Editors of Parenting Magazine - Pregnancy Planner: Essential Advice for Moms-to-Be

• Youre most likely still fitting in your favorite jeans, but your breasts are already feeling tender and full.
• Growing a baby is exhausting work for your body. Heed any cues to cut yourself some slack and rest, rest, rest.

• The embryo is smaller than an apple seed. The cluster of cells that will become your babys heart has formed and is beating. The brain and spinal cord are taking shape.
• The placenta and umbilical cord are already forming, and will soon be passing oxygen and nutrients from you to your baby.

In addition to taking prenatal vitamins, ask your doctor about taking a docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) supplement. This fatty acid helps a babys brain and nerve cells develop. DHA is found in fatty fish such as salmon (see for info about eating fish). There are also nutrition bars with DHA made especially for pregnant women.

Downed a drink or two before you learned you were expecting? Dont worry. A little bit of alcohol in those early days is not likely to present a problem. Whats most important now is to pass on all alcohol from here on out.

Sorting out what you should and shouldnt eat during pregnancy can be overwhelming. Here are some tips; see .

• Fish is one of the most confusing categories, making consulting a nearly essential. In general, avoid fish with high mercury levels, farm-raised fish, raw fish, and smoked refrigerated seafood.
• Whats safe? Up to 12 ounces (340 g) of fish with low mercury levels, such as canned or wild salmon, per week. Salmon is packed with essential fatty acids too. Limit your intake of canned light tuna to 6 ounces (170 g) per week of the allowed 12 ounces but avoid albacore (white) tuna.
• Skip any raw and unpasteurized dairy products and soft cheeses, such as Brie or feta. Also avoid unpasteurized juices (think: fresh-pressed apple juice), raw sprouts, and uncooked food made with raw eggs, such as some salad dressings.
• Heat deli meats and hotdogs until steaming hot before eating.

I first realized I might be pregnant when my husband and I rented a movie and I had to pause it about six or seven times so I could use the bathroom. I figured I was either pregnant or something was seriously wrong with me!

Caffeine inhibits your bodys absorption of iron, an important nutrient for fetal development, and some research suggests that a daily 12-ounce (.35 l) or larger cup of coffee may boost the risk of miscarriage. While you dont have to totally give up caffeine, youll want to keep your intake to fewer than 200 mg a day.

• An 8-ounce (.24 l) cup of coffee has about 150 mg of caffeine. If you regularly drink coffee, cut downor switch to decaf.
• Consider drinking a latte. A 12-ounce latte at a popular chain has 75 mg of caffeineand you get calcium from the milk.
• A 12-ounce can of soda has about 50 mg of caffeine. Check the label of energy drinks for caffeine content, too.
• An 8-ounce cup of black tea has about 40 mg of caffeine. Green tea also has caffeine, but youll want to avoid it during your first trimester and drink only moderate amounts later for a different reason: Too much green tea can lower the efficacy of folic acid.
• Chocolate is caffeinated, but youd have to eat a lot of it to get amped. Dark chocolate has about 20 mg per ounce (28 g); milk chocolate has up to 6 mg.