Fertility & Pregnancy

Taking Vitamin D supplements during pregnancy could substantially reduce the chances of babies up to a year old suffering from atopic eczema, according to a new study by University of Southampton researchers. The research, published in the British Journal of Dermatology, revealed that babies had a lower risk of developing atopic eczema in their first year if their mothers … [Read more...]

Women who experienced complications related to developing high blood pressure, or hypertension, during pregnancy had a 63% increased risk for developing cardiovascular disease later in life, according to research funded by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), part of the National Institutes of Health. While hypertensive pregnancy complications previously … [Read more...]

Until now fertility has not received much attention as a potential predictor of late-life cognition compared with other factors, such as education or occupation. The findings are published in the journal Demography. "Understanding the factors that contribute to optimal late-life cognition is essential for ensuring successful aging at the individual and societal levels -- … [Read more...]

Pre-eclampsia is a condition that affects up to 4% of women during pregnancy, and up to 8% of women during their lifetime. It includes high blood pressure (hypertension) and damage to a number of her body's organ systems, and remains one of the two main causes of death for pregnant and recently-pregnant women worldwide -- about 46,000 young women a year. Up to half a million … [Read more...]

Infants carry a vast assemblage of bacteria, viruses and fungi in their guts. Combined, these microbes make up a complex ecology known as the gut microbiome, which plays a major role in health and disease throughout life. The initial source of these billions of microbes is the mother's breast milk. In a new study, Efrem Lim and his colleagues use next-generation sequencing … [Read more...]

Hysteroscopic sterilization, a nonincisional procedure, was found to be as effective as minimally invasive laparoscopic sterilization in preventing pregnancy, but both methods had higher than expected failure rates, according to a new study led by an investigator at Weill Cornell Medicine. The comparative study, published April 12 in Fertility and Sterility, found that both … [Read more...]

Women vaccinated against COVID-19 transfer SARS-CoV-2 antibodies to their breastfed infants, potentially giving their babies passive immunity against the coronavirus, according to University of Massachusetts Amherst research. The study, published in the journal Obstetrics & Gynecology, measured the immune response to the COVID-19 mRNA vaccine in both breast milk and the … [Read more...]

Infants born via uncomplicated cesarean delivery, without labor or membrane rupture before delivery and no concern for infection, should not need antibiotics at birth, according to a study by researchers at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP). The findings, which were published today in Pediatrics, could help clinicians tailor the use of early antibiotics in newborns. … [Read more...]

Legalization of marijuana has been associated with increased use in women of childbearing age. Since tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), one of the active ingredients in marijuana, passes through breast milk, many neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) restrict the use of breast milk from THC-positive women because the effects on early preterm infants are unknown. However, science has … [Read more...]

Scientists have known for a century that female animals become more active just as they are about to ovulate, a behavior that evolved to enhance their chances of mating when they are fertile. Now, a team at UC San Francisco has identified the specific neurons and signaling pathway that make sexually receptive females of many species run around at this critical time. The … [Read more...]

Whether it's an exclusive appetite for 'white' foods or an all-out refusal on veggies, when you have a fussy eater on your hands, mealtime can be more than a challenge. While picky eating is all part of the norm for developing toddlers, when it extends into school years, it takes a toll on all involved, children and parents alike. Now, new research from USC, the … [Read more...]

Internationally-renowned nutritional epidemiologist Professor Elina Hypponen and a team from UniSA’s Australian Centre for Precision Health have been awarded $1.2 million by the Federal Government to map the genetic and physical risks of ovarian cancer, based on the health records of 273,000 women from the UK Biobank database. A machine learning model, which automatically … [Read more...]

Dysmenorrhea can be due to hormonal imbalances or to underlying gynecological conditions such as endometriosis, pelvic inflammatory disease, ectopic pregnancy, or tumors in the pelvic cavity. Symptoms are often life-long: they include cramps and pain in the lower abdomen, pain in the lower back and legs, nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, fainting, weakness, fatigue, and headaches. … [Read more...]

First insights into breastfeeding post-vaccination for COVID-19With the recent large-scale implementation of messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccines against COVID-19, clinical research has started to understand the dynamics of both the virus and the vaccine across demographic groups. Of particular importance are pregnant and breastfeeding mothers, from which clinical trials have limited … [Read more...]

Drugs routinely used during fertility treatments to release eggs do not increase the risk of developing breast cancer, new research has shown. Researchers from King's College London, in partnership with King's Fertility, analysed studies involving 1.8 million women undergoing fertility treatments. These women were followed up in studies for an average period of 27 years and … [Read more...]

According to studies in recent years, air pollution affects the thyroid. Thyroid hormones are essential for regulating fetal growth and metabolism, and play an important role in neurological development. Thyroxine (T4) is the main thyroid hormone that is circulating and the thyroid-stimulating hormone is TSH. At 48 hours newborn babies undergo a heel prick test in which … [Read more...]

A healthy diet around the time of conception through the second trimester may reduce the risk of several common pregnancy complications, suggests a study by researchers at the National Institutes of Health. Expectant women in the study who scored high on any of three measures of healthy eating had lower risks for gestational diabetes, pregnancy-related blood pressure disorders … [Read more...]