“Soothe headaches during pregnancy - USA Weekend” plus 4 more

Soothe headaches during pregnancy - USA Weekend
Plastic and Pregnancy: Makes Daughters Aggressive and Hyperactive - Med India
Mother remembers children lost during pregnancy - Daily Tribune
Excessive Consumption of Liquorice During Pregnancy may Affect IQ and ... - Med India
Top Chef Padma Lakshmi Says Pregnancy Will Not Change Her Diet - Softpedia

Soothe headaches during pregnancy - USA Weekend

Posted: 08 Oct 2009 10:11 PM PDT

Issue Date: October 11, 2009

By Dr. Tedd Mitchell

Pregnancy is exciting, but like most good things, it has its challenges. One of the physiological changes that can occur are headaches. Pregnancy-related headaches can be caused by fluctuating hormone and blood sugar levels, caffeine withdrawal, lack of sleep and dehydration. Many headache medications and herbal remedies should be avoided during pregnancy; it's not the time for experimentation. In general, use non-medicinal approaches before you resort to medications. Here are some worth trying:

Monitor triggers. Foods such as chocolate, aged cheese, preserved meats and peanuts can bring on headaches.

Take care of yourself. Exercise, maintain good posture (especially important in the last trimester), and don't skip meals.

Use warm or cold cloths. Put a warm washcloth over your eyes and nose for sinus headaches. For tension headaches, place a cold washcloth or gel pack at the base of your neck.

Relax. Consider getting seated head/neck/shoulder massages for tension headaches.

If your headaches do require medication, acetaminophen is the usual choice, but ask your doctor first if it's right for you.

Tedd Mitchell, M.D., president and CEO of Dallas' Cooper Clinic, writes HealthSmart every week.

Plastic and Pregnancy: Makes Daughters Aggressive and Hyperactive - Med India

Posted: 08 Oct 2009 07:48 PM PDT

The chemical is used to make hard, clear reusable water bottles, baby bottles and resins that line the inside of metal food and beverage cans.

During the study, the researchers measured the BPA levels in urine samples taken from 249 pregnant women in Cincinnati at 16 and 26 weeks pregnancy and again when they gave birth.

Lead researcher Bruce Lanphear, a Simon Fraser University professor of children's environmental health and his team showed that chemical concentrations between 13 and 16 weeks of pregnancy were most strongly associated with behaviour problems in girls, but no found no significant effect on boys.

The girls were further examined at age five.What we found over the past 10 or more years is that the kinds of subtle shifts in behaviours or cognition in very young kids oftentimes become manifest as [psychological issues] in older kids and adolescents," the Globe and Mail quoted Lanphear as saying.

"At a minimum, we should ask industries to begin to label their products as to whether they contain bisphenol A so we give families a choice when they make purchases.

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Mother remembers children lost during pregnancy - Daily Tribune

Posted: 08 Oct 2009 06:22 PM PDT

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"I know that was his day to go," she said.

More loss

Anderson found herself pregnant again, and then the unimaginable happened.

"The baby wasn't moving, and there was no heartbeat," she said.

On May 3, 2006, she lost "Belly Bean" at 11 weeks; and then "Belly Bug" on Sept. 14, 2006, at six weeks.

"I gave them all 'names' right away when I found out I was pregnant," she said.

The faith that told her that her babies were in heaven also caused anger and disbelief.

"You allowed me to get pregnant, and then you take them away," she said. "OK, God, I don't understand at all."

The night before she was to go in for testing, Anderson saw a news segment on celiac disease, a digestive disorder that interferes with the absorption of nutrients from food. One symptom caught her attention: infertility or recurrent miscarriages.

Testing showed she had the condition. She also found out she was pregnant -- again.

An incompetent cervix had been previously diagnosed and dealt with surgically. With her fourth pregnancy, Anderson followed a gluten-free diet to help handle the celiac disease. Weeks, then months passed, and on July 12, 2007, Allison was born.

This time, there was a birth announcement.

"The whole first day, I was almost in denial she was here," Anderson said. "She was our miracle baby."

Anderson knows it's OK to cry, and has renewed faith.

"It's a daily thing," she said. "God is in control, and I have to trust him."

She doesn't forget -- on each of her children's due dates, she made a bear at Build-A-Bear. When Allison has a significant milestone, Anderson can't help but think what her other children might be doing.

Because she can relate to the pain, she wants to start a support group.

"There are people that are hurting out there, who haven't had that closure," she said.

Her advice to others?

"Always remember they are your children, no matter what. Just because they're not here, doesn't mean they didn't exist."

Excessive Consumption of Liquorice During Pregnancy may Affect IQ and ... - Med India

Posted: 08 Oct 2009 07:48 PM PDT

Sixty-four of the children who took part in the study were exposed to high levels of glycyrrhizin in liquorice, 46 to moderate levels and 211 to low levels.

Behaviour was assessed using an in-depth questionnaire completed by the mother and also used by clinicians to evaluate children's behaviour.

The research concluded that women who ate more than 500mg of glycyrrhizin per week - found in the equivalent of 100g of pure liquorice - were more likely to have children with lower intelligence levels and more behavioural problems.

Some of the inadequacies in the kids, selected from Finland where consumption of the drink among women is common, were poor attention spans and ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder).

The study, carried out by the University of Helsinki and the University of Edinburgh, suggested that a component in liquorice called glycyrrhizin may impair the placenta, allowing stress hormones to cross from the mother to the baby.

Apparently, high levels of such hormones, known as glucocorticoids, affect fetal brain development, which leads behavioural disorders in children.

Top Chef Padma Lakshmi Says Pregnancy Will Not Change Her Diet - Softpedia

Posted: 08 Oct 2009 01:14 PM PDT

Cookbook author, actress, model and worldwide-famous stunner Padma Lakshmi announced that she was expecting a child earlier this month. Although somewhat uncomfortable when too much attention is focused on her, Padma is not shy when it comes to talking about how pregnancy has changed her body and, at the same time, her diet, as People magazine can confirm.

Of course, the body goes through some changes, Padma says, so it's better to start off prepared for that, and whatever consequences they may have. For instance, she says her tummy is constantly itching because it's expanding, so she has to "butter it up" each morning. However, the famous chef is happy to report that her appetite has changed in no way because of the pregnancy, while also stressing that, if it does in the weeks to come, she will continue to focus on eating healthily.

"I am as omnivorous as it's possible to be. I always say there's nothing I won't eat and nothing I won't wear. Am I gonna be having a Scotch on the rocks? No. But I never did that anyway. Many people could say I ate for two before I was pregnant. It's just that my body is catching up with my appetite now." Padma tells People. Since she will continue to eat everything she wants, she will also have to start making adjustments to her wardrobe, the star explains.

"During the course of filming Top Chef, I gain 15 lbs., so I'm used to needing two dress sizes. Now I'll just need three: my fat size, my skinny size and my super size." the star says with a laugh. However, Padma is not advocating only for a healthy diet during pregnancy by accepting to discuss these intimate details with the media. She suffers from endometriosis, which has required that she undergo two painful surgical interventions and that makes her pregnancy a "medical miracle," as she puts it.

Padma is the founder of the Endometriosis Foundation of America and she hopes she can use her expanding belly as a means of raising more awareness on the condition.