What, Me Worry?

By Suzanne Schlosberg

Are you protecting yourself and your baby by worrying about the right things, or making yourself crazy (and putting your pregnancy at risk) by fretting about the wrong stuff? Take our quiz, then see what the experts have to say.

By the time I got pregnant-after undergoing nearly every fertility treatment known to womankind-I knew most of what there is to know about conception. But once the dipstick turned blue, it dawned on me: I was clueless. For all I knew about getting pregnant, I knew zip about being pregnant.

I had no idea what to be concerned about and which common pregnancy worries to dismiss as overblown. Turns out, most women get these two categories confused: They fret endlessly about dangers that don't exist, doctors say, while ignoring issues that may well affect their pregnancies and the health of their babies. "The body is a great filter. It's designed for pregnancy," says Stuart Fischbein, M.D., an OB-GYN in Los Angeles and co-author of Fearless Pregnancy (Fair Winds Press). What the body wasn't designed for is today's sedentary lifestyle, which can affect pregnancy in ways that many women don't realize.

Are your worries well placed or off base? Take this quiz and find out if you need to get a clue.

1.If you don't experience nausea during the first trimester:
????A. You're at significantly higher risk for miscarriage.
????B. Your baby has an increased risk of birth defects.
????C. You shouldn't worry; there's no proven relationship between nausea and a healthy pregnancy.
????D. Your hormone levels are out of whack, and you should consult your doctor.

2. Sex during pregnancy:
????A. Is safe at any time, as long as you have no pregnancy complications.
????B. Is safe as long as you avoid oral sex.
????C. Should be avoided during the third trimester due to a possible link with preterm labor.
????D. Should primarily be avoided in the first trimester, until the pregnancy is well established.

3. If you want to consume foods or beverages with artificial sweetener:
????A. Wait until after you deliver, since no artificial sweetener is recognized as safe during pregnancy.
????B. Aspartame (NutraSweet and Equal) and sucralose (Splenda) are fine, but saccharin isn't.
????C. Sucralose is considered safe, but aspartame and saccharin are not.
????D. Consume as much as you want; all artificial sweeteners have been proved safe for pregnant women.

4. Excess weight gain during pregnancy:
????A. Increases the chances that your baby will become overweight and have high blood pressure in childhood.
????B. Increases your risk of remaining overweight after delivery but poses no real risk to the baby.
????C. Is not worth worrying about as long as your diet is high in protein and calcium
????D. Both A and B.

5. If you're having a low-risk pregnancy, avoid air travel:
????A. In the first trimester.
????B. After 32 weeks.
????C. After 36 weeks.
????D. Both A and C.

6. If you drank alcohol before you first suspected you were pregnant:
????A. Don't worry too much - your baby is likely to develop normally as long as you avoid booze from here on out.
????B. Your baby's risk of being born with fetal alcohol syndrome is slightly increased, by about 12 percent.
????C. Your baby's risk of developing fetal alcohol syndrome is substantially increased, by 42 percent.
????D. Your baby is at slightly greater risk of low birth weight, under 5 1/2 pounds.

7. When you exercise during pregnancy:
????A. Don't let your heart rate exceed 140 beats per minute; otherwise, you'll raise your core temperature, potentially causing neural-tube defects.
????B. Avoid cardio exercise other than walking during the first trimester, when the risk of miscarriage is highest.
????C. Limit your workouts to 30 minutes to prevent your baby's blood supply from being siphoned away to your working muscles.
????D. It's fine to continue your prepregnancy exercise routine, as long as you use common sense and avoid super-high-intensity workouts and activities that pose a high risk of falling.

8. Coloring your hair during pregnancy:
????A. Is not recommended by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), because there's no conclusive evidence about its effects on the baby.
????B. Is not recommended by the FDA, because a substantial body of research suggests a link between hair coloring in the first trimester and birth defects.
????C. Is considered perfectly safe after the first trimester.
????D. Both A and C.

9. If you have a cat:
????A. Stay away from your feline throughout your pregnancy because you could catch toxoplasmosis, a parasitic disease that can lead to preterm labor and birth defects.
????B. Wash your hands thoroughly after changing the litter box or have someone else handle this chore.
????C. Don't come within 10 to 12 feet of the litter box; toxoplasmosis parasites may linger in the air.
????D. Limit contact with the cat until you're in your second trimester.

10. During pregnancy, caffeine:
????A. Should be avoided entirely because intake is linked to miscarriage.
????B. Is fine as long as you limit consumption to once or twice a week.
????C. Is OK in amounts found in chocolate or soda, but coffee and tea should be avoided.
????D. Is considered safe up to 300 milligrams per day, the amount found in two 16-ounce Starbucks Caffe Lattes.

Are your worries well placed or off base?

1. If you don't experience nausea during the first trimester:
The correct answer was C. While some studies have indicated that women who experience morning sickness have a lower risk of miscarriage, most women who never feel nauseous while pregnant do not miscarry. "There's simply no proven correlation between morning sickness and a healthy pregnancy," says Fearless Pregnancy author Stuart Fischbein, M.D.

2. Sex during pregnancy:
The correct answer was A. "Intercourse and oral sex are perfectly fine during a normal, uncomplicated pregnancy," says Gerard M. DiLeo, M.D., author of The Anxious Parent's Guide to Pregnancy (Contemporary Books) and an assistant clinical professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of South Florida in Tampa. Of course, your doctor may advise you to avoid sex if you experience pregnancy complications such as placenta previa (an abnormally located placenta), bleeding or signs of preterm labor.?

3. If you want to consume foods or beverages with artificial sweetener:
The correct answer was B. "Saccharin is thought to be a low-level carcinogen and should be avoided, even when you're not pregnant," says Elisabeth Aron, M.D., senior clinical instructor at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center and author of Pregnancy Do's & Don'ts (Broadway Books). But the FDA considers aspartame and sucralose to be safe at any time in moderate amounts.

4. Excess weight gain during pregnancy:
The correct answer was A. "Gaining too much weight increases your risk of gestational diabetes, and it's possible that it could also predispose a fetus to developing diabetes and heart disease," Aron says. In a recent Harvard Medical School study, 51 percent of expectant women gained more weight than the Institute of Medicine recommends (25 to 35 pounds for women who begin pregnancy at a normal weight). Compared with women who gained less weight than recommended, these women were four times more likely to have a child who was overweight by age 3. Some experts are even challenging the current weight-gain guidelines as too generous.

5. If you're having a low-risk pregnancy, avoid air travel:
The correct answer was C. "Air travel is safe during pregnancy," says Aron. "It hasn't been associated with increased birth defects, miscarriage or preterm labor." Although cabin humidity is low, it's easy to stay hydrated simply by drinking water. And developing blood clots is highly unlikely, especially if you move about frequently. "If yours is a high-risk pregnancy or you're close to your due date, consult your care provider first," Aron adds. You won't want to go into labor on a long flight.

6. If you drank alcohol before you first suspected you were pregnant:
The correct answer was A. "Most of the time when alcohol is consumed before a woman even knows she's pregnant, it hasn't affected the fetus's organs," Aron says. That's because in the two weeks between ovulation and a positive pregnancy test there isn't a well-established blood connection between the fetus and the mother. This "safe window" assumes you find out very early that you're pregnant; if you have any doubt about whether you might be (say, because your periods are irregular), quit drinking immediately. However, Aron adds, "There is no known safe alcohol intake during pregnancy, and fetal alcohol syndrome has been seen in children of women who had very few drinks." In other words, abstinence is the safest course.

7. When you exercise during pregnancy:
The correct answer was D. Even among serious joggers, studies show that regular exercise does not increase the risk of miscarriage, birth defects, premature labor or restricted fetal growth. "You cannot shake a normal pregnancy loose," Fischbein says. As long as you stay well hydrated and avoid high heat and humidity or superlong, hard workouts, you needn't worry about spiking your baby's temperature or decreasing his blood supply. Pregnant women have an increased blood volume and ability to eliminate the extra heat generated during exercise.

8. Coloring your hair during pregnancy:
The correct answer was D. Coloring your hair throughout pregnancy is probably safe, because only a tiny amount of dye, if any, is absorbed through your scalp, Fischbein says. But since research is skimpy and it's unclear how much, if any, of these chemicals may reach the fetus, doctors suggest waiting until after the first trimester. If you do color your hair, don't leave the dye on any longer than necessary, and rinse your scalp thoroughly afterward. Highlights, which don't touch the scalp, are even safer.

9. If you have a cat:
The correct answer was B. "The risk of getting toxoplasmosis from a cat is overblown," Aron maintains. Cats get infected from eating raw meat (such as a bird) that has been contaminated by this parasite, and the disease is passed through the cat's feces. To catch it, you'd have to touch the feces and then touch your mouth. "It's more common to get toxoplasmosis from eating undercooked foods or unwashed vegetables," Aron says, noting that this is a common childhood infection and many adults are immune to it. But to be on the safe side, wear gloves and wash your hands when changing the litter box or delegate the chore to someone else.

10. During pregnancy, caffeine:
The correct answer was D. Although a high caffeine intake has been linked in some studies to miscarriage or low birth weight, getting 300 milligrams a day appears to be completely safe, Aron says. But watch out: A 16-ounce ("grande") Coffee of the Week at Starbucks contains 330 mg of caffeine.

Here's What Your Score Means

Give yourself 10 points for each correct answer. If you scored:

50 or below
Instead of getting your pregnancy information from your hairdresser or mother, get a clue, start reading the kinds of books mentioned in this article and talk to your doctor or midwife.

60 or 70
You might be fretting more than you need to about the wrong things (and vice versa). A bit of a brushup on the facts could be in order.

80 or above
Congratulations! You're well-informed and concerned about the right issues. You can stop worrying right now.