Discuss how preconception care contributes to healthy pregnancy and positive pregnancy outcomes. Post answers as reply in the discussion forum.
Throughout the years, medical advancements in maternal-fetal medicine have significantly reduced maternal death. However, as the hazards of gestation to the mothers decreased, the fetuses remain as much vulnerable as before. This is evidenced by increased preterm births, miscarriages, neural tube defects, Down syndrome cases, and other chromosomal abnormalities over the last few decades. Furthermore, there has been an increase in the recognition of adult diseases with fetal origins. This suggests that there is something that is lacking in the way we provide maternal care and that there is a need to modify it in order to lessen and avoid fetal morbidity and mortality. This is where the importance of preconception care comes in.
It is said that every woman of reproductive age is already preconceptive, which means that it is beneficial to educate them as early as possible about the gestational requirements as well as the danger of exposures and how to avoid them, as these could make a significant difference in outcomes once they become pregnant. In order for these women to enjoy a pleasant experience on pregnancy and produce healthy babies, they must receive the determinants that are required and avoid those which are harmful to them. But as discussed in the article, this is not the case as more than 90% of American obstetricians claimed that they had no training in the field of environmental sciences and toxic exposure. Additionally, over the last few decades, there has been a significant decline in the nutritional content of food and there has been a change in the way we eat. These factors put the fetus of a pregnant woman with nutrient deficiencies and a regular exposure to a toxic environment at risk to a great number of diseases.
Since there has been a lack of preconception care and education, women do not realize that there are agents during gestation which do not affect themselves but have a harmful impact on the fetus. They would not understand that exposure to any amount of alcohol and nicotine will have adverse consequences for gestational outcomes and the developing fetus. That is why there has been a call for a multifaceted approach to preconception care and this can be done through public education, government regulation of toxicant release in the environment, provision of generalized instruction and individualized personal care for all reproductive aged women. It would significantly reduce child mortality, unplanned pregnancies, complications during pregnancy and deliveries, stillbirths and preterm births, and chromosomal abnormalities (WHO, 2013). All women in their reproductive years should be informed that securing adequacy and avoiding toxicity, both before and during gestation, is the answer to producing a healthy baby.
References
Genius, S. J., & Genius, R. A. (2016). Preconception Care: A New Standard of Care within. BioMed Research International.
World Health Organization. (2013). Preconception care: Maximizing the gains for maternal and child health. Policy brief.