[kylie]

Do you feel there is increasing pressure to be thin in pregnancy? This month’s feature “Is the pressure on to be thin in pregnancy” questions whether we are being denied the opportunity to be happily round and plump during pregnancy, if that is what our bodies intended.

We would love to hear your experiences. Of course, there are women who naturally stay slim throughout their pregnancy and we are by now means trying to make them feel uncomfortable, rather we are trying to get an understanding of whether there is pressure out there regarding weight gain in pregnancy!

Feel free to respond to the poll questions below and then post any comments in the board to discuss further. I have heard so many people talking about this topic at different times and would love to hear everyones thoughts on this topic!

[bronbron]

In my experience, the problem with weight gain (or perceptions about it) isn't from the caregivers, but from the general public who feel it is their right to give you their two cents' worth about your pregnancy. I have put on 15kgs since my prepreg weight, and I have been told by various people over the past 8 months that I'm too fat, too thin, such-and-such only put on 10kgs, so-and-so put on 20kg... but neither my ob-gyn nor my midwife have made any comments about my weight, although they do tell me that all is going well and both Bubba and I are healthy (which is the main thing), so I don't worry about it. My advice to newly pregnant women, by the way, is "smile and nod" and let it all slide off, because *everyone* has *something* to say about every aspect of pregnancy!

[steam cleaned ba...]

nope no pressure here.

but when you have sticks out there like the sorts of nicole ritchie falling pg. maybe it is putting pressure on those women who follow trends and are swayed by celebrities that it is "the" thing to do when pg???

btw, i was fortunate with my weight gains in pg. and it was never an issue for me to put it on or to loose it after.

[satanskitti]

I think there is pressure. I started my pregnancy at a size 16 and through constant around the clock morning sickness and pretty much nine months in and out of hospital I got down to a size 10 and had a small baby.

Post baby four years plus I am not a 14 and my DP places so much pressure on me being a healthy size 10-12 before we ttc.

Where his notion of a size 14 being unhealthy comes from, I don't know. All I know is that at almost 180cm and size 14 I feel wonderfully healhty.

There is pressure from him and family, and also my GP made comment about losing a few kilos before TTCing when I asked about folic acid.

[just-call-me-mar...]

well I've been overweight as a teenager then was seriously underweight and obsessed by dieting for most of my 20's ....so I let pregnancy go to my head and ate whatever I wanted but did aqua aerobics 3-4 times a week and walked everywhere...I had a big healthy bubba so wouldn't change a thing!

My ob is fabulous and says there's no reason to weigh during pregnancy and he doesn't...thank goodness because I gained almost 15kgs and that was on top of the weight gained during my fertility treatment.... but compared to being underweight to start with I'd take the weight gain anyday

I loved being pregnant and my big yummy tummy and I can't wait to be pregnant again....there is a reason we gain weight during pregnancy and we shouldn't be looking to hollywood mama's or worry about our weight....in fact I love seeing the hollywood stars looking pregnant and healthy but hate how when they are gaining weight they are in the mags criticised for it like kate hudson or salma hayek recently!

anyway thats my 2cents worth for the day

Corrie:)

ps mande77 I think 14 is our australian average and hope your dh comes around and sees that!

This post has been edited by corri: 05/08/2007, 07:27 AM

[mumto4monkeys]

i only feel bad about the weight gained on my hips as i dont fit into my normal clothes and its not bc of my belly- its because i have gained fat!

but no one has mentioned that as being a bad thing. And i lose it no prob after bub, i would not like it if it didnt go.

I think there is more pressure for mums to get back to pre- baby body in 6m than weight during pregnancy.

[zara-b]

Sorry, but this article really annoys me!

Not all thin women are vain and self-obsessed, and the same goes for thin pregnant women.

Why is it okay to refer to a woman as a 'stick insect', but not a 'fat cow'? They are both insulting and rude. And PS. thin women are 'normal' people too!!

Some of us are blessed with good genes, a fast metabolism, can eat whatever we want and still remain skinny, pregnant or not. Any 'Rubenesque' woman who has a problem with that should just mind her own bloody business!

Doctors and health professionals will tell you that the idea of 'eating for two' is a myth, and women should only increase the amount they eat by a fairly small amount during pregnancy- that it's the nutritional quality of the food you're putting in your body that is the most important thing.

I'm sure there are some women who feel strong pressure to maintain their weight during pregnancy, and I agree that the baby should come first, and that society puts a lot of pressure on women to be thin. But how do you know that the women you see exercising in the park aren't putting their babies first? When obesity is a major health crisis in this country, I think we'd do better to look at women who overeat and don't exercise at all during pregnancy, putting themselves and their babies at risk of developing any number of health complications.

[dafne]

Doctors and health professionals will tell you that the idea of 'eating for two' is a myth, and women should only increase the amount they eat by a fairly small amount during pregnancy- that it's the nutritional quality of the food you're putting in your body that is the most important thing.

I agree!
I think it is important not to gain too much or too little weight, and pregnancy is not an excuse to eat massive bowls of ice cream like the article photo suggests...

[mischiefmaker]

Do you feel there is increasing pressure to be thin in pregnancy?

Absolutely not.

[~*~Jacqui~*~]

Like Zara, the article did annoy me abit.

I don't gain a lot of weight while I'm pregnant. Even in my third pregnancy you couldn't tell I was pregnant until around the 30 week and if you saw me from any other angle except side-on you still wouldn't know I was pregnant. I only every gain a baby belly, no weight anywhere this.

My lack of weight gain has nothing to do with dieting during my pregnancy, infact this last one I could actually eat & not throw it up however I still only gained 6kgs.

Maybe I have a great group around me but I have never felt the need to be thin during pregnancy and I have also never been pressured to lose the weight afterwards.

Personally, I think it has more to do with the people around you. If your DP or Mother or Friends are constantly commenting on your weight, whether it's a gain or a lack of gain then you are more likely to feel pressure.

All women are different, all pregnancies are different and all babies are different so weight gains are also going to be different.

I actually haven't seen anything in the media about celebs being skinny while pregnant, if anything a lot of the celebs use it as their excuse to let go for awhile. Look at Naomi Watts, Gwen Stefani, Isla Fischer, Debra Messing...none of these women ever tried to hide their bumps once they got past the "safe" stage of the pregnancy. They showed them off proudly, it's afterwards that the pressure is more likely to being!