Pregnancy Frequently Asked Questions

PM Procare Pregnancy and Breastfeeding Formula contains the essential nutrients you require when combined with a healthy diet. This also includes folic acid. Dietary sources of folic acid include green leafy vegetables, legumes, brewers yeast, whole grains, and root vegetables. A higher dose of supplemental folic acid may be prescribed by your doctor if there is a history of neural tube defects. If you are not sure, consult your healthcare practitioner.

With the exception of ginger for the relief of morning sickness and raspberry leaf in the last trimester, avoid herbal preparations during pregnancy unless prescribed by a healthcare professional. Continue taking a comprehensive nutrient supplement such as PM Procare as this contains nutrients that will assist you when you have an increased nutritional demand. Try to get adequate rest, increase your fluid intake (preferably warm fluids including mild herbal tea, broth and soup), and ensure a diet rich in fruits and vegetables to assist in providing immune system support. The warm fluids will assist in breaking down congestion.

With the exception of ginger for the relief of morning sickness and raspberry leaf in the last trimester, avoid herbal preparations during pregnancy unless prescribed by a healthcare professional. Ginger helps to reduce spasms and relax the digestive system, which in turn enhances digestive function. Ginger is useful in treating morning sickness or travel sickness. Raspberry leaf has been traditionally used to prepare the uterus for birth and to assist the uterus to return to normal after birth (involution).

During pregnancy the body's requirements for nutrients is increased, therefore taking a supplement to support this increased nutritional demand is advisable, along with a healthy diet. In combination with a healthy diet, PM Procare Pregnancy and Breastfeeding Formula provides the essential vitamins and minerals you need. With the exception of ginger for the relief of morning sickness and raspberry leaf in the last trimester, avoid herbal preparations during pregnancy unless prescribed by your healthcare practitioner.

Pregnant women can have some light irregular bleeding during pregnancy, but it should not be like a “normal” period. Some women can confuse this for their period because it can occur around the same time as a normal period. The irregular bleeding or spotting that can occur during pregnancy is often a dark brown or light pink in colour. This discharge should be light and may be intermittent. If you are bleeding enough to fill pads and tampons, then this would be a good indication that you are not pregnant.

About 25-30% of pregnant women experience some type of spotting or bleeding in early pregnancy. This can be a result of many different factors including implantation bleeding, infection, cervical irritation, ectopic pregnancy or a threatened miscarriage. Many women who have this light bleeding go on to have normal pregnancies and healthy babies. Some women may experience light bleeding that can lead to heavier bleeding, potentially resulting in miscarriage. Unfortunately there is no way to predict whether or not vaginal bleeding will progress to miscarriage. If you experience light bleeding that continues to get heavier, accompanied by painful cramping, back pain or stabbing pains, then seek medical attention right away.

If you are having some odd symptoms that made you think you may be pregnant, but then experience heavy bleeding, you may want to see a healthcare provider to find out what is going on. These symptoms may be caused by a hormonal imbalance, an infection, or a possible miscarriage. The only way to know for sure is by seeking medical care.

Pregnant women can have some light cramping early in pregnancy. The cramping is often like light menstrual cramps through the lower abdomen or on one side or the other. The cramping is often a result of all the changes that are occurring in the uterus. The uterus is experiencing change as the implanted egg begins to grow and develop. Some light cramping may also be from the small cyst that can develop on the ovary at ovulation. A small cyst forms in the spot on the ovary where the egg pops out before making its journey to the uterus. This cyst then produces progesterone until the placenta has formed enough to begin producing its own progesterone. This small cyst can cause some discomfort for women in early pregnancy.

Many women have questions about the date of possible conception, and unfortunately figuring this out may not be easy. The assumption is that if a woman has regular menstrual cycles, then she will be ovulating during a certain time of the month. Ovulation is the time when conception can take place because that is when an egg is made available. The problem is that most women do not ovulate on an exact date each month, and many women have a different ovulation day from month to month. If you also take into account that sperm can live in the body 3-5 days after intercourse has taken place, this can make finding out the date of conception very difficult. Most doctors would use the first day of your last period and ultrasound measurements to estimate the gestational age of your baby, and from this information, determine when the baby was conceived. It is important to remember that these are just tools used to estimate the dates—it is very hard to determine the exact date of conception. Most people do not realise that ultrasounds can be inaccurate by as much as 5-7 days in early pregnancy and up to a couple weeks off if the first ultrasounds are done farther into the second trimester or beyond. The calculated due date is not an accurate tool for determining conception either, since it is only an estimation. Only 5% of women give birth on their due dates.

A negative result can mean that you are either not pregnant, you took the test too early, or you may have taken the test incorrectly. Pregnancy tests vary in their sensitivity. During pregnancy, human Chorionic Gonadotrophin (hCG) is released and pregnancy tests are used to test for this hormone. As there may be a delay between conception and production of hCG, it is possible to take the test too early (i.e. your body may not be producing detectable levels of hCG for that particular test. Also, if you let a test sit for too long, the test may become invalid, meaning you may need to take another test. It is best to follow the instructions and wait until you have missed a period before testing. Some women have accurate results on the day they miss a period, while others may not have a positive result until 3-4 weeks after a missed period. If the result is negative after missing a period, wait a week and test again if a normal period has not commenced.