Pregnancy can be a stressful time. There seems to be an endless list of things to avoid, and the to do list is not much shorter either.

Yes, pregnancy can be overwhelming, but it can also be a time filled with joyous moments, reflection and a chance to reconsider one’s well-being.

In the third episode of Selalu SIGAP, our host Jill van Diest chats with Dr Lucy Widasari, M.Si of the Acceleration Team of Stunting Prevention (TP2AK) and Arnoldus Paut, Specialist ECED at Tanoto Foundation, about what you need to know and do during pregnancy.

This episode covers:

a. Nutrition requirements during pregnancy
b. Dietary and consumption habits
c. The importance of having a support system

Nourishment for Mother and Baby

During pregnancy, nutritional intake is crucial for both the mother and the developing fetus. Macronutrients such as carbohydrates, proteins and fats are essential for supplying energy, while micronutrients such as vitamins and minerals play an important role in supporting your health and that of the baby.

Eating a healthy and balanced diet will help to provide what the mother and the baby need. As the baby’s main source of nourishment is what the mother eats, this requires getting the right nutrients. Along with the daily eating plan of three big meals and two light snacks, Dr Lucy highly recommended varied and balanced food sources.

Good sources of protein include lean beef, chicken, salmon and peanut butter, while healthy carbohydrates include brown rice, sweet potato and wholegrain bread. Some vitamins and minerals to consume during pregnancy are vitamin D (can be found in oily fish such as salmon or mackerel, eggs and red meat), vitamin C (strawberries, broccoli), calcium (yoghurt, tofu, milk) and iron (lean red meat, poultry).

Insufficient nutrition can result in stunted growth, and through its Early Childhood Education and Development program, Tanoto Foundation is working with the government to prevent and reduce stunting. Its efforts include interventions and guidance to parents in the earliest years of life, from pregnancy to age three.

Arnoldus emphasized the importance of nutrition fulfillment in the first thousand days, which spans roughly between conception and a child’s second birthday, as it is the most rapid period of brain growth and development.

“Another thing we urge parents to do during pregnancy is to give stimulations to the baby, as it is considered a critical phase,” he said.

Exciting babies’ senses can include reading books or playing music for their hearing, eating varied and nutritious diet for flavors, and exposure to sunlight for visual development.

What and How to Eat

The body of an expectant mother has increased nutritional needs, which means it requires more micronutrients and macronutrients. For instance, you will need to increase 180 calories daily to your eating plan in the first trimester and 300 calories in the second and third trimester.

Dr Lucy also noted how some expectant mothers might turn into picky eaters or experience morning sickness, due to hormonal changes.

Dr Lucy suggested expectant mothers always think about how crucial it is consume a healthy and balanced diet. “Be aware and understand that essential nutrients are very important for the baby in the womb,” she said.

When you feel queasy and nauseated, the trick is to eat smaller but more frequent meals. Dr Lucy also recommended foods with a strong smell of ginger or orange to dismiss any nausea. It may also help to stay away from fatty and oily foods.

“The most important thing, however, is having support from the husband and family,” she said. “Try having meals together with the expectant mother’s favorite menu. The husband can even add comments such as ‘Hmm, this is so good!’ to stimulate her appetite.”

A Source of Strength

Going through a challenging time such as a pregnancy can have its ups and downs.

Both speakers emphasized the significance of having a strong support system to protect and help expectant mothers during pregnancy.

Arnoldus said that husbands hold the most critical role as they need to provide a safe, comfortable and pleasant pregnancy for expectant mothers.

“Communication is key. Always try to have open communication, because we need to support them,” he said.

“And since we live in Indonesia, husband and wife may find themselves living with their parents or relatives,” Arnoldus added. “As they are relatively older and have more experience in raising a child, they might have opinions and can influence the parents-to-be on these things.”

Howver that doesn’t mean that parents-to-be will always agree with their older relatives. Arnoldus recommends that parents-to-be discuss their views on parenting, so that they can choose to accept the offered suggestions or go with their own views without unnecessary tension.

To ensure the comfort of expectant mothers, Dr. Lucy underlined keeping healthy living habits such as washing your hands with soap and running water before eating, preparing and serving foods, as well as making sure the food preparation areas and its utensils are clean. Last but not least, looking after expectant mothers’ emotional health and well-being will help to provide them ease and contentment.

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‘Philanthropy for Health and the Impact of Covid-19’ Panel Features Leaders from United Nations Foundation, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Tanoto Foundation

Jakarta, Indonesia – 18 May 2021: Innovation and collaboration with government will play an increasingly crucial role in human capital development in a post COVID-19 world, according to Tanoto Foundation’s Board of Trustees member Belinda Tanoto.

Ms. Belinda Tanoto spoke at the “Talking Philanthropy” forum, held virtually by the international network of strategic philanthropy consultants Global Philanthropic on Friday, May 14, 2021.

Themed “Asia Pacific: Supporting a Philanthropic Ecosystem,” the 2021 conference focused on the roles of organizations, NGOs, governments, philanthropists and the charities in nurturing the philanthropic ecosystem.

The forum had education, environment and health panels. In the ‘Philanthropy for Health and the Impact of Covid-19’ panel, Ms. Tanoto was joined by Narayana Murthy, founder of Infosys Ltd and board member of the United Nations Foundation; Kate Dodson, Vice President for Global Health at the United Nations Foundation; and Kayla Laserson of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation India Office, among others. Ms. Tanoto represented Tanoto Foundation, an independent philanthropy organization founded by Sukanto Tanoto and Tinah Bingei Tanoto in 1981.

In the ‘Health’ panel, speakers shared the challenges and opportunities they faced adapting philanthropic efforts to the global pandemic. Belinda Tanoto commented that amidst the chaos and uncertainty caused by the pandemic, it was encouraging to note that Tanoto Foundation’s partners continued innovating and embracing change.

“The teachers and the frontline workers are adopting technology at record speed. I believe it gives us a golden opportunity to build back better, whether using digital technology or digitalizing our process and system. We are enabling how we can help shift the government’s role from administering to managing and leading, and how we simultaneously empower local leaders and strengthen local systems,” Ms. Tanoto said.

Based on the belief of Tanoto Foundation’s founders that quality education accelerates equal opportunity, the Foundation is focused on early childhood development through partnerships with teachers and schools across Indonesia. Its early childhood development (ECD) program SIGAP aims to contribute comprehensive data to drive the ECD sector. Additionally, the Foundation believes a close working relationship with the Ministry of Social Affairs will go a long way to reducing stunting, while further developing Indonesia’s human capital.

In response to the Covid-19 pandemic, Belinda Tanoto explained how Tanoto Foundation mapped out short-term needs such as providing protective gear for health workers as well as rapid testing, and the medium-to-long term needs that involve collaboration with the local governments.

For the medium-to-long term needs, the Foundation provided data to the local government to support policy-making and the creation of the app eHDW (Human Development Worker) which collects critical data on the first 1,000 days of a child’s life. Among others insights, the data also reveal the extents to which access to clean water and proper antenatal iron supplementation play a critically important part in a child’s development.

Ms. Belinda Tanoto recognized that partnerships with the government are the only way to go the distance in developing quality human resources. Kate Dodson of the United Nations Foundation shared the same sentiment while emphasizing that philanthropy can play an important role in policy innovation and policy changes through research and innovation.

“In addition to increased funding for healthcare, how do we enable and showcase innovation? That’s an important priority we need to pursue,” said Ms. Tanoto. “Foundations are well positioned to move quickly and are more nimble in innovating. These are traits we aim to share with governments to move toward quicker and more effective solutions in adapting to today’s challenges. Foundations really need to step up in innovation and thinking about the future and build back in a new way.”

*****

For more information, please contact:
Email: communication@www.tanotofoundation.org
Website: www.tanotofoundation.org

About Tanoto FoundationTanoto Foundation is a philanthropy organization founded by Sukanto Tanoto and Tinah Bingei Tanoto on the belief that everyone must have the opportunity to realize his/her full potentials. Tanoto Foundation began operation in 1981, when Sukanto Tanoto and Tinah Bingei Tanoto built a kindergarten and an elementary school in Besitang, North Sumatra.

Tanoto Foundation believes that quality education accelerates equal opportunity. We develop individual’s potentials and improve the quality of life through quality education from early childhood to active age. 

The three commitments of Tanoto Foundation is improving study environment, developing future leaders and facilitating medical research. In improving study environment, Tanoto Foundation supports the early childhood development and education as well as basic education, and improving the education ecosystem through improving the management capacity and school leadership, improving teachers’ capabilities and the participation of parents and the society. In developing future leaders, Tanoto Foundation cultivates future leaders to create positive effects in society. In facilitating medical research, Tanoto Foundation partners with health institutions to develop the knowledge and understanding on prevalent health conditions in Asia, alongside applying sciences to overcome health problems that hinder people’s potential in improving their quality of lives.

Motherhood or career? Work or family? Working mothers everywhere are often faced with this so-called equation. While motherhood and career building don’t have to be mutually exclusive, doing both at the same time can be challenging.

It’s not uncommon for working mothers to feel inadequate as expectations can run high, as they juggle the demands of a family and a career.

In the fifth episode of Pojok PINTAR, our host Jerry Arvino talks to Fibra Trias Amukti or Fia, editor-in-chief of mommiesdaily.com and a working mom, as well as Budi Komala, a photographer and a stay-at-home dad, about parenting, work and the pressures of each.

This episode covers:
a. Can women really have it all?
b. Setting the right priorities for the best result
c. The importance of mental health

The Trap of Multitasking

We’ve all come across the stereotype of women who appear to have it all: well behaved kids with great academic performance, high-pressure jobs they seem to do with ease, and great relationships with friends and family.

Some see it as a myth, others as something to strive for it. According to Fia, since women are inherently able to multitask, the answer to “Can women have it all?” is yes. But she also said that there’s something more urgent to be addressed. “We need to take notice, though, can women do it all thanks to a solid support system and good mental health or because they feel pressured to do it?”

Fia encouraged working mothers to be honest with themselves and know both what they want and what they’re actually capable of. “The most important thing to realize is whether we can actually do it or is it something that’s enforced that ultimately yields less than satisfactory results,” she said.

Budi emphasized the importance of dads being hands-on with a child, which will ultimately improve a father’s sense of empathy toward his family, especially to the wife who constantly juggles work and family. “Husbands need to understand the importance of their presence for their wives and children. That can be a strong foundation for the family,” he said.

Active on social media, Budi popularized the hashtag #bikinberduaurusberdua on Instagram, that could be translated loosely as both parents created the child, then both should also take care of the child.

“I witnessed how my wife struggled in taking care of our child, even with my help,” he said. “And it dawned on me how so many wives go through this alone when their husbands are at work.”

He began sharing his daily life, including diaper-changing and bathing his child. “I’d like to show that these chores are just everyday things, and I hope that those who see them would also think that parenting should be done by both parents,” he said.

Organizing and Planning

Working mothers can feel particularly pressured when it comes to helping children study.

Fia suggested the best solution is to decide on the most important priorities at any particular time. When work needs urgent attention it’s ok to set aside the homework for a little while.

Try to assess your priorities with every situation that comes along, then decide which one should be your first concern. Fia said that one’s judgment is more important than the 50/50 equation of balancing motherhood and career.

And when a situation becomes too much, this is where a solid support system can help, be it the nanny, the domestic helper or relatives.

Being pragmatic is another trait to hold, as it can help working mothers to have reasonable expectations. Helping children study might already be a challenging situation on its own, but now there’s the factor of an ongoing pandemic that might add another level of stress to the equation.

“We need to be able to act and think realistically,” said Fia. “We need to be realistic with our capabilities, our children’s capabilities and the ongoing situation.”

Alongside making sure you have an extra layer of patience, it would help to know your limits to make sure you won’t feel upset. If a subject is just too difficult or too much for you on a particular day, you can seek a helping hand or take a break. Getting some time to rest will hopefully give you a moment to clear your head and reflect.

With the current situation where most employees work from home, technology can also be a source of comfort. With meetings that can be done online, you’d save more time in commuting and take the extra moments to be there for your child. Make use of management apps that can help you in being more organized, along with helpful sites that are there for guidance whenever you need it.

Mental Health Matters

In recent years, Fia noted that working mothers are becoming more aware about the importance of mental health. More have become well-informed and recognize that they need to be content first with themselves in order to raise a happy child.

“When a mother realizes that she needs to love herself first and be happy, that would mean so many children would grow up in a more fulfilled and happier environment,” Fia said.

Here, being realistic again plays an important role as working mothers need to acknowledge the truth if they feel like they’re suffocated and overwhelmed. Reaching for a helping hand as soon as possible is urged. And professional help can make a big difference to help you function well and feel good again.

The main concern is how working mothers’ well-being is taken care of and how that could help them in raising their child and have a happy family. Now, happiness takes center stage instead of perfection.

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