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The Winter Pregnancy Survival Guide: 15 Ways to Stay Safe and Healthy This Season

Expecting a baby when the weather is cold? Stay warm (and safe!) with these winter pregnancy tips. (16 Photos)

Cynthia Ramnarace on Dec 7, 2012 at 6:14PM

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The Winter Pregnancy Survival Guide: 15 Ways to Stay Safe and Healthy This Season

Guido Mieth/Flickr/Getty Images

15 Tips for a Great Winter Pregnancy

A winter pregnancy sounds great in theory: You've got that gorgeous, growing bump to keep you warm and cozy! But dry, itchy pregnancy skin and nosebleeds can drive you nuts, icy sidewalks and streets can slip you up, and cold and flu germs, well, they're all around. Don't worry, mama-to-be: These tips will help you feel more comfortable and keep you -- and baby -- healthy all winter long.

Dress in Layers
You're pregnant -- and sweating your way through every overheated house and office you set foot in. Sound familiar? There's a good reason you feel like a super-powered furnace: a pregnant woman's body temperature runs about 2 degrees higher than normal, says Noushin Firouzbakht , M.D., an Ob/Gyn at Fort Worth Female Health Associates in Fort Worth, Texas. While it's okay to wear shorts at home or a short-sleeved blouse at work, once you head outside, make sure you bundle up. (Don't forget to protect your fingers and toes.) Dressing in layers not only will keep you warm while outside, but will make it easier to strip down when you come back in so that your warmer-than-average self is comfortable -- and not roasting.