Tuesday, September 26, 2006

I might need to start eating iron railings!!!

Had my 28th week checkup on last sat. Unlike the previous visits this one was fairly quick. Had my urine glucose, BP & haemoglobin levels tested. All came out normal except my H level which were still at 10g/dl (normal is 11.6-15.5g/dl). I'm out of my wits on what to do with my H levels anymore. I have upped my intake of my iron tabs and made sure I do not forget to eat everyday but still to no avail. Dr Yang insists I must get my level up so that I do not feel breathless and easily tired She says I might not feel it now but when I hit 8,9mths, the low H levels might cause headaches & dizzy spells for me. Ok ok I hear you Doc! I will eat more green veg & legumes & red meat!!!

Other than that, everything is A-OK!! I haven't had much weight gain, gaining less than 1kg at every checkup (I already have a lot to start with so the less I gain the better!) Baby Muhammad is currently in a breech position although Dr Yang that's normal at this stage and he will turn soon. My placenta although anterior is not low-lying so no danger of placenta praevia and Baby Muhammad's weight currently is estimated to be 1.3kg. A very good weight, according to Dr Yang. She showed us the graph for baby weight intra-uterine and apparently Baby Muhammad is slightly above average. I have this fear that my baby will be huge and my delivery will be a nightmare but the doc assured me that from my current weight gain, there is no sign of that happening. Although she did add that anything can happen anytime so I should take care of my diet and my overall general health. She commented that I seem to have one of the easier pregnancies and the baby is growing beautifully (and hopefully my delivery will be as easy, Insyallah)

I have started feeling tightening in my belly esp around the navel. Sometimes there are hard spots probably baby's fist or head or feet. But it's only for a while and will go away within 2-3 mins. Dr yang asked me to monitor these tightenings and call her should they be consistent over a period of time. Could it be that these are what you call Braxton Hicks?

Anyway I was curious how Dr Yang came up with the estimated weight of the baby. A quick search on the net showed there is some sort of formulae they use. Here's my overall estimated weight gain throughout my preganancy. I must say it's fairly accurate so far (the gaining of 2 lbs (0.9kg) every 4 weeks. So Baby Muhammad at full term should be about 3.4Kg or so. (according to this estimator)

Pregnancy weight gain estimator
You should gain roughly 15 lbs. during your pregnancy.
Over the last two trimesters you should gain about 2 lbs. every 4
weeks. If you gained the average of the range above, this is where
the weight would go (totals are rounded):

Maternal:
Uterus 0.79 lbs.
Breasts 0.33
Blood 1.03
Water 1.38
Fat 2.75
Subtotal 6.28

Fetal:
Fetus 7.5
Placenta 0.53
Amniotic Fluid 0.65
Subtotal 8.68

Total 14.96


Source: ACOG. The formula is based on your current size and weight
and whether you are underweight, overweight, or normal weight.
This is only an estimate. Please consult your healthcare provider
for a more detailed description of your recommended weight gain.
SOURCE: BABY CENTRE

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