A Look at the Research: The Link Between Epidural Analgesia and Breastfeeding

Science & sensibility by Lamaze is bringing us a review of latest research on use of epidural analgesia with possible link to breastfeeding difficulties after the delivery. 

It’s probably fair to say that most women who decide to have an epidural during labor don’t consider its possible impact on breastfeeding. Perhaps this is because no thought is given generally to any possible links between drugs and breastfeeding success (or otherwise). Instead, both pregnant (or laboring) women and caregivers usually assume that breastfeeding is a separate issue. Evidence from early research certainly doesn’t seem to support that view and a little common sense would also lead us to challenge it further…

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in New Mothers: Results from a Two-Stage U.S. National Survey

1. Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in New Mothers: Results from Two-Stage U.S. National Survey 

Article first published online: 20 MAY 2011 
DOI: 10.1111/j.1523-536X.2011.00475.x

1. AUTHORS: Cheryl Tatano Beck DNSc, CNM, FAAN,
2. Robert K. Gable EdD, 
3. Carol Sakala PhD, MSPH, 
4. Eugene R. Declercq PhD, MBA

MIDWIFE`S NOTES:

Pregnancy and labour may be diffucult and painful expirience for some women,  leaving permanent impact on the life of the woman and her baby. This study identified main factors in onset of posttraumatic stress disorder. 
- low partner support
- elevated postpartum depressive symptoms
- more physical problems since birth
- less health-promoting behaviors
- eight variables significantly differentiated women who had elevated posttraumatic stress symptom levels from those who did not: no private health insurance, unplanned pregnancy, pressure to have an induction and epidural analgesia, planned cesarean birth, not breastfeeding as long as wanted, not exclusively breastfeeding at 1 month, and consulting with a clinician about mental well-being since birth. 

Pregnant women show an amazing lack of knowledge about childbirth options, study shows

Los Angeles Times asks how much we really know about our options in childbirth.
Fewer pregnant women and their partners are attending prenatal education classes these days and appear to be quietly following whatever advice the doctor or midwife recommends, researchers said Monday.




Doctors, led by Dr. Michael Klein of the Child & Family Research Institute and University of British Columbia, surveyed 1,318 healthy pregnant women. They found many seemingly unprepared to make their own decisions regarding childbirth options, such as whether to have natural childbirth or a Cesarean section.

Too Many C-Sections: Docs Rethink Induced Labor

Time analyses birthing culture in USA.
The rise in cesarean-section deliveries in recent years has been characterized by some as a key indication of the overmedicalization of childbirth. While the procedure undoubtedly saves lives and leads to better health outcomes for mothers and infants who face problems during pregnancy and labor, many experts say the procedure is being performed too often, and in many cases for nonmedical reasons, putting healthy women and babies at undue risk of complications of major surgery.

The rate of C-sections has reached more than 31% in the U.S., a historical high, according to 2007 data from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG). The reasons for the increase are many and have been widely discussed: the rising rate of multiple births, more obesity in pregnant women, the older age of women giving birth. In fact, C-sections have become so common that many women may have an inflated sense of safety about them. "For the most part, moms and babies go through the process healthy and come out healthy, so maybe there's this sense that we're invincible," says Dr. Caroline Signore of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute for Child Health and Human Development.

Every Puff Harms

By Roa Altaweli, Saudi National, Midwifery Student | Contribution to Saudi Life

Every Puff Harms the Unborn Baby

Cigarettes contain over 4,000 chemicals. Every single cigarette a woman smokes in pregnancy harms the unborn baby. The toxins from smoking restrict the essential oxygen supply to the baby requiring their heart to beat harder every time she smokes.

Protecting your baby from tobacco smoke is one of the best things you can do to give your child a healthy start in life. It's never too late to stop smoking!

High-fat maternal diet 'raises stillbirth risk'

FIGO International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics confirmed link between high-fat maternal nutrition and risk of stillbirth

Monday, 6th June 2011

Women who consume a high-fat diet during pregnancy are more likely to have a stillbirth, a new study has revealed.

According to US researchers, a maternal diet high in fat reduces the flow of blood from the mother to the placenta, which affects the nourishment of the foetus.

The researchers looked at the placental structure of the Japanese macaque for their study, as it is similar to the one in humans.

Perinatal pitocin as an early ADHD biomarker: neurodevelopmental risk? (NBCI)

NBCI published results of new research of ADHD ( Attention Deficit Hyperactivity disorder) which ocurence is on rise word wide. Following study investigated relation between ADHD and Pitocin, which is synthetic hormone Oxytocin which is widly used for induction of labor. Study was conducted on small group, 172 children and revealed increased rate of ADHD in kids where pitocin was used in labor. Further studies are needed to generalize the results. 

Kurth L, Haussmann R.

Source

Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA. Lisa.Kurth@ColoState.edu.

Abstract

Objective: To investigate a potential relationship between coincidental increases in perinatal Pitocin usage and subsequent childhood ADHD onset in an attempt to isolate a specific risk factor as an early biomarker of this neurodevelopmental disorder.