Trusted Information for Healthy Pregnancies
babies
Ultrasound Reveals Breastfeeding Mechanics
May 12th
Although it might look like a baby is chewing on the mother's nipple, ultrasound images show that the infant actually removes milk by creating a vacuum - also known as sucking.
The finding is important, as it could explain why some babies fail to take to the breast. It may also shed new light on why - for a minority of women - breastfeeding really can be a painful experience.
"There have been two theories about how breast milk is expressed," says Donna Geddes of the University of Western Australia in Crawley.
"One is that the baby uses a peristaltic or compression motion to actually push the milk out of the nipple and breast. The other theory is that vacuum is primary in removing the milk."
Until now, most studies examining the mechanics of breastfeeding have focused on bottle-feeding infants, or on old X-rays that were of poor quality.
Instead, Geddes and her colleagues combined ultrasound imaging of infants suckling on the breast with measurements of the strength of the vacuum created by the baby's mouth in 20 infants aged 3 to 24 weeks as they breastfed.
"What we see is that when the tongue is lowered and the vacuum is applied, that's when the milk is coming out of the breast, and that doesn't involve any compression of the nipple," says Geddes. "It's not a milking action at all."
They also found that infants who struggled to breastfeed generated much weaker vacuums than successful breastfeeders. This may explain why babies with a cleft palate often fail to breastfeed, as do premature babies: preterm infants don't have strong enough mouth muscles to suck hard enough.
The next step is to devise a simple and universal test that could be used to assess babies' ability to suck. This could reassure mothers whose infants are struggling to feed that it's not their fault. "Currently there are no measurements to assure the mother or the clinician that things [in the breast] are working," says Geddes.
For such women, keeping the milk flowing using a breast pump and using this to top up breastfeeding until the baby is strong enough to suck effectively may be a better option than giving up on breastfeeding altogether.
The team also looked at women who found breastfeeding painful and discovered that their infants had a particularly vigorous action.
"They're strong suckers," says Geddes. Some were also distorting or crushing the nipple. Further study of these infants may aid the development of better nipple shields to reduce pain during breastfeeding.
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Third-hand smoke a danger to babies, toddlers
Feb 10th
Add a new health threat to smoking: In addition to the harm caused by actually smoking and exposure to second-hand smoke, so-called third-hand smoke may also pose a threat, particularly to babies and toddlers.
A new study reveals that the residue of nicotine that lingers on surfaces can react with another chemical in the air to form potent carcinogens - chemicals linked to various cancers. While first-hand smoke is that inhaled directly by the smoker and second-hand is the smoke exhaled (and inhaled by others), third-hand smoke is the residue from second-hand smoke.
Anyone who has entered a confined space — a room, an elevator, a vehicle, etc. — where someone has recently been smoking, knows that the scent lingers for an extended period of time.
"The burning of tobacco releases nicotine in the form of a vapor that adsorbs strongly onto indoor surfaces, such as walls, floors, carpeting, drapes and furniture. Nicotine can persist on those materials for days, weeks and even months," said Hugo Destaillats, a chemist with Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in San Francisco, and one of the authors of the study.
Scientists have been aware for several years that tobacco smoke sort of sticks to surfaces where it can react with other chemicals. But reactions of residual smoke constituents with molecules in the air have been overlooked as a source of harmful pollutants, the researchers of the new study say.
"Our study shows that when this residual nicotine reacts with ambient nitrous acid it forms carcinogenic tobacco-specific nitrosamines or TSNAs," Destaillats said. "TSNAs are among the most broadly acting and potent carcinogens present in unburned tobacco and tobacco smoke."
Unvented gas appliances are the main source of nitrous acid indoors.
The researchers used cellulose as a model of indoor material, and exposed it to cigarette smoke. They then exposed it to a "high but reasonable" concentration of nitrous acid for three hours. The levels of newly formed TSNAs were 10 times higher after the nitrous acid exposure. The TSNAs also formed quickly, the researchers found.
"Given the rapid absorption and persistence of high levels of nicotine on indoor surfaces, including clothing and human skin, our findings indicate that third-hand smoke represents an unappreciated health hazard through dermal exposure, dust inhalation and ingestion," said lead author Mohamad Sleiman, also of Berkeley Lab.
Since most vehicle engines emit some nitrous acid that can infiltrate the passenger compartments, tests were also conducted on surfaces inside the truck of a heavy smoker, including the surface of a stainless steel glove compartment. These measurements also showed substantial levels of TSNAs.
Individuals are most likely exposed to these TSNAs through either inhalation of dust or the contact of skin with carpet or clothes, suggesting third-hand smoke might pose the greatest hazard to infants and toddlers.
And the study's findings, detailed in the Feb. 8 issue of the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, indicate that opening a window or deploying a fan to ventilate the room while a cigarette burns does not eliminate the hazard of third-hand smoke.
"Smoking outside is better than smoking indoors but nicotine residues will stick to a smoker's skin and clothing," said study co-author Lara Gundel, also of Berkeley Lab. "Those residues follow a smoker back inside and get spread everywhere."
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Infantino Sling Rider Deaths
Feb 5th
It's been reported that a third infant has died from the use of the Infantino Sling Rider. Unfortunately, the Infantino Sling Rider and other "bag" slings are not safe. A blog called Babysosmart, has some very good information on the topic:
For the last 4 years+ I've been teaching what I call a "Benefits of Babywearing" class through several local venues. My goal has always been to open parents eyes to all the amazing physical and emotional health benefits that babywearing gives to a baby. It still blows my mind. Not the idea of babywearing, but the science behind it all. An infant's development is measurably physically improved by babywearing...
But not all baby carriers are equal, and not all of them are safe. I'll admit it: I bring a couple of the "bad carriers" to each class that I teach, to demonstrate the potential problems that can arise from using a "bad carrier." One of these "bad carriers" (and I don't usually say bad, except in regards to this one that I'm about to discuss now) is the Infantino Sling Rider. And it's BAD. I've always referred to it "lovingly" as "the Sling of Death."
My overwhelming concern with this particular style of carrier, what we refer to as a "bag sling" or "bag-style sling", is the awkward and unsafe position into which the baby slips when he is placed inside the carrier. There is no feature to keep the baby's body in good alignment, so the baby usually ends up in what we call the "chin-to-chest" position. I'm a nurse, a pediatric nurse, and just hearing those words said in relation to an infant under three months old is akin to hearing someone say they gave their newborn a razor blade to play with. Wouldn't do it, dumb, a no-brainer, and worse, dangerous. The chin-to-chest position is just that-- the infant's chin drops down to rest on their chest, and their little, teeny, floppy airway is occluded-- folded in half, if you will. The infant airway, or trachea or breathing tube, is pretty unremarkable at this stage, at least in regards to it's ability to maintain itself. It's soft, floppy, and extremely narrow; that's why infants are so grossly affected when they're hit with the common cold, for example. Let me just say it bluntly: an infant can cut off their own ability to breathe if they are placed in the chin-to-chest position.
Others have been voicing their concerns for several years as well. In fact, one third-party group reviewed the Infantino Sling Rider (along with several other styles/brands of carriers) back in the fall of 2006 or 2007, documented their findings, and presented it to the manufacturer in the following February, assuming that eyebrows would be raised, red flags would be waved, and that the offending carrier would be pulled from the market, at least until modifications could be made to make it safe for use. I'm willing to bet that they were more shocked to hear the manufacturer say (and not an actual quote, mind you)-- "Have their been any documented deaths in one of our carriers? Until then, we aren't willing to do anything."
I have pushed people to LEARN how to use their carriers correctly over the years, as even a good carrier can be used incorrectly and potentially be the "cause" of a problem (I say "cause" because it's not actually the carrier that causes the problem, it's the wearer not using it correctly). Three biggest instances of this are: a "bigger baby, let's say a 6- or 8-month old, that's just really pitching a fit, and the parent is trying to force the baby into the carrier, and the baby is thrashing, throwing itself around, a recipe for disaster. A baby carrier is just that, a carrier, not a restraining device. Next example, a parent not tightening the carrier up, wearing it very loose and low, baby hanging out, again, looking for a fall, or the potential for the baby to fall into the chin-to-chest position. I've seen this several times, usually a ring sling, and the parent is attempting to carry the baby in the cradle position, but is not adjusting the sling to support the baby, allowing the baby to just kind of curl up inside the body of the sling. And the third instance, wearing a carrier that is too big for you-- usually it is a pouch, or pouch sling, and the baby is sliding into . . . the chin-to-chest position, and we've already been through those dangers. It is critical to make sure not only that the carrier you are using fits you, but that you are also using it correctly.
My heart goes out to the families of these beautiful babies whose lives were needlessly lost. The data was there, several years ago, and the manufacturer KNEW about the dangers their product posed to babies, they just didn't care. They were busy padding their pockets.
Note: Other similar dangerous "bag style slings": the Boppy "sling", the PreMaxx "sling," the JJ Cole "sling", the bag sling by Serena and Lily, to name a few.
Read more here.
Newborns of Smokers Have Abnormal Blood Pressure
Jan 25th
Babies of women who smoked during pregnancy have blood pressure problems at birth that persisted through the first year of life, a new study finds.
"What is of concern is that the problems are present at birth and get worse over time," said Gary Cohen, a senior research scientist in the department of women and child health at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, and lead author of a report in the Jan. 25 online edition of Hypertension.
The study led by Cohen compared 19 infants of nonsmoking couples with 17 infants born to women who smoked an average of 15 cigarettes a day during pregnancy. At one week of age, the infants of nonsmoking mothers experienced a 2 percent increase in blood pressure when tilted upright, with a 10 percent increase at one year. The pattern for the children of smoking mothers was reversed: a 10 percent blood pressure increase at one week, a 4 percent increase at one year.
And the heart rate response to tilting of the children of mothers who smoked was abnormal and exaggerated, the report said.
It's not possible to say whether the abnormalities seen in the babies will lead to trouble later in life, Cohen said. But, he noted, "the extent of the condition at one year suggests that it is not going to disappear quickly."
The reason why exposure to tobacco in the womb affects blood pressure is not clear, Cohen said. A leading possibility is that "smoking might damage the structure and function of blood vessels," he said, mainly by damaging the endothelium, the delicate layer of cells that line the interior of blood vessels.
Whether that damage will persist is not known. "We're only up to 12 months at the moment," he said. "We plan to follow them."
The damage seen in the Karolinska study is similar to that observed in babies born to mothers whose pregnancies were marked by such abuses as drug use, said Barry M. Lester, a professor of psychiatry and pediatrics at Brown Medical School, and director of the Brown Center for the Study of Children at Risk.
"Early kinds of natal insults can cause reprogramming of brain circuitry," Lester explained. He has led studies of the long-term effects of cocaine and amphetamine use during pregnancy. Many women who take such drugs also smoke, Lester added.
"When we isolated tobacco effects, we showed that there are inborn neural effects of tobacco exposure similar to what we see in cocaine and methamphetamine abuse," he said.
Some research has connected such problems to overproduction of cortisol, a "stress hormone" that plays an important role in regulation of blood pressure and the immune system, Lester said. "Cortisol overexposure is one hypothesis," he said. "There is a lot of evidence showing that too much cortisol is damaging."
It is a reasonable hypothesis, Cohen said. Babies born preterm have problems with blood pressure that have been linked to overproduction of cortisol by the adrenal glands, he noted, "and there are some parallels between tobacco smoke exposure and preterm babies of the same age."
Whatever the mechanism of damage, treatment to eliminate the problems after birth does not seem possible, Cohen added.
"What we know from studies in older kids is that even if you remove them from an environment of exposure to tobacco smoke, it is unlikely you will get full restoration of normal function," he said. "The best intervention to solve these problems is prevention. Women who are pregnant need to avoid exposure to tobacco smoke in the air. Passive smoke exposure can be as bad as being an active smoker."
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How to Train a Baby-Friendly Dog
Jan 14th
At this stage of your pregnancy, you now have nine months or less to change your dog's behavior, to keep his world spinning on its axis, but to graduate him from number one spoiled brat to the loving, happy, welcoming family pet, you surely want.
Begin teaching your dog not to touch, destroy or bury baby toys. You begin by selecting toys for your dog that look and feel no different from your babies toys. This is important, because a dog would find it difficult to differentiate between his own, squeaky toys and the squishy toys you picked out for your son or daughter. Spend a few minutes playing with the dog and his favorite toy. When he is fairly excited at the toy, throw it away, but keep it directly in his view. Then, put a couple of baby toys on the floor and tosses into their midst. Encourage him to go get his toy, and then go nuts when he consistently chooses baby toys instead of the dog toy. Trade the right toy for a treat. Try training as often as you can, at least once a week for a month and slowly increase the number of baby toys each time.
If your dog had never been around a baby, it's a very good idea to teach them not to get excited or scared by the crying, screaming, or gurgling he's likely to experience. You can desensitize your dog to baby sounds by placing your dog in a room with a CD player, or a tape of baby noises. Sit down and relax before turning on the player. Then put one hand on the volume control and watch the dog closely. Slowly raise the vitamin to up and watch this recognition from him, typically a dog will turn his head from one side to the other or prick up one or both ears. Let the tape play for the longest possible. 24 hours will be ideal but if it is not possible, then the first exposure must be in excess of four hours. The more the tapes play over the first two days the better this works. This is the desensitization process in which a dog learns to accept the sounds.
A professional dog trainer should deal with dogs who are truly aggressive toward people and or dogs and other animals. Don't let him become obsessed with the ball or toy. A run in the mornings is a good idea, or the park might work, because dogs who exercise makes far more relaxed and happy companions who are likely to sleep the rest of the day.
Dogs learn that they can get considerable attention by jumping up and grabbing a hand or clothing. Even negative attention such as shouting or pushing a dog away. This can be dangerous when the baby is around because it would be considered playing too rough if the dog is jumping on the baby. To help the dog learn not to jump, keep a container of dog treats just outside your front door. When visitors come to your home they should each put a few treats in their pocket before coming in. Everyone should ignore all of your dog's attempts to gain attention. No looking, no talking, and no touching! Eventually fed up with being ignored, your dog will sit down or wander off. At this time, you or your visitors can quietly call for him and ask him to sit. Then, he can and get treats, but only when he stays calm.
Think about the impact on the baby smells are going to have on your dog. I suggest you get your doggies used to as many smells as you can, including baby powder, the lotion, diaper rash cream, and so on. Put a smell on a cloth, and leave it in your dogs resting area for a day. After substituting in different smells, your dog will come accustomed to normal baby smells.
One of the traditional ways to introduce the newborns to the resident dog is to let him sniff a blanket that your baby has slept on. Certainly there is no harm in doing this, and it will be the first real exposure to your baby. Leave the blanket with your dog overnight.
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Toddler Helps Deliver Mom’s Baby
Nov 19th
Two-year-old Jeremiha Taylor can count to five, he's potty trained, oh, and he's a pro at delivering a baby. Seriously. On Friday, this little man was instrumental in the birth of his baby brother when his mom unexpectedly went into serious labor right on the living room sofa.
"I laid on the couch and he went and got a towel. He grabbed a towel on his own," mom Bobbye Favazza told The Commercial Appeal of Memphis. "It happened so fast. My water broke and the baby came two to three minutes later. I just pushed and he caught him."
When emergency personnel finally arrived Favazza was holding her baby, the cord still attached, and they waddled over to the front door to let them in. Ambulance workers cut the cord and transferred mom and baby to a local hospital, where they were discharged a short time later with no complications.
The birth of Favazza's fourth child, named Kamron Taylor, didn't go remotely as planned. She had a cesarean section scheduled for Dec. 6 — she delivered all her kids that way — and she did have some pains the night before Kamron's birth, but didn't think they were related to labor.
Instead, she woke up the morning of Friday the 13th and conducted family business as usual. But when her water broke just before 8:30 a.m. she knew she had little time to spare. She called her mother, who frantically called 911, and her 3-year-old panicked and sat on the couch and cried. Meanwhile, Jeremiha calmly sprang to action — and the rest is history.
"He's my little hero," Favazza declared. "It was like he knew what to do."
Perhaps she has an aspiring ob/gyn on her hands.
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“Flat-Head” Syndrome – Environment or Genetics?
Nov 17th
- No one wants a baby with deformational plagiocephaly. But what is it and how is it caused?
- According to a new study in the journal Pediatrics; when it comes to infants' risk of developing a flat spot on the head, environment appears more important than genes.
- The study, looked at more than 20,000 babies treated for deformational plagiocephaly - misshapen areas in the skull that most commonly manifest as a flattening at the back of the head.
- Factors both before and after birth contribute to plagiocephaly. Crowding in the womb is a risk factor, for instance, with the problem being more common in twins and other multiples.
- After birth, repetitive pressure on one area of an infant's head -- from repeatedly sleeping in the same position, or spending too much time in swings or "bouncy seats" -- can also lead to plagiocephaly.
- However, researchers have also questioned whether genetic predisposition might play an important role. Some studies have found that plagiocephaly tends to run in families, but that could reflect either genetic influences or parenting practices.
- In the new study, researchers found that "twinning" was associated with a higher risk of plagiocephaly, but there was no evidence of a difference between identical and fraternal twins.
- Because identical twins share all of their genes and fraternal twins share only about half, on average, the finding suggests that genetic predisposition does not explain the tendency of plagiocephaly to run in some families.
- On the other hand, environmental factors like position in the womb and an infant's sleep position were important. For instance, 15 percent of babies with plagiocephaly had been born in the breech position -- with the feet or buttocks, rather than the head, closest to the birth canal; that compares with roughly 3.5 percent of births in the general population.
- Sleep position, meanwhile, was the most important factor in the "lateralization" of the plagiocephaly. That is, babies who usually slept with their heads turned to the right usually developed a flat spot on the right side of the head, while those who favored the left side usually developed plagiocephaly on that side of the head.
- "What our work may imply is that if there is a genetic predisposition for (a) variation like deformational plagiocephaly, there is not any one genetic factor, but instead many, and that there may be different factors in different populations of ethnic diversity," senior researcher Dr. Brian C. Verrelli told Reuters Health in an email.
- On the other hand, it seems that environmental factors are "very important" in causing plagiocephaly, according to Verrelli, an assistant professor at Arizona State University in Tempe.
- And that, the researcher noted, implies that plagiocephaly can not only be avoided, but also that there is a "high probability" that it will be easily treated.
- Since pediatricians began recommending that infants be put to sleep on their backs to lower the risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), studies have noted a rise in plagiocephaly. To counter that, experts generally recommend that infants get plenty of supervised "tummy time" when they are awake, and that parents avoid leaving them in carriers, swings or other seats for a prolonged period.
- Plagiocephaly is often treated in a similar manner -- tummy time during waking hours and periodically turning the baby's head when he or she is sleeping, for instance. In some cases, infants are outfitted with a helmet that they wear for a few months to help reshape the skull as it grows.
Phthalates in Pregnant Women Affect Masculinity of Baby Boys
Nov 16th
The fact that hormone-disrupting chemicals present in various household products are interfering with the development of children has been substantiated by researchers at the University of Rochester in New York State, who have reported that baby boys born to mothers with above-normal levels of 'phthalates' generally depict less masculine behavior.
The study, published in the International Journal of Andrology, states that phthalates block the activity of male hormones like androgens, thereby changing masculine brain development.
The findings of the study were based on a phthalate-tracing test that the researchers conducted on the urine samples from mothers in the 28th week of pregnancy. The women, who gave birth to 74 boys and 71 girls, during 2000-2003, were contacted again by researchers, who then inquired from the mothers about the personalities of their toddlers, the kind of toys and activities they liked.
It was found that boys born to mothers with high phthalate levels were less likely to play with guns, cars, and trains; and mostly indulged in “gender neutral” activities, like sports.
The study’s lead author, Shanna H. Swan, a professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Rochester Medical Center, said that the results of the study are “consistent with our prior findings that link phthalates to altered male genital development,” as well as “compatible with current knowledge about how hormones mold sex differences in the brain, and thus behavior.”
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Free Weekend of Access to Caregiver Website
Nov 5th
Care.com is allowing free access this weekend to the premium services offered on their website in honor of National Family Caregiver Month. Find caregivers in your area, run background checks, and contact caregivers directly for free! You can find babysitters, nannies, senior caregivers, special needs caregivers, tutors, pet sitters and housekeepers. Visit their website to find out more! 
IPhone Application Translates Babies Cries
Nov 5th
The Cry Translator listens to a whining child and analyzes the pitch, volume, tone and inflection of his nerve-jangling noise. Ten seconds later, it provides you with one of five “translations”: hungry, sleepy, stressed, annoyed or bored.
The idea of this $30 iPhone application, apart from preying on the anxieties of new parents, is to help teach you the meanings of the distinctive sounds and to help out babysitters who might otherwise try to feed your three-month old (hunger) instead of just switching over to the Family Guy from American Idol (bored). The application even gives advice on what to do, depending on the translation.
According to the seller, Biloop Technologic, clinical tests have proven the app to be accurate 96% of the time, and it will “continue to translate crying regardless of the age of the child”. This last is an excellent feature, and will help me determine the cause the next time the Lady starts to blubber. On previous experience, I can guess it will most likely be “annoyed” or “bored”. On sale here until November 11th for $10.
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