Exercises for pregnant women

If you have a medical problem, such as asthma, heart disease or diabetes, exercise may not be advisable. Exercise may also be harmful if you have an obstetric condition such as:

• Bleeding or spotting
• Low placenta
• Threatened or recurrent miscarriage
• A history of early labour
• Previous premature births
• Weak cervix

 According to medical practitioners most exercises are safe to perform during pregnancy, as long as one exercise with caution and do not overdo it.

The safest and most productive activities are swimming, brisk walking, indoor stationary bicycling and low-impact aerobics. These activities carry little risk of injury, benefit one’s entire body, and can be continued until birth.

Tennis and racquetball are generally safe activities, but the change in balance during pregnancy may affect rapid movements. Other activities such as jogging can be done in moderation. A pregnant woman may want to choose exercises or activities that do not require great balance or coordination, especially later in pregnancy.

Some pregnant women said that it is healthy to walk as part of one’s exercises. They went on to say that stretching hands and legs also help to reduce back and legs pain.

To learn strength and toning exercises that are safe to do during pregnancy need to discuss your exercise plans with your doctor or other health care provider early on and make a few adjustments to your normal exercise routine. The level of exercise recommended will depend with one's level of pre-pregnancy fitness. Exercise is a big plus for both the mother and baby thus if complications don't limit your ability to exercise throughout your pregnancy.

 

Prenatal Health

When you're pregnant, your health matters more than ever.  Good health care tips helps to keep you and your babe healthier. If you had an exercise program before you became pregnant, you can continue with this. As your pregnancy goes on, you may need to adapt a new way of exercising.

If you didn't have a regular exercise programme before, now is the ideal time to adopt a new, healthier way of life from which you will reap the rewards for years to come. If you do start exercising now, build up gently; listen to your body and do only what feels comfortable.
Regular gentle exercise is much better than intense irregular bouts of exercise (which aren't advisable in pregnancy), since your body responds more positively to consistent, moderate exercise.

Exercises help in increasing one's energy levels, it also helps one maintain a positive outlook and feel confident about your changing body image. Exercise can also ease common pregnancy discomforts such as nausea, leg cramps, swollen feet, varicose veins, constipation, insomnia, and back pain. By keeping muscles strong and toned, exercise makes it easier for your body to deal with changes in posture during pregnancy. There is also evidence that increased fitness helps shorten labor and your postpartum recovery time and lessens your overall anxiety about the birth.

 During pregnancy, you should eat three meals a day with a few snacks to keep your blood sugars stable and accommodate for the limited room your stomach has to expand as your baby grows. Eating smaller, more frequent meals also helps manage nausea during the first trimester. You should not diet or limit carbohydrates or fats or be on any type of restrictive diet, unless recommended by your doctor. You need the calories and fat in a well-balanced diet to feed your growing baby.

picture courtesey of pregnancytips.com

 

Effects of poor diet on children

Children who have poor diets -- whether because of a lack of food or because of patterns of eating that lead to inadequate intake of nutrients -- are prone to significant short-term and long-term health impacts and diseases. Children afflicted by sustained poor nutrition are at greater risk for obesity, mental and emotional health problems, and a failure to thrive academically.

Poor nutrition is one of the leading causes of obesity in children, a condition which can be dangerous and lead to lifetime health complications. The Children's Defense Fund notes children in families with insufficient access to nutritious foods are in fact significantly more likely to be obese in early childhood than other children. This is the result of excessive calorie intake and an emphasis on foods that have high levels of fat, sugar and sodium. This is especially true of children who regularly consume fast food. According to the Lerner Centre for Public Health Promotion, obesity in children can lead to conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure, cancer and a variety of other health problems. Obesity can also result in a negative self-image, eating disorders, a decreased quality of life and other long-term psychosocial problems that are extremely difficult to reverse.

Mental and Emotional Health

According to the Children's Defense Fund, children who do not have access to proper nutrition are much more likely to suffer from psychological disorders, such as anxiety or learning disabilities. These children are also significantly more likely to require mental health counselling. Poor nutrition negatively impacts a child's ability to develop properly and adapt normally to certain situations. Certain nutritional habits that children may be prone to, such as skipping meals or overindulging in sugary foods, have also been linked to depression. Mental and emotional health problems in children are often reinforced by obesity and low self-esteem, which may be the result of poor nutrition (Children’s Defense Fund.)

Education

Children with poor nutrition are likely to miss school days and be required to repeat grades. When a child does not get the required amounts of vitamins, minerals and other nutrients for health, it could lead to lethargy, a lack of energy and a general failure to thrive. A failure to thrive academically and socially, resulting from improper nutrition, can have lasting impacts throughout a person's life if it's not corrected early.

Illness

Poor nutrition and obesity have the potential to result in chronic illnesses. One of these conditions is diabetes, which is preventable with healthy lifestyle changes. Poor nutrition in childhood, can lead to a lifetime of problems including heart disease, stroke, limb amputation and blindness, and an addition of financial burden. Poor nutrition in childhood also has the potential to negatively impact a person's reproductive health. Ingrained eating habits that lead to these diseases are very difficult to reverse.

Parents or guardians should see the child's doctor regularly for screening of signs for these health problems. If your child needs treatment, work with your child's doctor to ensure that your child is getting the best medical care possible, both at home and at medical checkups.

Healthy eating for school children

Eating becomes a social activity for school going children. Kids probably spend more time in school than they do at home; eat meals at friends’ houses; and adopt eating habits from their peers. It can be difficult to ensure they are getting adequate nutrition when you are not around to monitor their choices, so try to maintain regular family mealtimes.

For kids aged 5-12, the key word is variety. Creative serving ideas will go a long way towards maintaining the healthy eating habits established in the first years of life.

Not only do family meals provide an opportunity to catch up on your kids’ daily lives, they also enable you to teach by example. Let your kids see you eating a wide variety of healthy foods while keeping your portions in check. Refrain from obsessive calorie counting, though, or commenting on your own weight, so that kids don’t adopt negative associations with food. 

As children develop, they require more vitamins and minerals to support growing bodies. This means whole grains (whole wheat, oats, barley, rice, millet); a wide variety of fresh fruits and vegetables; calcium for growing bones (milk, yogurt, or substitutes if lactose intolerant); and healthy proteins (fish, eggs, poultry, lean meat, nuts, and seeds).

Healthy fats are also important but kids, like the rest of us, should limit Trans fats, found in vegetable shortenings, margarine, candies, cookies, snack foods, fried foods, baked goods, and other processed foods made with partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.

 

Nutrients good for the healthy of our children

Today we will look at some of the reasons of eating a healthy diet. Healthy food have necessary nutrients for a body. These nutrients give you energy and keep your heart beating, your brain active, and your muscles working. Nutrients also help build and strengthen bones, muscles, and tendons and also regulate body processes, such as blood pressure.

According to the American Psychological Association,  following healthy habits during the formative years of childhood makes it more likely that your children will hold onto those habits throughout life.

Healthful eating involves consuming a variety of whole and nutritious foods. By incorporating foods from the different food groups into every meal, kids should have a well-rounded and healthy diet. Proteins are essential for a number of important functions including growth, brain development and healthy bones for children. Proteins come from food that include chicken, eggs, milk, yogurt and cheese.

Carbohydrates
Children need a source of carbohydrate in each meal. However, young children under 13 months may struggle to digest wholegrain varieties of carbohydrates, and too much fibre can compromise the absorption of important minerals such as calcium and iron.

Dairy and calcium
Children gain a lot of nourishment from dairy foods such as milk, yogurt and cheese. These foods can provide the body with easily absorbed calcium as well as vitamins A and B12, protein and other vitamins and minerals.

 Fat
While children need some fat to grow and develop, too much of any sort of fat is not recommended. Butter, spreads and oils contribute to the taste, texture and enjoyment of the diet. They are important as concentrated sources of energy for young children who are growing rapidly.
Soft drinks, sweets, confectionery, biscuits, sugary pastries and desserts are high in added sugars and often poor quality fats and salt. Children under five should only eat these foods once in a while, ideally saved for special occasions. The over consumption of snack foods high in added sugar, fats and salt is recognised as one of the major contributing factors to high rates of obesity.

The best breakfast for you child
When buying  cereals, read the labels carefully as they are seldom as healthy as they seem. Many contain higher levels of sugar and salt than is recommended per serving. It’s best to choose an unsweetened, simple oat or bran based cereal and add fruit such as a chopped banana or handful of raisins to make it sweet and to add a nutritious-boost.
If you have time to make a more substantial breakfast, there are a lot of healthy benefits from including protein such as an egg, baked beans or natural yogurt. Proper snacks are important to keep your child’s appetite satisfied. The more you can help your child judge when they are hungry, the better able they will be to judge how much food they should be eating as they grow older. When children ask for food, check that they’re not actually thirsty as the two are sometimes confused.

Monitoring food for our children

Persuading children to eat more fruit and vegetables

Making mealtimes playful can mean healthier eating for your kids. Here are some fun, creative ways to add more fruit and vegetables to your child's diet:

• Top a bowl of whole grain cereal with a smiley face: banana slices for eyes, raisins for nose, peach or apple slice for mouth.
• Create a food collage. Use carrots and celery for flowers, cauliflower for clouds, and a yellow squash for a sun. Then eat your masterpiece!
• Go food shopping with your children. Let them see all the different fruits and vegetables and have them pick out new ones to try.
• Try fruit smoothies for a quick healthy breakfast or afternoon snack.
• Add vegetables and fruits to baked goods – blueberry pancakes, carrot muffins.
• Add extra veggies to soups, stews, and sauces, grated or shredded to make them blend in.
• Keep lots of fresh fruit and veggies washed and available as snacks. Apples, pears, bananas, grapes, figs, carrot and celery sticks are all easy to eat on the run. Add yogurt, nut butter.

Limit sugar and salt

One of the biggest challenges for parents is to limit the amount of sugar and salt in their children’s diets.

Limiting sugar

The American Heart Association recommends that sugar intake for children is limited to 3 teaspoons (12 grams) a day. Cutting back on candy and cookies is only part of the solution. Large amounts of added sugar can also be hidden in foods such as bread, canned soups and vegetables, frozen dinners and fast food.

• Don’t ban sweets entirely. Having a no sweets rule is an invitation for cravings and overindulging when given the chance.
• Give recipes a makeover. Many recipes taste just as good with less sugar.
• Avoid sugary drinks. Try adding a splash of fruit juice to sparkling water instead.
• Cut down on processed foods, such as white bread and cakes, which cause blood sugar to go up and down, and can leave kids tired and sapped of energy.

Avoid foods that impair mood

Certain foods and drinks can make kids and teens more vulnerable to mood disorders such as depression and anxiety.

• A recent study found that people who drank four or more cups of soda or sweetened fruit drinks a day including diet versions had a much higher risk for depression.
• Excessive amounts of caffeine from soda, energy drinks, or coffee drinks can trigger anxiety in kids and teens and may also aggravate feelings of depression when the caffeine wears off.
• A diet high in processed foods, such as fried food, sweet desserts, refined flour and cereals, and processed meats, can increase a child or teen’s risk for anxiety and depression.

Limiting salt

• Avoid processed, packaged, restaurant, and fast food. Processed foods like canned soups or frozen dinners contain hidden sodium that quickly surpasses the recommended limit. Many fast food meals are also loaded with sodium.
• Opt for fresh or frozen vegetables instead of canned vegetables.
• Cut back on salty snacks such as potato chips, nuts, and pretzels.
• Choose low-salt or reduced-sodium products.