Surprising Side Effects Of Being A Preemie: What You Should Know
If you are a person who was born prematurely, you may think that once your parents took you home from the hospital as a baby with a clean bill of health that all of your birth-related woes were behind you. However, the reality is that being born premature can have lasting effects on your health throughout your life. Get to know some of the surprising side effects of being born prematurely so that you can be sure that you take the necessary steps to protect your health and make sure that you work with your physician to treat any conditions you may suffer from that are related to your premature birth.
Osteoporosis
Recent studies performed on adults that were born prematurely indicate that these adults are at an increased risk for developing osteoporosis later in life. This is due to the fact that during the last few weeks of a woman's pregnancy, one of the key processes that occur is that the woman transfers calcium reserves to the baby in utero.
Without that calcium, it can be difficult for a baby's bones to form and strengthen early in life. This, of course, can cause deficiencies throughout life and lead to osteoporosis later in life. If you were born prematurely, making sure that you have enough calcium every day is one of the most important health tasks that you should keep up with to prevent the development of osteoporosis.
Keeping up with a regular exercise program and maintaining a healthy weight will also help to prevent undue pressure from being placed on your bones. Less strain on your skeletal system means you will be less likely to experience bone breaks or fractures throughout your life.
Introversion and Risks of Depression and Anxiety
Many adults who were born premature are also at risk for long-term emotional and mental conditions. One of the more interesting trends is that many adults who were born premature have a tendency to be introverted adults.
When a person is introverted they tend to be less talkative, keep to themselves, and be less assertive in their interactions with other people. On top of often being more introverted in general, adults who were born premature often have higher rates of depression and anxiety. In fact, preemies are 3.5 to 4 times more likely than people who were not born premature to suffer from such mental health disorders.
Now that you know a few of the more surprising side effects of being born premature, you can be sure that you are taking the best possible care of your health throughout your life.
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