Take Care of Your Heart During Pregnancy: Here’s How

Feb 5 • 2016

While it is important for women to be aware of their heart health at all times, pregnancy is an especially important time to ensure that you are making the best choices. With so many other things on your mind, like preparing the nursery and picking out baby names, it can be easy to get distracted from focusing on your own health. In honor of Heart Month, we’ve compiled some easy ways you can ensure that you are keeping your heart healthy during pregnancy – especially if you have a preexisting condition.

Coping with Heart Disease
If you have a heart condition at the time of your pregnancy, it is important that you speak with your cardiologist and your OBGYN. Your pregnancy will be considered high-risk if you suffer from:

High blood pressure
High cholesterol
Heart or blood vessel diseases
Arrhythmia
Dysrhythmia
Low ejection fraction

Although you will be considered high-risk, planning ahead and visiting your cardiologist regularly throughout those nine months can help promote a healthy pregnancy.

Staying Healthy
Even if your heart is healthy, it is important to make lifestyle changes during pregnancy that will maintain that health. This includes:

Implementing a heart-healthy diet that is high in fiber, whole grains, low-fat products, poultry, fish, fruits, and vegetables
Avoiding salt and caffeine as much as possible
Developing an exercise routine after speaking with your cardiologist for personalized recommendations
Removing all tobacco use

Throughout your pregnancy, it is important to ensure that you are working together with your cardiologist and obstetrician to develop the best plan for your needs. This may include special recommendations for labor and delivery, as well as additional lifestyle changes based on your specific condition. With technology like Baptist MyChart, each of your specialists can easily see recommendations from one another and work together to ensure you have a healthy pregnancy.

This Heart Month, educate yourself on how heart disease impacts women and what you can do to prevent it.