You have the tools at hand to help prepare yourself for pregnancy with your doctor's guidance. There are many lifestyle changes you can make that can fight Hypertension and give you and your baby the best possible chance for a happy outcome.

Lifestyle changes aren't always easy. Granted, it may not be a cinch to quit smoking or lose weight but, one day at a time, you can do it.

During the six months to a year that you take to prepare for pregnancy you can gradually enact many changes in diet, exercise, salt consumption, alcohol and smoking. You are not making these changes just for yourself, but for your baby's health.

Using lifeclinic.com's tracking tools, you can track your weight and blood pressure daily. You'll be able to watch yourself make progress in the six months to a year you'll need to prepare for one of the biggest adventures life has to offer---pregnancy.

Stop Smoking

You've known for a long time that smoking contributes to high blood pressure and is harmful to your health in many other ways. But you don't want to smoke for two.

Smoking moms give the growing fetus nicotine and oxygen poor blood. The risks of smoking to the fetus include stillbirths, birth defects, low birth weight, sudden infant death syndrome and cancer. Smoking doubles the risk of ectopic pregnancy and of having a low birth weight baby.

Now is also the time for dad to cut out tobacco use. Men who smoke should work to change unhealthy behaviors before conception.

Stopping smoking could make the difference between a healthy outcome and complications you don't want. You can do it.

Limit Alcohol

Drinking and driving don't mix and neither do drinking and pregnancy. Avoid alcohol completely prior to conception and throughout pregnancy.

Alcohol travels rapidly through the bloodstream and can damage a developing fetus. It causes mental retardation and facial abnormalities in babies, a condition called Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. The Institute of Medicine estimates that 12,000 children with fetal alcohol syndrome are born in the Unitd States every year. No one knows what amount of alcohol is safe during pregnancy.

It is known, however, that alcohol can have an especially profound effect early in pregnancy. You won't always know right away that you are pregnant, so it's best to stop drinking while you are planning to become pregnant.

Instead of thinking of it as "giving up" alcohol, think of it as making a positive change to help ensure a healthy pregnancy and baby. Here's How to Cut Down.

Changing Eating Habits

Before Pregnancy- Weight and pregnancy can be a confusing subject, especially if you have Chronic Hypertension. Your weight before pregnancy and your weight gain during pregnancy are two different issues.

In planning for pregnancy, you can work with your doctor to determine what is an ideal weight for you. Charts and graphs that tell you how much you should weigh if you are a certain height are not always helpful.

Remember, you aren't out to make the cover of Vogue magazine. If you have high blood pressure or a tendency to be diabetic, a weight loss of even five to ten pounds can lower your blood pressure. It can be very important to your baby. Obesity has been associated with birth defects and makes high blood pressure worse.

With diet and exercise you can fight an inherited tendency to be overweight. It is medically beneficial to lose even small amounts of weight.

Before pregnancy is the time to work on your weight. If you have Chronic Hypertension, you'll want to avoid over-the-counter appetite suppressants because they can cause a rise in blood pressure.

During Pregnancy- Weight gain during pregnancy is a different story. To put it simply, dieting during pregnancy is not a good idea. A diet could leave you low on iron, folic acid and other important vitamins and minerals. It could even harm your baby.

Studies show that a weight gain of 25 to 35 pounds is best for a healthy pregnancy. So, if you need to lose weight, do it before you become pregnant.

About Caffeine

For some people, there is almost nothing in this world as good as the aroma and taste of a cup of morning coffee. For others, life wouldn't be worth living without a weekly chocolate fruit and nut bar.

What about caffeine in your pre-pregnancy plans? The Food and Drug Administration says that while some studies have shown conflicting results, the weight of scientific research continues to indicate that moderate caffeine consumption does not affect fertility, or cause adverse health effects in the mother or child.

Perhaps the safest advice comes from the March of Dimes. The organization recommends cutting back or eliminating caffeine.

Use the chart below to check out the amount of hidden caffeine in foods and beverages to ensure that you are consuming the minimum amount of caffeine or no caffeine at all.

WHAT PRODUCTS CONTAIN CAFFEINE AND HOW MUCH?

The table below shows the approximate caffeine content of various foods and beverages:

		Milligrams of Caffeine
Item		Average		Range
Coffee (5-oz. cup)
	Brewed, drip method	115		60-180
	Brewed, percolator	80		40-170
	Instant	65		30-120
	Decaffeinated, brewed	3		2-5
	Decaffeinated, instant	2		1-5
Teas (5-oz. cup)
	Brewed, major U.S. brands	40		20-90
	Brewed, imported brands	60		25-110
	Instant	30		25-50
	Iced (12-oz. glass)	70		67-76
Some soft drinks (6 oz.)		18		15-30
Cocoa beverage (5 oz.)		4		2-20
Chocolate milk beverage (8 oz.)		5		2-7
Milk chocolate (1 oz.)		6		1-15
Dark chocolate, semi-sweet (1 oz.)		20		5-35
Baker's chocolate (1 oz.)		26		26
Chocolate-flavored syrup (1 oz.)		4		4

Source: U.S. Food and Drug Administration and National Soft Drink Association

Sources for this information include the March of Dimes, the American College of Gynecologists and Obstetricians and the Food and Drug Administration.

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