Can/Should you ski if you're pregnant??

Denalihighway wrote: »

Regarding my proof? Surprised you haven't pulled that card already - do a web search of 20 medical articles on the web - see how many advise against. You'll come to the same conclusion I did. I could easily ask you to give me evidence that doctors advise pregnant women to go skiing, there's probably a few out there you can dig up..

Do any of those articles specifically support the suggestion that most doctors advise against skiing while pregnant, irrespective of skiing ability?

No; didnt think so. (I went to the bother of bolding an underlying words and phrases in my last post so that you might have understood the point I was making:mad:)

Denalihighway wrote: »

However, Doctors, in general, do not advise skiing while pregnant. . You say this yourself in your last post.

Im pretty sure I said this in my other posts too! Again, the fact that you point to that fact simply illustrates the fact that you understand the point.

The reason for most doctors advising against skiing is because most women are not proficient skiers. The point many people are trying to make to you is this:

A doctor, faced with a pregnant woman who is a proficient skier, will not advise her to refrain from skiing, in fact he will probably encourage it (just as a doctor, faced with a pregnant woman who is a proficient cyclist, will not advise her to refrain from cycling, in fact he will probably encourage it).

Do you accept that premise?

You should absolutely ski whilst pregnant.

Light easy activity, a week of relaxation, fresh air, I'd say it would be fantastic for a pregnant woman, especially given that skiing generally happens in winter, a time of year they're unlikely to get outside due to the weather.

Watch out for other people knocking you over though (10% of ski accidents involve collisions).
And remember there's a collossal ~0.25% chance of injury. Compared with around a 2% chance whilst cycling. So it's really dangerous for the unborn child. Around an eighth as dangerous as cycling.

Denalihighway wrote: »

yer having a laugh now...

Not at all. We encourage cycling (at least in early-mid pregancy). Why do you think a doctor might encourage a proficient cyclist to cycle in pregnancy, but wouldnt encourage a proficient skiier to ski in pregnancy?

Is there a difference in the type of fall and injury one might suffer as a consequence of a fall from a bicycle at 20mph and a fall from a pair of skis at 20mph? (having experienced both, i know which i would prefer......)

You need to use actual logic, evidence and argument. Saying 'yer having a laugh' doesnt actually cut it, especially when it comes to medical advice....

ps...my "yer having a laugh" comment was just to illustrate i feel there's a bit of a jump between saying its worth the risk to go skiing and actually "encouraging" it.

drkpower wrote: »

I dont give out medical advice anymore, but in any case, you appear to have missed some recent questions that I asked you; lets see if you have any response:

Why do you think a doctor might encourage a proficient cyclist to cycle in pregnancy, but wouldnt encourage a proficient skiier to ski in pregnancy?

Is there a difference in the type of fall and injury one might suffer as a consequence of a fall from a bicycle at 20mph and a fall from a pair of skis at 20mph?

i don't know why anyone "might" do anything - if you're saying they DO encourage cycling it could be for a number of reasons:

- they may not have any other options. it may be a daily necessity, as opposed to a ski trip, which is not.
- statistically and anecdotally it may pose less risk than skiing (it would be interesting to compare proper statistics on the risks of falling/collision - that is if proper data is used - IE the risk of 1 fall/collision for X number of hours of skiing compared to the risk of 1 fall/collision for the same number of hours of cycling.)

to answer your 2nd question. I would rather fall on snow than a road. that's an easy one.

what about my question?

when you did give advice - would you have encouraged skiing while pregnant? I think you should answer this.

also, one last question - have you skied while pregnant?

Denalihighway wrote: »

- they may not have any other options. it may be a daily necessity, as opposed to a ski trip, which is not.

Cycling simpliciter (ie. for leisure) is encouraged; not merely cycling as a commute.

Denalihighway wrote: »

- statistically and anecdotally it may pose less risk than skiing (it would be interesting to compare proper statistics on the risks of falling/collision - that is if proper data is used - IE the risk of 1 fall/collision for X number of hours of skiing compared to the risk of 1 fall/collision for the same number of hours of cycling.)

Do you think that doctors advise individual patients solely based on generalised statistics or do you think they advise individual patients based on their particular charachteristics, circumstances and experiences? Which do you think is more likely? Or put another way, do you think a doctor's advice to a proficient cyclist might differ to the advice given to a rusty 'i havent cycled in years' cyclist?

Denalihighway wrote: »

when you did give advice - would you have encouraged skiing while pregnant? I think you should answer this.

I never had anyone ask me for that specific advice, as it happens. I did have a number of women ask me if they should cycle when pregnant. I advised them that if they were proficient cyclists, and if they were cycling on relatively quiet cycle lanes, then absolutely, go for it. I suspect my advice to a pregnant skiier would have been in a similar vein.

Denalihighway wrote: »

also, one last question - have you skied while pregnant?

Im male' if I were female, I dont think i would ski while pregnant. That is because the reason I like skiing is because of the adrenaline rush I get when I ski 'on the edge'. I dont think i'denjoy pedestrian-style skiing. However, if i were a pregnant woman (!) and if i enjoyed pedestrian skiing on easy quiet blues, id have no problem skiing on same. I know a number of pregnant doctors who have skiied for a couple of days on that basis. Social services havent called around as of yet.