Fertility & Pregnancy News

China to Limit Abortions December 19, 2004 Next month Guiyang will test a pilot program in the hopes of stopping China's widespread problem of abortion female fetuses. This new policy will ban doctors from performing abortions on women who are more than 14 weeks along in their pregnancy. Currently in China couples many only have one child. Since girls are … [Read more...]

Women grow old genetically July 9, 2007 Women may be genetically suited to long life Women have a natural genetic advantage over men which allows them to live longer, scientists have shown. Despite the less healthy lifestyles of men in the past compared to women, experts have still been slightly puzzled as to why the average lifespan of a woman … [Read more...]

Australian Women Become Mothers Only When Nearing Thirty Reported December 18, 2008 Australian women become mothers only when nearing thirty, and the average age of first-time mothers is around 28 years. The 16th annual report on pregnancy and childbirth in Australia released on 9 December by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare … [Read more...]

Baby Blues Reported August 05, 2008 (Ivanhoe Newswire) -- New research provides insight into the disabling depression experienced by many new mothers and may lead to better treatment. Postpartum depression has been linked to changes in steroid hormone levels in the brain, but experts believe other factors also contribute to the condition. Researchers recently observed in … [Read more...]

More links between birth-control patch and blood-clot risk Reported January 22, 2008 A new warning is being issued over the safety of the birth-control patch after a study found women on the patch are twice as likely to develop serious blood clots as those taking oral contraceptives. It's the second study in less than two years that found women using the Ortho Evra patch … [Read more...]

Pregnancy is no time to stop exercising. Doctors say an active mom-to-be can experience several health benefits, including an easier labor and faster weight loss after delivering. Physicians at Ohio State University Medical Center recommend women with uncomplicated pregnancies exercise for at least 30 minutes, five times a week. "More if someone is used to exercising more," … [Read more...]

Iron harmful during pregnancy Reported November 14, 2007 Children, whose mothers take iron tablets during pregnancy, may develop abnormality in behaviour, says a new study. Researcher Maria Makrides, a nutritionist from South Australia's Child Health Research Institute and team studied 431 pregnant women. Half of them took a daily … [Read more...]

Breast not Best for AsthmaReported September 14, 2007 (Ivanhoe Newswire) -- There may be lots of good reasons to breastfeed your baby, but protecting him from asthma apparently isn't one of them. A large study conducted by European investigators reveals breastfeeding has no effect on the development of asthma and allergies in the children at the age of six and a half. The … [Read more...]

Contraceptives Safe, But Questions RemainReported January 26, 2009 (Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Oral contraceptives are used by 80 percent of women at some point in their lives. The pills are generally safe, but experts warn some risks and benefits have yet to be examined. A recent journal article by experts at the Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute provides insight into hormonal … [Read more...]

Vertical Transmission of Helminthic Infection is possibleTrichinellosis-October 14, 2002 The parasitic worm Trichinella spiralis may be transmitted from mother to child in pregnancy, researchers in Argentina found in a rat study. "To evaluate whether pregnancy has a synergetic effect on the host's immune response against … [Read more...]

Recipe for a surprise deliveryJuly 13, 2007 LITTLE Anastasios Christopoulos will always be able to thank his mum and dad and his grandfather's cooking for bringing him into the world. After he was born three days ahead of schedule on the floor of his parents' Brooklyn Park home last Friday, mum Kathy joked her father-in-law's … [Read more...]

C-sections Don’t Help With Baby Blues Reported February 25, 2005 (Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Women considered at risk for postpartum depression aren’t likely to benefit from having a planned cesarean section, shows a new study out of Great Britain. Results show no difference in postpartum depression rates between women who had … [Read more...]

Depressed Moms-to-be Brighten up Reported July 7, 2004 PITTSBURGH (Ivanhoe Broadcast News) -- Post-partum depression and even depression during pregnancy are common, but treating the condition can be especially challenging. Antidepressants are rarely recommended for pregnant or breast feeding women. So what’s a woman to do for help? Motherhood was always in the plans for … [Read more...]

Do Birth Control Pills Make Women Weaker?Reported April 27, 2009 (Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Oral contraceptives appear to impair muscle gains in young women and are associated with lower hormone levels, according to a new study. Researchers set out to examine the effect of oral contraceptives (OC) on healthy women between the ages of 18 and 31. The women participated in a … [Read more...]

Binge-drinking 'may not hurt the unborn' Reported November 14, 2007 PREGNANT women can indulge in binge-drinking without doing any harm to their unborn child, new research suggests. Oxford University’s Jane Henderson and Ron Gray, along with the Danish researcher Ulrik Kesmodel from the University of Aarhus, argued that there … [Read more...]

Baby Quest: Boy or Girl: You DecideReported February 06, 2008 LOS ANGELES, Calif. (Ivanhoe Newswire) -- People have been trying to play a role in determining the sex of their children for thousands of years. But whether your nursery is pink or blue has always been left up to chance ... until now. Not only is it possible to use science to choose the sex of your child -- … [Read more...]

Most moms report 'positive' birth experience Reported May 07, 2008 Slightly over half (54 per cent) of new Canadian mothers rate their labour and birth experience as "very positive," according to a new report from Statistics Canada. Of women who gave birth during a three-month window in 2006, another one-quarter (26 per cent) said the experience was somewhat positive, … [Read more...]

Diet Linked to Sperm Abnormalities Reported March 20, 2008 (Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Eating green leafy vegetables, fruit and beans may be beneficial for men conscious of their reproductive health. Researchers have found an association between folate (a water soluble B vitamin that occurs naturally in some vegetables, fruits and lentils) and levels of chromosomal sperm … [Read more...]

Affects of Nicotine and Drugs Start in the Womb Reported June 13, 2008 (Ivanhoe Newswire) -- A child who’s been exposed to drugs in the womb is starting off with two strikes when it comes to a lifetime of healthy sleep. According to a new study, children exposed to cocaine, nicotine, marijuana, alcohol, opiates or some combination of those are more likely to have sleep … [Read more...]

IVF Use Rises in Australia as Older Women Seek Fertility Help Reported September 17, 2008 Sept. 17 (Bloomberg) -- Fertility treatments rose 4.6 percent in Australia in 2006, spurred by women in their late 30s and 40s seeking help falling pregnant, a new report shows. Australian fertility clinics performed 48,706 treatment cycles in 2006, … [Read more...]

Birth Size Linked to Breast Cancer Risk Reported October 03, 2008 (Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Birth size -- particularly length -- may help predict a baby's risk of developing breast cancer when he or she reaches adulthood. The birth size and breast cancer association had been previously made, but researchers at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine set out to … [Read more...]

Cell Phone DangersReported March 12, 2009 CLEVELAND (Ivanhoe Newswire) -- More than 3 billion people have them worldwide. More than 90 percent of the Western world uses them. Americans average about 13 hours a month talking on them. However, there are some downsides to using that device we just can't seem to get enough of. Men: beware! A new study shows cell phone usage … [Read more...]

Controversial Chemical Fine for Pregnant WomenReported October 08, 2007 (Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Small amounts of ingested perchlorate -- a chemical widely found in foods and drinking water -- has no effect on the thyroid function of women in early pregnancy, including those with a low-iodine diet. These findings are contrary to those reported last year by the Centers for … [Read more...]

Mobile Phone Use While Pregnant Causes Neurological Problems in Babies Reported October 08, 2008 (NaturalNews) The first large-scale study to look at the connection between mobile phone use in pregnancy and later behavioral problems in children has overwhelmingly come back with a finding that such phone use places undeveloped babies at risk. … [Read more...]

Abortion - No Longer a Taboo SubjectJuly 14, 2007 BUENOS AIRES - Capitalising on a more favourable public opinion, an alliance of civil society organisations in Argentina presented to Congress a draft law Monday for the legalisation of abortion in a country where illegal abortions are the main cause of maternal mortality. On the … [Read more...]

Ten per cent of pregnant women victims of violence - study Reported August 13, 2008 Almost 10 per cent of pregnant woman are victims of violence during pregnancy, putting their unborn children at risk, new research suggests. Two studies from of Auckland University, published in the Australian and New Zealand Journal of Obstetrics and … [Read more...]

China's One-child Policy Reveals Complexity, Effectiveness July 15, 2007 Science Daily — The first systematic examination of China’s fertility policy and practice reveals that, despite government exemptions in rural areas, 63 percent of Chinese couples are strictly limited to one child. Furthermore, the policy has proven remarkably effective, with … [Read more...]

Depression Increases Preterm Delivery Risk Reported October 24, 2008 (Ivanhoe Newswire) -- New research reveals there may be a significant link between depression during pregnancy and preterm delivery. Preterm delivery (delivery at less than 37 weeks gestation) is the leading cause of infant mortality and morbidity. It’s also the leading reason behind medical expenditure … [Read more...]

Domestic Violence Underreported by Doctors Reported November 25, 2005   (Ivanhoe Newswire) -- New research shows many doctors are not keeping track when patients report domestic violence. Researchers from Harvard in Boston along with several other institutions across the country analyzed the content of doctors' reports on patients who reported domestic violence in a … [Read more...]