Dr. Luke's book

elizabeth0705

I am trying to find a few good books on twin pregnancy and raising twin babies. I've heard Dr. Luke's book discussed on here, so I did a little reading about it online.

 Let me preface this by saying that I have NOT read her book yet, but from what I have read, it sounds like she promotes gaining a lot of weight in the first and second trimesters by increasing calorie intake dramatically (the theory being that you want the babies as big as possible early on in case they are delivered prematurely).

My question is, did your OB or MFM specialist agree with Dr. Luke's message? I am thinking of buying the book, but the only thing stopping me is that the "gain a lot of weight early on" theory seems to go against what my OB told me about calorie intake at our last appointment. My dr. said that I only need an extra 500 or so calories per day for twins (but to follow my body and eat when I'm hungry and stop when I'm full), and I was a little underweight going into this pregnancy. 

Thanks! 

mirnb

I found that portion of her book extreme for sure and did not follow it but i found it still had a lot of other useful info in it!

erinruns

I think you have to take certain parts of her book with a grain of salt.  That many calories a day scared me, but it also got me eating more, and concentrating on eating more protein and calcium (cheeseburgers and milkshakes).

DelaBella

I found the sheer amount of extra calories Dr. Luke recommends to be intimidating and too difficult to actually do in every day life. However, I will note that I had a crazy desire to eat lots of protein every day toward the end of the first tri/beginning of the second tri, and once I read Dr. Luke's book I realized why. I would definitely recommend her book, as it examines a lot of the differences between singleton and multiples pregnancies, but agree that the amount of food she recommends eating is difficult to actually do.

GypsyEsq

Neither my OB nor MFM agreed with "Dr." Luke's suggestions on protein and overall caloric intake, and in my first tri and part of my second I was carrying triplets. Admittedly, I never read the book because my personal opinion is she's an alarmist and her advice is based on studies she's done, not pregnant women she's treated (since after all, she's not an MD but the "Dr." part lulls people in).   I read Elizabeth Noble's book  and also Mothering Multiples  Both contain pregnancy advice and Noble's, in particular, spends a lot of time talking about optimal health however, she is also not an MD (although doesn't pretend to be) and it tends to be a more natural birth centered/low intervention type book which I know not all multiples pregnancies are appropriate for. 

On the specific topic of weight gain, it's probably best to just talk to your care providers.  And then gut check what they say against how you feel.  I definitely eat more protein now than I did when I wasn't pregnant which my doctors are pleased with, and it's a good thing because my iron levels have stayed high and I feel pretty good considering.  But at the same time I'm really cutting back in the last couple of weeks due to heartburn and indigestion, which is to be expected giving all the baby up in my organs

elizabeth0705

Thanks for the advice!!

Mrs. Alice

The only time weight gain was discussed was at my first OB appt, other than that it wasn't brought it.  I gained 20+ lbs by 20 weeks and 45lbs by the time I delivered at 28 weeks.  I was also just a little underweight going in.  My suggestion is don't count calories, just eat when you feel like it and try to get good nutrious food in with plenty of protein.

projectbaby2012

I just asked my dr about that this week.  She doesn't agree with Dr Luke and said that I'll probably gain a lot in the 3rd tri, so to keep my weight gain reasonable through my second trimester.  Reasonable meaning she doesn't want me overall gaining 75-100 lbs by the end.  At 18 weeks, so far I've gained 11 lbs and my dr is happy with this and the babies are doing great.  

I did read the book and found a lot of good information it in.  However, I'm not able to eat the amount of calories she recommends. I try to eat healthy most of the time and drink lots of milk and eat protein as much as possible.  I do like how she ok's ice cream every day if necessary.

xoexpat

I haven't read that book, but have you seen this?

https://www.americanpregnancy.org/multiples/weightgain.html

It says that by gaining 24 pounds by 24 weeks, you reduce the chances for PTL.  My dr. told me to gain about 45 pounds.  I haven't been counting calories but eat whenever I'm hungry and try to eat healthfully for the most part (those hamburgers do sneak in there somehow).  Luckily, one of my biggest cravings has been for broccoli so I am eating a ton of it.  I'm at week 20 and have gained probably 20-25 pounds (not sure of my pre-pg weight), and it was really easy when I was SO HUNGRY all the time.  Now that the babies are growing though, it's hard to eat a lot bc then I feel about to explode. 

emilyec1

elizabeth0705:

I am trying to find a few good books on twin pregnancy and raising twin babies. I've heard Dr. Luke's book discussed on here, so I did a little reading about it online.

 Let me preface this by saying that I have NOT read her book yet, but from what I have read, it sounds like she promotes gaining a lot of weight in the first and second trimesters by increasing calorie intake dramatically (the theory being that you want the babies as big as possible early on in case they are delivered prematurely).

My question is, did your OB or MFM specialist agree with Dr. Luke's message? I am thinking of buying the book, but the only thing stopping me is that the "gain a lot of weight early on" theory seems to go against what my OB told me about calorie intake at our last appointment. My dr. said that I only need an extra 500 or so calories per day for twins (but to follow my body and eat when I'm hungry and stop when I'm full), and I was a little underweight going into this pregnancy. 

Thanks! 

My nutritionist at MFM based her recommendations on Dr. Luke's book. I couldn't believe the sheer amount of protein and calories that were recommended.  However, I did come to find that it wasn't until I was eating at least 3000 calories every day (as mentioned in the book) that I finally started gaining at least a pound per week. I still haven't gotten up to the 175 g of protein every day. I usually top out between 120 and 130.

mars724

Just like any opinion, take it for what it is : a very educated opinion. It worked great for me, and I gained an amount I was comfortable with and most of it was baby. 

There are many pregnancy books, but very few just on the multiple pregnancies. I really liked that aspect of it. But I got it from the library and retuned it when I felt like I got what I needed.

Congrats  

leapgirl8

Just wanted to chime in and say that I don't think that Dr. Luke is trying to fool anyone. The book very clearly lays out her credentials, her background, and the studies it is based on - not just hers, but studies of multiple moms all over the place conducted by LOTS of different clinics. People who have studied nutrition enough to get a Ph.D know far more about how food impacts the human body than an MD - they just spend a lot more time learning about it, and doing their own studies, etc. It's fine if you don't think advice is sound or if you'd rather listen to your own doctor if s/he disagrees, but she's not trying to fool anyone. Her education (nursing degree included) is all laid out on her website. She earned her "Dr." and uses it just like other Ph.Ds.

leapgirl8

Also, yes, we followed the advice (although for sure didn't hit the calorie goal everyday), and our twins were delivered at 37+ weeks weighing about 7 pounds each. All her? No. But it helped.

jkm123

I read the book And did try to take in more calories ( however ate hardly anything due to ms the first 16 weeks) somehow I'm right on track for the low end of her weight gain scale all on my own... I think you will gain what you can no matter what! She does have some useful info in the book though!!

elizabeth0705

projectbaby2012:

I do like how she ok's ice cream every day if necessary.

Sounds good to me! :-) 

elizabeth0705

xoexpat:

I haven't read that book, but have you seen this?

https://www.americanpregnancy.org/multiples/weightgain.html

Ooh, thanks for the link! 

Mrs. Alice

leapgirl8:

Just wanted to chime in and say that I don't think that Dr. Luke is trying to fool anyone. The book very clearly lays out her credentials, her background, and the studies it is based on - not just hers, but studies of multiple moms all over the place conducted by LOTS of different clinics. People who have studied nutrition enough to get a Ph.D know far more about how food impacts the human body than an MD - they just spend a lot more time learning about it, and doing their own studies, etc. It's fine if you don't think advice is sound or if you'd rather listen to your own doctor if s/he disagrees, but she's not trying to fool anyone. Her education (nursing degree included) is all laid out on her website. She earned her "Dr." and uses it just like other Ph.Ds.

Yes well said!  I don't think she pretends to be an MD and nor do I think that you have to be an MD to be an expert and give advice of nutrition.  While I didn't completely follow her guidelines, I think the book had good info and reassured me that my weight gain was normal and healthy.  I definitely trust her many years of proven research on multiple pregnancies.  I am also a good example that you don't always get a 3rd trimester (or one cut very short) in a multiple pregnancy to gain a lot of weight. 

erniebufflo

I never specifically asked my doctor about Dr. Luke's recommendations, however, my doctor told me she expected I could gain up to 60 lbs, and she would not be concerned in the slightest. I loosely followed Dr. Luke's advice, focusing on eating more protein, and gained about 40 lbs total. I had two 6 pounders at 35w4d. My doctor patted me on the back for my weight gain all along, and everyone was really impressed with their sizes at birth. So, I'm a fan of Dr. Luke's advice.

ETA: I also was a little underweight going in. BMI of 18. 

macchiatto

I ate about 2/3 her recommended amount of calories and with that amount, I gained right on schedule. I made sure to eat the recommended servings of protein and dairy and about 2/3 the amount she recommended in the other categories. I started the pregnancy normal weight and gained about 2 lbs/wk from 12w on. Had 6lbs10oz and 6lb7oz babies at 37w6d (scheduled induction), gained 54 lbs total. I saw several OBs and MFMs and they all said something different about weight gain (if anything). The ones who disagreed with Luke had no multiples-specific research to back it up though; they seemed to be just kind of tacking on a little extra to singleton pregnancy guidelines so I felt more comfortable following her evidence-based advice (though, like I said, not to the full extent).

macchiatto

MrsLee04:

leapgirl8:

Just wanted to chime in and say that I don't think that Dr. Luke is trying to fool anyone. The book very clearly lays out her credentials, her background, and the studies it is based on - not just hers, but studies of multiple moms all over the place conducted by LOTS of different clinics. People who have studied nutrition enough to get a Ph.D know far more about how food impacts the human body than an MD - they just spend a lot more time learning about it, and doing their own studies, etc. It's fine if you don't think advice is sound or if you'd rather listen to your own doctor if s/he disagrees, but she's not trying to fool anyone. Her education (nursing degree included) is all laid out on her website. She earned her "Dr." and uses it just like other Ph.Ds.

Ditto all of this!

I agree with this, too! 

miesl

I started fluffy and tried to eat extra protein and stick to the weight gain guidelines. 

I delivered at 33w4d, L&L were 4lb15 and 5lb4 and everyone was impressed with the weights.

ytterp

My OB is wonderful, but... when I asked her about the weight gain, she said I didn't need to worry about gaining anything in the first trimester, I'd gain it all during the second and third. 

I am pregnant with triplets, so I was also sent to a MFM. He asked me my pre-pregnancy weight and height, and then said I needed to gain 50lbs and fast. He told me I'd likely only get to 32 weeks and that I wouldn't gain much after 26-28 weeks. He told me he didn't want me to eat food that wasn't high in calories- make every bite count.  He also set me up with a dietitian.

 The dietitian told me that I needed 2800-3000 calories a day, heavy protein. She said I needed to gain 45-50lbs in those 32 weeks.

 My MFM is currently treating 7 sets of triplets, he is very experienced in the field, and happens to be friends with Dr. Luke. He 100% agrees with her research that early weight gain is best for multiples. He told me that the only things I could control were my exercise/rest and my weight gain. Everything else is up to God, so why not do your best in the areas that I have control over. 

It is scary to think of gaining a lot of weight, but unhealthy babies is much much scarier.

Please don't listen to your regular OB on this, they may be great with singleton pregnancies, but MoM are not normal pregnancies. We are special and require special advice and care.