And the correct answer is…

1. All women should aim to gain about 25 pounds during their pregnancy.

True

False

False. How much you should gain during pregnancy actually depends on your pre-pregnancy weight and health. The Institute of Medicine recommends that women of a normal weight gain 25 to 35 pounds. Women who begin pregnancy overweight should gain less, just 15 to 25 pounds; and underweight women should gain 28 to 40 pounds.

2. Older women (35 and over) face more pregnancy risks than younger women.

True

False

True. Pregnancy complications are more common in women older than 35. Older moms are more likely to develop high blood pressure and diabetes for the first time during pregnancy. And the risk for chromosome abnormalities, like Down syndrome, goes up with the mother’s age. But that doesn’t mean all women over 35 will have a high-risk pregnancy. Good prenatal health can help moms of any age have a healthy pregnancy and full-term baby.

3. Thanks to advances in medicine, premature babies no longer face serious health risks.

True

False

False. While technology has made it possible to keep very small, very premature babies alive, infants born prematurely still face life-threatening medical problems. Premature babies often spend weeks and even months hospitalized. When they do come home, premature babies usually require special care and may face health challenges for many years.

4. It doesn’t really matter what your habits were before you got pregnant, as long as you make an effort to eat right and be healthy once you find out you’re having a baby.

True

False

False. Your preconception health can have a big impact on your pregnancy. That’s why it’s important to adopt healthy habits like quitting smoking, eating right, exercising and maintaining a healthy weight), while you’re still in the thinking-about-it stage. Also, before pregnancy is the time to get medical conditions like diabetes and high blood pressure under control.

5. Prescription drugs can be dangerous to your baby while pregnant, but over-the-counter medication and dietary supplements are OK.

True

False

False. Some over-the-counter medicines may pose a small risk to your baby. While many supplements have undergone testing, many have not, and the effect on a developing fetus is unknown. The one supplement you should not avoid taking is folic acid. Doctors recommend that women take 400 micrograms of folic acid before and throughout pregnancy.