Kids are a blessing in our lives. You will hardly ever come across anyone who doesn’t wish to have their own baby. However, just giving them life is not the only responsibility of a mother. It is essential to ensure optimal health of both mom and the baby after birth. The top priority for prenatal care’s is to bring a healthy baby into this world.
If we refer back to the old times, having one baby yearly was a norm. Every household was blessed with at least eight to ten kids – sometimes even more. Today, it’s quite uncommon. With the change in time, society, behaviors, and needs, having more than two kids is also becoming rare.
Now talk about the gap between children and it suddenly becomes a taboo. In such a case, the only thing one should really pay attention to is the health of the mother who has recently given birth to a baby after nurturing him or her for nine months in her womb. Not only she struggles throughout the pregnancy, falls sick, and undergoes a life-threatening birthing procedure, she is also responsible for nurturing and upbringing of the baby. She has the right to take a break and give herself and her body time to heal before she is ready again.
Taking gap between children is important and here are all the reasons why:
Gap is Necessary
A woman’s body undergoes a lot of changes during pregnancy and birthing. She does not only bear a lot of pain but is also internally weak. Thus, it’s essential to take at least 2-3 years of gap between babies.
In case of a c-section, even doctors suggest taking at least 3 years of a gap to allow the body and stitches to heal completely. A woman is weak and lacks a lot of nutrition and strength in her body. If she gets pregnant again soon, her health may only deteriorate further instead of getting better.
Lack of Nutrition
In our average middle-class homes, where it’s difficult to take care of the expenses with limited income, affording good and nutritious food is a challenge. Now think about a pregnant woman, whose nutrition requirements are more than an average person.
The lack of nutrition is often a major threat to a pregnant woman’s health. Whatever she intakes is consumed by the baby to fulfill his/her nutrition requirement. As a result, the mother becomes weak with time especially if she is iron deficient. To ensure she is able to take care of the baby to the best of her abilities, it’s important that she is healthy.
Average Time for Breastfeeding
The recommended time for a mother to breastfeed her baby is two years. If she gets pregnant soon after giving birth, her physical condition and lack of nutrition could affect the supply of milk. As a result, the baby is deprived of his/her natural source of nutrition.
Doing so is not only harmful to the baby but also for the mother. If a breastfeeding mother gets pregnant within the first two years of giving birth, the doctor often suggests increasing the supply of nutrition. In case she is unable to do so, even the unborn baby suffers.
Lack of Pure Food
We are all aware of the type of food we are fed these days. We all want our children to be healthy to ensure our future is in safe and strong hands. However, if the mother is unhealthy, she may not be able to nurture a healthy baby.
Unfortunately, we are all deprived of pure and healthy food. And in case we have an access, it’s pretty impossible to afford it. The gap allows a mother to take her time to be healthy again and consume better food so her body can take its time to heal accordingly.
Understanding the Reality
First and foremost, it’s important to understand and accept that today’s woman is different from women of the last generation and cannot afford to have a baby every year or give birth to 10-12 babies. Neither her health nor her demanding lifestyle allows her to do that.
Our girls, who are growing up all malnourished and consuming unhealthy, impure food, do not have enough strength in their body to give birth to a baby every year. It doesn’t only affect their health but also affects their offspring.
Thus, it’s very important for women to maintain optimal prenatal care to raise healthy children, who will be responsible for a stronger society in the future. While we cannot change the system, we can definitely change our thoughts and approach in this regard.
Image Source:
http://www.advancingchildrenshealth.com
Reviewed by Dr. Nida
Doctor’s note:
Kindly have a preconception visit from your family physician or gynecologist, especially if you have faced problems in your previous pregnancy like diabetes, hypertension, or thyroid.
