What, Me Worry?

By Suzanne Schlosberg

Are you protecting yourself and your baby by worrying about the right things, or making yourself crazy (and putting your pregnancy at risk) by fretting about the wrong stuff? Take our quiz, then see what the experts have to say.

By the time I got pregnant-after undergoing nearly every fertility treatment known to womankind-I knew most of what there is to know about conception. But once the dipstick turned blue, it dawned on me: I was clueless. For all I knew about getting pregnant, I knew zip about being pregnant.

I had no idea what to be concerned about and which common pregnancy worries to dismiss as overblown. Turns out, most women get these two categories confused: They fret endlessly about dangers that don't exist, doctors say, while ignoring issues that may well affect their pregnancies and the health of their babies. "The body is a great filter. It's designed for pregnancy," says Stuart Fischbein, M.D., an OB-GYN in Los Angeles and co-author of Fearless Pregnancy (Fair Winds Press). What the body wasn't designed for is today's sedentary lifestyle, which can affect pregnancy in ways that many women don't realize.

Are your worries well placed or off base? Take this quiz and find out if you need to get a clue.

1.If you don't experience nausea during the first trimester:
    A. You're at significantly higher risk for miscarriage.
    B. Your baby has an increased risk of birth defects.
    C. You shouldn't worry; there's no proven relationship between nausea and a healthy pregnancy.
    D. Your hormone levels are out of whack, and you should consult your doctor.

2. Sex during pregnancy:
    A. Is safe at any time, as long as you have no pregnancy complications.
    B. Is safe as long as you avoid oral sex.
    C. Should be avoided during the third trimester due to a possible link with preterm labor.
    D. Should primarily be avoided in the first trimester, until the pregnancy is well established.

3. If you want to consume foods or beverages with artificial sweetener:
    A. Wait until after you deliver, since no artificial sweetener is recognized as safe during pregnancy.
    B. Aspartame (NutraSweet and Equal) and sucralose (Splenda) are fine, but saccharin isn't.
    C. Sucralose is considered safe, but aspartame and saccharin are not.
    D. Consume as much as you want; all artificial sweeteners have been proved safe for pregnant women.

4. Excess weight gain during pregnancy:
    A. Increases the chances that your baby will become overweight and have high blood pressure in childhood.
    B. Increases your risk of remaining overweight after delivery but poses no real risk to the baby.
    C. Is not worth worrying about as long as your diet is high in protein and calcium
    D. Both A and B.