Planning To Have a Baby? Learn 4 Reasons Why Your Preconception Health Matters
One of my absolute favorite things to do as a Women's Health Practitioner is to support families in fertility, pregnancy, and to raise healthy and resilient children.
Did you know that you can have a major impact on your pregnancy, birth outcomes, and the life-long health of your children by focusing on your health for a minimal of 3 to 4 months prior to conception?
There is a huge gap in information (and education) around how important preconception planning is for the life-long health of our children.
And, for decreasing the risk of miscarriage, and pregnancy complications like hyperemesis gravidarum, gestational diabetes, preeclampsia, premature delivery, and easier recovery postpartum.
How hard your child(ren) has to work to stay healthy throughout their life starts during the preconception period, before their bodies are even formed.
It all starts with YOU.
Preconception wellness and health care is the greatest gift you can give yourself, your future child, and your family.
Here are reasons WHY.
1. Preconception planning enhances your fertility and improves the likelihood of a healthy pregnancy.
Preconception health care, done the right way, invariably enhances your fertility. You can decrease your chances of having miscarriages, gestational diabetes, preeclampsia, premature delivery and negative birth outcomes with intentional preconception care and planning.
Maybe pregnancy is the farthest thing from your mind today, but things change over time and the truth is that if you are of childbearing age, sexually active, and in a heterosexual relationship, there is always the chance that you may become pregnant.
Yes, even with the best birth control methods. Because majority of pregnancies are actually unplanned.
And, even if you're not sexually active or in same sex relationships, you may change your mind about having a child later. Being mindful and prepared is good for your health, and future children the same as everyone else.
2. Preconception health supports the life-long health of your baby and children.
When we envision starting or growing our family, the last thing we imagine is raising children with chronic disease.
But unfortunately, the reality is that by the young age of five, 40% of American children will be found to suffer from health conditions such as chronic infections, ADD, ADHD, autism, cancer, depression, asthma, or serious food allergies.
These conditions are not simply genetic in origin.
Genetics play only a small role in many of today’s chronic diseases, which means these early childhood illnesses are in fact preventable.
Other causes are poor eating habits, vitamin and mineral deficiences, high environmental toxin exposure, and unmanaged health conditions of the mother and father.
3. Preconception health IS your familiy's wealth.
Preconception health care is an investment where you get to develop habits that support the health of your entire family.
You plan ahead financially by saving up for a rainy day or retirement, but how are you planning to minimize financial obstacles like the huge emotional and financial cost of chronic disease?
When we take early action to change our health, we invest in a brighter financial future for our family and ourselves.
You actually get to save your family time, money and resources.
We don’t have a crystal ball, but we sure as hell can protect ourselves from making costly choices. Having children is a HUGE financial decision and planning ahead mean prioritizing health well before conception.
4. Planned preconception health helps you to improve your lifestyle and your relationship with food.
Let’s face it, there are likely things about your lifestyle and diet you can improve to optimize your health.
What better time to start than to prepare for the conception of your child?
You can't transfer nutrients to the fetus, your developing baby, that you don't have yourself.
Lifestyle and dietary changes take TIME to implement and correct for any physiologic dysfunction. You wnat to nake sure your nutrients stores are good.
The more time you give yourself to plan and prepare, the more lasting impact these healthy patterns can have on your health and that of your family.
Where Should You Start?
Taking time to get to the root of your fertility struggles and using targeted supplementing, nutrition and lifestyle interventions during the preconception period greatly increases your chances of conceiving - no matter how you conceive!
If you and your partner are wanting to have a baby, actively trying to get pregnant, or facing fertility challenges - these are all great opportunities for you to improve upon your health.
If you want to learn how to improve your fertility and support your preconception wellness using a holistic approach, book a FREE Health Discovery Call📱or purchase your health consultation.
Be Well and Take care,
Shavonne Richardson