Table of contents:
- The dangers of toxoplasmosis in pregnancy
- What about breastfeeding mothers infected with toxoplasmosis?
- How can you prevent toxoplasmosis?
- 1. Be careful when keeping a cat
- 2. Prevent transmission from food
- 3. Pay attention when doing activities outside the home
Have you ever heard of toxoplasmosis or what is commonly called toxo? This is one of the diseases that are better known to spread through cats. In fact, not only cats can spread this disease, but also other pets, such as dogs.
Toxo can also be caused by consumption of raw or undercooked food, contaminated kitchen utensils, consumption of unpasteurized goat's milk, or eating unwashed fruit or vegetables. It may be that toxoplasmosis is not harmful to healthy people, but for pregnant women it is very harmful to the baby and can have long-term effects.
The dangers of toxoplasmosis in pregnancy
Toxoplasmosis is an infectious disease caused by parasites Toxoplasma gondii. This disease is not dangerous, but can cause serious problems when you experience it while pregnant. Toxoplasmosis cannot be spread from person to person. However, it can be spread from mother to unborn child during pregnancy or from blood or organ transfusions infected with the toxoplasma parasite.
This disease can endanger the health of your baby while in the womb. The parasites that cause this disease can infect the placenta and the baby in the womb, so that it can cause miscarriage, still birth (stillbirth), brain damage, and other bad effects.
At first, babies born to mothers who developed toxoplasmosis during pregnancy looked normal. However, over the next few months or years, your baby may experience some problems, such as:
- Eye infection or what is called chorioretinitis
- Hearing problems
- Learning disorders
- Delayed growth
Good handling can help reduce the severity of this problem. However, it would be better if you still prevent this disease before, during, and after pregnancy. Before pregnancy, you can do TORCH vaccination (toxoplasma, rubella, cytomegalovirus, and herpes) to prevent this disease.
What about breastfeeding mothers infected with toxoplasmosis?
Having toxoplasmosis during pregnancy is known to spread to your baby and endanger his health. However, what if you have toxoplasmosis while breastfeeding a baby, can it harm the baby too?
The answer is no. You can still breastfeed your baby if you are diagnosed with toxoplasmosis. This is because the toxoplasmosis infectious disease cannot spread to your baby through breast milk or breast milk. Although you can get toxoplasmosis from consuming unpasteurized goat's milk, it is parasites Toxoplasma gondii which causes toxoplasmosis is never found in breast milk.
It is possible for these parasites to pass to your baby if your nipples are sore and bleeding or if your breasts become inflamed during the few weeks of breastfeeding. However, it is still very unlikely that transmission from breast milk will occur.
For those of you who have had toxoplasmosis several years before you breastfeed, you can still give breast milk to your baby without worrying that your baby will be infected with this parasite. Basically, breast milk can indeed strengthen the baby's immune system and protect babies from various infectious diseases. If you are still worried, there is nothing wrong with discussing with your doctor your options for breastfeeding or not.
How can you prevent toxoplasmosis?
Apart from doing the TORCH vaccination, you can also do the things below to avoid toxoplasmosis, both before and during pregnancy.
1. Be careful when keeping a cat
If you have a cat at home, be careful when cleaning the litter and cage. Use gloves when cleaning and wash your hands after cleaning the cage. Also, wash your hands after playing or handling a cat. Clean the cat's cage every day. It can take several days for cat litter to cause infection. Do not feed your cat raw or undercooked meat. Leave the cat indoors, so as to guard against infections transmitted by mice or birds. Also, keep the cat away from the kitchen and dining table.
2. Prevent transmission from food
To prevent transmission from food, it is best to wash your hands before preparing or cooking food. Clean your hands after cooking and also clean all your cooking utensils. Also, wash vegetables and fruits before use, especially fruits and vegetables that you eat raw. Cook the meat until it is completely cooked. Also, avoid consuming unpasteurized goat milk, or cheese or cream made from unpasteurized goat milk.
3. Pay attention when doing activities outside the home
If you have a hobby of gardening, wash your hands after gardening or when they come into contact with soil. And, also wash your hands thoroughly after you visit an outdoor playground where there are animals. Toxoplasmosis does not only come from cats, but also from some pets or farm animals
