Target marketing to Pregnant Women

That's a double entendre - here's an excerpt from an NPR article about habits

Routines are made up of a three-part "habit loop": a cue, a behavior and a reward. Understanding and interrupting that loop is key to breaking a habit, says journalist Charles Duhigg, author of "The Power of Habit."

"The biggest moment of flexibility in our shopping habits is when we have a child," says Duhigg , "because all of your old routines go out the window, and suddenly a marketer can come in and sell you new things."

Companies can also figure out how to get consumers to change their own habits and form new ones associated with their products or stores. The megastore Target, for example, tries to target pregnant women, says Duhigg, in order to capture their buying habits for the next few years.

"The biggest moment of flexibility in our shopping habits is when we have a child," he says, "because all of your old routines go out the window, and suddenly a marketer can come in and sell you new things."

Analysts at Target collect "terabytes of information" on its shoppers. They have figured out that women who buy certain products — vitamins, unscented lotions, washcloths — might be pregnant and then can use that information to jump-start their marketing campaign.

This can get tricky: One father was upset after receiving coupons for baby products in the mail from Target addressed to his teenage daughter.

"He went in and said, 'My daughter is 16 years old. Are you trying to encourage her to get pregnant?' and the manager apologizes," Duhigg says. "The manager calls a couple of days later ... and the father says, 'I need to apologize. ... I had a conversation with my daughter, and it turns out there's some things going on in my house that I wasn't aware of. She's due in August.' So Target figured it out before her dad did."

The nitty gritty:

"Neuroscientists have traced our habit-making behaviors to a part of the brain called the basal ganglia, which also plays a key role in the development of emotions, memories and pattern recognition. Decisions, meanwhile, are made in a different part of the brain called the prefrontal cortex. But as soon as a behavior becomes automatic, the decision-making part of your brain goes into a sleep mode of sorts. In fact, the brain starts working less and less," says Duhigg. "The brain can almost completely shut down. ..."

Bottom line - stay awake and make your decisions consciously!

read the whole article here:

Habits: How They Form And How To Break Them

Kids play changes, kids change =The Importance of Child's Play

An important article over on NPR by Alix Spiegel. A brief summary:

Howard Chudacoff, a cultural historian at Brown University recently published a history of child's play. He says that for most of human history what children did when they played was roam in packs large or small, more or less unsupervised, and engage in freewheeling imaginative play. They were pirates and princesses, aristocrats and action heroes. Basically, says Chudacoff, they spent most of their time doing what looked like nothing much at all.

Then along came the Mickey Mouse Club, Mattel, etc. "It's interesting to me that when we talk about play today, the first thing that comes to mind are toys," says Chudacoff. "Whereas when I would think of play in the 19th century, I would think of activity rather than an object."

But during the second half of the 20th century, Chudacoff argues, play changed radically. Instead of spending their time in autonomous shifting make-believe, children were supplied with ever more specific toys for play and predetermined scripts. Essentially, instead of playing pirate with a tree branch they played Star Wars with a toy light saber. Chudacoff calls this the commercialization and co-optation of child's play — a trend which begins to shrink the size of children's imaginative space.

Now we are beginning to understand that all the time spent playing make-believe actually helped children develop a critical cognitive skill called executive function. Executive function has a number of different elements, but a central one is the ability to self-regulate. Kids with good self-regulation are able to control their emotions and behavior, resist impulses, and exert self-control and discipline.

A lot of this boils down to the diminished capacity for children to self-regulate. Poor executive function is associated with high dropout rates, drug use and crime. In fact, good executive function is a better predictor of success in school than a child's IQ. Children who are able to manage their feelings and pay attention are better able to learn. As executive function researcher Laura Berk explains, "Self-regulation predicts effective development in virtually every domain."

According to Berk, one reason make-believe is such a powerful tool for building self-discipline is because during make-believe, children engage in what's called private speech: They talk to themselves about what they are going to do and how they are going to do it.

"In fact, if we compare preschoolers' activities and the amount of private speech that occurs across them, we find that this self-regulating language is highest during make-believe play," Berk says. "And this type of self-regulating language... has been shown in many studies to be predictive of executive functions."

Unfortunately, the more structured the play, the more children's private speech declines. Essentially, because children's play is so focused on lessons and leagues, and because kids' toys increasingly inhibit imaginative play, kids aren't getting a chance to practice policing themselves. When they have that opportunity, says Berk, the results are clear: Self-regulation improves.

BOTTOM LINE: "It seems that in the rush to give children every advantage — to protect them, to stimulate them, to enrich them — our culture has unwittingly compromised one of the activities that helped children most. All that wasted time was not such a waste after all."

Read the article here:

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=19212514

Lollipop Moments

Lollipop Moments are what Drew Dudley defines as those moments where you do something you may not even remember later you have done that truly impacts someone else's life. And that we need to acknowledge these and honor them. This is a 3 minute talk that will stay with you for days.
Have a listen, and explore the TED site.

The TED website, tag line: "Ideas worth spreding" doesn't focus on pregnancy at all - yet in a larger sense it is about parenting: ourselves, our kids, the world. It is where I go for inspiration, for a pick me up, reminders about hope, compassion, curiosity, unity.

You can listen to talks, many less than 10 minutes, from artists, entrepreneurs, scientists, social transformers - people who are making a difference.

Exercising for Two

When you exercise during pregnancy, your baby is not, as most of us would have thought, a passive, floating passenger (and ballast on the bladder). Instead, he or she may be actively joining in the workout, with the fetal cardiac system growing stronger and healthier as a result of the workouts.

Gretchen Reynolds, in this NYT article, refers to a study that came out last April. "For the study, which was presented on Sunday at the Experimental Biology 2011 meeting in Washington, researchers from the Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences revisited a group of 61 healthy women, ages 20 to 35, who’d been part of a pilot study of exercise, pregnancy and fetal heart health. About half of the women had exercised regularly during their pregnancies, jogging, power-walking or otherwise working out at a moderate pace at least three times a week. Some also had lifted light weights or practiced yoga. But their primary activity had been aerobic. The other half of the mothers-to-be “were normally active but did not engage in formal exercise,” said Linda E. May, an exercise physiologist who led the study. "

The study found that unborn children had a response to their mom's workouts! Dr. May examined the fetal cardiac readings and found that "fetuses whose mothers had exercised showed lower heart rates and greater heart-rate variability than those whose mothers had not worked out."

Dr. May told Reynolds "Dr. May reported at the Experimental Biology meeting. The babies born to exercising mothers continued to have lower heart rates and greater heart-rate variability four weeks after delivery than the babies born to the other women. The effect was especially robust in the children whose mothers had exercised the most, Dr. May said; they had the slowest heart rates and presumably the strongest hearts."

Bottom line: stay healthy and work out, for you and your baby's healthy future

Read the entire article here:
http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/04/13/exercising-for-two/

There’s No Place Like Home … To Give Birth

A great article by Emily Willingham over on Slate.com After a traumatic hospital experience with the birth of her first child, she chose to birth at home the next time. Professionally she is a developmental biologist and is not one "given to unscientific leaps or to detours away from evidence-based medicine."

Some talking points:

- The CDC (Center for Disease Control) has identified a 29 percent increase in home-birth rates from 2004 to 2009 in the United States

- A large study she sites found that births among first-time mothers were as safe in a midwifery unit as in an obstetric unit

- The same studied said that home births or births in a midwifery unit (the U.K. equivalent of a birthing center) were just as safe as a hospital delivery for women who’d already had a child

- 2010 analysis of 12 studies from six industrialized countries found that planned homebirths with healthy and low-risk mothers carried a 0.2 percent risk of newborn death versus a 0.09 percent risk for in-hospital births, a greater than two-fold increase

- Advocates for gentle births such as Harriet Hall, an OB, call for integrating a “kinder, gentler, less-interventionist midwife approach into a home-like hospital birthing facility” would increase patient satisfaction without sacrificing safety.

- Bottom line "The obvious solution to the controversy is to offer choices that reduce perinatal stress, minimize interventions, and personalize birth—the great appeal of home birth and midwives—while ensuring a safe outcome with well-trained attendants and access to emergency facilities. The absence of options in the United States leaves this solution elusive, especially where hospitals lack a homey, low-stress environment and local midwifery care fails to meet the gold standard. Strange, isn’t it, that our nation, in the 21st century, can’t offer more uniformly safe choices for a low-risk pregnant woman seeking a healthy, low-stress birth for her child … and herself?"


Read the whole article here -
http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif

The 4th Trimester - Mothering the Mother

Often times the 9 months of growing a baby are spent in the "hurry up and wait" mode in the ongoing anticipation of the birth. Then the little one arrives and its a whole new scenario with many changes occur physiological, psychological and spiritual for the mother, baby and family. In this culture not enough attention is given to Mom's recuperation and transition.

During the time between birth and 6-8 weeks post-birth Mom's body is still working hard and experiencing a lot of physical shifts. The most important among them include healing of the uterus and uterine wall, vaginal restoration and healing of the pelvic floor muscles including the perineum, restoring strength and tone to the abdominal wall muscles, if nursing - establishing a good milk supply and successful breastfeeding, and coping with endocrine system and hormonal shifts.

In "The Importance of Postpartum Care" by Rev. Pilar (Ma’at) Grant, a midwife and women's health educator with over 20 years of practice, says:

"In the US, there is no set standard of care for women postpartum. Most are routinely sent home from the hospital with only instructions on a paper and told to make an appointment in 5 to 6 weeks. Homebirth mothers usually see their midwife for 2 to 3 days postpartum and then again in about a week. After that, mothers are not seen again until 6 weeks. I was shocked to learn that some midwives give no postpartum visits and women are advised to visit an OBGYN in 6 weeks. Many women return to work still experiencing postpartum issues."

"Postpartum care is not ignored throughout the entire nation. In the south where I grew up, there are women who still know and try to teach the important rituals during the monthly menstrual period and afterbirth. They understand the significance of staying warm, eating foods that stick to your ribs, not getting wet and catching a chill due to pores being open during the menses and afterbirth. These remedies are usually referred to as old wives tales or superstition. However, the elders argue that because they followed these rituals, they did not suffer from the same reproductive problems that women today do."

This is an area where the United States lacks a significant cultural practice around caring for women that many other countries know, honor and embrace.

Read Grant's whole article here:

http://mothering.com/pregnancy-birth/mothering-mother-importance-after-birth-care

Backwards is Safest

The leading cause of death for toddlers in the United States isn't poisoning, medical ailments or accidents around the home. By far the biggest killer of children is car crashes.

On Thursday, the National Transportation Safety Board holds a forum on car seat safety in Washington. Some of the recommendations could mean wholesale changes to how Americans transport their kids.

The reason to keep kids facing the back as they get older - even up to the age of 4 - is simple physics. In a head-on collision, a rear-facing car seat spreads the energy of the crash across the toddler's entire back, not just across a narrow portion of a tiny body.

Studies have shown that toddlers in a rear-facing car seat are five times safer than those who face forward. In the U.S., five children a day die, on average, in car crashes. That's frustrating to pediatricians.

Most 4-year-olds in Sweden are transported this way. European car seats are larger, and the cars are engineered so they can accommodate them. "Cultural change is very slow," says Alisa Baer, a pediatrician who helps run TheCarSeatLady.com. "The United States is a society that doesn't like to be told what to do."



Source:

NPR @


CarSeatLady:

Friday October 15 - A Day of Remembrance for Pregnancy and Infant Loss

Everyday in the U.S.2000 women lose a pregnancy. That’s 700,000 a year, about one in every three pregnancies. And yet it is a devastating event that is rarely spoken about. Erasing that silence is one of the goals of this day of remembrance - to open up conversations about miscarriage, stillbirths, SIDs and infant loss.

This Friday, October 15 at 7 p.m.parents, grandparents, siblings relatives and friends will be lighting candles at 7 p.m.and burning them for one hour in memory of babies who have died. Many families grieve out of sight and in silence and this special day is an opportunity to break the silence and come together within families and communities to openly mourn these losses and support these families.

If you know someone who has experienced the loss of a pregnancy,and infant or a child of any age - please reach out to them today. It doesn't need to be a grand gesture or long conversation, a phone call, a note or a cookie with a cup of tea will mean the world to them.

Here in Columbus a Memorial Ceremony will take place on Friday, starting at 6 p.m.at Highbanks Metro Park at the Mansion Shelter House. More information can be found by contacting http://sharon@sacredbeginning.com

SHARE is a nationwide group that helps families touched by this tragedy. They have online chat groups, discussion groups and help famillies find local resources and information about infant loss. http://www.nationalshare.org

I AM THE FACE is a campaign sponsored by Faces of Loss, Faces of Hope. It is an online community of women who have experienced miscarriage, stillbirth, and infant loss. They share their stories, connect with others who have been through similar experiences, feel “normal,” and know they are not alone. And, most touchingly, they share their photos - giving faces to this tragedy and reminding other women that they are not alone. http://www.iamtheface.org/

Here are some of the resources available in Columbus and Central Ohio to support those dealing with pregnancy/infant loss.

• Nationwide Children's Hospital, meeting at the Center for Family and Child Advocacy 2nd Thursday of the month, 6:30 p.m. 655 East Livingston Ave 43205 info @ 722-5250 Children welcome http://www.nationwidechildrens.org/ccfa
• Ohio Infant Loss Support Group, Kobacker House, (next to Riverside Hospital) 1st Tuesday of the month, 7 p.m. 3595 Olentangy River Road 43214 info @ 566-4509 www.ohiohealth.combodytop.cfm?id=4467
• Mount Carmel St. Ann's Pregnancy Loss Support Group 4th Tuesday of the month, 7 p.m. Women's Health Center 477 Cooper Rd. Westerville 43081 info @ 234-5999 http://www.mountcarmelhealth.com/education-support/support-groups/2.html 2nd Saturday of the month, 10:30 a.m. Evergreen Center 1144 Dublin Rd. Dublin 43215 info @ 234-0220 http://www.mountcarmelhealth.com/programs-services/pregnancy-infant-loss/
• Compassionate Friends, for those who have lost a child of any age 2nd & 4th Tuesday of month, 7:30 p.m. Ascension Church 1479 Morse Rd, Columbus 43229 info @ 882-8986 http://www.tcfcolumbusoh.org
• Hospice of Central Ohio Pregnancy & Infant Loss Group 4th Wednesday of the month, 7 p.m. 2269 Cherry Valley Road, Newark 43055 info @ 740-344-0311 http://www.hospiceofcentralohio.org
• Dublin Counseling Center, At a Loss Support Group, free - for parents who have lost a child of any age 1st & 3rd Tuesday of the month, 6 - 7:30 p.m. 299 Cramer Creek Court, Dublin 43017 info @ 899-5722 http://www,dublincounselingcenter.org

Circumsion Rate Falling Fast in U.S.

New research about a steep drop in circumcisions made headlines this past week. According to one federal researcher, circumcision rates in U.S. hospitals slid from 56 percent in 2006 to fewer than a third of boys born last year.

Doctors caution that those numbers aren't definitive — for instance, they don't include circumcisions not covered by insurance policies or circumcisions performed in religious settings.

But Dr. Douglas Diekema, a pediatrics bioethicist at the University of Washington, tells NPR's Audie Cornish there's no doubt about the overall trend.

"I think all of us agree there probably is a decrease in the number of circumcisions over time, and that's probably a result of a number of factors," Diekema says.

"About 10 years ago, the American Academy of Pediatrics came out with a policy statement that was fairly neutral on whether circumcisions should be recommended for newborns or not," says Diekema. "And that probably changed the way physicians were talking to their families."

In many states, Medicaid stopped covering the procedure as a result of that policy statement. And many insurance companies followed suit, meaning that more and more families might have decided to forgo circumcision just because of the expense.

"It's also worth pointing out that our population is becoming increasingly Hispanic," says Diekema, "And that's a population that has not traditionally circumcised their babies."

'Intactivists'

Another possible explanation for the decrease might be the anti-circumcision advocates known as "intactivists." They've lobbied forcefully against circumcision for years now, and some people compare them to anti-vaccination advocates. But Diekema criticizes their tactics.

"Their arguments are largely emotional," says Diekema. "Just the fact that they insist on referring to this as 'genital mutilation' tells you that they're refusing to recognize whether there may be any medical benefit to the procedure."

And the benefits are large, he says.

"There is a fairly substantial, important reduction in the risk of contracting many sexually transmitted infections," says Diekema. "In newborns, there is a decreased likelihood of getting a urinary tract infection, which for a newborn baby can be a very significant illness."

And, he says, "at least three well-done, randomized control trials in Africa show a substantial decrease in the transmission of HIV [due to circumcision]."

Ultimately, in spite of arguments on both sides of the issue, Diekema says that male circumcision is a decision that families should make on their own. He says a doctor's role is to make sure the family is aware of the risks and benefits of the procedure.

But, he says, "the risks of circumcision are considerably lower in the newborn population than they are if that child is older."

source: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129362160&ft=1&f=1001

CHOICE - Birth Options in Columbus

CHOICE is an organization of parents and professionals supporting the rights of parents to choose more humane options in their birth experiences.

CHOICE offers a unique program to the community, not found in most midwifery practices. As a non-profit organization, CHOICE provides the following services:

• CHOICE Services:
  • Free one-hour consultation with midwives, regardless of whether or not you choose to use our services.
  • Free Lending Library (including books and videos and DVDs)
  • Childbirth Preparation Classes
  • Birth and Postpartum Doula Services
  • Parent Support Group with weekly meetings and an active e-list
  • Referrals to practitioners who can meet your needs
  • Public Speakers for community education
  • Supplies and Products:
    • Slings
    • Supplements
    • Herbal Products
    • Parent Resource Center (free maternity clothes, baby clothes and baby equipment)

• CHOICE Midwives:
  • Our midwives have over 30 years of experience and are committed to providing individualized midwifery model of care.
    • CHOICE believes that skilled and responsible midwives should be readily available to all families in our community.
    • CHIOCE believes midwives are the guardians of normal birth.
    • CHOICE believes that midwives provide compassionate, skilled, and woman-centered care.
    • CHOICE believes in a woman’s right to choose her birth attendants and place of birth and to involve those she identifies as her family in the bonding of the birth experience.
  • CHOICE requires all their midwives to be Certified Professional Midwives (CPM).
    • CPM certification validates entry-level knowledge, skills, and experience vital to responsible midwifery practice.
    • CPM certification preserves the unique, woman-centered forms of practice that are common to midwives attending out-of-hospital births.
    • The North American Registry of Midwives (NARM) guidelines for certification approval have been developed to meet national certifying standards formulated by the National Organization for Competency Assurance (NOCA).
    • CPM certification assures our midwives:
      • will provide the skills and experience vital to responsible midwifery practice.
      • meet professional standards of accountability that support midwives to remain active lifelong learners, confirming the ideals of competent practice.
      • meet NARM’s continuing education requirements that provide consistent opportunities for current knowledge and growing professional awareness.
      • maintain confidentiality, current practice guidelines and CPR certification.
      • practice informed consent which provides flexibility for individualized care.
      • have the benefit of continued understanding and problem solving through weekly CHOICE Peer Review.
      • participate in NARM’s accountability process to address concerns regarding competent midwifery practice.

• CHOICE Policies
  • Unlike most midwifery practices,
    • CHOICE requires two CPMs to work with each client who desires a home birth.
    • CHOICE requires that at least one of these two CPMs must be an “experienced midwife”. CHOICE defines “experienced midwife” as a midwife who:
      • has attended at least 75 births AND
      • has been in practice at least 5 years.
      • This policy assures that:
        • at least one of the two midwives assigned to each birth will have skills and experience that exceed the national standards for competent entry-level midwifery practice.
        • even when more than one client is in labor at the same time, the client can be assured that she will have at least one of her assigned midwives present during her labor and birth.
        • two fully qualified midwives will be present at each birth to deal with complications that may develop with either the mother or the baby. Should complications develop with both the mother and the baby simultaneously, a fully qualified midwife will be available to handle each situation.

• CHOICE Home Birth Midwifery Services include:
  • Complete Prenatal, Labor/Birth and Postpartum Care
  • Support for:
    • Waterbirth
    • VBACs
    • Breastfeeding
    • Nutritional Counseling

• Area Served: Central Ohio (Franklin County and all adjacent counties)

CHOICE
5721 North High Street – Worthington, Ohio 43085 – 614-263-BABY (2229)

Mother's Touch Stimulates Child's Brain Development

UCI child neurologist and neuroscientist Dr. Tallie Z. Baram has found that caressing and other sensory input triggers activity in a baby’s developing brain that improves cognitive function and builds resilience to stress.




Baram has found that maternal care and other sensory input triggers activity in a baby's developing brain that improves cognitive function and builds resilience to stress. For an infant, a mother’s touch provides a feeling of security, comfort and love. But research at UC Irvine is showing that it does much more.

The finding contributes to growing knowledge about epigenetics, the study of how environmental factors can reprogram the expression of genes.

In a study published earlier this year in The Journal of Neuroscience, Baram and colleagues identified how sensory stimuli from maternal care can modify genes that control a key messenger of stress called corticotropin-releasing hormone.

In earlier work, Baram helped discover that excessive amounts of CRH in the brain’s primary learning and memory center led to the disintegration of dendritic spines, branchlike structures on neurons. Dendritic spines facilitate the sending and receiving of messages among brain cells and the collection and storage of memories.

“Communication among brain cells is the foundation of cognitive processes such as learning and memory,” says Baram, the Danette Shepard Chair in Neurological Sciences. “In several brain disorders where learning and similar thought processes are abnormal, dendritic spines have been found to be reduced in density or poorly developed.

“Because an infant’s brain is still building connections in these communication zones, large blasts or long-term amounts of stress can permanently limit full development, increasing the risk of anxiety, depression and dementia later in life.”

Her most recent study describes for the first time the cellular pathways of the epigenetic process by which maternal care reduces the expression of CRH in the hypothalamus. Detecting sensory input, DNA in brain cells in this stress-sensitive region activates a neuron-restrictive silencer factor, which limits CRH. Without the interference of excess stress-triggered CRH, neural dendrites in the hippocampus can fully develop, which leads to stress resilience.

“What’s noteworthy about this study is that it reveals that brain structure is influenced by the environment early in life, and especially by maternal care,” says Baram, whose research on early-life factors in neural development has fundamentally altered the understanding of disorders such as epilepsy.

“There has been a belief that the brain is hardwired ­ that once it’s established, it’s that way for life,” she says. “But we’re seeing that the brain is actually ‘softwired’ ­ that changes in stimuli alter the wiring ­ and that it’s not predestined to be a certain way. I find this fascinating.”

Provided by UC Irvine

photo: http://www.massagetableoutlet.com/images/blog_images/mother-child.jpg

Just Because...to be shared with any guy who ignores Mother's Day, birthdays, etc.

Mother’s Day, birthdays and anniversaries are about appreciation, gratitude and celebration. These days acknowledge accomplishments achieved and challenges met as we roll from year to year; they recognize and honor the large and small successes of daily life, obstacles overcome and joys shared.

Celebrations mark occasions and efforts that deserve honor and special attention, remind us of who and what are important and of our common goals and dreams. Special days weave us together and replenish our individual and joint wells of strength so we have emotional resources and deep relationships to draw upon when the rough times abound.

When these special days or events don’t receive their due, it becomes a slight of omission, which creates a scratch on the Heart and over time these scratches accumulate and become a wound. The wound gives purchase for other slights to land upon, that otherwise may well have just slid away. These slights accumulate and eek deeper into the heart and soul. A wound ignored can turn debilitating. If tended to begin with, it heals.

Last year, when I was managing a flower shop guys would come in and tell me they needed flowers because they’d screwed something up with the woman in their life. How much trouble I’d ask? Whether they said a little or a lot, I sent them out the door with something sincere and heartfelt rather than grand and verbose: one rose instead of the 2 dozen he came in thinking he needed.

As I wrapped their flower/s, I’d tell them that the best occasion for flowers is no occasion: the best occasion is just because. Then it’s spontaneous, it has come from the heart: it’s just because you wanted to do something to bring someone joy. That’s what we want, and need: sincere gestures of love and appreciation. They don’t have to be grand and opulent and over the top (those are saved for turning 50 or being together 25 years!) Go for a pot of tulips, lunch out in the middle of the week, a magazine, a hug in the grocery store - well, maybe Home Depot - that's a lot more likely!

All of us - mothers, dads, kids - need acknowledgment and gifts of appreciation, on the special days and the "just because" ones.

Another Warning Bell, from the President's Cancer Panel

Ironic that I'm listening to Barbara Kingsolver's excellent "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle" as this report gets released.

This "new" news about the dangers of chemicals in our food, water and air isn't surprising. It is yet another confirmation about the importance of being vigilant about what we take into our bodies, especially for pregnant women and children.

And this time it comes from mainstream science and medical worlds: The President's Cancer Panel, the current members of which were appointed by President George W. Bush. So, we're not talking about alternative medicine , organic food eating, Prius driving ex-hippies extremists here!

Nicholas Kristoff of the NY Times says in an op-ed piece today that the report is a " warning that our lackadaisical approach to regulation may have far-reaching consequences for our health (and) calls on America to rethink the way we confront cancer, including much more rigorous regulation of chemicals. "

"In particular, the report warns about exposures to chemicals during pregnancy, when risk of damage seems to be greatest. Noting that 300 contaminants have been detected in umbilical cord blood of newborn babies, the study warns that: “to a disturbing extent, babies are born ‘pre-polluted.’ ”

The report blames weak laws, lax enforcement and fragmented authority, as well as the existing regulatory presumption that chemicals are safe unless strong evidence emerges to the contrary.

“Only a few hundred of the more than 80,000 chemicals in use in the United States have been tested for safety,” the report says. It adds: “Many known or suspected carcinogens are completely unregulated.”

Kristoff continues: "Some 41 percent of Americans will be diagnosed with cancer at some point in their lives, and they include Democrats and Republicans alike. Protecting ourselves and our children from toxins should be an effort that both parties can get behind — if enough members of Congress are willing to put the public interest ahead of corporate interests...One reason for concern is that some cancers are becoming more common, particularly in children. We don’t know why that is, but the proliferation of chemicals in water, foods, air and household products is widely suspected as a factor. I’m hoping the President’s Cancer Panel report will shine a stronger spotlight on environmental causes of health problems — not only cancer, but perhaps also diabetes, obesity and autism."

Watch to see how industry responds to this report with spin and counter-claims.

Some of the reports recommendations:

¶Particularly when pregnant and when children are small, choose foods, toys and garden products with fewer endocrine disruptors or other toxins. (Information about products is at www.cosmeticsdatabase.com or www.healthystuff.org.)

¶For those whose jobs may expose them to chemicals, remove shoes when entering the house and wash work clothes separately from the rest of the laundry.

¶Filter drinking water.

¶Store water in glass or stainless steel containers, or in plastics that don’t contain BPA or phthalates (chemicals used to soften plastics). Microwave food in ceramic or glass containers.

¶Give preference to food grown without pesticides, chemical fertilizers and growth hormones. Avoid meats that are cooked well-done.

¶Check radon levels in your home. Radon is a natural source of radiation linked to cancer.

And, I would add, read (or listen to it on CD) Kingsolver's "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle" - it's an entertaining and educating book about her family's adventures in raising food and eating locally, and why such "radical" actions are important and not as hard as you think it might be.

Also, anything by Michael Pollan - who's food mantra is: "Eat food. Mostly plants. Not too much."

Read Kristoff here: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/06/opinion/06kristof.html?src=me&ref=homepage

Find the report here: http://deainfo.nci.nih.gov/advisory/pcp/pcp.htm

"Animal, Vegetables, Miracles - A Year of Food Life " by Barbara Kingsolver here:

http://www.animalvegetablemiracle.com/

Home Births on the Rise in Ohio and across Nation

There was a five percent increase in out-of-hospital births in 2005, says an analysis just out from the National Center for Health Statistics. Some of the states with big increase: Alabama, California, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Minnesota, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Ohio, Virginia and Wisconsin.

The proportion of births outside hospitals held steady in 2006. That year, more than 38,000 babies (of more than 4 million babies born) came into the world somewhere other than a hospital.

There was a five percent increase in out-of-hospital births in 2005, says an analysis just out from the National Center for Health Statistics. The proportion of births outside hospitals held steady in 2006. That year, more than 38,000 babies (of more than 4 million babies born) came into the world somewhere other than a hospital.

Sixty-one percent of non-hospital births are supervised by midwives, most often at home but also at birthing centers that aren't attached to a hospital.

Sixty-one percent of non-hospital births are supervised by midwives, most often at home but also at birthing centers that aren't attached to a hospital.

See the City Mommy Directory for midwives, doulas and lactation consultants in the Columbus area: http://columbus.citymommy.com/?q=place/view/term/17

source: http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2010/03/home_births_rise.html

Congenital Heart Disease Awareness Week

A sad story with an important message from Kristine, a friend of Heather's, over @ http://thespohrsaremultiplying.com

The Spohrs are Multiplying. CHD occurs in 1 in 125 babies in the United States. After your baby's born, ask for the pulse oximetry test.

here's Kristine & Cora's story:

Leaving the hospital as a first-time mom, I felt scared, but confident.

My daughter, Cora, scored a nine on both her Apgar tests, breezed past the hearing test, wasn’t jaundiced, and I bragged to the nurses, had already had several wet and dirty diapers (always a good sign, I’m told).

After she was born, my husband stayed with her when she went to the nursery for her first checkup. He came back with a huge smile on his face. “A perfect report,” he said with triumph.

We breathed a deep, and relaxing, sigh of relief. Our baby was here, and she was healthy. And, oh yes, she already had a new nickname. Mega Cheeks. The physician’s assistant (who had quite pinchable cheeks herself) took one look at Cora and with a huge grin announced, “She’s got some MEGA cheeks.”

We called her that for the next five days. My little Mega Cheeks.

Two days later and the time to go home as a family was here. I sat with Cora in the back of our minivan (yes, we had already switched to the mom mobile in anticipation of a new family). The scene was lifted straight out of a cheesy movie. My husband drove about 10 miles under the speed limit.

The next three days brought extreme and absolute happiness as Cora and I spent our days listening to music and snuggling.

One early morning I was breastfeeding her. I looked down and she was dead. Just like that. Happily suckling one moment, a brief look up to tell my husband something, look back down, and Cora is covered in blood, limp, pale and not breathing. Dead.

Of course, I was extremely confused. All those nurses and doctors at the hospital had reassured me she was the picture of good health.

I learned from the coroner my daughter’s heart was seriously malformed. She had a congenital heart disease, or CHD.

After the battery of tests at the hospital, how could they have forgotten to check her heart? Why did we leave the hospital thinking she was a perfectly healthy baby? How could this have slipped through? Her heart. With all the tests run in the hospital, surely one of them closely examined her heart?

****

Cora and I save lives now. I learned a simple pulse oximetry (a non-invasive, simple, cheap, and quick) test performed at 24 to 48 hours successfully screens for some CHDs, especially the most lethal. But, they aren’t routinely conducted on newborns. I hope that changes soon. I also learned currently no test can catch all congenital heart diseases. I’m working frantically to find a way to change that.

I was a bit embarrassed. I had to look up congenital heart disease when I hung up the phone with the coroner. I’d never heard of it. Congenital heart disease is the most commonly occurring birth defect. The numbers vary a bit by country and organization, but according to the March of Dimes, CHD occurs in 1 in 125 babies in the United States. Others say that number is closer to 1 in 100. Not all CHDs are as severe as Cora’s. Thousands of adults and children live with a CHD every day.

Heather reached out to me shortly after Cora’s death and virtually took me under her wing to comfort me as I started on the sad path of mourning my baby. I’m in awe of her fearless work to save babies and help mommies and thank her for helping me spread Cora’s Story. I picture us hand and hand fighting to save these little lives. I think somewhere Maddie took Cora under her wing, too. Even if they only meet through my imagination, I picture them playing, laughing, and sparkling in the sunlight.

February 7 to 14 is Congenital Heart Disease Awareness Week. Please spend a few minutes learning more about CHD. I wish every day that I had taken a few moments while I was pregnant.

http://thespohrsaremultiplying.com/2010/02/for-cora/

Fertility Massage

If you are preparing to conceive, having a challenge conceiving or using Assisted Reproductive Technology...

Fertility Massage is specifically designed to help cleanse, balance and relax a woman's body, helping her to create a harmonious emotional, spiritual and physical environment for conception. This bodywork includes massage (deep tissue, abdominal, Swedish), foot reflexology and CranialSacral work .*

Conception is a dance of hormones that must align just so in order for the production, release, fertilization and implantation of the egg to happen. Stress greatly affects this hormonal process and can cause changes in ovulation, cycle length and tubal spasms. Those stressors may be major life-changing events, the day to day challenges of living in a busy world or the process of trying to have a baby.Studies have shown that massage lowers levels of the stress hormone cortisol.

Massage also improves circulation, lowers blood pressure, boosts the immune system, reduces depression and improves overall health. Improved circulation brings a more efficient flow of blood and lymph to carry away toxins, while bringing in oxygen and nutrients to all body tissues - including the reproductive organs. When all these bodily systems function at their optimum levels conception is more likely to occur.

Fertility Massage also focuses on releasing restrictions within the body such as adhesions or scar tissue. These adhesions often impinge on the fallopian tube's ability to function. Women who have had abdominal surgery, endometriosis, inflammatory disease or other abdominal/ reproductive health challneges are more likely to have adhesions. Abdominal massage and trigger point work can help release these restrictions. This brings improved blood flow to the pelvic basin and the reproductive organs.

Each massage session is tailored to a woman's specific needs and include a combination of massage, CranioSacral work*, foot reflexology, abdominal massage, Reiki and trigger point work.
The initial session includes a consultatioin/intake process and may run 90 - 120 minutes. Regular sessions run between 50 and 75 minutes. Fertility Massage is most effective when combined with a healthy diet and exercise.

For scheduling information, please go to mamas-body.com (don't miss the dash) or email me at
mamasbody@gmail.com


* see the June '09 post for info on CranioSacral Work for moms-to-be @
http://mamasbody.blogspot.com/2009_06_01_archive.html



photo: http://www.independent.co.uk/multimedia/archive/00230/sperm_230299t.jpg

Posted by Phoenix at 4:00 PM

Talking to Kids about Haiti, and where to donate

Ideas about what to say and do

~ Listen to what they have to say - what have they heard & seen so far? The aim is not to worry them with the devastating details, but to protect them from misinformation

~ Give them simple, clear answers. If you don't know the answer, say that and look for the answer together

~ Help them to feel safe, don't brush away their fears - help to dispel them

~ Give them creative outlets: draw pictures, pound on pots & pans, move their bodies like an earthquake

~ Show them where Haiti is on a world map

~ The earthquake in Haiti is an opportunity to for children to gain a sense of empathy for children from different parts of the world and cultures different from their own

~ It's important for children to understand that not all countries of the world are like America. Some people don't have sturdy homes or food or fresh water or clean clothes or toys. They've never see a TV or the internet

~ Children develop a sense of awareness, sensitivity and charity by knowing these things

~ Don't let them watch TV news coverage alone, sit with them, monitor their response and answer questions. Ask them how what they're seeing makes them feel.

~ Open, yet non-frightening discussions about how fragile life is, the responsibility of privelege, and charity are appropriate for older children

~ Do something concrete - gather a box of unused clothes and toys and take them to a donation center, collect change from family and friends and send to UNICEF, etc., participate in a local relief effort

~ Encourage a sense of humanity, awareness and empathy

Please consider donating to one of these organizations:

~ Red Cross = Text “HAITI” to “90999″ to donate $10

~ Doctors Without Borders = www.doctorswithoutborders.org/donate/

~ Donate to Partners in Health = www.donate.pih.org

~ Architecture for Humanity = www.architectureforhumanity.org/donate

~ charity:water = www.charitywater.org/donate

~ World Vision = you can pick exactly where you want your donation used http://donate.worldvision.org/OA_HTML/xxwv2ibeCCtpSctDspRte.jsp?section=10820

"The Business of Being Born"

The Business of Being Born grew out of director Abbie Epstein's connection to The Vagina Monologues actress Ricki Lake. Shocked at the results of her own research into the birth industry, Lake asked Epstein to make a film about childbirth.

The movie reveals how the medical profession excessively and detrimentally intervenes in women's pregnancy and labor. It addresses how many hospital births are motivated more by the hospitals' financial and legal considerations than patients' wishes, or even best interests. The film makes a compelling case for a return to traditional (and often safer) midwife-assisted births.

The film's website states: "Birth is a miracle, a rite of passage, a natural part of life. But birth is also big business. Compelled to explore the subject after the delivery of her first child, actress Ricki Lake recruits filmmaker Abby Epstein to question the way American women have babies.

The film interlaces intimate birth stories with surprising historical, political and scientific insights and shocking statistics about the current maternity care system. When director Epstein discovers she is pregnant during the making of the film, the journey becomes even more personal.

Should most births be viewed as a natural life process, or should every delivery be treated as a potentially catastrophic medical emergency?"

The New York Times called the film "a passionate ground-level examination of home childbirth," and while "not overtly political, ( its) feminism is palpable but unspoken."

One of the issues the movie addresses is the common practice of having the birthing in the “lithotomy” position. This requires the mom to be lying on her back as she is encouraged to “push.” Anatomically, this shifts the pelvis into a narrowe postition, one that increases the chance of a forceps or a vacuum extraction delivery. Historically and anatomically, squatting is much less stressful for the mother although it makes it more difficult for the doctor to catch the baby.

The United States' infant-mortality rate is the second-highest in industrialized countries. “The Business of Being Born” suggests that this is one of the high costs of our blind trust in hospital technology.

"The Business of Being Born" is available from Amazon for under $10

photo: http://filmmakermagazine.com/directorinterviews/uploaded_images/The_Business_of_Being_Born_01-750478.jpg

Video Winners from Birth Matters/Virginia

Birth Matters/Virginia is a group of parents and professionals who support women and families in making informed choices about birth. BM/V works to empower women in discovering their inherent feminine strengths during the transformational experience of childbearing and birth.

Recently BM/V sponsored an international video contest about maternity and delivery care. The United States ranks 41st world-wide in maternal mortality, and the U.S. cesarean rate is over 30%! Now, more than ever, it is important for women to educate themselves about their birth options.

The video topics included personal birth stories, the role of doulas, midwifery care, cesarean sections, birthing in an Amish community and birth in Ireland. Each video carried a message about how changes are needed in the way our culture/s relate to pregnancy and birth. Nearly 40 videos were received, and they have had nearly 1 million views on YouTube.

The judges were all mothers, from various backgrounds, some working in the birth field professionally - all united by the vision of change. Ricki Lake and Abby Epstein from The Business of Being Born and Dr. Sarah Buckley (gentle choice adovocate and family physician) joined the judging.

Here are the winners, and links to their videos. (YouTube requires that viewers be at least 18 yrs. old.)

First prize went to Ragan Cohen of California for her piece "Prevent Ceasarean Surgery." Dr. Buckley called it "myth-busting."

http://www.youtube.com/verify_age?&next_url=/watch%3Fv%3DEZy0JPtubiQ

Laura Alvarez's "The Nature of Natural Birth." Her second place winner is a combination of valuable information and gorgeous photos of home births. Alvarez is from Wisconsin.

http://www.youtube.com/verify_age?&next_url=/watch%3Fv%3DOrIPtVEjVnc

"Misconception" by Becky Carey of Virginia won the Honorable Mention. The judges noted its conversational tone, original music and authentic women's wisdom.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vxRmVciXy-g


For more info, visit BirthMatters/Virginia here:

www.birthmattersva.org

photo: http://api.ning.com/files/WWr3SEnP8RZTimEbYIRBp5TMmLy4VZx2c9EOj023XbB85-HT9rcnoKjGFXn0209r46gqCozyfnfhWfHU4tHsK7kSp4S4YSQ5/pregnancy.jpg

Sugary colas increase risk of diabetes during pregnancy

Women who drink five or more sugar-sweetened colas a week are more likely to develop diabetes when they become pregnant, according to a new study. Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is one of the most common complications of pregnancy and affects about 4 percent of all pregnant women, according to the American Diabetes Association. Though its cause is unknown, scientists know that women with the condition develop insulin resistance, causing an increase in blood-glucose levels.

A team led by Dr. Liwei Chen of Louisiana State University studied 13,475 women who are part of the Nurses’ Health Study II, an ongoing project involving more than 116,000 female nurses. The women, who were 22 to 44 when the study began, became pregnant during the next 10 years and 860 were subsequently diagnosed with GDM. Women were asked how often they consumed Coke, Pepsi, or other colas with sugar (with and without caffeine); and about their consumption of diet colas and other drinks.

About one-third of the women reported drinking 5 or more sugar-sweetened colas a week, and they were 22 percent more likely to develop GDM than women who had fewer than 3 sugar-sweetened colas a month. There was no significant increase in risk from consumption of diet colas or other drinks. “Based on these findings, I would advise patients to stay away from sugar-sweetened beverages’’ if they are trying to get pregnant, said Dr. Paul Robertson, professor of medicine at the University of Washington and president of the American Diabetes Association.

BOTTOM LINE: Women who regularly consume large quantities of sugar-sweetened colas before pregnancy are more likely to develop gestational diabetes.

CAUTIONS: Cola consumption wasn’t tracked during pregnancy, but Chen said other studies suggest that pregnant women don’t change dietary routine.

source: http://www.boston.com/community/moms/articles/2009/12/07/sugary_colas_increase_risk_of_diabetes_during_pregnancy/

photo: http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ZdyW1sSvWQJvpM:http://sylviagarza.files.wordpress.com/2008/12/pop-cans.jpg