Gynaecologist advises pregnant women to eat before 6 p.m. to avoid heartburn  

Abuja, Feb. 18, 2013 (NAN) Dr Prosper Igboeli, a Gynaecologist, has advised pregnant women to eat before 6 p.m. to avoid heartburn.

Igboeli, the Managing Director of M and M Hospital, Fertility and IVF Centre, gave the advice in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday in Abuja.

He said eating before 6 p.m. would ease digestion beyond the duodenum (Small intestine) so that before 9 p.m. the system would continue to flow without any obstruction.
 
‘’Eat early before you go to bed, five, six o’clock, if you are going to bed at 8 p.m. - 9 p.m.

``So that the food will empty beyond the duodenum and then keep passing down, once it goes through the duodenum gets into the Chechnya, it will not come back ,it is the one that is sitting in the stomach that comes up.’’

He said that heartburn, which was a common occurrence in pregnancy, ‘’is a burning sensation that often extends from one lower throat to the bottom of the breastbone’’.  

According to Igboeli, heartburn happens when acid from the stomach is brought up into the gullet (oesophagus).

He said that the acid would come up into the throat or mouth, leaving a sour and bitter taste.  

 ‘’It also occurs when growing baby pushes the intestines and stomach upwards.

 ‘’This slows digestion and forces acids up from the stomach into the gullet.’’

The gynaecologist advised pregnant women to take more of vegetables and fruits, adding they were very essential aspect of good nutrition not just for the mother but also for the baby.  

``Don’t eat too much, eat little, take vegetables, take fruits, these are very essential aspect of good nutrition not just for you as a mother but for the baby also for your health. ’’  

 Igboeli urged pregnant women to do aerobic exercise because it facilitates blood flow to the baby and also generate oxygen to the lungs.

According to Wikipedia.com, aerobic exercise, also known as cardio, is physical exercise of relatively low intensity that depends primarily on the aerobic energy-generating process.

 ``All the time, it is good to do exercise; aerobic exercises, you can run, you can swim, exercise helps pregnancy in  many ways.

``Number one, it allows blood flow to your system; it also allows blood flow to the baby and good nutrition.

``As you exercise, oxygen is generated in the lungs and absorbs by the red blood and distributed it to your whole system.’’

He also advised the women to always see their health providers when they notice or feel anything abnormal. (NAN)