Feeling like going to a hot tub while pregnant, mummy? Set the mood a bit – aromatherapy candles in every corner of your bathroom, your humidifier blowing out some nice scent of lavender, warm water filling up the tub, and your bath bomb sending foam to the surface of the water.
As tempting and relaxing as that sounds, unfortunately, depending on where you are in your pregnancy journey, you’re going to have to hold off until it’s safe to do so.
Hot Tub While Pregnant – Is It Safe?
Many experts have advised pregnant women against using a hot tub, because of the risks that come with this very relaxing pastime. And, if you feel that is the only thing that will really calm you down or de-stress you, you ought to follow some very strict rules in order to ensure you are not endangering your little one.
Normal Body Temperature While Pregnant
If you’ve watched any pregnant movies from Hollywood, you’d know pregnant women are essentially ovens. Making a human apparently causes a lot of heat.
While that is a natural process in the pregnancy journey, unfortunately, it can’t go beyond that temperature. Any number going above that can cause some troubling outcomes for you. Experts have found evidence that high temperatures can cause neural tube defects in your baby.
The neural tubes of your babies form their brain and their spinal cord. Your baby’s neural tube is supposed to close completely. If it doesn’t, your baby gets neural tube defects – either a spina bifida or anencephaly.
So, if you want to avoid such outcomes for your baby, as much as you can, avoid the hot tub. Save it for when your little one finally comes out of you.
How Bath Tub Germs Can Cause Issues
Another reason you ought to avoid the hot tub while pregnant is the bathtub germs just swimming around you. If you remembered your Science classes in high school, you’d know that warm places are the favourite places of bacteria. And that hot tub of yours may be swarming with them.
So while warming up on a hot tub while pregnant seems like a good idea, you might want to rethink it if you care about your unborn child’s safety against bacteria.
Hot Tub While Pregnant – Some Reminders
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But if you really cannot resist, here are some pointers to remember to prevent accidents and unwanted effects of using the hot tub while pregnant.
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Know When it’s Safe to Dip
A rule of thumb is you should never enter a hot tub during your first trimester. Research on birth defects done in 2006 found that mild exposure to high temperatures before the embryo has implanted in your uterus can cause brain and spinal cord defects.
Such defects and even pregnancy loss may occur for pregnant women who have had severe exposure to high temperatures.
So, if you want to avoid such outcomes, let your first trimester pass, and then you can take a dip in your hot tub.
As mentioned earlier, if the temperature of your warm bath is not going to affect your baby, the germs in it might. So, you have to make sure no germ makes its way to your hot tub.
Your tub’s free chlorine levels should be between 2 and 4 parts per million (ppm). You can use bromine too but set the levels to 4 to 6 ppm. And the pH level of your tub should be between 7.2 to 7.8 ppm. If you have no idea what any of these means, get your hubby or your pool guy to set up your hot tub.
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Get the Temperature Right
The water in the tub cannot go higher than 102.2 Fahrenheit or 39 Celsius. Or, you risk overheating your own body.
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Don’t Spend More Than 10 Minutes In the Tub
Yes, we know 10 minutes is not long enough for a warm hot tub bath. But, go beyond this limit, and you risk raising your body’s temperature more than the allowed amount.
To be sure, set a timer next to your hot tub to remind you when you need to get up and pat yourself dry.
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Sit Far Away from the Jacuzzi Jets
The jets are usually where the warmest water flows out. Again, yes, the jets are the best part. But, if you want to protect your baby and want your sweet little time in the hot tub, you’re going to have to sacrifice the jets.
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Get Out When You Sweat or Feel Other Things
Those 10 minutes in your hot tub should be comfortable and hassle-free. So, should you feel any discomfort – feeling sweaty, having nausea, overheating, or feeling cold – get out of the tub. Take it as your body signalling that it’s time to get off your tub.
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Feeling Feverish? Skip the Dip If You’re Sick
If we haven’t emphasised it enough, raising your body temperature while pregnant is a big no-no. So, if you get a fever, where your body is already hotter than usual, and then submerge yourself in a tub of warm water, you could risk your baby’s health or development.
So, by all means, please stay away from the hot tub while pregnant.
Alternatives to a Hot Tub While Pregnant
Image Source: iStock
The reason you want to take a dip in a hot tub is to relax. And, if a hot tub is not advisable for pregnant woman, you can try other ways of getting that relaxation you so deserve. Here are a few of our suggestions:
If you haven’t tried it before, doing it for the first time while pregnant is going to do you a lot of good. Meditating is the most low-effort activity you can do to achieve relaxation and de-stress.
Simply close your eyes, breathe in through your nose, then breathe out through your mouth, and just watch the rising and falling of your chest. Do this continuously, and watch your stress melt away.
If you struggle in keeping yourself focused, you can try some meditation apps. There are plenty in the market that are truly useful for those struggling to concentrate. So, you might want to try one of them.
Being pregnant can cause you to become restless. So, if you want to de-stress, do the opposite – rest! Don’t worry about work. Forget about the house chores. Pay no mind to the dog. You can do all of those after you sleep. So, get those well-deserved zzzs, mum-to-be.
Your muscles tend to tighten when you’re stressed. So, to help relieve that, you ought to relax your muscles. Stretching can definitely help with that. You don’t have to do a complete workout. Stretching your neck or your arms or your legs will do.
If you physically cannot stretch yourself, you can get someone else to do it for you. Getting a massage can help relax those tense muscles too. But, before you book yourself one, make sure to arrange your massage with a reputable establishment who offers legit pregnancy massages. Peruse your potential therapist’s background before accepting the service. And find out how often the establishment has given pregnancy massages and if they have customer reviews. It’s best to be sure.
Image source: iStock
So, there you go. Hot tub or no hot tub – you can find so many ways to achieve relaxation. And if alternatives appear to be safer than a hot tub, we highly recommend you try them. Avoiding activities that can pose a risk to your pregnancy is your first step towards becoming an amazing mother. If you can do that, who knows what else you can do?
Updates from Kim Brua
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