Low Lying Placenta

Having a low lying placenta doesn't necessarily mean you're going to miscarry, but it can lead to some complications. This article explains what to expect:

babyworld.co.uk

From the article:

The main problem that a low-lying placenta can cause is bright red bleeding from the vagina during the later stages of pregnancy. The bleeding may stop and start at first, and is painless. It happens because the lower part of your womb is starting to change shape and thin out in readiness for your baby to be born, but because the placenta can’t stretch in the same way, it peels away at the edges, which causes bleeding.

At first, the bleeding is usually slight, but there’s a risk that it might become heavy at any time without warning. Heavy bleeding may be accompanied by signs of shock – paleness, sweating and an increased pulse.

If you haven’t had a scan that has shown the position of your placenta and you experience this kind of bleeding, it may be an indication that the placenta is low-lying. Another sign that you might have a low-lying placenta is that your baby is lying in an awkward position in your womb – for example from side to side, or at an angle.

Quickening!

Well...at first glance that sounds like a bisquit mix in a hurry! But no, it's a term that describes the first fetal movements you feel in early pregnancy. Sources say that this occurs in most women between 18 and 24 weeks gestation. I guess I've always been a little off the norm, but I swear I felt my baby move at 9 weeks. Yep, I said 9 weeks. I was told by a number of my healthcare providers that it would be impossible to feel your baby move at 9 weeks, but I know what I felt! All that aside, here is an article which includes a number of women describing this sensation:

Quickening

Contstipation In Pregnancy

Women don't like to talk about it, but constipation is extremely common in pregnancy. Here is an article about what you can do about it. I recall eating a few prunes everyday and eating "greens" worked wonders for me. Read more:


www.pregnancy.org

From the article:

What Can I do About Constipation?
•Exercise: Early in pregnancy exercise is very helpful to prevent constipation. Even walking will help to loosen your bowels, and will help you feel less bloated.
•Fluids: During pregnancy, the amount of water that is absorbed from your intestine into your blood increases. You will need to drink even more water than usual to keep your intestine and your baby healthy. Drinking at least ten, 8-ounce glasses of water will be essential for you and for the baby. If you are pregnant during the summer and it is hot or humid, you may need even more water. Drinking more water during pregnancy will help to prevent constipation.
•The right calcium and vitamin supplements: Calcium supplements and vitamin pills, essential for your baby's development, can cause bloating and constipation. The following are some suggestions for calcium and vitamin supplements that are less constipating.
The best calcium supplements are those that can dissolve in the pH of vinegar (also called acetic acid). Easily digested calcium supplements, which cause less constipation, include TUMS and Calcitrate. Usually I recommend TUMS because they supply calcium and they help to alleviate heartburn and bloating. Each TUMS contains 200 mg of elemental calcium. Taking five or six a day, in addition to a well-balanced diet, provides an excellent source of calcium. Be careful to avoid antacids that contain aluminum, which can be very constipating

Traffic Fumes May Affect Baby's Birthweight

If you live or work near heavy traffic, you may want to limit your exposure to traffic fumes as much as possible. According to the article below, traffic fumes can affect your baby's birthweight. Read more:

Fine Particulate Matter From Traffic May Influence Birth Weight
Science Daily

From the article:


The proportion of newborns with a birth weight below 3,000 grams increased with increasing concentrations of fine particulate matter (PM2,5) during pregnancy. A similar association was observed between the absorbance of fine particulate matter and birth weight. The absorbance of particulate matter is considered to be a marker of the particles originating from traffic, and in particular from diesel vehicles.

Earlier American Studies had already suggested that fine particulate matter might influence the birth weight. This recent study is the first study from Germany and Western Europe and also the first one to suggest so clearly that traffic-related air pollutants have an influence.

Chemicals Affect Masculinity In Boys

Here's another reasong to minimize your exposure to chemicals found in plastics and even soaps and lotions. These chemicals can cause your boys to lose some of their masculinity. Read more:

www.washingtonpost.com

From the article:

A team of U.S. and British researchers posed a standard play questionnaire to the parents of 145 preschool-age children. Then they ranked the types of play on a scale from most masculine (such as play fighting or using trucks) to most feminine. An effect was identified among the sons of women with higher concentrations of di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) and dibutyl phthalate (DBP) in their prenatal urine: On average, those boys scored 8 percent further away from the masculine end of the scale than other boys.


The presence of these chemicals, which are in polyvinyl chloride (PVC) tubing and often make it into the human body through consumption of processed food, was not associated with any differences in girls' play behavior.

Stay Away From Areas Sprayed With Pesticides If Pregnant

Yikes! Be careful if you live in an agricultural area. Sadly, the pregnant women mentioned in this article were exposed to unnatural levels of pesicides resulting in birth defects in their babies. Although most of us are not exposed to this high level of pesticides, it goes to show you that these are dangerous chemicals. Read more:

www.smfws.com

From the article:

Two field workers who gave birth to deformed babies were illegally exposed to pesticides more than 20 times each while they picked tomatoes in Eastern North Carolina, N.C. Department of Agriculture data show.

A third worker, who spent most of her pregnancy working in Florida, was exposed four times during the less than six weeks she worked in North Carolina, the data show.

All worked for Ag-Mart, a Florida-based tomato grower, and they were illegally exposed to a host of chemicals as often as three times a week, the documents show. Three of the 15 chemicals are linked to birth defects in lab animals.

Francisca Herrera, a former migrant worker who picked tomatoes for Ag-Mart in Florida and North Carolina, holds baby Carlos at 5 months. State data say she was exposed to pesticides during pregnancy. - PALM BEACH [FLA.] POST PHOTOS BY TAYLOR JONES
Related ContentTimeline: Birth defects (PDF)
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One baby had no arms or legs. Another had a deformed jaw. The third had no nose and no visible sex organs and died soon after birth.

The women's exposures were illegal because they worked fields too soon after pesticides were sprayed, agriculture data show. To protect workers from harmful effects, many pesticides require that workers be out of the fields for anywhere from a few hours to two days after spraying.

Back Pain In Pregnancy

Klein, P. M., (1995). Anatomy and physiology of pregnancy. In I. M. Bobak, D. L. Lowdermilk, & S. E. Jensen (Eds.), Maternity nursing (4th ed., p. 104). St. Louis, MO: Mosby.Klein, P. M., (1995)

I guess I was a bit odd, because I didn't have much back pain in pregnancy when previously I did. However, this article explains why women have back pain and some ways to deal with it. Read more:

www.ncbi.hlm.hih.gov

From the article:

During antenatal care, it is essential that pregnancy care providers and perinatal educators identify women who may be at risk for long-term back pain. Consequently, special attention can be focused on the back during labour and delivery and, again, at postnatal visits so that these women can be properly assessed and correct treatment organised. The need for improved assessment of pain as part of postnatal care has recently been described in an earlier issue of this journal (Stainton, Edwards, Jones, & Switonski, 1999).

Assessment of posture, history, and exercise pattern—particularly during the early stages of pregnancy—is an important feature in preventing a pregnant woman's experience with back pain/discomfort (Waddell & Turk, 1992). Much more focus is spent on ultrasound and other investigations that address the front of a woman's body during pregnancy compared to the lack of attention and technology for investigating the back of her body.