What, Me Worry?

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 Suzanne Schlosberg

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.

From October/November 2007