Cautiousness towards environmental contaminants in fish and seafood has led pregnant women to limit or eliminate fish and seafood from their diet. The Food and Drug Administration and the Environmental Protection Agency addressed the problem by advising the women to avoid large ocean fish, such as shark, swordfish, king mackerel and fish because of their higher mercury content. According to the agencies, pregnant women may safely consume up to 12 ounces of shellfish or smaller ocean and farm-raised fish, such as salmon and canned light tuna, per week. DHA-enriched eggs, which provide up to 150 mg DHA per egg, are now available for these mothers' diet. DHA supplements may also be taken but sparingly because of their fish oil content (Steele).
Caution Over Vitamin A Supplements
According to the Institute of Medicine, pregnant women do not need vitamin-mineral supplements unless there is a risk for nutritional deficiency (Nutrition Research Newsletter, 2000). Risks include chronic disease or abuse of drugs, alcohol or tobacco. Unnecessary or excess supplements may cause harm. Large consumptions of retinoid compounds during the first trimester have, in some cases, shown to have caused fetal craniofacial, cardiac, thymic and central nervous system abnormalities. This is called retinoic acid embryopathy (Nutrition Research Newsletter).
Published studies conducted by the American Dietetic Association showed that the average diet of pregnant women in the United States had higher intakes of Vitamin A or retinol than the recommended dietary allowance (Nutrition Research Newsletter, 2000). Physicians and dietitians recommended that pregnant women at a low nutritional risk may take Vitamin A in the form of beta carotene to reduce the risk of excessive intake. Over-the-counter vitamin-mineral supplements often lead to high levels of retinol intake (Nutrition Research Newsletter).
Stress in the First Trimester
Studies revealed that severe stress in the first trimester may prompt early delivery (Bates, 2005). Findings showed that stress transmits signals to the fetus, which produces high levels of hormones. These hormones, in turn, hasten delivery. The findings suggested the presence of a kind of "placental clock" for delivery. Tested subjects in their first trimester had highly elevated...
Examples were women who were exposed to earthquakes and delivered earlier than normal schedule. Further studies on 550 pregnant women yielded consistent links between high levels of maternal cortisol and increased levels of the placenta hormone in the first trimester. Raised hormone levels not only speeds up delivery but also leads to serious consequences on the fetus' response to stimuli and, eventually, the child's response to stress (Bates).
Levels of neuropeptides increase from the mother's hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal stress network (Bates, 2005). The placenta responds by producing circulating corticotrophin-releasing hormones. This event adversely affects the maternal stress system and blocks communication between the hypothalamus and the pituitary. The fetus appears to be quite vulnerable to stress signals. Exposure to very high levels of stress inclines the fetus to view the environment as hostile and prepares to escape the womb in response (Bates).
Bibliography
Bates, B.(2005). First trimester stress may prompt early delivery. Clinical Psychiatry
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Nutrition Research Newsletter (2000). Are Vitamin A supplements necessary in the first trimester of pregnancy? Technical Insights: Wiley & Sons. Retrieved on February 24, 2009 at http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0887/is_11_19/ai_76284032?tag=content;col1
Steele, C. (2006). Maternal diet during pregnancy and lactation. Pediatrics for Parents: Pediatrics for Parents, Inc. Retrieved on February 24, 2009 at http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0816/is_11_22/ai_n2709557?tag=content;col1
