Fit Pregnancy columnist Mark van Dijk hopes to experience his wife Sam's second pregnancy by donning a pregnancy-simulator belly (better known as an Empathy Belly).
Mark will experience more than 20 pregnancy symptoms up until the end of April when Mark and Sam's baby is due.
Says Mark, the features editor of Sports Illustrated magazine: "I can see why nature didn't intend for men to be the child-bearers! I'm already tired and cranky, and my back is killing me. I've developed a new respect for women who have to go through all of this for real."
In order to experience other aspects of pregnancy, Mark has agreed to give up some of his favourite foods - sushi and soft cheeses - which are not recommended during pregnancy.
He'll also be making regular visits to the gynaecologist, wearing his belly to the supermarket, to work and even to the rugby. Should he fall ill or begin to experience discomfort from the added bladder pressure, increase in blood pressure and lower backache, only Panado may be taken to help relieve his ailments. All other medications are not prescribed during pregnancy.
Fit Pregnancy editor Deborah Herd, who commissioned Mark to wear the belly, said: "Mark will experience at a physical level just some of what women go through during pregnancy. It can't in any way replicate the responsibility that comes with being pregnant, but it certainly helps in teaching understanding."
Herd said the empathy belly was imported from the US and cost $550 (about R4 000).
All the features of the Empathy Belly have been designed to give Mark a realistic understanding of the changes and demands imposed by the pregnant condition, excluding the fluctuating hormones and labour pains.