Can a Pregnant Mother give Infection to the Baby?

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Published on March 3, 2017 by shiva

Pregnancy is a crucial stage in which any infection to the mother can harm the baby too. You need to be very careful during pregnancy regarding your diet and lifestyle. Bacterial and viral infections are common in people of all age group and infections during pregnancy can make the situation worse.

Yeast infections and urinary tract infection is more common during pregnancy.  Mostly babies are not harmed when the mother acquires an infection. In case of active infections, it is recommended that you must see a doctor immediately to avoid any complications during pregnancy.

There are certain viral infections that can affect your baby. The common viral infections include:

  1. Rubella infection
  2. CMV infection
  3. HIV infection
  4. HSV infection
  5. VZV infection

The infections are broadly classified into three categories namely:

  • Congenital infection

Congenital infections generally cause growth retardation and low birth weight in your babies. Congenital malformations are most commonly seen in the babies. In very rare cases it can lead to stillbirth.

  • Postnatal infection

Postnatal infection includes different infectious diseases such as meningitis, septicemia, conjunctivitis and pneumonitis.

  • Perinatal infection

The common diseased conditions seen during perinatal infection are meningitis, septicemia and pneumonia. Preterm labor is more common during perinatal infections.

How to Prevent Infections during Pregnancy?

The common preventive measure that you can follow to avoid infection are:

  • Regular hand washing with soap and water before cooking and after using rest room
  • Don’t hold your bladder for a very long time and try and use rest room more frequently during pregnancy because it may lead to urinary infections or bladder infection.
  • Maintain local hygiene
  • Do not consume raw and undercooked non-vegetarian food
  • Avoid unpasteurized and unpacked dairy products
  • Avoid sharing utensils with others
  • Keep your nails short and clean.

During pregnancy a healthy balanced diet and a healthy life style is very essential for both mother and the baby.

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