And now for the science

This piece of research caught my eye last week: "Mothers to be should be aware of unintentional chemical exposure". Understandably it's create quite a stir within the media and right now, since I'm trying for a baby, I have a tendency to cling onto any piece of information that might improve my chances.



I think the basic point is a valid one, most pregnant women are unaware of the sheer number of chemicals they are exposed to, and since we really don’t know what damage they can do perhaps they should try and reduce that exposure wherever possible.  I’ve believed this for a long time and I’ve always been an advocate of natural products, it's only been since working part time that I've opted for cheap over eco-green.

However I did balk at this supposedly helpful piece of advice: 

"So, if as a mum-to-be you are worried, then simple changes to your lifestyle (fresh unpackaged/unprocessed food, no cosmetics/body creams, no household pesticides, no new furniture) for 15 months will reduce exposure of your baby to many different chemicals.”

 Professor Richard Sharpe, co-author of RCOG’s report

I had horrific visions of myself wandering around heavily pregnant with greasy hair, smelly armpits, dirty clothes and bad skin shown off in its full glory due to a lack of make up. I could envision the social alienation, friends recoiling in disgust, strangers refusing to sit next to me on the bus.

Basically the thought terrified me!

My personal (more rational) opinion is that your body and your skin are pretty good at either filtering out the bad stuff, or in the case of skin not letting it in in the first place. So I don’t think there’s any need to panic. I mean, my god when you look at all the supposed risks involved in pregnancy, it’s a wonder the human race isn’t extinct! We’re obviously doomed at the very least.

But that said, it’s easy to just feel disgruntled with this report and dismiss it, when actually the points are pretty valid. And it has made me rethink some of the things I've let slide recently. So my plan in this; cut down my exposure to toxins where possible and don't worry about the rest.

Therefore, looking at the advice in the report:

• Use fresh food rather than processed food wherever possible - largely because of plastic packaging. For fruit and veg that shouldn't be too much hassle as there's usually a choice, but I have no intention of carrying fish back from the shops with my bare hands. 
• Reduce the use of foods/beverages in cans/plastic containers, including their use for food storage - Well I mostly drink water and tea anyway and can take or leave soft drinks so that's not too bad. I am a lazy lady however so I'll have to make a concerted effort to cut down ready meals and the microwave ready veg I'm so fond of.
• Minimise use of personal care products such as moisturisers, cosmetics, shower gels and fragrances -  this is where they can take a running jump. Ok so I might start using coconut oil again as a night cream and body moisuriser, because it is really good and was saving me money anyway. Sunscreens? Sorry, I'm extremely fair skinned and my kid loves being outside, so that is not an option.  It's one health risk vs another. Cosmetics (noooo, I need my make up, I need it, you can’t have it!!), fragrances, shower gels (ok, I can opt for a less chemical laden option there so that's do-able); hairsprays (I don’t really use that anyway) 
• Minimise the purchase of new produced household furniture, fabrics, non-stick frying pans and cars -I have no money for new things anyway so that's fine
• Avoid the use of garden/household/pet pesticides and fungicides, cleaning products etc. This is the main area I keep things natural anyway: cleaning products (use bicarbonate of soda, dust with a damp cloth so you don’t need polish), air fresheners (I don’t bother with them), furniture (mine is pretty old), carpets/fabrics (again, nothing new) 
• Avoid paint fumes - if the time comes I'll let someone else decorate the spare room
• Only take painkillers when necessary - I tend only to take them when I need them anyway, I can't say I know anyone who takes them just for a kick!
• Do not assume the safety of products based on the absence of ‘harmful’ chemicals in their ingredients list, or the tag ‘natural’ (herbal or otherwise) – they are not legally obliged to list all chemicals if they are used in small quantities and it is the cocktail of toxins that the report is concerned about predominantly. I understand what they're trying to achieve with this report, but this bit really doesn't help. Thanks for pointing that out, I wasn't aware of that, but that removes the only viable alternative and offers no other suggestions.That's really not helpful and surely smaller levels of toxins are better? 

Maybe if I do get pregnant ever again I should just go and live in a yurt and live off the land. I think you’re best to take and use from this what you will. But it’s worth bearing in mind that I already go quite a lot of this, I never use weed killer, don’t use furniture polish, never really buy new furniture, don’t use air fresheners or hair spray, prefer environmental products to mainstream products (which have less chemicals, though certainly not non)… I’m probably exposed to less chemicals than a lot of people – but I've still had two miscarriages when I know others who've dyed their hair throughout pregnancy, never eat organically, are addicted to perfumes, make up, spray tans, hairspray etc .etc  and they've had none. 

Finally, the stress of trying to adhere to all these rules probably isn’t conducive to a healthy pregnancy anyway.

I will be following the advice to a certain extent though. But that's because I'm paranoid.