“These mommyrexics are SO obsessed with their weigh that they fret gaining weight during pregnancy.”
Can we change the language around this a little? This is not an issue of moms being horrible vain people. This is an issue of a society that judges every ounce of fat on our bodies and claims that it cares about our “health.” c’mon. Mothers who refuse to gain weight during pregnancy is a real health problem, but blaming them instead of the toxic, sexist society they live in is a major fail.

If these women are so concerned about pregnancy weight gain, then why get pregnant at all? Use a surrogate or adopt. Sheesh!

This is a tricky subject… yes, mommyrexia happens and is bad. But, there is also the opposite happening which could warrant an article of its own. Some people are taking the “eating for two” way too seriously and allowing themselves to gain WAY too much weight. Women in their first trimester should possibly eat NO MORE extra calories than that which will maintain their weight, second trimester only 300 calories (like two pieces of toast extra) and in the third just 450 calories….and that is for an average weight woman.*

There are current studies being done right now* that are challenging the current standards of weight gain saying that maybe they are too much for women who are already overweight or obese. Women who gain too much weight during pregnancy are more likely to develop problems within their pregnancy (gestational diabetes, increased pain, increased likelyhood of c-section and high blood pressure*) and also can cause babies to be too large. Not to mention the studies that are coming out saying that a high weight gain in pregnancy may lead to childhood obesity.*

So, while people should certainly not be “dieting” during pregnancy I say that it is a perfect time to start paying attention, even “obsessing” a little, about what they are putting into your body (including calories). Instead of giving into the craving for chocolate cake pick up a few carrot sticks. Women who are pregnant could possibly benefit (and their child can certainly benefit) by starting to actually pay attention to eating healthfully ESPECIALLY if they didn’t do so before pregnancy.

*LINKS:
Calories: http://www.babycenter.com/eating-for-two
Healthy Mom’s Study: http://xnet.kp.org/newscenter/pressreleases/nat/2009/102109healthymoms.html
Problems that can develop: http://www.americanpregnancy.org/pregnancyhealth/eatingfortwo.html
Childhood Obesity: http://www.webmd.com/baby/news/20100804/too-much-pregnancy-weight-gain-raises-childs-obesity-risk

Guajolote: my point is that there’s not a single article that tells women how to be pregnant correctly – whether you’re eating too much or too little, you’re doing it wrong and you’re going to harm your baby and you’re a bad person. These articles, going in either direction, serve no purpose except to make pregnant women feel anxious and guilty. The reality is: either way, only extreme behavior is likely to harm a fetus – most moms, as long as they aren’t drinking or smoking, are doing it right. But you wouldn’t know it from reading any media directed towards moms. And it’s frustrating that the other people reading this article don’t seem to notice or care.