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Pre pregnancy and Pregnancy Books


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So, my husband and I are finally at the point in our lives where we've decided to begin trying for a baby. I'm completely clueless, I actually think he knows more than me about pregnancy. I can talk about sports, nutrition, and fitness all day, but pregnancy...YIKESSSS

I want to stay paleo during pregnancy and was curious if anyone has read any books that would be helpful to me. I've heard to steer clear from what to expect bc it's alarmist. I've also had good breastfeeding books recommended, but I'm looking for something different.

Any ideas? Thanks!!!

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Are you looking for something that focuses on nutrition, or are you more interested in a month-by-month, "here's what's going on in your body right now" kind of book? I really like Pregnancy, Childbirth, and the Newborn as a good all-around guide. (And I think a new edition just came out.)

I also found Ina May's Guide to Childbirth and Birthing From Within really helpful, but those are more about birth than pregnancy. They're also quite "crunchy."

Do steer clear of What to Expect... It's definitely alarmist.

Best of luck to you!

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Thanks so much! I will definitely be checking out those books you've mentioned.

I guess I'm looking for a book that's about being pregnant while also being Paleo. Does such a book exist I've found some cool blogs and articles on paleo pregnancy, but no such luck w books

Thanks again!

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If there's a Paleo pregnancy book, I don't know about it (but I'm pretty new to Paleo). I'd love to see one, though! A midwife once told me that the best foods for building a baby are "things that will go bad if you leave them out on your kitchen counter." Sounds pretty Paleo to me!

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The Weston A Price organization is coming out with a pregnancy/newborn nutritional book in Febraury. I have pre-ordered on Amazon. Although Weston A Price allows for eating properly prepared grains, they emphasis the importance of fat in the diet and I think would be easy to modify to Whole 30.

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I want to look into the wapf book. Thanks for mentioning it. I seem to occupy a niche in the paleo world that overlaps with wapf.

I am trying to eat wapf's pregnancy diet. However, I haven't been able to get liver to be palatable yet, so i may be freezing liver pills). I will hold off on raw milk until after whole30.

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  • 2 weeks later...

This may not be a popular opinion on here, but the $200 price tag on the Healthy Baby Code leaves a bad taste in my mouth. One of the reasons I trust Whole9 and the Whole30 program is that the information is out there for free. I bought It Starts With Food and was happy to do so because I knew the basics going in and I knew that it wasn't just about making money for the authors. They give away the basic information to anyone who needs it which tells me that they believe in their program and this is about helping people live better lives, not about making a buck. I know that everyone has to make a living, but when your marketing resembles those "get the secret to lose 10lbs in a week" diet scam sites, it makes me suspicions.

If they offered a bit more information or you could buy the program in separate pieces (Fertility, pregnancy, breast feeding, etc.) I would be more willing to consider it. Not to mention that I signed up for the free ebook from HBC and never received it! I am sorry, but I am already spending more on groceries to make sure my family has healthy, nutritious food. Maybe $200 isn't much to some people, but I can think of a lot of things I could do with it. I don't think it's fair to make women feel like they are depriving their babies of something important if they don't shell out. I feel like the lack of free information, the high price tag and the “you need this to have a healthy baby†tone of the web site are all set up to take advantage of women at their most vulnerable, when they just want to have a healthy baby.

I will admit that I am jaded in this area. I have a son with Autism and there is a constant stream of both charlatans and well intentioned idiots that want to sell you the newest miracle cure. What makes it harder is that there is good research and good information out there and you have to wade through the crap to get to it. I guess what irritates me so much about the HBC is that it probably is a good program and probably has worthwhile information in it, but there is no way for me to find that out without spending $200. It looks, smells, and tastes exactly like a scam and I would have dismissed it immediately if it wasn't endorsed by Whole9, because I do trust Whole9. I am glad that Melissa found it useful, but that is the only star in its corner for me and I'm just not sure that's enough to get me to spend that kind of cash.

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Marci, I totally hear you on the price tag. I am NOT beating you up, but you have to consider things from his angle as well.

First, he spent a LOT of time digging through the literature and interpreting that data. If I remember correctly, he and his wife had some problems conceiving when they first started trying, so he started digging for what could help. After he got the information, he THEN took a long time to compile it into an easy to understand, progressive "course" like he has. Time is money, it's time away from his practice, away from his family. Shouldn't he, like anybody, expect to be compensated for it?

Secondly, Chris has a LOT of stuff free on his website. It's pretty geeky and can sometimes go over folks' heads, but it's there. The podcasts are amazing. I used to think that Robb's podcasts were the pinnacle of geek talk...boy was I wrong! Talks with Chris and Mat Lalonde or Chris Masterjohn are _uhmazing_.

Additionally, I'm pretty sure (i have no need for it at this point in my life, so I don't have the HBC to confirm) that at least 50% of the stuff that's included in the HBC is free on his website. You have to search for it, because it's not consolidated in one place, but it's there. There's content sprinkled into his podcasts, he has blog posts about fertility and important vitamins/considerations...etc. It's $200 of research, convenience, and support for Chris' continued work, (which I think he's established as legit)

Some people can't afford that convenience, but some people can't afford M&D's private consulting either. That doesn't mean it isn't priced correctly and competitively. And the information IS out there.

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Thank you for the information. I see now that there is more information on his personal web site, but there is almost none on the HBC web site.

I did consider the fact that there was expense in developing the system, however, there is almost no expense in preparing what they actually sell which is access to the information. He could help 500 women at a cost of $200 each or he could help 2000 for $50 each and make the same profit. I can not think of another legitimate type of information based program, health realted or otherwise that charges this much for access to the information. I still think it's excessive which makes me question his motives.

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  • 2 weeks later...

My advice on baby books: read a bunch on your pregnancy, sure, but don't read up to death on how to raise your kid. The best child-raising tool out there is your gut. Second, is what worked/didn't for the other moms you know. Child raising books are awful and none of those people personally know your kid. I made myself miserable reading a bunch of books before I had my daughter. She is her own person and the more I step back and trust myself and her, the better of a job I'm doing.

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  • 1 month later...

I haven't come across any authoritative books about paleo pregnancy, but you can find a lot of great blogs with encouraging personal stories. Of course, the plural of Anecdote is not Data, but I think those individual stories can be fantastic motivators and encouragement, even if they aren't a comprehensive guide.

Seeing that you're enjoying "Real Food for Mother and Baby" has me pretty curious -- I've read some reviews by Paleo Purists saying that her attitude wasn't so much "Paleo is what's best," but "Paleo is a great idea, but let's face it, you'll mess up and it doesn't really matter." I had decided not to bother with that book because of it, but maybe I'll give it a shot after all....

As far as basic pregnancy books, most of them suck. I wasted money on "What to Expect," which is not only alarmist, but also very incomplete and sexist! I have a copy of "Great Expectations" that I bought used for $1.50 -- it's a little alarmist as well, and I wouldn't really reccommend it as a "sit and read it for an hour" kind of book. What I like about it is that it's a great "quick reference" when you feel something new and want to figure out what's going on. For example, I experienced some serious dizziness for the first time last weekend, and Great Expectations not only assured me that it was normal, but explained what was causing it (a combination of low blood sugar, decreased blood volume that is common during weeks 9-10, and low iron). WtE would have just told me, "you're probably not dying, but you may want to call your doctor to be safe."

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  • 1 month later...

I haven't come across any authoritative books about paleo pregnancy, but you can find a lot of great blogs with encouraging personal stories. Of course, the plural of Anecdote is not Data, but I think those individual stories can be fantastic motivators and encouragement, even if they aren't a comprehensive guide.

Seeing that you're enjoying "Real Food for Mother and Baby" has me pretty curious -- I've read some reviews by Paleo Purists saying that her attitude wasn't so much "Paleo is what's best," but "Paleo is a great idea, but let's face it, you'll mess up and it doesn't really matter." I had decided not to bother with that book because of it, but maybe I'll give it a shot after all....

As far as basic pregnancy books, most of them suck. I wasted money on "What to Expect," which is not only alarmist, but also very incomplete and sexist! I have a copy of "Great Expectations" that I bought used for $1.50 -- it's a little alarmist as well, and I wouldn't really reccommend it as a "sit and read it for an hour" kind of book. What I like about it is that it's a great "quick reference" when you feel something new and want to figure out what's going on. For example, I experienced some serious dizziness for the first time last weekend, and Great Expectations not only assured me that it was normal, but explained what was causing it (a combination of low blood sugar, decreased blood volume that is common during weeks 9-10, and low iron). WtE would have just told me, "you're probably not dying, but you may want to call your doctor to be safe."

I'd be curious to what your thoughts are on "Real Food for Mom and Baby". I just found this link so I went and searched Amazon. There were very mixed reviews for that book so I ended up going with "Beautiful Babies: Nutrition for Fertility, Pregnancy, Breast-Feeding, and Baby's First Foods". I'll let you know how it is.

I am not yet pregnant but I am trying and I have a few obstacles in the way so for now I am most interested in the fertility section, but it sounds like it will be a great all around book!

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