Pregnancy/Women & Children’s

• Prenatal Pesticide Exposure May Harm Kids' Brains

  

  Posted 6:41 PM 4/30/2012

  April 30, 2012 -- Prenatal exposure to a pesticide used on many crops may be linked with abnormal changes in a child's developing brain, scientists report.

  Compared to children with low prenatal exposure, those with high exposure to the pesticide chlorpyrifos had abnormalities in the cortex (the outer area of the brain), says Virginia Rauh, ScD, professor and (More)
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• Children Born to Unmarried Couples on the Rise

  

  Posted 3:18 AM 4/12/2012

  April 12, 2012 -- Over the last decade, while many fertility trends have remained stable in the U.S., one definitely has not: the number of first births among unmarried couples who were living together.

  Among women ages 15 to 44, that figure has risen from 12% of first births in 2002 to 22% between 2006 and 2010, according to a new (More)
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• Women Have Longer Labors Now

  

  Posted 8:45 PM 3/30/2012

  March 30, 2012 -- Women giving birth can expect to have longer labors than women did 50 years ago, according to a new analysis by National Institutes of Health researchers.

  For first-time mothers, the first stage of labor has increased by 2.6 hours, says (More)
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• Are Repeat C-Sections Safer Than Natural Birth?

  

  Posted 8:01 PM 3/13/2012

  March 13, 2012 -- Planned repeat cesarean section is linked to healthier outcomes among mothers and babies compared to vaginal birth after cesarean, or VBAC, in a new study from Australia.

  Death and serious health issues associated with either delivery method were rare.

  But women in the study who had planned surgical deliveries experienced fewer (More)
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• Diabetes, High BP During Pregnancy Increase Middle-Age Heart Risk

  

  Posted 8:52 PM 2/21/2012

  Feb. 21, 2012 -- When a woman has high blood pressure or high blood sugar levels during pregnancy, this may help predict her chances of developing heart disease (More)
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• Low Vitamin D in Pregnancy Linked to Language Problems in Children

  

  Posted 3:02 AM 2/13/2012

  Feb. 13, 2012 -- Women who have low levels of vitamin D in their blood during pregnancy increase their odds of having a child with language problems.

  A new study from Australia suggests that white (More)
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• Chemo May Not Harm Unborn Baby

  

  Posted 9:34 PM 2/9/2012

  Feb. 9, 2012 -- There is reassuring news for women who are pregnant and facing treatment for cancer.

  A new study shows little evidence that exposure to chemotherapy in the womb in the second and (More)
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• C-Sections Not Always Best for Small Babies

  

  Posted 9:12 PM 2/9/2012

  Feb. 9, 2012 -- Babies in the womb who are smaller than they should be have higher rates of breathing problems when delivered early by C-section vs. similar babies who are born vaginally, a new study shows.

  In the past, obstetricians have often chosen to deliver a baby by C-section if a baby is not growing at the rate it should be. This was (More)
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• Home Births in the U.S. on the Rise

  

  Posted 4:42 PM 1/26/2012

  Jan. 26, 2012 -- Are home births in again?

  Home births declined from 1990 to 2004, but jumped by 29% from 2004 to 2009. Even with this increase, the overall percentage of women giving birth at home remains low. In 2004, 0.56% of births occurred at home, and 0.72% in 2009.

  "This is a fairly rapid increase over five years and it is fairly widespread, with (More)
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• Asthma Drugs During Pregnancy Linked to Slight Risk of Rare Birth Defects

  

  Posted 6:57 PM 1/17/2012

  Jan. 17, 2012 -- New research provides some reassuring news for many pregnant women who have asthma.

  Treating your asthma during pregnancy most likely does not increase your baby's risk for most major birth defects, a new study shows. There was, however, a small increased risk for certain rare birth defects seen among women who took (More)
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