Are You Pregnant? First Signs of Pregnancy

Some women won’t even consider the possibility that they are pregnant until the pregnancy test turns up positive. Others are anxious to know for sure and will look for the first signs of pregnancy long before a period is even missed. While the only definitive way to know if you are expecting is with a home pregnancy test or an exam in your doctor’s office, there are some first signs of pregnancy that many women will experience before that test is done.

Changes to the Body
While you may not experience the swollen belly and small kicks inside your abdomen until well into your second trimester, there are some first signs of pregnancy that are more subtle. Many women will first notice early pregnancy symptoms like changes to their breasts, even before the first day of a missed period. The breasts may begin to feel swollen or tender, much like they do prior to a period only with much more intensity. The tenderness is caused by hormone fluctuations that happen during those first few weeks after conception. Once your body adjusts to the hormone changes, those first signs of pregnancy will diminish.

Other women may find that they have to urinate more often than necessary, even getting up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom. While you don’t have an oversized stomach pressing on your bladder just yet, the hormones are increasing fluid levels in your body and the bladder has to work overtime to eliminate them. Unfortunately, this trouble won’t alleviate much during pregnancy, but you can look forward to less frequent bathroom breaks after the baby is born.

Fatigue and nausea can also be some of the first signs of pregnancy, although not all women will experience the effects of morning sickness. Fatigue is a very common first sign of pregnancy as your body adjusts to the hormone fluctuations and the new life growing inside. Most women find that they are less tired during the second trimester, but the fatigue will be back in the later months as a good night’s sleep becomes elusive and the body has to work overtime to support the baby.

For those that are actively trying to become pregnant and are using a basal body temperature chart to do so, they may find that the body’s basal temperature will remain high after conception has taken place. If this temperature stays elevated for 18 days or longer, there is a good chance that pregnancy has occurred.

These first signs of pregnancy may not be able to diagnose conception on their own, but they can indicate that a pregnancy test should be done – especially if the menstrual cycle does not occur on schedule. If you experience any of these early pregnancy symptoms and you have a late period, make an appointment with your doctor for a pregnancy test.

Red Meats that Make the List

While the benefits of low fat meats like fish and poultry are praised, red meats often get a bad rap because their fat content has been linked to various health problems. Eating lean cuts of red meat a couple times a week during pregnancy is a good idea however because they provide B-complex vitamins and important minerals like iron and zinc. The best diet for pregnancy includes lean cuts of red meat like sirloin steak and pork tenderloin.

The Three Bs: Beans, Broccoli and Berries

The best diet for pregnancy includes beans, broccoli and berries and here’s why. Beans like chickpeas, lentils, and soybeans are packed with nutrients like iron, fiber, protein, calcium, and zinc. Beans are a vegetarian pregnant woman’s best friend. Berries supply a good dose of Vitamin C, potassium, fiber, and folate. You can eat them in place of unhealthy, fat-laden desserts and pastries in order to satisfy that persistent sweet tooth. Broccoli is a versatile vegetable that contains a wide range of nutrients including folate, lutein, fiber, and calcium.

It’s All About Omega-3

Omega-3 fatty acids are all the rage, especially for women who are expecting. Studies have shown that omega-3 fatty acids promote brain development and vision in babies. The best diet for pregnancy should include salmon, eggs with omega-3, and flax seeds, all of which will provide you with these famous fatty acids. Chewing on a palm full of flax seeds is not tasty and no fun so in order to incorporate flax seeds into your diet, crush them and put them on salads, cereals, and oatmeal.

Believe me. Once you start adding these foods to your diet, you will notice a change in your general sense of well being. If you make the effort to eat pregnancy super-foods and follow the best diet for pregnancy, you will feel better, look better, and contribute to the healthy development and birth of your baby.

Breastfeeding and Dieting

Just as in your pre pregnancy diet and pregnancy diet, you need to make sure you are eating balanced, nutritious meals. This especially applies if you breastfeed because you need to nourish your baby with your breast milk and if you don’t follow a healthy post pregnancy diet, it will lead to nutritional deficiencies in you or your baby.

The upside to breastfeeding is that you will lose all the extra weight without following a stringent post pregnancy diet. During pregnancy you are required to consume 300 extra calories per day while during breastfeeding, you need to consume 500 extra calories. Don’t try to starve yourself or eat less in an attempt to lose weight. With patience, all the weight will come off naturally.

What Constitutes a Healthy Post Pregnancy Diet

Fruits and vegetables are an essential component of any effective post pregnancy diet. You need to make sure that you eat a large variety of fruits and vegetables to get all the vitamins and minerals your body and baby require. Eat generous amounts of fruits and vegetables weekly, eating meat only once or twice a week. Get your protein from other sources like beans and soy. When you do eat meat, stick to the lean meats like poultry and fish. Eat only fat-free or low-fat dairy products and avoid sweets and other junk foods as much as possible.

Exercise is Essential

Along with watching what you eat, get out and get moving! Nothing will make you pack on the pounds more than sitting around the house all day. The first weeks following pregnancy are rough and exhausting but when you feel ready, put your baby in a baby carrier or stroller and go for power walks. Also try yoga and exercise DVDs that you can do at home with your baby.

So what are you waiting for? Start putting these tips to use and improve your post pregnancy diet and lifestyle so you can lose that extra baby weight. Not only will you be taking a step towards improving your overall health, you will feel better and look better than you ever thought possible.

Going With The Digital Pregnancy Test

When it comes to taking home pregnancy tests, a lot of people have a fear that they will be unable to truly determine what the results from the test are. The reason people want to know right away is so that they can start their pregnancy diet and start getting the proper prenatal care. So that is why it is so important to go with a test that is sure to give you results that you can understand versus being just as confused as before you took the test.

There are a lot of tests on the market that offer results given in little pink lines. While sometimes the lines can come through extremely clear, this is not always the case. Sometimes the result can be extremely hard to read and this is why most people would rather just avoid those types of tests all together. If you are like that then you may to consider picking up a digital pregnancy test so that there is no confusion that will take place. The digital pregnancy test will give you a clear yes or no answer so that you do not have to do any guessing.

Where To Buy The Tests

Now that you have decided to go ahead and go with the digital pregnancy test there are a lot of places that you can find them. A lot of department stores are now carrying the digital pregnancy test and of course you can always find them in your local drug stores. The digital pregnancy test will be with all of the other types of pregnancy tests so they should not be all that hard to locate. There is a chance though that you will not be able to find it so easy in certain stores.

The only thing is though that some stores are no longer keeping the digital pregnancy test on the shelves. It seems that there are a lot of people out there trying to steal their pregnancy tests. This means that if the digital pregnancy test cannot be found on the store shelf that you are going to have to ask for assistance from someone behind the counter. While it may be embarrassing it is something that you are just going to have to go through in order to get the test that you need. Simply ask for the test and be done with it because you will be happy once you are able to take the test and get the clear results from it.

Understanding The Pregnancy Test Result

When it comes to taking a home pregnancy test, there are often a lot of questions that surround the issue of how to read it. This is why a lot of people love the idea of the digital pregnancy test because it is a clear yes or no as the pregnancy test result. But for the other tests out there, the pregnancy test result is not as clear always. When the test has the consumer trying to read little lines to determine if they are pregnant there is a lot of confusion that can take place. Sometimes the lines are not as clear as they should be and this can leave the woman with a lot of questions as to whether or not she is pregnant.

Generally this leaves people just as lost as they were before the tried getting a pregnancy test result. When it comes to wanting to get clear and accurate pregnancy test results you need to make sure that you get a test that can give you exactly what you are looking for. This is the best way to make sure that you do not end up wasting a lot of money, time, and getting yourself all frustrated and worked up. Especially if you are pregnant you are going to want to avoid as much stress as possible.

What You Can Trust

If you feel uneasy about trusting the pregnancy test result that comes from the over the counter tests that you can purchase on your own then there are other options for you. If you set up an appointment with your current doctor or a nearby clinic, then you will be able to get tested there. And that test would give you a pregnancy test result that you can trust and count on. There is no sense in worrying about the pregnancy test result that a store bought test is going to give you when you can make an appointment with your doctor and get more trust worthy results.

There are two basic ways that your doctor will pick form in order to get an accurate pregnancy test result for you. There are the urine samples that can be taken and used in order to determine if you are indeed pregnant. These tests are similar to what you would take at home but it is done under the supervision of the doctor and the staff there. There is also a blood test that can be done and these tests are the best when it comes to getting a quality pregnancy test result.

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