Careful nesting

Nesting is a safe pregnancy symptom to embrace, however you must be careful when doing it. Here are a few tips to follow during your nesting processin order to protect you and your baby’s health:

You should always wear rubber clothes when cleaning during your pregnancy.

• Wear rubber gloves. This protects your skin from the cleaning products you will be using.
• Clean in well-ventilated areas. There’s nothing worse than being cooped up in a room with no air circulation, so when you add cleaning products to the mix of things it only gets worse. You and your baby should be breathing in fresh air.
• Take breaks. Remember you’re pregnant, so if you’re feeling tired take a break.
• Don’t climb or lift. No matter how much you want to clean the top of that cabinet or under the fridge at that very moment, don’t do it without someone’s help. Get your partner or a friend to clean the top of the cabinet and to pull out the fridge, because these activities are just not worth the risk.
• Use safe cleaning products. Read every label and avoid oven cleaners and dry cleaning products. Also, NEVER mix ammonia and bleach, the fumes this mixture creates are toxic!
• No cleaning up after the pets. If you usually clean out the hamster cage or kitty litter box it’s time to hand over that chore. Animal fecal matter is too much of a risk for you and your baby’s health.
• Avoid painting. You probably want to paint, repaint and re-repaint the nursery until you find the perfect colour, but you really shouldn’t be hanging out with paint fumes. If you have no other choice, make sure the room is well-ventilated, that you’re using water-based paint and wearing a mask that covers your mouth and nose.