An old disease, pertussis or whooping cough, reemerged this summer in California and crept into the Pacific Northwest. At least one infectious disease expert explained the epidemic by calling the region the “epicenter of vaccine …
babies
The ‘Mommy Brain’ Is Bigger: How Love Grows a New Mother’s Brain
Take heart, new moms: you may be feeling overwhelmed, exhausted and distracted, but your brain is actually growing. Especially if you’re the kind of mom who’s been driving your friends and family mad by talking about how perfect, …
First Comes Cancer, Then Come Children: The New World of Oncofertility
Cancer used to be an old people’s disease. No longer: we all have friends and colleagues — young people, in their 20s, 30s, 40s — who’ve been on the receiving end of a scary diagnosis. The good news is that a verdict of …
Born Lucky? 10 Babies to Watch
Being born on Oct. 10, 2010 — 10/10/10 — is allegedly very lucky. And being born at 10:10 on 10/10/10 is supposedly so lucky that women in many countries scheduled their Cesarean sections for that moment. But is it really?
Study O.K.’s Light Drinking During Pregnancy. Too Good to Be True?
A glass of wine or two a week — and not more than one large glass on any occasion — may be safe during pregnancy, according to a large study just published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health.
Pump Up the Iron: As Many as 15% of Toddlers Don’t Get Enough
Babies and young children need iron to grow, but they’re not getting enough, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). To compound the problem, tests for iron deficiency — babies get their fingers pricked near …
Getting Paid to Procreate in Taiwan: Is $640 Enough?
In China, overpopulation has led to a one-child rule for many couples. Its neighbor, Taiwan, has the opposite problem: Its birthrate dropped to a record low last year. With less than 20,000 babies born, moms and dads will soon …
A New Way to Predict IVF Success: Film the Embryo
With more than four million babies and counting, in vitro fertilization (IVF) is a well-established way for couples who otherwise couldn’t have children to start or expand a family. For some, it’s their only option.
5 Pregnancy Taboos Explained (or Debunked)
Pregnant? Probably everyone has an opinion about what you should and should not be doing. So it might be hard to ditch that extra cup of coffee after lunch or give up the European vacation you were so looking forward to, but …
Study: IVF Causes Higher Rates of Baby Boys
Though the ratio of boys to girls born in the United States has been on the decline for decades, new research found that moms who use in vitro fertilization might increase the number of male babies.
In the Battle Over Breast or Bottle, Guilt May Play a Role
Ah, guilt. Such a useful emotion in so many varied ways. As women, we’re made to feel guilty if we don’t want to become mothers. When we do have children, we feel guilt if we don’t read to our children fresh out of the womb, if we don’t pick the perfect preschool, if we don’t puree our own organic baby food. Yet those and …
Doctor behind vaccine-autism link loses license
It took nearly six months but the General Medical Council (GMC) in the U.K. has pulled Dr. Andrew Wakefield’s license to practice medicine in the United Kingdom.
Wakefield is the researcher who nearly single-handedly fueled parental concerns about the link between vaccines and autism. In 1998, he published a paper in the medical …
Fewer babies dying worldwide
In a bit of welcome news on infant mortality rates worldwide, researchers at University of Washington are reporting a lower death rate for children under five than previous UNICEF estimates had calculated.
According to a new assessment of data, including birth and death records, as well as census and survey results, the authors found …