Motha's Law..

Dr Gowri Motha has been described as the Celeb's Guru. Her clients include Kate Moss, Stella McCartney, Elle Macpherson and Gywneth Paltrow. Now Dr Motha is revealing her secrets in a new book - and lingerie company Agent Provocateur are launching resculpting knickers which Dr Motha has helped to design.

First, the knickers. Dr Motha explains that a woman's ribs flare out an inch or two during pregnancy. After the birth, there is a sudden emptiness in the mother's body and fat can build up. In many parts of the world, mothers wear long strips of cotton bound tightly around the ribs to improve the body's shape and to support the organs. Rather than resort to lengths of cotton, Dr Motha has inspired the design of the knickers which reach up to the bust and apply pressure to the ribs.

Dr Motha also advises her clients to cut out sugar during pregnancy which will help protect the uterus and cervix from damage from free radicals, and wheat products which can cause water retention and congest vaginal tissues, thereby hindering delivery.

Dr Motha is strong on bonding with your baby and advocates bonding with baby both before and after birth. She also recommends cocooning yourself with baby for three weeks after birth, avoiding shopping and visitors.

Other recommendations: massaging baby on a daily basis (we have a separate article on baby massage), and using a 'sleep scent' - tuck a cuddle cloth in your bra so that it absorps your smell, and tieing it to baby's cot to reduce separation anxiety.

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