Obese mums may pass health risks on to grandchildren — Experts found the offspring of obese mothers may be spared health problems – Health problems linked to obesity, like heart disease and diabetes, could skip an entire generation. Researchers have found that the offspring of obese mothers may be spared health problems linked to obesity, while their own children then inherit them.
How does pregnancy reduce breast cancer risk? – Being pregnant while young is known to protect a women against breast cancer. But why? Research in BioMed Central’s open access journal Breast Cancer Research finds that Wnt/Notch signalling ratio is decreased in the breast tissue of mice which have given birth, compared to virgin mice of the same age.
Stressful life events may increase stillbirth risk, NIH network study finds – Pregnant women who experienced financial, emotional, or other personal stress in the year before their delivery had an increased chance of having a stillbirth, say researchers. Stillbirth is the death of a fetus at 20 or more weeks of pregnancy. According to the National Center for Health Statistics, in 2006, there was one stillbirth for every 167 births External Web Site Policy.
Folic acid lowers risk of autism – Women who took folic acid supplements from four weeks before conception to eight weeks into pregnancy had a 40 per cent lower risk of giving birth to children with childhood autism (classic autism).
Coffee and tea during pregnancy affect fetal growth – Drinking just two cups of coffee a day is associated with the risk of low birth weight. Researchers at Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Sweden, have conducted a study on 59,000 women in collaboration with the Norwegian Institute of Public Health.
Maternal obesity increases the risk of frequent wheezing in offspring — Tobacco and excess weight: 2 factors linked to asthma in babies – The fact that excess weight during pregnancy has negative consequences is not new information. A new study now concludes that the children of mothers obese before falling pregnant are four times more likely to have frequent wheezing, which is one of the symptoms of asthma, compared to the children of mothers weighing a normal weight.
Folic acid supplements early in pregnancy may reduce child’s risk of autism by 40 percent — Large study in Norway finds early timing of folic acid supplements is critical – Prenatal folic acid supplements appear to reduce the risk for autistic spectrum disorders. It is estimated that about 1 in 88 children in the U.S. have been identified with an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).
AAP Recommends Emergency Contraception Be Available to Teens – Teen pregnancies have declined over the past few decades, but the United States continues to see substantially higher teen birth rates compared to other developed countries. Use of emergency contraception can reduce the risk of pregnancy if used up to 120 hours.
Most pregnancy-related infections are caused by four treatable conditions – In low-and-middle income countries, pregnancy-related infections are a major cause of maternal death, can also be fatal to unborn and newborn babies, and are mostly caused by four types of conditions that are treatable and preventable, according to a review by US researchers published in this week’s PLOS Medicine.
Low-level mercury exposure in pregnant women connected to ADHD risk in children — Researchers advise women to consider both benefits and risks of eating fish while pregnant – ADHD or Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder affects approximately ten percent of children worldwide, yet its causes are not well understood. Now, a study led by Susan Korrick, MD, MPH, of Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH), and Sharon Sagiv, PhD, MPH, of Boston University School of Public Health, and published in the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, links low-level prenatal mercury exposure with a greater risk of ADHD-related behaviors.
FDA takes action against thousands of illegal Internet pharmacies — Agency participates in international Operation Pangea V to protect consumers from potentially dangerous, unapproved drugs – The U.S. Food and Drug Administration, in partnership with international regulatory and law enforcement agencies, took action this week against more than 4,100 Internet pharmacies that illegally sell potentially dangerous, unapproved drugs to consumers. Actions taken include civil and criminal charges, seizure of illegal products, and removal of offending websites.
Low birth weight may increase risk for cardiovascular disease, kidney disease and diabetes — New research in The FASEB Journal suggests that poor high blood pressure management during pregnancy may have negative long-term health consequences for offspring – Being underweight at birth may have consequences above and beyond the known short-term effects says a research report. The report shows that rats with a low birth weight have an increased long-term risk for developing cardiovascular disease, kidney disease, and diabetes.
