Rohr, as one of 10 children from 29 nieces and nephewsshe watched countless family members and friends go through arduous pregnancies. In response, she is determined to apply a positive, empowering response. “I always thought having a baby was the least random thing ever,” she says. “It seems like it’s going to be a life-changing thing that I wanted to be very, very sure about.”
Doctors say that overall, all this up-to-date attention around the “zero trimester” is a very positive and thrilling phenomenon. Hearty moms usually mean better outcomes for mom and baby. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists now recommends that during checkups, doctors ask women of reproductive age whether they plan to get pregnant within the next year. “There are many things we can do to optimize our underlying health in the year before conception that will improve pregnancy outcomes,” she says Natalie Clark Stentz, an obstetrician-gynecologist, reproductive endocrinologist and infertility specialist at Michigan Medicine. This is especially true if you have a chronic condition such as diabetes, hypertension, depression or thyroid disease that needs to be treated and monitored during pregnancy.
At the same time, this “preparation” should be expert-reviewed and backed by science and usually does not include the TikTok store. The preconception doctor’s toolkit is much simpler than what you see online and hasn’t really changed much in decades: make sure your vaccinations are up to date, avoid alcohol, stop smoking and drug apply, start a prenatal vitamin with folic acid to prevent neural tube defects at least a month before getting pregnant, and consult your doctor about any prescription medications and supplements. Only 5 percent of preconceived nutrition claims on social media have been verified in: 2025 study were mentioned in current international guidelines on pregnancy prevention, and 54 percent were considered to have “no evidence of health effects.” TikTok and Instagram saw higher rates of “no evidence” claims than other platforms.
For example, raw milk is a favorite of self-proclaimed “crunchy moms,” but unpasteurized milk may be introduce harmful germs such as listeria, which can cause miscarriage or damage to the fetus. Extreme diets and exercise can also affect fertility by affecting the hormones necessary for conception, he says Kary Goldmanobstetrician-gynecologist and associate professor of reproductive endocrinology and infertility and director of fertility preservation at Northwestern University. Recently, a patient with estrogen receptor-positive breast cancer told her she had been taking beef organ supplements without realizing until Goldman dug deeper into the ingredients that the capsules contained “ovary” and “uterus.” This meant that she was inadvertently taking estrogen supplements after years of avoiding unnecessary estrogen exposure. Additionally, organ meats like liver can be high in vitamin A, which Stentz says can be “very toxic” to pregnancy.
“Any individual thing that gets a buzz is probably going to be great, whether it’s Brazil nuts, offal or whatever,” Stentz adds. “Evidence-based stuff isn’t sexy. Maintain a normal BMI, quit smoking and take a boring prenatal vitamin.”
Pregnancy preparation regimens can quickly become pricey. Monthly supply of “Perelela”conception support package“, which includes prenatal omega fatty acids DHA + EPA and CoQ12 + folic acid, costs $58.77. A complete replacement of all cookware, utensils and pans can cost hundreds. Add to that “pliable movement” such as Pilates, organic products, a whole new set of makeup and skin care products, and everything becomes even more expensive.