No Safe Amount of Caffeine During Pregnancy
Razi Berry Women who are pregnant or trying to conceive should be advised to avoid caffeine because the evidence suggests that maternal caffeine consumption is associated with negative pregnancy outcomes and that there is no safe level of consumption, finds an analysis of observational studies published in BMJ Evidence Based Medicine. Caffeine is probably the […]
Feeding Premature Babies Breast Milk Improves Brain Development
Razi Berry A recent research study on premature babies underlines the importance of breastfeeding, even in neonatal intensive care scenarios.1 Premature babies were shown to have better brain development when fed breast milk rather than formula during their hospital stays. Helping facilitate mothers to provide breast milk in subsequent weeks after birth could improve long-term […]
Immune Function is Crucial in Preventing Preterm Birth
Preterm birth – birth before 37 weeks of pregnancy – is a leading cause of neonatal death worldwide. Intrauterine and systemic infection and inflammation cause 30-40% of spontaneous preterm labor, which precedes preterm birth. The immune system has been implicated as playing a role in preterm birth, although the manner in which antibody production, and […]
The Microbiome of a Woman’s Reproductive Tract May Predict Preterm Birth
STANFORD, Conn. – Researchers at the March of Dimes Prematurity Research Center at Stanford University say microbiome health in the reproductive tracts of pregnant women differs in those who deliver pre-term. Full-term birth mothers had another microbiome balance, they said. Microbiome research has recently revealed that an unhealthy system can help explain not only pre-term […]