Science Untangled: How to Adopt a Healthy Lifestyle after Preeclampsia

Practical Tips

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​Veronica Giorgione is studying the long-term effects of preeclampsia on the cardiovascular system. In her job, she meets and counsels mothers who have just had preeclampsia. Here is a summary of the advice she usually gives:

Preeclampsia is a disorder of pregnancy that can affect pregnant women, usually during the second half of pregnancy or soon after their baby is delivered. It is characterized by high blood pressure and signs of damage to another organ system such as liver and kidneys.

​The signs of preeclampsia go away after delivery and the majority of these women achieve a full recovery. Usually, a clinical improvement starts within one to two days following the delivery and blood pressure goes down to normal pre-pregnancy values within one to eight weeks. 

Women who have had preeclampsia are at an increased risk of developing cardiovascular diseases (CVD) later in life (1). CVD are disorders affecting heart or blood vessels, such as high blood pressure, heart attack or stroke. However, most CVD are preventable by adopting a healthy lifestyle. In particular women with a history of preeclampsia can reduce their cardiovascular risk by leading a healthier lifestyle.

An active and healthy lifestyle

Acknowledgment: We would like to thank Laura-Jane Logue and Marcus Green from Action on Preeclampsia for allowing me to use this illustration. 

An active and healthy lifestyle is based on the following advice that can help people to feel better every day and prevent CVD on the long run.

• Do not smoke
• Use alcohol in moderation: You should not exceed 14 units a week that are 6 pints of 4% beer or 6 glasses of 13% wine (2).
• Diet: Eating the right foods can keep you healthy now and later on in life.
  • Eat at least 2.5 servings of vegetables and 2 servings of fruit each day. A portion is about 80 g (for example, an apple or 3 heaped tablespoons of peas). Try to eat fruit and vegetables at each meal and for snacks. If you don't have fresh fruit and vegetables, you can eat frozen or canned ones instead.
  • Eat at least 2 portions of fish a week, including a portion of fatty fish (such as salmon, mackerel, herring, lake trout, sardines and albacore tuna). A serving is about 100 g cooked, or about 170 g of flaked fish.
  • Eat at least 4 to 5 portions of unsalted nuts, seeds and legumes a week. The consumption of 30 g of nuts per day reduces the risk of CVD (3).
  • Reduce your intake of sugar and food products that contain refined grains. Refined grains are found in white bread, white rice, most forms of pasta, and most packaged "snack" foods. You should consume 30–45 g of fibers per day, preferably from wholegrain products (for example, whole-wheat bread, wholegrain rice and pasta).
  • Sugar-sweetened soft drinks consumption must be discouraged.
  • Reduce your salt intake. World health organization (WHO) recommends that adults consume less than 5 g (just under a teaspoon) of salt per day (4). Moreover, the salt consumption at home can be decreased by
    • not adding salt during the preparation of food
    • not having a salt shaker on the table
    • limiting the consumption of salty snacks
    • choosing products with lower sodium content.
  • Eat less fat. Avoid foods that contain a lot of fat, such as fried or processed foods or takeaways. In particular, saturated fat (for example, fatty meat, butter, cheese and other dairy products) should be limited. Try to choose foods containing mono-unsaturated fats (such as olive oil, avocados and peanut) and polyunsaturated fats (walnuts, sunflower seed and oil, flax seeds or flax oil, tofu and other forms of soybeans) instead.
  • Choose healthy ways of cooking your food. Don't fry food or roast food in fat such as butter or ghee. Instead, steam, poach or bake. Add flavour using spices, herbs and lemon juice instead of using buttery, cheesy or creamy sauces.
• Exercise: Physical activity (PA) should occur at a frequency of at least three to five sessions per week, but preferably every day. It is recommended that individuals accumulate at least 30 min/day, 5 days/week of moderate intensity PA (150 min/week) or 15 min/day, 5 days/week of vigorous intensity PA (75 min/week), or a combination of both, performed in sessions with a duration of at least 10 min (3).
  • Moderate intensity PA: walking briskly (4.8–6.5 km/h), slow cycling (15km/h), painting/decorating, vacuuming, gardening (mowing lawn), golf (pulling clubs in trolley), tennis (doubles), ballroom dancing, water aerobics
  • Vigorous intensity PA: race-walking, jogging or running, bicycling >15 km/h, heavy gardening (continuous digging or hoeing), swimming laps, tennis (single)
• Blood pressure monitoring: Check your blood pressure with your general practitioner once a year. Your blood pressure should be lower than 140/90 (5). 

References:

1. Mosca L, Benjamin EJ, Berra K, Bezanson JL, Dolor RJ, Lloyd-Jones DM, et al. Effectiveness-based guidelines for the prevention of cardiovascular disease in women--2011 update: a guideline from the American Heart Association. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2011;57(12):1404-23.
2. UK Chief Medical Officers. Low Risk Drinking Guidelines. 2016
3. Piepoli MF, Hoes AW, et al. 2016 European Guidelines on cardiovascular disease prevention in clinical practice. Atherosclerosis. 2016;252:207‐274.
4. World Health Organisation. Salt Reduction.  2020.  Available at: www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/salt-reduction.
5. Thilaganathan B, Kalafat E. Cardiovascular System in Preeclampsia and Beyond. Hypertension. 2019;73(3):522‐531.doi:10.1161/HYPERTENSIONAHA.118.11191

Author

Veronica Giorgione is an Early Stage Researcher of iPlacenta. Read her earlier blog post here.