It’s normal to feel like you’re in a fog during pregnancy. Between doctor appointments, a new diet and changes to your body, not to mention the endless amount of information you’re trying to absorb, there’s a lot on your mind. So when you leave your keys in the fridge or can’t find your phone for the fifth time that day, it’s understandable. Old wives’ tales chalk up this state of forgetfulness to “pregnancy brain”—but is pregnancy brain real? Here, we take a hard look at the science to get some answers.

What Is Pregnancy Brain?

Pregnancy brain is a term that’s used colloquially—it’s not an official diagnosis you’ll hear your doctor toss out. But lots of moms-to-be report having certain symptoms they attribute to pregnancy brain. “Pregnancy brain refers to commonly experienced cognitive changes by women during pregnancy and postpartum,” says Marina Maslovaric, MD, an ob-gyn at HM Medical.“The symptoms most frequently reported are forgetfulness and memory disturbances, poor concentration, increased absentmindedness and difficulty reading.” Think: constantly misplacing your car keys, missing pre-scheduled appointments or even walking into a room to get something, but forgetting what you needed when you get there. “Almost daily, a patient will say, ‘wait, I had a question I wanted to ask you but now I can’t remember’ or ‘I have some questions for you, and I wrote them down since I can’t remember things these days,’” Maslovaric says.

When Does Pregnancy Brain Start?

It varies from woman to woman. Symptoms can set in as early as the first trimester, since that’s when your hormone changes are typically the most dramatic, and mood swings and exhaustion make moms-to-be all the more susceptible to pregnancy brain. But it can also crop up late into pregnancy. Discomfort, cramps and lack of sleep peak in the third trimester and have a way of distracting you from day-to-day tasks.

Is Pregnancy Brain Real?

Anecdotally, plenty of pregnant women will tell you they’ve had trouble concentrating and remembering things—but medically speaking, is pregnancy brain real? That’s the loaded question, and the answer isn’t exactly crystal clear. When moms-to-be ask their OB whether pregnancy brain is a real thing, most experts don’t deny pregnancy is to blame for their temporary state of “momnesia,” but they’re pretty split on whether there are actual changes happening to the brain during pregnancy and what those changes may mean. It’s thanks largely in part to a 2016 study that changed the way some scientists look at pregnancy brain.

Researchers at Autonomous University of Barcelona took brain MRI scans of pregnant women, and the results suggest expectant women undergo brain remodeling that lasts for at least two years after they give birth. Experts analyzed scans from first-time moms before and after pregnancy, and noticed grey matter changes in brain regions associated with social cognition, which has to do with how we perceive, remember, think about and deal with other people in our social circle. Meaning, this change in grey matter may affect how someone carries out social tasks, such as understanding another person’s mood or intentions based off of their face and body language. The hippocampus, which is an area in the brain associated with memory, also appeared to lose volume.

While the changes in brain matter are clear, how to interpret them is a bit more ambiguous. “Loss of volume does not necessarily translate to loss of function,” says Elseline Hoekzema, co-lead author of the 2016 study and a brain scientist Leiden University in the Netherlands. “Sometimes less is more.” Hoekzema says loss of gray matter could “represent a fine-tuning of synapses into more efficient neural networks.”

Maslovaric points out another unanswered question. “There are two possibilities, and this study didn’t examine what exactly happened,” Maslovaric says. “Was there an increase in myelin, which is white in color, or was there an actual decrease in gray matter itself?” Myelin is a mixture of proteins and phospholipids that forms a whitish sheath around many nerve fibers, increasing the speed at which impulses are conducted. Since it’s white, it may be tricky to interpret on a scan.

Even though about 80 percent of new mothers report difficulties remembering things that once came naturally, a harder time focusing, being constantly confused and other symptoms of pregnancy brain, it’s difficult to say whether that’s the result of physical changes in the brain or other factors at play. Hormonal changes, lack of sleep and distractions from spending a lot of time thinking (and stressing) about baby are a couple of likely causes. You could also be mentally overwhelmed with the anticipation of pregnancy, and focusing more on what’s to come instead of what’s happening in the moment. Not to mention, your sleep schedule leaves a lot to be desired.

Save your sanity by writing things down and making lists, along with snacking regularly and getting lots of rest. Also, be sure to take your prenatal vitamins—they contain nutrients that help boost mental sharpness. Pregnancy brain may be annoying, but the good news is, it isn’t permanent.

From mommy blogs to nutrition experts, it seems as if everyone has an opinion on what’s safe and best to eat and drink during pregnancy. According to the National Library of Medicine, most women need at least 300 calories more daily during the last six months of pregnancy than they did before they were pregnant.

Being confident in your food choices during pregnancy can be a little bit complicated. To help sort through the confusion, we talked with Dr. Candace Howe, a board-certified obstetrician-gynecologist at HM Medical in Newport Beach.

Q: What does the ideal pregnancy diet look like?

A: Per day, protein should be at 75 to 100 grams with 1-2 cups of legumes, 1-2 cups of whole grains, 2-3 cups of vegetables and 1-2 cups of fruits.

Q: What are the biggest misconceptions about diet and pregnancy?

A: A big misconception from the media is that pregnant women’s [unhealthy] cravings should be indulged – for example, ice cream, desserts and sweets. There is now substantial scientific research to show that the food we eat on a daily basis affects how our bodies work. It also determines basic nutritional health for our children and provides a model for their eating habits during childhood and beyond. Pregnancy is one time when eating habits directly affect another person.

Research shows that metabolic programming happens in utero, so a mother’s healthy nutritional status is extremely important. Focusing on incorporating vegetables, whole grains and legumes, lean protein and other wise food choices will give your baby a strong start in life.

Q: What are the current trends when it comes to food and pregnancy?

A: Many people today are implementing lower carbohydrates in their everyday diet, but it is important to understand that with pregnancy you do not want to go too low. A pregnant woman does require at least 75 milligrams of carbohydrates per day, ideally up to 150 milligrams.

Lower carbohydrate diets create ketone bodies which cross into the placenta and can affect development of the baby. On the other hand, excess carbohydrate intake can also affect development of the fetus. Typically it creates larger babies, and this can then lead to other issues in regard to delivery and care of baby after delivery.

Q: How does caffeine affect pregnancy?

A: Caffeine should be limited. In the first trimester, excess caffeine intake over 500 milligrams per day has been linked with increased miscarriage risk. Therefore this is important for women to know, even prior to getting pregnant. In pregnancy we recommend limiting caffeine to 200 milligrams per day.

Q: What are some common diet questions?

A: Most common questions revolve around weight gain and calorie intake. Many women are careful and want to intake enough calories to provide healthy nutrition for their baby, but also worry about excess calorie intake and want to avoid excess weight gain in pregnancy.

Women are well aware that some foods can cause harm to a developing baby, so those are also very common questions we get as OB-GYNs. All food has to be washed, properly stored and properly prepared. All meats and fish have to be thoroughly cooked to avoid exposure to toxoplasmosis/salmonella and other harmful bacteria.

Q: What are some examples of “bad” and “good” foods to eat?

A: Fried foods and desserts are in the category of “bad” foods. Clean eating with balanced proteins, grains and healthy fats are “good” foods. There are some items that are high in fat but considered healthy and good. For example, avocados, nuts, olive oil and ghee are all high-fat foods that are healthy to consume during pregnancy.

Q: Should women take supplements during pregnancy?

A: Yes, it is recommended to take a prenatal vitamin supplement, which balances adequate amounts of folic acid, iodine, vitamin D and iron to ensure adequate intake. In the third trimester, some women may need to add extra iron or B12 vitamin based on their blood tests, and some women need to add a calcium supplement depending on their intake of calcium-rich foods.

Q: What should pregnant women keep in mind while planning meals?

A: Most important would be to start a healthy diet and exercise plan outside of pregnancy. This way the modifications needed to maintain a healthy diet and exercise regimen will be easy and effortless while you are pregnant

When you’re sick, you’re probably not thinking about your vagina. But a surprisingly varied assortment of health issues can show up in there, from stress to dehydration to the common cold, the flu, or a fever. But how your vagina is affected depends on your body, what you’ve come down with, and what meds you’re taking to treat it.

Any sickness that dehydrates you will also dehydrate your vagina, explains Peter Rizk, M.D., ob-gyn and fertility expert for Fairhaven Health. That means you may not get as wet as usual during sex (if you feel up to having it), so lube could be extra important. It also means you could see less of the vaginal discharge that normally shows up on your underwear throughout the day. As usual, make sure to hydrate—especially if you want to keep things slick down there.

On the flip side, part of the immune system’s response to any viral infection, such as a flu or cold, is to make the blood vessels more permeable, leading to an increase in all secretions containing white blood cells. And that doesn’t just mean blood: Your vaginal discharge actually contains a bunch of white blood cells, which help keep the vagina’s bacteria and yeast levels balanced, says ob-gyn Candace Howe, M.D.

But if you take medicine, it could cancel out that effect. Decongestants, antihistamines such as Benadryl, and mucus-reducing meds like guaifenesin can dry up all your mucus membranes, including your vagina, says Howe.

Antibiotics also have their own effect on your lady bits: In the process of killing the bacteria that’s causing your infection, they can also kill healthy vaginal bacteria, which can increase your risk for bacterial infections like yeast infections and vaginitis, according to ob-gyn Yvonne Bohn, M.D.. Bohn recommends taking probiotics to keep vaginal infections at bay, especially if you’re on antibiotics, and avoiding antibiotics as much as possible for this reason.

The good news is that any changes that happen to your vagina while you’re sick will likely pass along with the illness. If they don’t, then there may be a separate issue that you should talk to your doctor about.