It is emphasized in the article that the foundation and objective of the provision of maternal-child health care is to "secure adequacy and avoid toxicity" in the gestational phase. However, the first trimester of pregnancy is considered to be the most crucial yet often dismissed or mismanaged stage, but through pre-conception care, such tendency can be prevented. Pre-conception care or PCC, according to World Health Organization (2013), refers to the provision of biomedical, behavioral, and social health interventions aimed at improving their health status and behaviors and at reducing individual and environmental factors contributing to poor maternal and child health outcomes. PCC can be in the form of health teaching and counseling (e.g., on nutrition and diet and on toxicant avoidance), screening and testing (e.g., toxicology testing to measure toxicant exposure and bioaccumulation), and immunizations and medications (e.g., against vaccine-preventable diseases; dietary supplementation; maintenance medications for those who have comorbidities).
Since PCC is done prior to conception, this will allow the women of reproductive age, and even their partners, to prepare a healthy body and a healthy environment conducive to fetal growth and development, especially for planned or unexpected pregnancies, as well as to maternal health and well-being, regardless of her childbearing intentions. For instance, a woman already taking 400 mcg of folic acid daily at least 1 month before pregnancy can prevent neural tube defects of the baby. A woman who smokes (or living with someone who smokes) but plans to have a baby can have ample time for a lifestyle change, e.g., quit smoking, so as to ensure that the smoking habit will not continue especially throughout pregnancy, thus, lowering the chances of premature birth, birth defects, and infant death. A woman who is obese and plans to have a baby can be prescribed special diets to reach a normal weight so as to decrease her risk of pregnancy complications like gestational diabetes mellitus and preeclampsia. Therefore, PCC equips women and their partners with health-promotive and disease-preventive knowledge, skills, and attitudes towards a healthy pregnancy and positive pregnancy outcomes.
Reference:
World Health Organization. (2013). Preconception Care: Maximizing the Gains for Maternal and Child Health. https://www.who.int/maternal_child_adolescent/documents/preconception_care_policy_brief.pdf