There are number of risk factors that lead to pre-term delivery. Knowing what these risk factors are and knowing how to avoid them can go a long way in helping you carry a baby to term. The risk factors are divided are divided into two categories; those you can do something about, and, those that you sometimes have no control over.
Risk factors under can your control include:
Malnutrition you need to eat the right foods in order to gain weight. Pregnancy is no time to think about maintaining your figure. For the baby to be well nourished and stand a good chance of survival, he/she must attain a good birth weight. Your baby cannot achieve optimum birth weight if you fail to eat well. Malnutrition triggers premature delivery because your body does not have enough nutrients to maintain itself and a fetus at the same time
Smoking and use of narcotics get help to quit
Past abortions if you had an abortion in the past, you should disclose this to your obstetrician since it can increase the risk of premature delivery
High blood pressure and preeclampsia - mainly its all about your diet and what you eat

Risk factors that are not under your control include:
Past history of pre-term delivery i.e. older children who were born premature
Multiple fetuses i.e. twins, triplets, quadruplets and so on
Placental bleeding
Too much or too little amniotic fluid
Fibroids
Conception while undergoing treatment for infertility
Fetal birth defects
If you are concerned about the risk factors you have no control over, make sure you talk these over with your primary care provider and the best approach is to make sure you are healthy before getting pregnant. This means eating fresh and organic where possible, staying fit and being mentally and spiritually at ease with your self and your life.
What to Do if You Give Birth to a Preemie
If you do give birth to a pre-term baby, do not despair, all is not lost. If your child is breathing independently and has a good birth weight, that is a good sign. The child may be placed in a warmer in the childrens intensive care unit and you can advocate to be the warmer for your newborn with Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC). Depending on the medical stability of your infant, doctors may or may not administer medication to your baby and your preemie baby may be intubated or on supported oxygen administration. Make sure that you know prior to your babys birth about how to provide KMC so that you are confident with KMC and you can insist on starting Kangaroo Mother Care as soon as possible. It really is in you and your newborns best interests and has amazing benefits as complimentary to neonatal intensive care.
What is Kangaroo Mother Care?
Kangaroo Mother Care is a groundbreaking preemie care method first used in Bogota, Colombia, South America. It is named kangaroo because it was modeled along the manner a kangaroo takes care of its baby. In case you did not know, a baby Kangaroo is only a few centimeters long when born. It has no hind legs at birth and only stumps are present where the hind legs should be present. Despite this, the baby Kangaroo is able to climb up to its mothers pouch using only its front legs. Once inside the pouch it attaches to one of the mothers teats and begins suckling. Within 190 days it is fully developed and can be seen popping its head out of its mothers pouch. It is a marvel of nature and doctors in Colombia managed to replicate this kind of care in humans to give preemies a fighting chance. You to can be a kangaroo Mom and Dad.