Edith BowmanRadio 1 DJ Edith Bowman has revealed she’s jeopardising her own life by having a baby.

Edith and partner Tom Smith are set to welcome their first child in the summer but she’s now revealed she suffers from a heart defect and will not be allowed to give birth naturally in case it puts too much strain on the muscle.

Edith discovered she has a bicuspid rather than tricuspid aortic valve four years ago: “I’d overworked myself. When I came back from the Glastonbury Festival, it took me ages to get over it. I was getting palpitations and I was knackered all the time.”

“I was going to work at the BBC, coming home and going straight to bed. Actually, I was sleeping all the time which is not like me. Usually I’m a bundle of energy. My mum eventually told me to just get myself to the doctors and eventually I had a heart scan.”

The structural fault put extra pressure on the valve as blood is forced through and increases the risk of developing heart disease at a young age. Edith explained: “It was shocking obviously, but it was actually also good to know about it. A really high proportion of people with heart murmurs never know they’ve got one.”

“Once you get your head around it, you realise there’s nothing you can do except try and get on with life. I was told that the greatest risk is deterioration and that I may need a valve transplant later on, which is scary, but for now it seems fine.”

“Basically, I need these extra scans early in the pregnancy and I’ll have to have a Caesarean because no one, including my own heart specialist, sees the point in putting my heart through unnecessary stress.”

“Childbirth carries the risk of causing deterioration in a bicuspid valve so it’s just not a good idea. But I’m not one of these women who is desperate for a natural birth, so I’m fine with it.”

“The baby wasn’t planned and Tom and I were both sh*t-scared, frankly, when we found out. Then I went to my GP and got even more frightened.”

“There are so many things women are told they can and can’t do, like it’s an illness, when actually it’s a really joyful time.”

But aside from the medical precautions, Edith isn’t changing her life too much to accommodate her pregnancy: “I’ve had to raise the handlebars on my bike because the bump is getting in the way but that’s about it. I’m still eating brie. I had sushi the other day for my birthday…”

“I reckon it’s all about common sense and taking all this overwhelming advice with a pinch of salt.”