Who Has Access to a Stress-Free Pregnancy?

Food has a huge influence on health and well-being, and so does STRESS!  A mother could eat the most nutritious, balanced meals during pregnancy, but if she is stressed about access to food, her good intentions may be negated. Researchers have already found that maternal stress may cause a decrease in fetal growth because of the diminished nutrient transfer to the fetus via the placenta when high levels of glucocorticoids (hormones released in response to stress) are present.  Maternal stress and has also been shown to alter the vaginal microbiome thus influencing fetal gut microbiome during birth, as well as impact fetal neurodevelopment. In addition to altering the fetal microbiome, the change in structure of the vaginal and placental microbiomes during times of stress could be linked to an increased the risk of autism, schizophrenia, and asthma.

It’s better to be relaxed about your food decisions and not uphold strict standards for yourself that are going to be challenging to adhere to. Ideally, one would take some time to learn basic nutrition before pregnancy so that there is time to focus on other things. Nicole Esclamado, a new mother and nutrition expert told me during an interview, “Once I entered pregnancy, it was pretty clear to me that the most important thing was to not be stressed out, to just celebrate life.” 

But this raises many questions surrounding privilege and access; who has access to healthy food, education about nutrition, and a stress free pregnancy? Many people do not have the privilege of shopping only organic or locally, nor is that of utmost importance to some. Having a place to sleep for the night or having a meal in general may be of greater concern. In 2014, 48.1 million Americans lived in food insecure households, including 32.8 million adults and 15.3 million children. There are many things that can cause a woman stress during her pregnancy; finances and work, food and health concerns, racism, negative life events, and anxiety about the pregnancy itself may top the list. 

Women in the United States are only guaranteed 12 weeks of UNPAID maternity leave under the Family Medical Leave Act. No paid leave is mandated under governmental regulations, although specific companies and employers may choose to offer this to employees. It is no surprise then that one in four mothers return to work just two weeks postpartum. The reason for this rapid return varies between women, but many families simply can’t afford for one or both parents to stay home for as long as may be ideal. This hardly provides time for mother and baby to bond and establish healthy habits in feeding. This is not to say that women choosing to return to work soon after delivery is at all a negative thing; something about our system is not working when mothers do not have long enough breaks to pump breast milk, are only able to find space to do so in a bathroom stall, or are putting their employment at risk by simply feeding their children. What mothers need and deserve is the choice and ability to stay home with their newborns for as long as it takes to establish healthy relationships and routines.

Single parents and people who do not have an adequate support system in place have additional struggles; convenience is huge, and if you don’t have people to bring you meals or help with other children and responsibilities, there simply may not be enough time in the day to make a fully balanced meal. There is also stress that involves finding adequate childcare when the family has to or needs to go back to work. Some families are fortunate enough to be able to have a parent stay home with the infant and/or other children. Some families can afford the convenience personalized care of a nanny. For some families, child care centers or daycares are the only option. Places like this are great in some ways, but hours are not very flexible and care is not as personalized. The most important thing to gather from the differences between caregivers is the variations in the amount of time a mother is able to spend with her infant after giving birth for the sake of bonding, lowering maternal stress, and feeding the child.

Eating healthy may not be as hard as it seems, but education is the first step. And not everyone has the resources (whether they be financial or just finding out about programs and classes in the first place) to take that step.When the cheapest foods available to you are heavily refined carbohydrates loaded with high fructose corn syrup, or you may not have a place to cook or store food, buying processed and packaged foods may be the best option. Around 23.5 million americans live in a food desert, where finding and accessing fresh food is made difficult by the distance of a grocery store. A mother’s nutrition directly affects her child during pregnancy, as well as while she is breastfeeding, if she should choose to do so. Many mothers these days are aware of the benefits of breastfeeding in comparison to formula, yet only 32.4 % of mothers planning to breastfeed exclusively for the first three months end up doing so. Some women are physically unable to breastfeed, but this accounts for a very small portion of mothers not breastfeeding (approximately 2%). Some mothers will use formula, and others may utilize a breast milk banks in this circumstance, particularly in the case of preterm birth. In many situations, new mothers do not continue breastfeeding because they do not have the time nor resources to do so. A demanding work schedule without long enough breaks or a comfortable place to pump or breastfeed is one of the most common reasons why less than a third of mothers are breastfeeding at 6 months.

Stress during pregnancy, specifically surrounding a lack of access to fresh foods, is detrimental to maternal and fetal health, and socioeconomic status plays a huge role in determining the quality of care a mother receives throughout pregnancy and postpartum. Food justice is justice for everyone and everything; it’s an important place to start. Everyone deserves the right to healthy foods, families deserve time to bond with their newborns, regardless of income and socioeconomic standing. Factors that influence fetal health are extensive and intersectional, and in many cases, are deeply rooted in systems of oppression.

Support local farmworkers in the fight against wage theft. Lean more about the Driscoll’s Berries/Sakuma Brothers boycott and read more about how you can support Familias Unidas por la Justicia here: https://boycottsakumaberries.com/

GRuB is an incredible organization, created by Evergreen alumni, doing very important work in providing start-up gardens to low-income families. Other programs at GRuB include a farm to table program for at-risk youth in Olympia and many community events and workshops. Read more here: http://goodgrub.org/

You can read more about ‘first food deserts’ and how socioeconomic status impacts mothers and babies here: http://befirstfoodfriendly.org/what-is-a-first-food-desert/

Follow this link to learn about the Minnesota Prison Doula Project, a group of doulas and coordinators working to support incarcerated women during and after pregnancy and childbirth.   www.mnprisondoulaproject.org

There used to be Prison Doula Project based out of Olympia, but a renegotiation of their role on the inside the prison led to a suspension of their services.