The period from conception to birth. After the egg is fertilized by a sperm and then implanted in the lining of the uterus, it develops into the placenta and embryo, and later into a fetus. Pregnancy usually lasts 40 weeks, beginning from the first day of the woman’s last menstrual period, and is divided into three trimesters, each lasting three months.
Obese pregnant women run a greater risk of miscarriage, and should be advised to lose weight. – Overweight women with a tendency towards obesity run a greater risk of repeat miscarriages and should be advised to lose weight before they try and become pregnant again, revealed by researchers at London’s St Mary’s Hospital.
Fonterra China recalled one batch of prenatal milk sold in China under the ANMUM Materna brand name. – Fonterra China today announced a voluntary recall of one batch of prenatal milk sold in China under the ANMUM Materna brand name.
Pregnant women who take a common epilepsy drug topiramate (Topamax) may increase their risk of birth defects, revealed by researchers. – Taking the epilepsy drug topiramate alone or along with other epilepsy drugs during pregnancy may increase the risk of birth defects, according to a study published in the July 22, 2008, issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
Babies who are breastfeeding trigger a surge of a “trust” hormone oxytocin in their mothers’ brains, researchers have said. – When a baby suckles at a mother’s breast, it starts a chain of events that leads to surges of the “trust” hormone oxytocin being released in their mothers brains.
Couples with fertility problems where the man is over 35 have increased difficulty in conceiving – Pregnancy rates decrease and miscarriages increase when a father is over 35 years of age, a scientist will tell the 24th annual conference of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology on Monday 7 July.
Mother’s vitamin D status during pregnancy will affect her baby’s dental health, leading to enamel defects, which are a risk factor for early-childhood tooth decay. – Low maternal vitamin D levels during pregnancy may affect primary tooth calcification, leading to enamel defects, which are a risk factor for early-childhood tooth decay.
Men working as painters and decorators who are regularly exposed to chemicals found in paint may be more prone to fertility problems, sperm motility, infertility, etc. – A new study has revealed that chemicals used in paint emulsions may damage semen quality in males, making them infertile. The results of the study have been published in the ‘Occupational Environmental Medicine’ journal.
Long-term, exclusive breastfeeding appears to improve children?s cognitive development, according to a report in the May issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. – Long-term, exclusive breastfeeding appears to improve children’s cognitive development, revealed by researchers. It is already known that children and adults who were breastfed as infants have higher scores on IQ tests and other measures of cognitive (thinking, learning and memory) development than those who were fed formula.
The amount of oxygen available to a baby in the womb can affect their susceptibility to developing particular diseases later in life. – The amount of oxygen available to a baby in the womb can affect their susceptibility to developing particular diseases later in life. Research presented at the annual Society for Endocrinology BES meeting in Harrogate shows that your risk of developing cardiovascular disease can be predetermined before birth, not only by your genes, but also by their interaction with the quality of the environment you experience in the womb.
New test could cut unnecessary treatment for blood disorder in pregnancy – Effect of high throughput RhD typing of fetal DNA in maternal plasma on use of anti-RhD immunoglobulin in RhD negative pregnant women: A prospective feasibility study – A new test for identifying a mismatch between the blood of a pregnant woman and her baby is accurate, feasible, and could substantially reduce unnecessary treatment, finds a study published on bmj.com.
Pregnant women should buckle up every single time they?re in a vehicle. Proper seatbelt use by pregnant women would save 200 fetuses a year. – Proper seatbelt use by pregnant women would save 200 fetuses a year, University of Michigan study finds. This new study could have a profound effect on fetal deaths and injuries caused by car crashes.
Men and women who themselves were delivered in breech presentation had more than twice the risk of breech delivery in their own first pregnancies compared with men and women who had been cephalic presentations. – A baby is twice as likely to be born bottom first if either or both the parents were themselves breech deliveries, according to a study published ahead of print on bmj.com. The results suggest genes are a contributing factor.
