There is a fear that intimacy during pregnancy can harm the fetus, causing either miscarriage or premature birth. We checked whether such fear is justified.
Publications on the issue of safe sex during pregnancy are devoted to medical portals And hospital websites, them are interested and visitors to specialized forums. “During orgasm, contractions of the uterus occur. If the process of bearing a baby occurs with an increased risk, then such spasms, even short-term, can cause premature birth or miscarriage,” explain a popular concern on the website of one of the stores selling goods for newborns. By another version, sex during pregnancy is especially harmful for women who have previously had miscarriages: intimate intimacy “can provoke an increase in uterine tone and termination of pregnancy.” The most dangerous for having sex alone called last four weeks of pregnancy, other - the first two months. In some texts TBCthat not only penetrative sex, but “even simple mechanical irritation of the internal genital organs” can harm the fetus.
Miscarriage called spontaneous expulsion of an embryo or non-viable fetus from the mother’s body (at a gestational age of less than 20 weeks or with a weight of up to 500 g). Under premature birth is understood birth of a child before the 37th week of pregnancy. According to WHO estimates, between 4% and 16% of children are born before this period, depending on the region. Every year about 1 million children die due to premature birth and related complications.
Up to 50% of all miscarriages connected with severe chromosomal abnormalities. This outcome of pregnancy can also be caused by infectious diseases in the mother (primarily viruses of the TORCH group - chickenpox, rubella, herpes and cytomegalovirus, as well as a number of other pathogens), diabetes, kidney and heart diseases, lifestyle factors (smoking, drinking alcohol and drugs), abnormalities in the structure of the woman’s reproductive system, radiation, etc. Usually the exact cause of a miscarriage remains unknown - doctors simply make sure that There are no gestational products left in the mother's body. Tests to help understand the problem are offered to couples who have had more than three miscarriages in a row.
Regarding the unified theory of why labor begins prematurely, scientists No — as with a miscarriage, in each specific case it is not always possible to determine what the provoking factor was. Most often to this outcome leads multiple births, a break after a previous pregnancy of less than six months, disorders of the anatomical structure of the uterus, cervix or placenta, a number of infectious diseases, diabetes, hypertension or injuries received by the expectant mother.
Judging by recommendations authoritative medical organizations, for a pregnant woman, having sex does not imply any mandatory prohibitions or strict safety rules in her situation. The only thing a future mother should focus on is a sense of her own comfort. This applies to the intensity of sexual activity, the preferred method of interaction with a partner, and the choice of a suitable position.
However, sex during pregnancy is often a concern for expectant parents. For example, some women fear that the uterine contractions that occur during orgasm may cause labor to go into labor prematurely. Another common prejudice is based on what is in sperm contained prostaglandins are substances that contribute contractile activity of the uterus and help ripen the cervix. From this fact it is often concluded that sexual intercourse can lead to premature birth, but this is not so: the effect of prostaglandins will be effective only when the due date has approached and it has not yet begun. Also, some are concerned that stimulation of the nipples and genitals can cause the release of oxytocin from the pituitary gland, which also provokes uterine contractions.
However, all these fears are at least exaggerated, and at most unfounded. Thus, there is no evidence that intimate intimacy can cause a miscarriage during a normal pregnancy - this is confirmed by such authoritative medical organizations as Mayo Clinic And Cleveland Clinic. The doctor may recommend abstain from intimacy, if during pregnancy there was severe gynecological bleeding with the threat of spontaneous abortion (in this case, sex can contribute to the recurrence of bleeding and create a risk of miscarriage). However, light bleeding after intimacy during pregnancy are considered variant of the norm and should not cause concern.
Also, the doctor is likely to recommend abstinence from sex in case of placenta previa - an anomaly of its location, in which it partially or completely covers the internal os of the cervix. How indicate Canadian researchers, there is not enough data on the effect of sex during such a pregnancy on the risk of hypotonic bleeding (that is, occurring against the background of contractile activity of the uterus), but such a recommendation is important and is of an insurance nature. This is justified by the fact that hypotonic bleeding itself is extremely difficult to stop, and blood loss from the very first minutes is great - in other words, the threat of not only miscarriage or premature birth, but also the death of the woman herself is real.
As for premature birth, sex during a normal pregnancy also does not carry any risk. Scientists from the US National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) analyzed more than 10,000 pregnancy outcomes. Women who had sex regularly while pregnant did not have an increased risk of premature rupture of membranes, perinatal death of the baby, or low birth weight compared with those who practiced abstinence.
A smaller study recently held Dutch scientists on a sample of 195 women. Pregnant women who abstained completely from sex had a marginally higher likelihood of giving birth prematurely, women with a frequency of intercourse between one and four times a month were more likely to give birth at term, and those who had sex more than once a week were again more likely to give birth prematurely. However, the fluctuations were too small for scientists to draw a definitive conclusion about the relationship between the intensity of sexual activity during pregnancy and the risk of having a premature baby. The researchers emphasize that health care providers should not encourage women to abstain during pregnancy.
Recommendations may be different if a woman suffers from infections of the lower genital organs: vulvitis, vaginitis, cervicitis, etc. Research by Indian scientists showedthat for such women, if they have sex after 28 weeks of gestation and their disease symptoms are severe, the risk of premature birth will be higher compared to those who were asymptomatic with these diseases. However, bacterial infections are themselves factor risk of premature birth. That is why, as part of medical monitoring of pregnancy, a woman is asked several times (depending on the protocol adopted in the country) to take the appropriate test. Two microorganisms turned out to be especially dangerous: Trichomonas vaginalis and Mycoplasma hominis. Specialists from NICHD in 1993 discoveredthat among healthy pregnant women who had sex at least once a week in the second trimester, the risk of premature birth decreased, but among those infected with these bacteria, it increased. For pregnant women infected with these microorganisms and abstaining from sex, it was close to the population average.
In rare cases, sex during pregnancy can lead to a pathology that is dangerous for the expectant mother herself - venous air embolism, that is, the penetration of air into the circulatory system. An air bubble can enter the dilated vessels of the vagina, block a large artery, or reach the right ventricle of the heart and lead to death. According to a 1998 estimate (more recent data are not available due to the rarity of the pathology), the likelihood of such an outcome amounts to 18 cases per 20 million pregnancies. Venous air embolism more than probable during orogenital contact, as well as in positions in which the uterus is located significantly above the level of the heart.
Thus, if the pregnancy is progressing normally, there is no reason to abstain from intimacy for fear of miscarriage or premature birth. However, sex can aggravate some complications of pregnancy: for example, in case of bleeding, doctors may recommend temporary abstinence, and in case of placenta previa - complete abstinence. There is also a very small risk of venous air embolism, which can be reduced by avoiding orogenital contact and certain positions.
Cover image: Image by sohyun park from Pixabay
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