Five Prenatal Tests You Can Say No To

You recently found out you’re expecting…congratulations! Pregnancy can feel like a whole new world of uncharted territory. 

If you’ve found my blog, I can assume you’re feeling a nudge towards walking this path a little differently. Maybe a pull to do things more according to how you feel over what the medical system requires. 

Well, I want to let you in on a little secret…

You don’t have to do what everyone else is doing just because everyone else is doing it!

When I found out I was pregnant with my first, I remember not wanting to do genetic testing. I remember thinking but everyone does that right? Then my midwife asked if we wanted to. She went through the benefits of it, the risks of it, and my husband and I talked it through. We landed on not doing any genetic testing for a few reasons but mostly because we knew that no matter what came of it, we would not terminate. This was the first of many things we would question, opt out of, and seek alternatives to. 

Here are Five Prenatal Tests You Can Say No To

First Trimester Genetic Testing

There are different types of genetic testing. The most common that will be offered is a blood test called NIPT (non-invasive prenatal testing). This test will give parents-to-be information on whether the fetus has certain genetic disorders. We must remember that there is always the possibility of a false-positive OR a false-negative. 

Having a conversation about what you will do with this information is important in deciding whether to get the testing done and you can 100% opt out of this screening.

Weighing Yourself in Pregnancy

You do not need to be weighed at every single prenatal appointment. You do not need to weigh in at all if you don’t want to! There are plenty of other measurements/tracking tools your provider can rely on to make sure you and baby are healthy. 

Ultrasounds During Pregnancy

Did you know the world health organization currently recommends that unless medically indicated, there be no more than one ultrasound scan, and only before 24 weeks? 

Typically a provider within the medical system will recommend an ultrasound at 8 weeks to determine the due date and again at 20 weeks to look for abnormalities. We all know that this is very conservative nowadays. Most pregnant women are having many more ultrasounds than these two, especially if there is anything slightly abnormal they want to track. 

There are no long-term studies on the effects of Ultrasounds. They have become so routine that controlled human studies are now deemed unnecessary. And they have been grandfathered into FDA clearance, meaning that ultrasound studies have stopped since the 1980s despite the fact that the FDA raised its regulations for the strength of the signal.

Our technological advances have made doctors rely so heavily on machines over our own god-given intuition as human beings. 

Of course, you have to weigh the risks and benefits in each situation, but you do not need to get ANY ultrasounds if that is what you decide. 

Cervical Exams Before Birth Begins

Did you know cervica exams are incredibly uncommon in some parts of the world? There aren't any benefits to checking your cervix for dilations or effacement in late pregnancy, and they can introduce foreign bacteria inside your vaginal canal near your cervical opening, which increases the risk of infection.

Cervical checks might satisfy your curiosity (or your providers), but it doesn’t show to have an effect on your outcome either way. The evidence simply does not support it. 

If you don’t want vaginal exams, either because the evidence doesn't support them, they make you uncomfortable or you just simply don’t want them, you can decline. Your reason is your own and you don’t need to explain it to anybody!

Traditional Glucose Test in Third Trimester

The glucola test is a prenatal test typically given around 24-28 weeks of pregnancy. The purpose of this test is to provide a preliminary screen for gestational diabetes. 

The traditional test includes drinking Glucola, an orange, artificial “drink” with the following ingredients:

Water, dextrose (D-glucose from corn), citric acid, natural flavoring, food starch-modified, glycerol ester of wood rosin, brominated soybean oil, food dye, and coloring: Yellow #6, Sodium Hexametaphosphate, BHA, and .10% Sodium Benzoate

Yup, that’s what our medical system is administering to women carrying and growing babies! 

There are a few alternatives you can request for this screening. 

First, simply a different drink! I drank organic grape juice for both of mine. There is also an alternative called The Fresh Test which has much better ingredients. If you want to avoid the drink and quick test altogether, you can request to self-monitor your blood sugar at home along with keeping a food diary. 

Main point is you have other options!

Remember, you always have CHOICE! As soon as we conceive, I truly believe our Mama gut starts to kick in. Listen to that intuition. If your provider is telling you something that is “routine” but in your brain you are questioning it, speak up! Stand up for yourself and your baby. Start strengthening that muscle now and by the time you give birth, watch out for Mama Bear!

Did you enjoy learning this type of information? Would a step-by-step checklist help ease your mind in preparing for your pregnancy and birth? Download my FREE Holistic Pregnancy Checklist HERE!