What do we know about alcohol and pregnancy?

• It is safest not to drink during pregnancy.
• A partner's drinking does not result in FASD, but it has an important influence on birthing parent's consumption, and on healthy infant and child development.

Reasons for drinking alcohol are complex. Speak with your health care provider for help.

For more information, visit our alcohol page.

References

CanFASD. (2023). Common Messages: Guidelines for talking and writing about FASD. https://canfasd.ca/wp-content/uploads/publications/CanFASD-Common-Messages-Guide-2023_FINAL-1.pdf

Both partners should quit smoking before pregnancy to increase chances of conception as well as to be healthy and risk free. Smoking and second-hand smoke can:

• Lower a male's sperm count
• Decrease a female's fertility
• Increase the risk for miscarriage, premature births,
• Increase the risk of labour and delivery complications

Medications that are known to cause harm will do so within the first few weeks of pregnancy, when the baby's major body systems are forming, and often before you know you are pregnant. If you are taking a medication that is known to be damaging to babies, you may need to switch to a medication that is safer but still right for you.

It is important to discuss with your doctor the risks of medications that you are taking.

Eating a variety of nutritious foods from Canada’s Food Guide gives you energy, supports your health, and helps prepare your body to meet your needs and the needs of your baby, should you become pregnant. Eating well includes more than the food you eat such as enjoying the taste of your food and eating with others. It may look different to everyone.

Make the following habits part of your daily routine:

• Eat a variety of healthy foods each day including vegetables and fruits, whole grain foods and protein foods
• Cook more often
• Eat with others
• Choose fish low in mercury
• Make water your drink of choice
• Limit highly processed foods
• Take a daily prenatal supplement with folic acid
• Plan what you eat
• Enjoy your food

Dial 811 to call Health Connect Ontario and to speak directly to a registered dietitian about nutrition and healthy eating.

Folic Acid

Your baby's brain, skull and spine form during the first few weeks of pregnancy, before you may even know you are pregnant. In order for them to form properly, you need enough folic acid (also called folate) in your body. If you could become pregnant or are planning a pregnancy you need to get enough folic acid by eating foods high in folate and take a daily multivitamin with at least 0.4 mg of folic acid. Foods high in folate include:

• Oranges, and other citrus fruits
• Legumes, such as beans, peas, and lentils
• Dark green vegetables: peas, spinach, broccoli, brussels sprouts
• Enriched grain products

Taking a multivitamin does not reduce or replace the need for a healthy, well-balanced diet that includes folic acid. Eating foods with folate is important, but food alone does not give you enough folic acid to help protect your baby from neural tube defects. Take a multivitamin with folic acid every day.

Folic acid (vitamin B9) helps grow and protect cells in your body. Folic acid before conception and during pregnancy decreases the risk of birth defects such as neural tube defects, heart and limb defects, urinary tract anomalies and oral facial clefts. Folate (natural source of folic acid) is found in dark green, leafy vegetables, citrus fruit, whole grains, and other foods. To increase your intake of folate, be sure to eat the following foods:

• Fortified grains
• Spinach
• Lentils
• Chickpeas
• Asparagus
• Broccoli
• Peas
• Brussels sprouts
• Corn
• Oranges
• Folic acid is also included in most multivitamins

Learn more about nutrition during pregnancy.

Exercise decreases the risks that stem from obesity during pregnancy, which can include:

• gestational diabetes
• high blood pressure
• pre-eclampsia
• postpartum hemorrhage
• miscarriage
• still birth
• caesarean section
• neural tube defects

Women who are fit before pregnancy have fewer aches and pains and more energy during their pregnancy. Being active on a regular basis by doing activities such as brisk walking, swimming, or yoga will make a difference to weight management and general well-being.

Learn more about physical activity.

There are a lot of things to keep in mind when you're considering pregnancy, and one of those should be to make sure your vaccines are up-to-date before becoming pregnant.

Some infections, such as rubella, can cause complications and harm to your baby if contracted during pregnancy. Your vaccines must be completed three months before becoming pregnant, as vaccines that are live virus (measles, mumps and rubella, for example) can be harmful if received while pregnant.

Street drugs such as marijuana, cocaine, methamphetamine, heroin, and inhalants are dangerous for you and for your future child. They can affect your energy, motivation, judgment, appetite, sleeping patterns, memory, and mental health.

Addictions take time to overcome and it may not be possible to quit using drugs if you become pregnant. If street drugs are taken during a pregnancy, there are risks for the baby such as addiction and withdrawal, brain damage, Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), and low birth weight.

Learn about getting a healthy high.

Some sexually transmitted infections (STIs) can be cured and some cannot. Herpes, Hepatitis B, and Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) are STIs that cannot be cured and can be transferred to the baby during pregnancy and birth. Chlamydia, gonorrhea, bacterial vaginosis, and syphilis are STIs that can be transferred to the baby during birth but can also can be cured if treated.

You can reduce the risk of getting an STI by avoiding these high-risk situations:

• Having many partners
• Not using condoms during sexual contact
• Having anal sex without condoms
• Injecting or using street drugs
• Sharing needles

Symptoms of an STI are not always visible, so it is important to use condoms, limit the number of sexual partners, and ask new partners about their sexual history. If you have an STI and become pregnant, or get one while pregnant, talk to your health provider.

• Your Journey Starts Here. The facts on pregnancy and childbirth from Canada's experts.
• Healthy Baby, Healthy Brain