Reasons for giving birth earlier than expected

In our lives, many women give birth before the expected due date. Some people call this premature birth. In fact, premature birth means that the baby needs to live in an incubator after birth. Birth a few days before the due date is not premature, because the physical condition of each mother is different. So what is the reason for giving birth earlier than the due date?

From the beginning of pregnancy, a fertilized egg develops into a mature fetus weighing 3 kilograms. During these 280 days, the growth and development of the fetus is entirely dependent on the mother's nutritional supply. How do you know whether the calorie intake during pregnancy is appropriate? A simple self-examination method is to observe the changes in weight in the middle and late stages. You should gain 0.4-0.5 kg per week. Insufficient and excessive calorie intake are not beneficial.

Early first trimester (0-3 months): The weight gain of pregnant women is slow, with little change, and the weight gain does not exceed 1 kg. This is the period of embryonic tissue and organ formation, and the influence of environmental factors including malnutrition is very high.

The condition is crucial to the continued growth and normal development of the fetus. During this period, due to changes in endocrine metabolism, pregnant women often experience varying degrees of pregnancy reactions, such as nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite, etc. Dietary arrangements should be based on individual circumstances and pay attention to comprehensive nutrition. More than 150 grams of carbohydrates must be consumed every day to avoid excessive ketone bodies in the blood of pregnant women due to hunger, which will have adverse effects on the brain development of the fetus; daily protein intake should not be less than 40-50 grams to ensure basic needs.

The food supply and dietary arrangements should be diversified, with light and less greasy food as the main focus, and small meals should be eaten frequently. Without affecting physical health, try to take care of the pregnant woman's personal eating habits and hobbies, but bad and unscientific eating habits and hobbies should be corrected. Pregnant women should avoid smoking, drinking, and excessive consumption of stimulating beverages such as strong tea and coffee. In order to reduce reactions such as nausea and vomiting, you can eat some easily digestible, dry foods, such as biscuits, steamed buns, toast, cakes, etc., and eat more water-rich vegetables and fruits to replenish water, vitamin C, B vitamins, and inorganic salts such as calcium and potassium, which can reduce the feeling of discomfort during pregnancy.

The second trimester (April to June): During this period, pregnant mothers begin to store larger amounts of nutrients such as protein, fat, and calcium to prepare for consumption during delivery and lactation. Pregnant women can gain up to 5-6 kg during this period. Therefore, the needs of pregnant women in the second trimester for thermal energy and various nutrients should increase significantly, such as 200 kcal (0.8 MJ) of thermal energy, 15 grams of protein, 200 milligrams of calcium, 10 milligrams of iron, 200 micrograms of vitamin A, and 0.6 milligrams each of vitamin B1 and B2. Each nutrient needs to be increased every day.

During this period, the pregnancy reactions of pregnant women basically disappear, their appetite tends to improve, and their appetite increases greatly, so the variety of food should be more diversified. In order to ensure the supply of heat energy, the intake of staple food should be increased; eat more meat, fish, eggs and other animal foods to obtain high-quality protein; animal offal, especially liver, can provide iron, zinc, vitamin A, B1, B12, folic acid, etc., it is best to eat 1-2 times a week; milk, beans and bean products, dried shrimps and green leafy vegetables should be consumed every day to get more calcium and prevent the occurrence of calcium deficiency symptoms such as calf cramps in pregnant women.

Late third trimester (after 7 months): This period is the period of rapid fetal growth and development, and the fetus stores the most nutrients, so the nutrient supply in late pregnancy should reach or exceed the level of mid-term. In particular, the protein intake should be increased by 25 grams per day. On the basis of the medium-term diet, you can increase the intake of high-quality protein (50 grams of meat, poultry, fish or 250 ml of milk or 250 ml of soy milk). The calcium intake should be increased by 700 mg per day, and eat more calcium-rich foods. In addition, during this period, you can choose foods that are small in size and high in nutritional value in the diet. The number of meals per day can be increased to 5, with the principle of eating small and frequent meals. Pregnant women during this period are prone to edema (mainly in the lower limbs), and the intake of water and salt in the diet should be controlled. For those with obvious lower limb edema, they should avoid eating high-salt foods such as bacon, salted fish, pickles, mustard tubers, and pickled vegetables.