You know how everyone tells you to eat and eat and eat when you're pregnant? Don't do it. My OBG, Dr. Rebecca Singson, actually put me on a diet when I was pregnant both times. She told me, "I want you to gain between 25-30 lbs only. It gets dangerous if you go beyond that." I gained 33 lbs for each pregnancy (Oops!). She said big pregnancies puts women at risk. You get high blood pressure, which can endanger your life and the baby's life. You get diabetes. You'll have a hard time delivering vaginally. You get fat.
But here's another alarming reason why you should stop shoveling food into your pregnant body: Your child may suffer autism. Research, and this was research reported last year, has shown that there is a link between autism and being fat before and while pregnant.
Here's screencaps from the Wall Street Journal article:
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Autism now affects 1 in 50 kids. That's alarming. I know 6 kids with autism. Everyone says autism is an epidemic. But it's not contagious. So why are more and more kids getting diagnosed with this condition? Well, I believe it's because we're a generation that eats a lot. That's just what I believe. Science hasn't pinpointed the exact factors that cause the condition, but if research has found that being fat before you got pregnant and while you were pregnant raises the risk for autism to a whopping 60%, then, mommies, watch your weight! That's 60%! That's a huge risk!
Of course, there is still no single reason why our kids have autism so, moms, never ever think it's your fault. There's genetics, there are environmental triggers. Studies have shown that autism happens more in kids with older moms, or moms who lived near a highway, or moms who didn't take prenatal vitamins, or if the gap between the kids was less than a year. Guess that means we should all clean up the environment, plan our families, and have kids in our 20s. Oh dear.
I guess I shouldn't get pregnant anymore. I may have had healthy pregnancies, with my weight controlled, but I'm 36, I live along EDSA, my Papa has diabetes and there's autism in the family, too. Genetics, check. Environmental triggers, check. Getting pregnant is not so good an idea anymore for me!
But if you're a woman wanting to be a mom or you're pregnant, be vigilant and watch your weight! Now more than ever, we must have healthy pregnancies—eat healthy, eat moderately, take prenatal vitamins, exercise. Again and again, I can't stress it enough, watch your weight!
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April is Autism Awareness Month. Read up on the condition. Learn how you can lower your unborn child's risk, how to check your child for early signs of autism (early diagnosis and intervention can make a huge difference!), how to get help and treatment, and how to treat children with autism and their parents (with kindness and compassion, of course!).
But here's another alarming reason why you should stop shoveling food into your pregnant body: Your child may suffer autism. Research, and this was research reported last year, has shown that there is a link between autism and being fat before and while pregnant.
Here's screencaps from the Wall Street Journal article:
Autism now affects 1 in 50 kids. That's alarming. I know 6 kids with autism. Everyone says autism is an epidemic. But it's not contagious. So why are more and more kids getting diagnosed with this condition? Well, I believe it's because we're a generation that eats a lot. That's just what I believe. Science hasn't pinpointed the exact factors that cause the condition, but if research has found that being fat before you got pregnant and while you were pregnant raises the risk for autism to a whopping 60%, then, mommies, watch your weight! That's 60%! That's a huge risk!
Of course, there is still no single reason why our kids have autism so, moms, never ever think it's your fault. There's genetics, there are environmental triggers. Studies have shown that autism happens more in kids with older moms, or moms who lived near a highway, or moms who didn't take prenatal vitamins, or if the gap between the kids was less than a year. Guess that means we should all clean up the environment, plan our families, and have kids in our 20s. Oh dear.
I guess I shouldn't get pregnant anymore. I may have had healthy pregnancies, with my weight controlled, but I'm 36, I live along EDSA, my Papa has diabetes and there's autism in the family, too. Genetics, check. Environmental triggers, check. Getting pregnant is not so good an idea anymore for me!
But if you're a woman wanting to be a mom or you're pregnant, be vigilant and watch your weight! Now more than ever, we must have healthy pregnancies—eat healthy, eat moderately, take prenatal vitamins, exercise. Again and again, I can't stress it enough, watch your weight!
