Mom Post #3

Miscarriage
    Today I found that I may be misscarrying. Many mixed emotions hit me, confusion, sadness, even anger. But one main question came to mind, "What now?". Knowledge is power, so I looked up all the information i could on miscarriages.
    Spontaneous abortion (SAB), or miscarriage, is the term used for a pregnancy that ends on it's own, within the first 20 weeks of gestation. Miscarriage is the most common type of pregnancy loss, according to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG). Studies reveal that anywhere from 10-25% of all clinically recognized pregnancies will end in miscarriage. Chemical pregnancies may account for 50-75% of all miscarriages. During the first trimester, the most common cause of miscarriage is chromosomal abnormality - meaning that something is not correct with the baby's chromosomes. Most chromosomal abnormalities are the cause of a faulty egg or sperm cell, or are due to a problem at the time that the zygote went through the division process.

Options
For couples who have trouble getting pregnant there are several ways to have a baby:

• In Vitro Fertilization-with IVF, a method of assisted reproduction, a man's sperm and the woman's  egg are combined in a laboratory dish, where fertilization occurs. The resulting embryo is then transferred to the woman's uterus (womb) to implant and develop naturally. Usually, 2-4 embryos are placed in the woman's uterus at one time. Each attempt is called a cycle. The term test tube baby is often used to refer to children conceived with this technique.
• Adoption- is a process whereby a person assumes the parenting for another who is not kin and, in so doing, permanently transfers all rights and responsibilities from the original parent or parents.
• Surrogate Mothers-an agreement between a person or couple who wish to raise a child and a woman who is willing to carry the fetus to term. A surrogate pregnancy is different from adoption in that the woman who will carry and birth the child is not pregnant at the time the surrogacy arrangements are made. There are a variety of ways in which the surrogate mother can become pregnant in a surrogate pregnancy scenario,
  

Mom Post #2

From 4 Weeks to 8 Weeks
     Five weeks after conception, your baby's brain and face are rapidly developing. Tiny nostrils become visible, and the eye lenses begin to form. The arm buds that sprouted last week now take on the shape of paddles. Six weeks into your pregnancy,your baby's arms and legs are growing longer, and fingers have begun to form. The shell-shaped parts of your baby's ears also are forming, and your baby's eyes and nipples are visible. The upper lip and nose have formed. The trunk of your baby's body is beginning to straighten. Your baby may begin to move this week, but you won't be able to feel it yet. In the seventh week of pregnancy your baby's arms grow, develop bones and bend at the elbows. Toes begin to form, and your baby's eyelids and ears continue developing. By the 8th week of pregnancy your baby's head has become more round. The neck begins to develop, and your baby's eyelids begin to close to protect his or her developing eyes. Although the genitals are developing, it's still too soon to identify your baby's sex.

Mom Changes

Your waistline is increasing even though you have not put on any significant weight.

There is a change in the texture of the hair and skin during pregnancy.

Sometimes hair thinning and breakage; and acne problems may also be seen.

Pregnancy gingivitis occurs, where in your gums bleed when you brush your teeth.

Twins?!

Here are a few factors that you ought to consider when weighing the likelihood of giving birth to twins:

• Family history - If you, your mother and grandmother are fraternal twins, then the chances are higher that you could be producing twins yourself. Please note what we just said: “chances are higher”. Just because this is the case does not mean you WILL give birth to twins.
• Use of fertility drugs - Information gathered on the Net suggested that if you’re taking fertility drugs or undergoing fertility treatments, there is a 1 in 38 chance that you could have twins. The same information we read said that if you’re taking the drug Clomid, you increase your odds at 1 out of 5!
• Your age - If you’re 45 and older, there is a strong likelihood that twins may be coming your way. Scientific studies have revealed that 17% of women in this age group give birth to twins.
• You already have fraternal twins
• If you have already given birth to fraternal twins, chances are you could be having more.
• Race
• We don’t know how much merit we should give this but reports appear to indicate that if you’re Nigerian, the possibilities of you giving birth to twins are high. Nigeria apparently has the world’s highest rate of twins and multiples in proportion to the population. Asians and Hispanics on the other hand have a lower incidence of twin or multiple pregnancies.
• Height and weight

Triplets?!

The chance of having natural triplets is 1 in 8,100 births. Only 30% of triplets born today are naturally conceived. All others involve either fertility drugs or IVF.

 

How To Choose a Doctor, Mid-Wife, or Have Your Baby At Home

There are three main things to consider when making the choice: price, location, and risk.

1. Price-you can anticipate an average hospital bill of $5,000-$10,000 for a vaginal delivery. Add at least $2,000 if you need a c-section. These figures do not include the medical costs associated with nine months of prenatal visits, ultrasound costs and other lab costs. If your baby is born premature or with health problems, neonatal costs can range from a few thousand for a short stay to more than $200,000 if you baby is born more than 15 weeks early.
2. Location-you most likely would choose a hospital closest to your home. This would come in handy when you actually go into labor.
3. Risk- if you have any health issues you most likely will go to a hospital, if any complications should happen the doctors will be there for a quick response. If you so choose to have you baby at home you will require a Mid-Wife. Mid-Wives are people trained to deliver babies, but the are NOT doctors.

Safety Tips For a Healthy Pregnancy

• Eat five or six well-balanced meals each day.
• Take a prenatal vitamin each day as directed by your obstetrician.
• Drink plenty of fluids, at least eight to ten glasses a day, avoiding caffeine and artificial coloring.
• Don't drink alcohol.
• Don't smoke or allow yourself to be exposed to second-hand smoke.
• Exercise--it's important for your general health, and also to reduce stress. Take a pregnancy exercise class or walk at least 15 to 20 minutes every day at a moderate pace. Walk in cool, shaded areas or indoors in order to prevent overheating.
• Get adequate sleep--at least eight hours a night. If you're suffering from sleep disturbances, take naps during the day and see your physician for advice.
• Wear comfortable, non-restricting shoes and put your feet up several times a day to prevent fatigue and swelling of the feet, legs, and ankles.
• Continue to wear a safety belt while riding in motor vehicles. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the shoulder portion of the restraint should be positioned over the collar bone. The lap portion should be placed under the abdomen as low as possible on the hips and across the upper thighs, never above the abdomen. Also, pregnant women should sit as far from the air bag as possible.
• Don't take over-the-counter medications or herbal remedies without first consulting your obstetrician.

Sources: National Women's Health Information Center and American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.

Mom Post #1

From Conception to 4 weeks
      The sperm and egg unite in one of your fallopian tubes to form a one-celled entity called a zygote. If more than one egg is released and fertilized, you may have multiple zygotes.
The zygote has 46 chromosomes — 23 from you and 23 from your partner. These chromosomes will help determine your baby's sex, and traits such as eye and hair color. Soon after fertilization, the zygote travels down the fallopian tube toward the uterus. The inner group of cells will become the embryo. The outer group of cells will become the membranes that nourish and protect it. When the zygote — now known as a blastocyst — reaches your uterus, it will burrow into the uterine wall for nourishment. The placenta, which will nourish your baby throughout the pregnancy, also begins to form. The third week after conception, marks the beginning of the embryonic period. This is when the baby's brain, spinal cord, heart and other organs begin to form. The embryo is now made of three layers. The top layer — the ectoderm — will give rise to your baby's outermost layer of skin, central and peripheral nervous systems, eyes, inner ear, and many connective tissues. Your baby's heart and a primitive circulatory system will form in the middle layer of cells — the mesoderm. This layer of cells will also serve as the foundation for your baby's bones, muscles, kidneys and much of the reproductive system. The inner layer of cells — the endoderm — will become a simple tube lined with mucous membranes. Your baby's lungs, intestines and bladder will develop here. By the end of this week, your baby is likely between 1/16 and 1/8 inch (1.5 to 3 millimeters) long — about the size of the tip of a pen. Growth is rapid this week. Just four weeks after conception, the neural tube along the baby's back is closing and the heart is pumping blood. Basic facial features will begin to appear, including passageways that will make up the inner ear and arches that will contribute to the jaw. The baby's body begins to take on a c-shaped curvature. Small buds will soon become arms and legs. By the end of this week, your baby may be 1/6 to 1/4 inch (4 to 6 millimeters) long.

Mom Changes
    There are many changes going on with the mother. Some of these changes include:

1.  Nausea-due to normal hormonal changes. Nausea tends to be worse in the morning, but it can last all day
2. Unusual Fatigue-You may feel tired as your body prepares to support the pregnancy. Your heart will pump faster and harder, and your pulse will quicken.
3. Dizziness-Normal circulatory changes in early pregnancy may leave you feeling a little dizzy. Stress, fatigue and hunger also may play a role.
4. Mood Swings-Pregnancy may leave you feeling delighted, anxious, exhilarated, weepiness, and exhausted- sometimes all at once.

*These symptoms ar mainly caused by the hormonal changes caused during the implantation and development of the placenta

Dad Changes
           Men also go through some changes. Men offten mimic thier spouse's eating habits, causing them to gain what some call a, "sympathy bump". The pregnancy can often cause feelings of confusion, denial, or even jealousy.  

Things To Do When Pregnant
       Eating a balanced diet is one of the most important things you can do for yourself and your baby. There are a few foods that you should be more careful about eating while you are pregnant.Meat, eggs and fish that are not fully cooked could put you at risk for an infection. You should take folic acid every day during your pregnancy. Folic acid can help prevent problems with your baby's brain and spinal cord. It is best to start taking folic acid before you get pregnant. If either you or you husband smoke it is best if this is changed immediately. The harmful toxins you breathe in while smoking your baby will recieve it aswell. The reason your husband should stop aswell is because second hand smoke is jsut as bad as smokeing yourself.Don't clean your cat's litter box or eat raw or undercooked red meat. You could get toxoplasmosis, a disease that can cause birth defects.

Should there be government regulations to protect the environment from genetically engineered crops?

The environment has become a huge issue today, and its protection an even larger one. No matter what your point of view on GM foods, we should examine the effects that the GM food crops have on our environment.GM crops are being breed to contain their own pesticides, this raises many concerns. Could insect become immune to these "naturally" produced pesticides, causing us to manipulate the already distorted DNA of the crops? And even if we did breed the crop to create a pesticide against insects, how many more times must we do it in order to assure the crops integrity? Besides the insects, we must also turn to the soil. What harm are we doing to the soil when we plant such crops? The answer is that these GM crops are created to withstand harsh growing conditions, no matter what the state of the soil. This could cause a depletion of vital nutrients, making, once fertile lands, utterly useless.

Should there be government regulations requiring genetically engineered foods to be labeled?

It is in the interest of the consumer that all GM foods be labeled. There are many points to be taken into consideration. Some of these points include the violation of religious beliefs and health risks. Many religions have strict diets to which they must stay faithful. If GM foods were not labeled, many people with these strict religious diets would unknowing eat them. If this happened many issues would be raised. There are also many risks to unknowing eaters of GM foods. There could be allergic reactions that would not be caused by the unmodified version of the crop. An example of unauthorized consumer consumption of GM foods was the Starlink corn event. It occurred on September 18, 2000. The corn, originally used as cattle feed, was used to make taco shells, and were sold at Taco Bell.

Consumer Advocate Statement

Everybody should know about how their foods are genetically modified before they eat them. Everyone should be informed and all the foods should be labeled. People must be aware of the many benefits and risks of genetically modified foods. Such benefits include, medicinal foods that could be used as vaccines/medicines, foods with more desirable traits, faster growing plants, increase in food supply with reduced cost and longer shelf life, decreased use of pesticides, disease and drought resistant plants, tastier foods, more nutritious food. Although, there are many risks to be aware of. New allergies, an increase in cost, and unknown effect on human health genetic changes that are unexpected and harmful, Modified organisms may interbreed with natural organisms and out-compete them, this would lead to extinction of the original organism or to other unpredictable environmental effects, plants may be resistant to some pests but not to others are all risks of GMF.

The Consumer Advocate's Perspective

1.) We the consumers should be aware of what we are putting in our bodies. GMF, or Genetically Modified Foods, can have harmful effects on people.


2.) The two most beneficial things about GMF are that they make healthful foods even more nutritious and they reduce the need for toxic chemicals, such as pesticides, to keep insects off crops. Tomatoes are being made to produce more lycopene, an antioxidant that may reduce cancer risk. Soybeans are being produced with higher levels of isoflavones, substances that can help lower the risk of heart disease. Without the use of pesticides on crops, the enviroment benefit aswell.


3.) Some problems with genetically modified foods is that they are often recalled, and can be unsafe for human health. A type of genetically modified corn that wasn't approved for human consumption was found in taco bell taco shells. The Starlink incident happened on September 18, 2000. The conrtovery on the event was the fact that the Starlink corn was not approved for human consumption, but rather for cattle feed.


4.) No, the risks are still prominent. Genetically modified foods can cause harmful allergic reaction. This would happen because in the genetic modifying process, the manufacturers could add a protein to the food that can cause an allergic reaction that would not be caused by the non-genetically modified version.


5.) Yes, all GM foods should be labled. It is the consumer's choice to eat the GM foods, and they have the right to know what they are putting in their bodies. They also should be aware of any harmful effects it might have on them. Congress has been proposed a bill that would require all GM foods to be labled accordingly. Unfortunately, it has never been passed as a law.

Background Information

1.) Food biotechnology is essentially selective breeding. It is applied to organisms, foods in this case, in order for a desired quality to manifest itself in a new species.

2.) Genetically engineered foods are foods that are derived from  a food with altered DNA.

3.) There are a few positive things about GE foods. Farmers don't have to spay pesticide on the crops, because the plants now have a built in protection. Farmers can grow many more plants without using so many seeds. Many experts also boast that thanks to GE plants, crops can now grow in places they never could before.

4.) Even though there are many possibilities there are also a few concerns.Some of the concerns include the fear that GE crops may cause other species to have unknown diseases that were previously not a problem. Others fear that transferring genes between two unrelated species can transfer allergens that could make people sick. This was seen in 2000, when a variety of GE corn called StarLink found its way into many corn products. StarLink corn had previously only been allowed as cattle feed because it showed some qualities that suggested allergens.