14 December 2023
Pregnancy can be a great time to continue enjoying your love for traveling. This is what you need to know and some recommendations in order to plan your travels in pregnancy in safety and with the right precautions.
In the majority of cases,traveling is safe in pregnancy even close to the due date. However, in high-risk pregnancies it is crucial to discuss whether it it still safe to travel and what precautions to keep in mind. Traveling is not safe for pregnant women with Preeclampsia, premature rupture of membranes (PROM), or premature labour.
The best time in pregnancy to travel is between the 14th and 28th gestational weeks, because this period of time is usually when you have your energy levels back to normal, sickness is decreased or regressed and you can still move and walk easily After the 28th gestational week it will be normal to feel your movements to require a bit more effort and time.
Before you leave for your trip, please plan a checkup with your GP or with your Consultant Gynaecologist, who will confirm your due date and will explain precautions and vaccinations you should have before leaving.
Always wear the safety seat belt, the lower belt well below your hip bones and the upper belt between your breasts.
The majority of the airlines allow pregnant women up to about 36 gestational weeks to fly domestic flights. Please check the specific limits of your airline. Low air pressure in the plane cabin may reduce the amounts of oxygen in your blood, but your body will adapt to this mild change. Radiation exposure increases with high altitudes, but such levels for short and occasional flights do not put your pregnancy nor baby at risk. If you are a frequent-flier, please talk to your GP or your Consultant Gynaecologist about whether you should reduce the frequency of your flights.
How can I reduce the risk of Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) during my trip?DVT is caused by a blood clot forming in a deep vein. DVT is a very serious health condition: the blood clots in the deep veins can move to the lungs, where they can block blood flow and cause lung embolism. Studies show that any time of travel lasting 4 or more hours--car, plane, bus or train-- doubles the chances of having DVT. Pregnancy increases this chance even more.
If you have a long journey planned, please follow these tips:
Drink plenty of fluids with no caffeine.
Wear loose clothes that are not tight on your body.
Walk and stretch regularly every hour.
Wear compression socks (40DEN or 70DEN), which you can find at your local pharmacy. Talk with your GP or your Consultant Gynaecologist to understand whether you have any reason you should not wear compression socks (for example, Diabetes or blood circulation problems).
To ensure your journey is comfortable, choose an aisle seat so that you can stand up easily and move your legs during the trip. Do not drink fizzy drinks both before and during your trip, in order to avoid bloatedness and sickness. Wear your safety seat belt during the whole journey, in order to avoid bumping your tummy during sudden turbulence. Move your feet, toes and legs often, and walk around frequently during your journey.
Traveling by boat or cruise can often cause nausea and vomiting. If you have never suffered motion sickness, pregnancy should not cause this. Infections are spread quickly and easily on cruise and boat trips. Norovirus, for example, is a virus that is spread through food, drinks and by touching surfaces contaminated by the virus. Symptoms of Norovirus are abdominal cramps, nausea, diarrhoea and vomiting. Before planning a cruise or boat trip, please check that the boat has undergone safety and hygiene inspections on a regular basis.