There’s no doubt about it:  Having a child is expensive.  A 2009 study by the U.S. Department of Agriculture found that a middle-income family will spend about $221,190 to raise their child to the age of 18.

And the expenses begin during pregnancy.

That’s why many couples start planning early. About 35% of families begin financial planning for their bundle of joy before or during pregnancy, according to a Wiser Pregnancy survey of more than 1,500 women. Approximately 18% of couples financially plan during the first month of their pregnancy; 11% plan in month 2 and another 11% plan in month 3. 
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That scourge of new moms – bisphenol A (BPA) – is going further under the microscope.

The health effects of bisphenol A – long used to harden plastics and found in everything from baby bottles to food and beverage containers – will be the focus of new research, say U.S. health officials. Although the full effects of the chemical are not known, BPA exposure has been linked to several health problems, such as heart disease, diabetes or liver-enzyme abnormalities.

Most worrisome to new mothers is that BPA is in many baby products: bottles, sippy cups, liners of liquid baby formula containers.

But many moms-to-be are taking preventive steps early to be toxin-free. According to a WiserPregnancy survey, 26% of women focus on having an eco-friendly or “green” pregnancy, meaning that they try to avoid known or potential toxins that could harm their baby. Read the rest of this entry »

Whether you love your job or you bear it out of economic necessity, you’re probably doing the math to see how many days of leave you can take during or after pregnancy.

Even excluding taking leave to give birth, 100% of pregnant women plan to reduce their work hours, take additional leave or quit their jobs, according to a WiserPregnancy survey.  Nearly 40% of women plan to reduce their work hours, and about 60% of women plan to take additional time off or quit their jobs during pregnancy or after the baby arrives.

The Family & Medical Leave Act (FMLA) requires U.S. employers to give employees up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave per year.  You’re guaranteed your group health benefits during this leave, but paid maternity leave is rare in the U.S. 

Compared to leave policies in other developed countries, the U.S.’s leave policy is somewhat stingy.  Some European countries offer more than 4 months of 100% paid leave. 

Therefore, many women in the U.S. combine short-term disability, sick leave, vacation, personal day and unpaid family leave (also called maternity or parental leave) to take the time they need before delivery and before returning to work.   

Many new moms want more time with the new baby.  Some women cut back on their hours to make working while pregnant more manageable or make it easier to ease back into professional life after having been out for several weeks. 

Taking extra leave may be a necessity as much as a desire.  Your doctor may order you to avoid unnecessary stress or prescribe bed rest.  You may struggle to stay productive at work if you suffer from morning sickness, fatigue, the urge to urinate frequently, back pain or other common pregnancy symptoms. You may also have safety concerns about your job or need to attend frequent doctor appointments.

 How much leave did you take?  Why did you decide to take that much (or that little) leave?

Don’t have diabetes? Your blood sugar levels can still cause you problems during and after pregnancy.

A new study conducted by doctors at Toronto’s Mount Sinai Hospital shows that women with gestational glucose intolerance (also known as “pre-diabetes”) are at higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease later on.

A recent WiserPregnancy survey has found that although only 6% of pregnant women develop gestational diabetes, others suffer from blood sugar intolerance.

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We’re well into December, a month full of rich food, festive parties and holiday cheer. Skip the homemade eggnog, enjoy the treats (with moderation) and don’t forget to stay active.

If you’re like most women, you probably aren’t increasing the amount you exercise during pregnancy. According to a WiserPregnancy survey, about two-thirds of pregnant women regularly exercise. Only 11% of women get more exercise during pregnancy than before, and the primary motivation is to control weight gain.

However, if you’re consuming calorie-laden holiday treats—and if your doctor gives you the okay to exercise—December is not the month to slack off exercising or eating a healthy diet. Of women who increase the amount they exercise during pregnancy, 61% do so to control weight gain.

Why is weight control during pregnancy important? For one, fit women who gain the recommended amount of weight (25 pounds on average) suffer fewer pregnancy discomforts. Delivery and postpartum recovery tend to be easier for new moms who did not gain excessive weight during pregnancy. Also, gaining too much pregnancy weight can lead to long-term health problems for you and your baby—you’ll be at higher risk for obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease.

Exercise also has other benefits. Half of women (49%) stick to the exercise routine to keep their baby healthy. About 1/3 of women (31%) increase exercise to try to fight fatigue and other common pregnancy ailments.

What are you doing to stay healthy during the holiday season?

Despite all the sex that may have occurred to get pregnant, once they are expecting, half of pregnant women have less nookie than before. The biggest reason? Reduced sexual desire.

According to a WiserPregnancy survey, 50% of women have less sex while pregnant, 38% have the same amount of sex and a small 12% have more sex.

Of the pregnant women who report having less sex, 54% blame a decreased sex drive for the change.

That’s not much of a surprise, considering the hormonal changes, weight gain, lower energy, exhaustion and nausea that often come in the first trimester. The second trimester can bring mood-killers of stress, fatigue, back pain and a growing abdomen. And by the third trimester, constant discomfort can make any woman opt for a warm bath instead.

But lack of desire isn’t the only cause of diminished sex. Women surveyed also cite these reasons:

• 17% are too busy
• 15% are concerned about the baby’s health
• 14% are on doctor’s orders not to have sex (Cervical insufficiency, a risk of miscarriage, unexplained vaginal bleeding, leaking amniotic fluid or placenta previa are among the reasons a doctor might recommend abstinence.)
• 10% say their partner’s sex drive decreased

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Tomorrow is the Great American Smokeout – an occasion for smokers to kick the habit once and for all. But as many smokers know, it’s not that easy.

While smoking is one the hardest habits to break, for many women pregnancy is a powerful motivator, according to a recent WiserPregnancy survey.

The survey found that 41% of women who smoked quit the habit once they became pregnant. In comparison, only 3% quit before getting pregnant.

So how to quit?

With their baby’s health at risk, most women don’t opt for slow-moving remedies. The large majority of women (88%) quit cold turkey – and it works for most. In fact, two-thirds (66%) of women found it a highly effective way to quit.

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