BIG BABY AND DIETARY ROLE

It was her very first pregnancy and she had tried so hard to adapt to the lifestyle challenges posed by it on her but the more she tried, new doors introducing new challenges opened up.

Her first trimester was graced with nausea (urge to vomit), excessive salivating like a dog chained, on fast, and presented with the aroma of a sumptuous meal. She threw up even the best appetizing meal like an angry volcanoe and could only tolerate soft drinks which she soon became used to.

Later in her second trimester, the above episodes gave way, her appetite improved and she decided to recover the weeks the locust attacked. The more she ate the hungrier she became.
After her routine antenatal visit at 36 weeks, tears filled her eyes, as she kept staring at her protruding tommy. She had been counselled on ceaserean delivery of the 'big baby'.

BIG BABY
Known in medical parlance as Fetal Macrosomia is considered by some as weight of 4kg and above while another school of thought designates it as weight of 4.5kg and above.

BIG BABY AND DIETARY ROLE

Big baby may have a genetic predisposition but like most genetic conditions environmental factors, in this case, diet, plays a very important role.
Carbohydrates is a very important nutritional requirement in 1st and 2nd trimesters because it supplies the fetus energy for growth and development. In the third trimester, there is a switch in the nutritional need of a pregnant woman to favor more protein intake than carbohydrates .

Hormones, Diet and Big baby

The hormones of pregnancy notably Progesterone, Human Chorionic somammotropin and Pregnancy associated Plasma Proteins are 'anti-insulin' and increase in quantities as pregnancy advances. By 3rd trimester, they effectively stop insulin from driving sugar into maternal cells thereby increasing maternal blood sugar levels. More sugar therefore flows to the baby and results in Big baby.

Therefore the 3rd trimester is very crucial to dietary control especially carbohydrates in other to avoid having Big babies and it's complications to be discussed in the next article.

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