COVID Shot Earlier in Pregnancy Better for Baby: Study

• Robert Preidt
• April 6, 2021
• Full Page

The sooner a pregnant woman gets a COVID-19 vaccine, the more likely she is to transfer protective antibodies to her baby, a new, small study suggests.

"This just gives extra fuel for people who are on the fence or just think, 'Maybe I'll wait until after I deliver,'" sa...

New Treatment May Help Women in Early Menopause Remain Fertile

• Steven Reinberg HealthDay Reporter
• April 5, 2021
• Full Page

An experimental treatment may restore fertility during early menopause, a small new study claims.

Typically, menopause ends a woman's ability to get pregnant. But researchers report that administering platelet-rich plasma and hormones, called gonadotropins, ...

Stillbirths, Other Pregnancy Complications Up During Pandemic

• Robert Preidt
• April 1, 2021
• Full Page

THURSDAY, April 1, 2021 (HealthDayNews) -- The ripple effect of the COVID-19 scourge has led to more complications among pregnant women worldwide, including an increase in stillbirths, a new study says.

The research review also found higher rates of maternal deaths and d...

OCD May Be More Common in New Moms Than Thought

• Robert Preidt
• March 26, 2021
• Full Page

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is more common among new mothers than previously thought, and it's often driven by worries about things that may happen to their newborns, a new study finds.

Many new moms may keep the issue hidden, the Canadian researchers said.

Pregnant Women Pass on COVID Vaccine Protection to Newborns

• March 25, 2021
• Full Page

In some good news to emerge from the coronavirus pandemic, new research shows that pregnant women and new breastfeeding moms have a strong immune response to COVID-19 vaccines and can transfer that immunity to their infants.

The study included 131 women of reproductive a...

Drug Used to Prevent Miscarriages May Be Upping Cancer Rates Decades Later

• Denise Mann HealthDay Reporter
• March 24, 2021
• Full Page

Kids born to moms who took a drug widely used to prevent miscarriages in the 1950s and 1960s may be twice as likely to develop cancer in adulthood.

The drug in question, hydroxyprogesterone caproate, also known as OHPC or 17-OHPC, is a man-made version of the hormone pro...

Pandemic Has Pregnant Women 'Really Stressed,' Survey Shows

• Robert Preidt
• March 19, 2021
• Full Page

The pandemic is turning what should be a joyful time for pregnant women into a stress-filled experience.

Why? Fears that their infants might catch COVID-19 is one of the main reasons anxiety levels are soaring, a new survey finds.

Researchers from Washington State ...

Scientists Create First Lab Model of Human 'Pre-Embryo' for Research Purposes

• Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter
• March 17, 2021
• Full Page

Research into miscarriages, infertility and birth defects is now primed to undergo revolutionary advances, thanks to the creation in the lab of an early stage of human embryos by two separate international teams of scientists.

Both teams were able to use human cells...

Common Household Chemicals Tied to Preemie Births

• Robert Preidt
• March 15, 2021
• Full Page

Even when women do their best to have a safe pregnancy, chemicals commonly found in the home could still raise their risk for premature delivery, a new study shows.

The chemicals -- called polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) -- are used as flame retardants in items li...

Couples Everywhere Are Having More Twins

• Robert Preidt
• March 12, 2021
• Full Page

Yes, you really are seeing double -- more twins are being born now than ever before.

There are a number of reasons why, according to a new study.

Since the 1980s, twin births rose by a third worldwide -- from 9 to 12 per 1,000 deliveries. About 1.6 million twins ar...

THC From Pot Lingers in Breast Milk for Weeks: Study

• Steven Reinberg HealthDay Reporter
• March 11, 2021
• Full Page

Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana, remains in breast milk for up to six weeks and may be harmful to infants, a new study warns.

The researchers said the finding supports recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics and others...

Women With Type 1 Diabetes May Have Fewer Childbearing Years: Study

• Robert Preidt
• March 4, 2021
• Full Page

Women with type 1 diabetes may have a shorter length of time to conceive and bear children compared to those without the disease, new research suggests.

The hormone insulin plays an important part in regulating female reproductive function, and people with type 1 diabete...

High Blood Pressure in Pregnancy Could Affect Women's Hearts Long Term

• Robert Preidt
• February 25, 2021
• Full Page

Pregnancy-related high blood pressure can lead to long-term heart risks, new research shows.

Compared to those with normal blood pressure during pregnancy, women who developed blood pressure disorders such as preeclampsia and gestational hypertension had significant diff...

COVID in Pregnancy Tied to Higher Odds for 'Preemie' Delivery

• Robert Preidt
• February 24, 2021
• Full Page

In this pandemic era, moms-to-be understandably worry about the risks COVID-19 might pose to their baby. A new study offers some answers.

Pregnant women with COVID-19 may be more likely to have a preterm birth. But they don't have an increased risk of stillbirth or baby ...

Pregnant Women Face Higher Odds of Coronavirus Infection

• Robert Preidt
• February 22, 2021
• Full Page

Pregnant women have high COVID-19 infection rates -- especially women of color -- and they should be near the front of the line for vaccines across the United States, researchers say.

"Our data indicates that pregnant people did not avoid the pandemic as we hoped that th...

Fertility Treatments Might Affect Kids' Growth, But Not for Long

• Robert Preidt
• February 18, 2021
• Full Page

The growth patterns of kids born through fertility treatment differ initially from those conceived naturally, but those growth rates do catch up over time, a new study finds.

In-vitro fertilization and other forms of "assisted reproductive technology" (ART) has long been...

Mom's Heart Health While Pregnant Could Influence Her Child's Health for Years

• Amy Norton HealthDay Reporter
• February 17, 2021
• Full Page

In a finding that suggests heart health starts in the womb, a new study shows that the state of a woman's heart during pregnancy may predict her kids' health by the time they reach adolescence.

Researchers found that when mothers' weight, blood pressure and cholesterol l...

Is Any Amount of Coffee Safe for Baby During Pregnancy?

• Denise Mann HealthDay Reporter
• February 12, 2021
• Full Page

Too much coffee during pregnancy could lead to kids with behavior problems later on.

That's the key takeaway from new research that examined 9,000 brain scans from 9- and 10-year-olds as part of the largest long-term study of brain development and child health.

"Th...

AHA News: Hoping to Find Out Her Baby's Sex, She Learned of a Serious Heart Defect

• American Heart Association News
• February 12, 2021
• Full Page

Latisha Wilborne was excited. She and her husband had tried for a year to get pregnant, and now, 20 weeks pregnant, she was at a doctor's visit with her two sisters where an ultrasound would determine if she was having a girl or boy. A party to celebrate the news was just days...

AHA News: Why Black Women Are Less Likely to Survive Pregnancy, and What's Being Done About It

• American Heart Association News
• February 11, 2021
• Full Page

Being Black and pregnant in the U.S. was already a risky combination, and health experts now worry the pandemic is making things worse.

Before the pandemic, Black women were three times more likely than Hispanic women and 2.5 times more likely than white women to die fro...

Prescription Opioids, Antibiotics in Pregnancy Won't Raise Birth Defect Risk: Studies

• Robert Preidt
• February 11, 2021
• Full Page

Taking prescription opioid painkillers or a common class of antibiotics during pregnancy doesn't increase the risk of major birth defects, according to two new studies.

Both are often prescribed to pregnant women. Some studies have linked them with certain birth defects,...

Diabetes While Pregnant Ups Odds for Heart Disease Later

• Robert Preidt
• February 8, 2021
• Full Page

Developing diabetes during pregnancy may increase a woman's risk for heart disease later in life, according to a new study.

It included about 1,100 women without type 1 or type 2 diabetes. Those who developed diabetes during pregnancy (gestational diabetes) were twice as...

AHA News: Statistics Report Puts Spotlight on Pregnancy and Heart Health

• American Heart Association News
• January 27, 2021
• Full Page

Complications during pregnancy are widespread, becoming more common and often overlooked as warning signs about a woman's heart health.

Which is why for the first time, in an effort to guide clinicians and empower women, the authors of a widely used reference on the fact...

Heart Disease Remains No. 1 Killer, But COVID Will Have Big Impact

• Robert Preidt
• January 27, 2021
• Full Page

Heart disease is likely to remain the world's leading cause of death for years to come, partially due to effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, an American Heart Association report predicts.

Heart disease deaths worldwide rose 17.1% over the past decade, with nearly 18.6 mill...

COVID-19 Ups Complication Risks During Childbirth

• Steven Reinberg HealthDay Reporter
• January 20, 2021
• Full Page

Women who have COVID-19 during childbirth are more likely to face complications than moms-to-be without the coronavirus, researchers say.

Fortunately, the absolute risk for complications for any one woman is very low (less than 1%). But the relative risks for problems --...

Fresh Embryos Beat Frozen for IVF: Study

• Robert Preidt
• January 15, 2021
• Full Page

When it comes to in vitro fertilization, new research suggests fresh is best.

In the study, researchers analyzed data from 33,000 women who received fresh or frozen embryos derived from freshly retrieved donor eggs.

The data was from 370 in vitro fertilization clin...

Pot Might Impair a Woman's Fertility: Study

• Cara Murez
• January 13, 2021
• Full Page

Though using marijuana for medical or recreational reasons is legal in a growing number of U.S. states, it may come with some unexpected side effects.

A new study found that women who use cannabis may be reducing their fertility.

"Cannabis use has continued to clim...

As Lockdowns Keep Pregnant Women From Exercise, Depression Rates Rise: Study

• Cara Murez
• January 4, 2021
• Full Page

The COVID-19 pandemic is taking a toll on the emotional health of pregnant women whose exercise routines have been disrupted because of the coronavirus, new research shows.

Those women had higher depression scores than their counterparts who were able to exercise as usua...

High Blood Pressure While Pregnant Linked to Poorer Memory Years Later

• Cara Murez
• January 4, 2021
• Full Page

High blood pressure and pre-eclampsia during pregnancy may follow women through the years, causing lower scores on tests of memory and thinking skills, a Dutch study suggests.

The study of nearly 600 pregnant women included 481 with normal blood pressure and 115 who deve...

Toxic Metals Might Affect Pregnancy, Study Finds

• Robert Preidt
• December 28, 2020
• Full Page

Exposure to metals may disrupt pregnant women's hormones and boost the odds of complications such as preeclampsia, preterm birth and low birth weight, according to a new study.

Metals such as nickel, arsenic, cobalt and lead have been associated with pregnancy complicati...

Vasectomy Reversal Just as Successful in Men Over 50

• Robert Preidt
• December 23, 2020
• Full Page

Vasectomy reversal is as viable in men over 50 as in those who are younger, a new study says.

About 20% of American men who have a vasectomy want to father children in the future, and about 6% will seek a vasectomy reversal, previous research shows.

However, it's b...

COVID Doesn't Pass From Mom to Fetus During Pregnancy: Study

• Cara Murez
• December 22, 2020
• Full Page

A new study may prove reassuring for expectant moms: Pregnant women who are infected with COVID-19 during their third trimester appear unlikely to pass the infection to their fetuses.

This study was conducted between April and June 2020 among women who came to one of thr...

Most Pregnant Women With COVID Are Asymptomatic

• Robert Preidt
• December 17, 2020
• Full Page

Most pregnant women infected with the new coronavirus don't have symptoms, a new study shows.

Researchers analyzed data from a coronavirus screening program in the labor and delivery unit of Elmhurst Hospital in New York City during March and April.

Of the 130 preg...

Black Women at Higher Heart Risk During Pregnancy

• Amy Norton
• December 16, 2020
• Full Page

Although heart problems are rare complications of pregnancy, Black women face a heightened risk -- even if they have comfortable incomes and health insurance, a new study finds.

It's well established that the United States has a higher maternal mortality rate than other ...

Many Breast Cancer Survivors Have Healthy Babies: Study

• Cara Murez
• December 9, 2020
• Full Page

When a young woman is diagnosed with breast cancer, many questions go through her mind.

What treatments does she need? Will she survive? And will she still be able to have a baby?

In a review of recent research, an international team of investigators say the answe...

COVID Fuels Depression Among Pregnant Women, New Moms

• Cara Murez
• December 9, 2020
• Full Page

COVID-19 may be behind a concerning rise in the number of women suffering anxiety and depression before and soon after childbirth, a new study says.

Researchers from Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston surveyed more than 1,100 pregnant and postpartum women between Ma...

Too Many, Too Few Babies May Speed Aging in Women

• Cara Murez
• December 7, 2020
• Full Page

Pregnancy can be exhilarating or exhausting, and sometimes both at the same time. It may not come as a surprise to a woman who has experienced pregnancy once, twice or many times, that it can age her.

New research reveals that how many pregnancies a woman has may affect ...

U.S. Moms-to-Be Are Much Less Healthy Now

• Steven Reinberg
• December 7, 2020
• Full Page

In the past 30 years, U.S. women have been in progressively worse physical shape as they become pregnant, a new study finds.

A combination of obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes and having children later in life have led to potentially more complications, and even inf...

Frozen Eggs Help Breast Cancer Survivors Conceive

• November 27, 2020
• Full Page

Freezing their eggs or ovarian tissue before breast cancer treatment increases survivors' chances of having children after recovery, a new study finds.

Nearly 10% of breast cancer cases occur in women younger than 45 years of age, some of whom haven't yet had children, a...

Could the Pill Reduce Asthma Attacks?

• Amy Norton
• November 24, 2020
• Full Page

Women with asthma may suffer fewer severe symptom attacks if they are on birth control pills, a large new study suggests.

The study of more than 83,000 women with asthma found that those who used birth control pills for at least three years tended to have fewer severe fl...

More Childbearing Women Having Suicidal Thoughts: Study

• Amy Norton
• November 20, 2020
• Full Page

The number of women who contemplate suicide or self-harm during or after pregnancy may be on the rise, a large, new study suggests.

Among nearly 600,000 U.S. childbearing women, researchers found that close to 2,700 were diagnosed with suicidality in the year before or a...

COVID in Pregnancy Won't Affect Obstetric Outcomes: Study

• Steven Reinberg
• November 19, 2020
• Full Page

Pregnant women with COVID-19 have little risk of developing severe symptoms, as do their newborns, a new study finds.

In fact, 95% of these women have good outcomes, and just 3% of their babies test positive for COVID-19, researchers say.

"For 5% of COVID-19-positi...

U.S. Leads Wealthy Nations in Pregnancy-Related Deaths

• Amy Norton
• November 18, 2020
• Full Page

American women are far more likely to die from pregnancy-related causes than women in other wealthy countries -- and a national shortage of maternity care providers bodes ill for the future.

Those are some of the findings from a new report on maternal mortality by the no...

Obamacare's Birth Control Coverage May Have Reduced Unplanned Pregnancies

• Cara Murez
• November 10, 2020
• Full Page

When Obamacare made contraception affordable, the rate of unplanned pregnancies among poor Americans declined, a new study reports.

The Affordable Care Act's (ACA) elimination of out-of-pocket costs for birth control was tied to fewer births in all income groups, but esp...

Global Warming Could Bring Added Risks for Pregnant Women

• Robert Preidt
• November 5, 2020
• Full Page

Global warming could increase rates of serious pregnancy problems, researchers warn.

They analyzed 70 studies from 27 countries that reported associations between high temperatures and preterm birth, birth weight and stillbirths.

"Given increases in the freque...

Pandemic Protocols Don't Stand in the Way of a Safe Delivery

• Steven Reinberg
• November 4, 2020
• Full Page

New infection prevention practices started during the coronavirus pandemic have actually shortened hospital stays for mothers and their babies, a new study finds.

The changes included screening the temperature of all patients and visitors, limiting the number of visitors...

Obamacare Boosted Health of Poor Women Before, After Pregnancy

• Robert Preidt
• November 4, 2020
• Full Page

The health of low-income women before they become pregnant has improved in states that expanded Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), researchers report.

The time before a woman becomes pregnant is critical for her health and that of her infant, but many poor wom...

Epilepsy Meds During Pregnancy May Raise Autism Risk in Child

• Serena Gordon
• October 30, 2020
• Full Page

Women who take the epilepsy medication valproic acid during pregnancy have more than twice the risk of having a child with autism, new research suggests.

The study also found that taking the drug during pregnancy almost doubled the odds that a child would have attention-...

For Some Women, Postpartum Depression Lingers for Years

• Amy Norton
• October 29, 2020
• Full Page

Many women have depression symptoms after giving birth, but for some postpartum depression hangs on for years, a U.S. government study finds.

Of nearly 4,900 new mothers researchers followed, one-quarter had depression symptoms at some point in their child's first three...

COVID-19 More Common in Pregnant Hispanics Than Other Moms-to-Be: Study

• Steven Reinberg
• October 22, 2020
• Full Page

Hispanic mothers-to-be in the southern United States are almost twice as likely to have COVID-19 as non-Hispanic women, a new study finds.

The researchers also found that those with government health insurance were more likely to test positive for the coronavirus th...