Q: Is it very risky to conceive if a person is overweight (95 kgs); what could be the consequences? I am married since 6 months and have now joined a gym to reduce my weight. At the moment I am 95kgs and my height is 5feet 4 inches. What should be exact weight at which I should conceive? Other than gym, what other preventive measures can I take to control my weight? An early reply will be highly appreciated.

A:There is nothing called as an ideal weight to conceive. Obviously the lesser you weigh the better it is. It is also obvious you are overweight but we cannot do all that much can we? Well at this stage all you need to do is lose as much weight as you can before pregnancy (as much as is practical). Losing even about 9-10 kg will be good (10% of your current weight). I do not think you should aim at more as it will only frustrate you. To lose weight moderate exercise is always good but you will basically need to eat less and the right kind of foods so that you get enough nutrition in form of fruits and vegetables but yet lose weight by taking less calories. Vigorous exercise will not help you lose all that much though is certainly healthy and make you feel fit. For hormonal balance losing about 10 kg would be good as most of the weight you lose would be fat which interferes with female hormones. Well there are many problems with pregnancy with obesity but you need not worry about them at this stage and will be told once you are pregnant. Anyway once you get pregnant even with your current weight there nothing that cannot be managed with expert care.