doctor’s permission, because it is feared that these drugs are not safe for consumption by pregnant women.
Indeed, not all drugs are safe for pregnant women. In fact, some drugs that are teratogenic can cause defects in the baby.
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Exercise during pregnancy
Pregnant women should do regular exercise because it can form a good physical and mental preparation for childbirth.
The necessary sports are sports that are comfortable and don’t make the body expend too much energy. Types of exercise that can be done during pregnancy are swimming and cycling. In addition, walking and low-impact aerobics are well tolerated.
It is best to avoid sports that involve lying down with the back as the basis, sports that can result in falls or trauma to the stomach and sports with heavy joint loads. Also, avoid lifting heavy weights above your head and doing movements that stretch your back muscles.
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Work during pregnancy
Pregnant women can still work, but the activities they undertake should not be too strenuous. Stop the activity immediately if you feel a disturbance in pregnancy. Rest is also recommended to be done as often as possible.
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Having sex during pregnancy
Having sex during pregnancy is fine as long as it is done carefully. Things to note, increased uterine activity or contractions after sexual intercourse is very common.
For women with a history of preterm pregnancies, placenta previa, or repeated abortions, it is recommended to avoid sexual intercourse during pregnancy.
At the end of pregnancy, when the head has entered the pelvic cavity, intercourse should be stopped because it can cause pain and bleeding.
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Travel during pregnancy
If you want to travel during your pregnancy, sitting for long periods of time should be avoided. Because this can lead to an increased risk of blood clots in the venous tract and thrombophlebitis.
Pregnant women can drive a car for a maximum of 6 hours a day. It is recommended to stop for 2 hours, then walk for 10 minutes.
Don’t forget to always use your seat belt. The position of the belt should be placed under the stomach so as not to press on the stomach, especially if the pregnancy is large.
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Smoking, alcohol and narcotics during pregnancy
Smoking can cause several disorders to the fetus, such as low birth weight babies, premature birth, premature rupture of membranes, placenta previa, and fetal death.
The ethanol substance contained in alcohol can penetrate the placenta and enter the fetal blood circulation. Ethanol is known as a substance that can cause defects in the fetus.
Narcotics such as cocaine are also known as substances that can make babies disabled.
Symptom
Symptoms of pregnancy in every woman are different. Some experience symptoms of pregnancy from the start, others a few weeks later, or even don’t have symptoms of early pregnancy. However, a definite sign of pregnancy is a missed period.
In addition, pregnant women can also have the following signs:
- Pain in the breast or breasts that feel enlarged, hard, and sensitive to touch. These marks appear within 1-2 weeks after conception. Within 2 weeks after conception, a pregnant woman’s breasts will undergo changes in preparation for breast milk production which is influenced by the hormones estrogen and progesterone.
- Morning sickness or morning sickness is common in the first trimester. Even though it’s called morning sickness, this nausea and vomiting can actually occur at any time. The cause of morning sickness is hormonal changes that can trigger the part of the brain that controls nausea and vomiting. This symptom is experienced by 75% of pregnant women.
- Easy fatigue, weakness, dizziness, and fainting are symptoms of pregnancy caused by dilation of blood vessels in pregnancy or low blood sugar levels.
- Headaches generally appear in the 6th week of pregnancy caused by increased hormones.
- Constipation occurs due to an increase in the hormone progesterone, which causes intestinal contractions to be slower and food to pass more slowly through the digestive tract.
Apart from the symptoms above, pregnant women can also experience mood changes due to the influence of hormones. Not only mood changes, pregnant women can also experience bleeding spots.
Spotting bleeding occurs when the fertilized egg attaches to the uterine wall about 10-14 days after fertilization. The type of bleeding is generally small, round spots, lighter in color than menstrual blood, and doesn’t last long.
Reason
The cause of pregnancy is fertilization between a man’s sperm and a woman’s egg or ovum. The time of conception usually occurs during a woman’s fertile period.
Diagnosis
To confirm pregnancy or not, you can make a self-diagnosis using a test pack. Currently, there are many test packs sold in shops and pharmacies. However, sometimes pregnant women prefer examinations carried out by obstetricians.
During a physical examination, the doctor will notice various changes in the body, such as increasing breast size and checking a pregnant woman’s heart rate. In examining the heart rate, it can be found that there is a fetal heart rate.
In addition to these examinations, vital signs can also be checked, such as blood pressure to changes in body weight.
Pregnancy Check Time
It is highly recommended to carry out routine pregnancy checks. The recommended time is:
- During pregnancy 0-7 months, check every 3-4 weeks.
- At 7-8 months of pregnancy, check every 2 weeks.
- At 8-9 months of pregnancy, check every 1 week.
If outside the time of the examination, you have complaints, immediately go to the doctor so that they can be treated.