Pregnancy and Lactation Flashcards
what is the best predictor of a baby’s health?
birth weight:
-diabetetic mothers give birth to infants that are LGA (large for their gestational age) because extra glucose in mother’s blood = increased body fat in fetus = infant must adjust to less glucose after birth = more difficult birth
-low weight babies need special care
what is the placenta?
organ that develops inside the uterus early in pregnancy.
It is where the fetus receives nutrients and O2 and returns CO2 and waste to be excreted
planted in wall of uterus
what is the uterus?
muscular organ. developed before birth
what is the amniotic sac?
“bag of waters” in the uterus. Where the fetus floats and “drinks” through skin when young
contains nutrients, growth factors, baby waste
what is the umbilical cord?
connects fetus veins and ateries to the placenta.
The route of nourishment and O2 to the fetus and route of waste disposal from the fetus
how many weeks is an infant considered premature?
problems associated with being premature
less than 36 weeks. Can survive if over 24 weeks (v premature and v little body fat)
problems
- issues with lungs (underdevelopped) = difficult to exchange o2
- apnea in premature babies
- underdevelopped gut = SI has smaller SA for absorption = lower absorption = potential malnutrition
- immature organ function
describe the events of pregnancy (at 1, 5, 8, 11, 40 weeks old)
1 week:
- newly fertilized ovum
- zygote (product of union of ovum and sperm)
- ready for implantation
5 weeks
- after implantation
- placenta develops
- begins to provide nourishment to developing embryo
11 weeks:
- fetus
- umbilical cord and blood vessels connect fetus with placenta
40 weeks:
-newborn infant
when do organs grow and develop?
what is developed first?
only at a certain time (the critical period)
if the development of an organ is limited during a critical period, recovery is impossible
central nervous system starts development first (starts at 2 weeks). Followed by the heart (2.5 weeks)
what are factors that cause high risk pregnancies?
- young women (their bodies are still growing)
- many previous pregnancies
- mothers who have short periods between pregnancies (risk of anemia)
- little money to purchase adequate food
- history of drug use and alcohol
- multiple pregnancies (twins)
- too high or low weight gain during pregnancy
underweight mothers should gain more or less than overweight?
what are components of weight gain in the mother?
underweight mothers should gain more
overweight mothers should gain less
components:
- not just the weight of the baby
- includes: placenta, uterus, blood, breats, fluid volume, maternal fat sores
what micronutrients should pregnant mothers increase in?
protein RDA?
folate
iron
iodine
zinc
protein RDA = 1.1g/kg/d (compared to 0.8 normally)
why is it important for mothers to have adequate CHO?
to prevent ketosis
what are nutrition issues in pregnancy
- alcohol = FAS (fetal alcohol syndrom)
- caffeine = low birth weight
- smoking = slowed growth + oxidative stress
- environmental contaminants (ie. mercury in fish)
what needs to be monitored during pregnancy?
mother:
- diabetes
- bp
- hemoglobin
- wt gain
fetus:
- growth
- NTD (neural tube defects)
- ultrasounds
- amniocentesis
describe gestational diabetes in mothers
- insulin resistance developed during pregnancy is similar to type 2 diabetes
- give mothers and child a higher risk of developing type 2 later on
- the reason why mothers need to take blood glucose tests. Need to treat gest diabetes to not expose the baby to high blood glucose
