Benefits of Folic Acid Supplements During Pregnancy

When I found out that we were pregnant, my first worry (and one that I carried out throughout my pregnancy) was that I didn’t start taking my Folic Acid supplements soon enough.  Back then, I didn’t know much about its importance except that it helps prevent neurological disorders in the growing baby. It was only when I got my pregnancy reading material in place that I realised how much it helps during pregnancy.

Why take  Folic Acid Supplements? 

Folic Acid is basically a type of Vitamin B.  As our body does not produce this vitamin, we need to acquire it through our diet or other supplements.  It is found in leafy vegetables, legumes and eggs.

Our current urban lifestyle that includes an increased intake of processed foods, chemically treated vegetables and many lifestyle disorders make it a little difficult to gain the required amount of folic acid through natural sources.

No matter how  balanced natural and organic you keep your diet, you can never be sure of the amount of folic acid you are getting. To avoid such nutritional uncertainties, doctors often prescribe folic acid supplements (along with iron and calcium) to pregnant women.

What are the Benefits of Folic Acid Supplements? 

Many call folic acid the ‘superhero’ of pregnancy. Here is why:

1. Helps make more Red Blood Cells
2.  Helps with the synthesis and development of DNA and RNA
3. Aids rapid cell division and growth
4. Prevents the fetus from developing congenital deformities
5. Essential for the development of the spinal cord of the fetus
6. Prevents Neural Tube Abnormalities in the growing fetus
7.  Reduces the chances for  facial clefts 

How much folic Acid does a pregnant woman need?

Women who have a history of genetic disorders in their family, often need more folic acid intake than others. Similarly the to-be mother’s physical health condition can also influence the amount of folic acid prescribed. Generally speaking,  around 400 micrograms of folic acid is prescribed commonly during pregnancy.

Folic acid intake is focused upon before pregnancy (when you start planning a family) and during early pregnancy.  The truth though is, that it is important even in the last trimester, particularly among Indian women.

So a consistent and doctor approved dosage of folic acid is important for a healthy pregnancy.

Folic Acid and Facial Clefts 

A lot is said about the other benefits of Folic Acid, but even though nearly 35000 children are born with Cleft palates every year [¹] ; very little is spoken about this to expectant parents and the public in general.

What causes clefting in the fetus is not clearly known because a very complex genetic and environmental (mother’s health included) factors influence its presence/absence. However, what is known is that a good amount of folic acid intake regularly that takes into account your personal and family medical history and physical health is one of the ways to minimise its occurance.

Cleft lips or cleft palates can be diagnosed early and most often surgically reversed to a great extent during infancy.

What goes unnoticed by many is that basic information on this is unavailable to most. Our nationwide Diagnostic Abilities are limited, especially in rural areas. Even today there is a lot of stigma and myth associated with this condition.

I was shocked to find that orofacial clefting (a split or opening in the lip and/or roof of the mouth) is not even covered under the Right of Persons with Physical Disabilities Act of 2016. This comes as a shocker when one knows that cleft affects a person’s speaking abilities. In children it makes it difficult for them to take food properly, particularly in the early days of their lives.

The role of non-governmental organisations in the field of prevention of such birth conditions among children ranges from generating awareness to generating the resources to combat them.  You can read more about one such programme that is setting an example for us all here.

To know more do visit :

http://anamayaindopacific.org/

https://www.facebook.com/Anamayaindopacific/

A lot of development and growth happens for the baby during your early pregnancy. The process of their development inside you is so complex that it is easy to feel overwhelmed or even scared for the life growing inside you.

While everything is never always in your control; there are many easy steps to take care of yourself and the baby, and the easiest one among them is to speak to your doctor and make sure you take enough folic acid before and during your pregnancy.

Did you find this article useful? Share your thoughts below.

 

Minimalism and Parenting

Talk about parenting to your parents and they will definitely tell you how raising children (us) was harder back in the day when they didn’t have all the ‘things’ that we have.  I have always responded to the above remark with ‘well, times have changed, the challenges are different today, it doesn’t make the job any easier.’

They say we have more things, I say we have more choices. Modern parenting is all about choices. What do we feel and understand about that? First impression: Choices is good. It means you have access to many options and can decide to go for one that suits you best.

But if you look deeper, you will see the difficulty it brings. SO MANY DECISIONS from choosing clothes to schools and from choosing vegetables to developmental activities… we have way too many choices and we spend most of our time and energy in understanding these choices and making what we think is the best decision for our child.

They say we have things, I say we have more. We are not the first generation to be plagued by the concept of possession or things. But we are definitely the torch bearers of the concept of MORE. More toys, More gadgets, More activities, More clothes, More parties, More achievements, More classes, More degrees, not to forget more expert advice and More competition, More …More…More….

So, we have an issue of having more things (to own, to do and to be), that results in more choices.

Personally, for us ‘minimalism’ has been like a rude alarm clock on Monday Morning, that suddenly moves you out of the weekend and throws you unkindly into the real world. It is rude and harsh, but it is also the thing that propels you to achieve, and provides you with that initial charge you need to jumpstart your day.

While reading about minimalism we found that less is more.

Less toys: More attention span for the child, better opportunity for the child to fully engage with a toy.

Less clothes: More organised cupboards, more storage space for other things, more utilisation of what you have.

Less food: More attention on what you put in your mouth. More likely to reduce wastage at home

Less things: More free time (previously used to clean, store and arrange things), more organised environment (de-cluttering) and more focus on experiences.

About Minimalism

Everybody who follows the minimalistic lifestyle, will describe it differently to you. It basically refers to shifting into a simple lifestyle that is more connected to your values and what makes you truly happy. It is also about removing everything that distracts you from achieving what really truly makes you happy. So it has a certain amount of ‘intentionality’ associated to it, that makes it a lifestyle focusing on making things better and improving all aspects of life.

Our take on Minimalism

We realised that this chaotic environment of ‘more choices’ was actually quite toxic. It meant more of the hard stuff, like more multi-tasking, more anxiety, more decisions, more confusion and more chaos. Ultimately it leads to varying degrees of what can be best described as ‘over-parenting‘.

It is difficult to say when you become overly engrossed with parenting. Who knows where to draw the line? This is call everyone must make after considering the nature, interests and aspirations of their child as well as the realities of their own adult lives and schedules.  But think about it, how much your child will gain from a de-cluttered life. Think about the creative juices that will begin to flow, when you are not intentionally engaging them every minute of every day, but just letting them be for sometime. Think about the memories you will make with them by sharing not just toys but also experiences with them.

We thought about it, and we really loved the idea. We have slowly started working towards a minimalistic life. It is not an overnight change. It is a very gradual process, there is no 1 level you can reach where you can call yourself completely minimal because there is no universal standard for minimalism, but you can definitely attempt to go minimalistic by doing away with some excesses at a time.

What is this excess?- what seems excessive to you can seem necessary to another. Formula for instance! or some commercial baby food. Some parents swear by breast pumps and bottles while others say it’s a needless expense and  boobs are all you need. Some parents will tell you that you need a stroller others will tell you its unnecessary.

How to go minimalistic 

Keeping this in mind, we urge parents to go for minimalism because it works well for the environment, keeps a check on our consumerist tendencies and does a world of good for our children. But be realistic, do what you must to stay afloat and sane. Start by doing small things like:

• Toy Rotation
• Book Rotation
• When you buy something ask yourself do you really really need it
• When you buy something new, remove something old from your cupboard
• Use Reuse Recycle
• Allow your children to get bored once in a while
• Try to find what makes you and your family truly happy, do more of that
• Try to keep your home free of things that you are not actively using.

 You can take this further by reducing the furniture you have, making gadget-free spaces and by doing away with all the unused toys in the house so that you can replace them with your presence and wonderful experiences. It is up to you how minimal you want to be, be careful of thinking of minimalism as the opposite of indulgence. It is so much more than that.

Here is hoping that I have triggered your interest in minimalistic parenting. Do read up more on this so-called old school, very cool and useful lifestyle and share your findings, views and thoughts with us.

 

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I gave up! ….To dream a bigger dream.

To put this blog in a single sentence. I quit a well paying full time job to live the life of my dreams.

FOR ME (putting it in big bold letters so that you understand that what follows pertains to only the writer of this blog-me), Motherhood, came with the license  to switch off from my career.  I (note the bold) have come to understand, that we are living in a place and time where, if someone asks why you quit your job, and you point towards your child; that could actually just end that discussion right there. These are times when we use phrases like ‘working woman, working mother’; something that is unique to our gender and role (there is no such thing as a working father or a working man…because ofcourse all men and fathers must go to work!)

I understand that it is in this context of things, that I have never been asked why I decided to quit my job or why I later started freelancing. Infact, today not many around me even know what I am upto. The discussion of what I am upto with my life is no longer found necessary, because – BABY.  However, I think it is time I put it out there, atleast through this space that is mine, that I didn’t quit my job to embrace the role of a stay at home mother.

But I did use the time I got off, to re-evaluate my choices and make some strong decisions. One such decision was to step out from the comfort of a fulltime job and do what I always wanted to do – make an impact on the lives of others. After almost 8 years of working (full time, part time and as a fellow), I was deciding to take the plunge of being unemployed. So that I could focus on what I really wanted to do with my life- be my own boss and do my own thing. Back then I didnt even have an idea of what it was that I wanted to do (I have come one step ahead from there. Now I have an idea of what I want to do.)

I firmly believe, that my dreams are a big part of who I am, and that I must go all the way to try and make my dreams come true. I decided to take it slow, so that I get time for me, my ideas(Dreams) and my child.

To be honest, I have had something in mind from the time I was in college. But to really take that dream up, I had to give up on a big part of my financial independence. AND I DID IT.  I am living everyday with three hundred questions in my mind about whether I will ever make it, this is a few thousand miles away from my comfort zone.

I like to think, that we are quite daring. Not the adventure sports kind of daring, but you know, the sneaky and break the rules kind of daring (just so we have enough stories to tell our grandchild). But nothing I have ever done shook me up the way this decision did. It has been one of the most emotional, difficult and trying journey since. But we are working through it. Things are finally beginning to look good and the way ahead seems to be charted.

So, when I thought of the prompt for this blogathon, I thought it is apt to talk about how I gave up one dream and embraced another. This blogathon came with many prompts that I could choose from: Dare to say no/give up/speak up/share/break free.

Although I would title this is a dare to give up..I also:

I dared to say no to compromise

I dared to not give up on my aspirations

I dared to speak up about my life choices

I dared to share the fact that I too have a dream

I dared to break free from the shackles of  at least some of life’s have tos and stepped into a world of want tos.

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P.S: I have nothing against stay at home moms or dads. To me, career choices are personal, irrespective of gender.  If it seems otherwise, that is the fault of my writing, not my thinking.

I would like to thank  Ravijot from shiningshower.com for introducing me to this blogathon, and request you to go head to the blog of Avika from The Momma Cafe   to read more about her take on the prompts.

 

Hosted By :

#MyLittleMuffin

#TheMomSagas

#Mummasaurus

Slow claps to the wonderful team of The Momsteins for hosting yet another fabulous blogathon.

 

YOU MATTER

A Parent is many things rolled into one. An adult, a child, a cousin, a spouse, a parent, a cook, a counselor, a teacher, a friend and so much more.

Some days are just a battle between our own roles. Days when you are more of a child but need to seriously be an adult can drive any regular human being nuts. But not parents, because we are not allowed to lose it!

Becoming a parent is the easiest way to lose your independent identity. Suddenly who you are becomes in relation to another person. You are no longer you…you are someone’s something. At once that can make you feel both loved and wanted as well as lost and bound.

A day will come when the kids grow up and move out, the relatives perish or seize to be important and you will still be left with that daunting question : who am i…for me.

working or having a career can be one way of finding your purpose.. But it isnt the only way nor is it a foolproof way. What you need is the mindset, that I am someone…beyond the roles I play. Beyond the Gods I pray to, and beyond to people I care for..I am someone to me.

Think of your hobbies, think of working on your skills. Think of studying. Cultivate new tastes, enhance your knowledge. Read and feed your brain. You are a parent….but you are also a lot more. You are your only shot at exploring the world and the wonders it holds there in.

 

Start this Monday on this note. A note to you about yourself. Make sure to keep it on the top of all other reminders for the week. Write it in bold and stick it on your fridge even..THIS IS YOUR LIFE TOO. YOUR ONLY LIFE.