Virtual Medical Centre

Pregnancy Advice

• Introduction to pregnancy advice
• When is the best time to get pregnant?
• Alcohol in pregnancy

Introduction to pregnancy advice

If you are thinking about getting pregnant, you may be wondering about what you should do to prepare for a pregnancy. The family doctor is the first point of call for many women considering pregnancy. General preconception advice includes the best time for women to become pregnant, diet in pregnancy, and the need to avoid alcohol and smoking during this time.   

What is the best time to get pregnant?

The best time to become pregnant is around ovulation. Ovulation refers to the release of an oocyte (egg) from an ovary into a fallopian tube, where it can be fertilised by sperm.

Ovulation occurs around 14 days before menstruation. If you are attempting to conceive, it is important to be able to tell when ovulation occurs. These signs are subtle but detectable:

• The cervical mucus becomes thinner and more stretchy.
• The resting body temperature rises 0.2–0.3 degrees. This is best measured first thing in the morning before rising from bed. This change can be detected if body temperatures are recorded for several days before ovulation.
• There is a rise in luteinising hormone (LH), which occurs 24 hours before ovulation. This can be detected with a home testing kit.

The most likely time to become pregnant is within 24 hours after cervical mucus changes consistency and body temperature changes. Normal sperm are capable of fertilising the oocyte for up to 72 hours after ejaculation, and the oocyte is fertilisable 12 hours before and 24 hours after ovulation. This means that the peak fertility period is 3 days before ovulation to 2 days after. Assuming Day 1 is the first day of a woman's period, for most women the peak fertility period occurs in Days 11–16 of their menstrual cycle.

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The age of the woman is also an important factor. As the age of the mother increases, the risks of miscarriage and abnormalities in the baby also increase.

At age 25, there is a 90% chance that a healthy woman who is trying to become pregnant can do so within 12 months. At the age of 40, this percentage reduces to 20%. The risk of miscarriage increases, from 1 in 6 in a mother aged 30, to 1 in 2 in a healthy woman age 45.

Alcohol in pregnancy

It is now known that excessive alcohol consumption in pregnancy can cause a pattern of abnormalities in the baby, known as foetal alcohol syndrome.

Foetal alcohol syndrome occurs in babies who have been exposed to alcohol during pregnancy. Some of the abnormalities that occur include damage to the brain, spinal cord and nerves, facial abnormalities, and abnormally slow growth. The most dangerous time for the baby is during the second to eighth week of pregnancy, which is often before women know they are pregnant. This is because the unborn baby's organs (e.g. heart, liver, brain) are developing during this time, and are therefore more vulnerable to the effects of alcohol.

There is no safe time to drink during pregnancy. Although a 'safe' level of drinking has not been established, if you are pregnant it is best to limit yourself to one standard drink of alcohol a day, and to have at least 2 alcohol free days.

The image above is of an infant suffering from foetal alcohol syndrome. Note the epicanthal folds, smaller eye openings, flat midface, upturned nose, smooth philtrum and thin upper lip.