Biological – The effects of diet in pregnancy

1. Biological – The effects of diet in pregnancy Karina Ray, Amy Howell and Kiera Harris

2. Karina Ray What does the term ‘biological’ mean? • The term biological means when people relate to living organisms that are genetically related to one another and have things a like and in common. • This topic reflects on different lives of certain species which include mainly their structure-how it is formed or shaped, function-what its job or role is within the body and growth-how it has developed. • This is explored as each living body inherits traits from both parents and that’s how biology changes because there are more species to then evolve. • With biology people also explore what is caused in these areas and what else it can effect around them when life happens. • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biology

3. How can diet effect pregnancy? • Diet affects pregnancy because it effects the growth of the baby and the women. Also Diet can affect pregnancy because they wouldn’t have any energy to keep the baby alive. It would then stop the baby and the women from getting the nutrients they need. The women needs to be having a lot of calcium because the baby is taking all the nutrients away so sometimes the women could suffer brittle bones and many more things. Bella would be affected more because her heart condition didn’t form organs properly due to lack of nutrition.

4. Physical • If a woman follows a poor diet during pregnancy it is likely the baby will pick up this habit, especially if it carries on after childbirth. A poor diet can lead to health problems such as obesity, diabetes and heart defects. • Due to unborn babies needing a large amount of nutrients in order to grow, if the mother has a poor diet with little useful nutrients the baby’s growth will be affected. So a babies birth weight might be below average, their limbs might not develop fully (toes and fingers not being separated) and their organs might not develop properly. • A mothers diet during pregnancy is closely linked to the likeliness of the baby developing obesity in later life. Having a diet high in saturated fat, sugar and salt means that the foetus is at risk as these substances travel through their bloodstream. It will also have a negative effect on the baby’s liver as blood flow is compromised. This will result in the baby’s liver not being able to process high fat foods effectively causing a higher risk of obesity and heart disease in later life. Health development advice (2011) Poor diet during pregnancy. [online] Available at: http://www.hda-online.org.uk/obesity/causes/diet-pregnancy.html [Accessed: 8 Feb 2013].

5. Eating foods high in saturated fat, sugar and salt will raise the level of glucose and insulin in the baby’s bloodstream, which can increase the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. • Heart defects such as heart disease, Aortic valve stenosis and Atrial Septal Defect can be the result of a poor diet during pregnancy as they foetus wont have the required nutrients and energy for cell growth. • Having a poor diet during pregnancy could have had an affect on Bella’s birth weight as it was below average. It also could have caused her to be born prematurely. Bella was also born with an Atrial Septal Defect and anaemia which could have been caused or worsened by a lack of nutrition and energy.

6. Intellectually • Following a poor diet during pregnancy can put the baby at risk of behavioural problems and learning difficulties as their intellectual development is effected. This is because the formation of cell to cell connections, cell division and foetal growth are affected as nutrition and energy from the mother are needed for development. Totally living (2011) Poor pregnancy diets affects baby's IQ. [online] Available at: http://www.totallyliving.co.uk/family-and-relationships/2011/01/18/poor-pregnancy-diet-affects-baby-s-iq [Accessed: 8 Feb 2013]. • As Bella was born with downs syndrome she will learn at a slower rate to the average child. However, if her mother followed a poor diet, this could worsen her learning abilities.