Smoking and missing meals during pregnancy triples the risk of childhood obesity

Japanese researchers observed 1000 children born to smoking and non-smoking mothers. The researchers revealed that children born to smoking mothers were nearly 3 times more at a risk of developing obesity later in their lives, possibly as a result of the damaging effects nicotine has to the baby’s brain says UrBod Nutritionist Melody Mackeown, who specialises in pre-conceptual care, fertility and pregnancy.

There are many ways nutritional therapy can help support you while giving up smoking, says UrBod Nutritionist Melody Mackeown. As smoking can upset your blood sugar balance (which can also impact on weight gain), one of the first things I look at, are ways to regulate your blood sugar. Many foods can also upset your blood sugar levels, as well as other stimulants such as coffee, tea, alcohol and chocolate. There are also a number of supplements that may help reduce your craving for nicotine.

An additional result of the study also revealed that mothers who skipped their breakfast during pregnancy made their children nearly 2½ times more vulnerable to developing obesity in their latter stage of life. This may result in babies developing blood sugar imbalances in utero, which affects their ability to regulate insulin which can contribute to weight gain, says UrBod Nutritionist Melody Mackeown.

Furthermore, depriving yourself of food which in turn deprives the fetus of nutrition is a contributing factor of intrauterine growth retardation. Improper nutrition and food supply to the growing fetus has also been linked with poor nutritional habits in the future which can lead to overweight problems and obesity in children.

To find out more about Nutritional support during or before your pregnancy, contact UrBod Nutritionist Melody Mackeown Dip.ION (mBANT), specialist in pre-conceptual care, fertility and pregnancy care in the city of London, EC2. I have also written a free e-book on how you can improve your diet during your pregnancy, which can be obtained by clicking on my link.

Sperm Abnormalities Due to Low Folate Intake

A study published in the Journal Human Reproduction has reported that a diet low in folate leads to a higher risk of sperm abnormalities that may cause birth defects like Down's Syndrome or miscarriage.

Numerous studies have advocated women of child bearing age, who are pregnant or thinking about having a baby should supplement 400mcg of folic acid, says UrBod Nutritionist Melody Mackeown, who specialises in pre-conceptual care, fertility and pregnancy. However, researchers are now stressing the importance of folate in men’s diet as low folate levels can be the cause of abnormal sperm.

The researchers found that several micronutrients were associated with a lower frequency of different abnormalities. High folic acid intake was associated with 19% fewer abnormalities (all types) than moderate intake and 20% fewer than men with a low micronutrient intake. There were also reductions in specific types of abnormality. For example, there were 26% fewer sperm with no sex chromosome in the high-intake group compared with the low-intake group. There were also 30% fewer sperm with two X chromosomes (associated with triple X syndrome) and abnormalities on chromosome 21 (associated with Down’s syndrome) in the high-intake group compared with the moderate-intake group.

High total zinc intake reduced the frequency of two X chromosomes by about 50% compared with the moderate-intake group and 39% compared with the low-intake group. Zinc was not associated with lowering the risk of other abnormalities. Vitamin C and vitamin E had no association with sperm abnormalities, but high beta-carotene intake reduced YY abnormalities.

The message is clear, says UrBod Nutritionist Melody Mackeown, a man’s diet is just an important as that of his partner when planning to have a baby.

To find out more about Nutritional support during or before your pregnancy, contact UrBod Nutritionist Melody Mackeown. Dip.ION (mBANT), specialist in pre-conceptual care, fertility and pregnancy care in the city of London, EC2. I have also written a free e-book on how you can improve your fertility and diet during your pregnancy, which can be obtained by clicking on my link.

Supplementing with fish oil during pregnancy could boost attention spans in children, say researchers.

More good news, says UrBod Nutritionist Melody Mackeown, who specialises in pre-conceptual care, fertility and pregnancy, researchers have established that taking fish oil during pregnancy is both safe and beneficial for a child’s brain development.

Recent research from the University of Western Australia found that supplementation may lead to improved eye and hand coordination in children. The higher eye and hand coordination scores in the supplemented group were positively correlated with increases in omega-3 content in the umbilical cord blood.

Led by Dr Susan Prescott, from the University of Western Australia, the researchers concluded: “Preliminary data indicate that supplementation with a relatively high-dose fish oil during the last 20 weeks of pregnancy is not only safe but also seems to have potential beneficial effects.”

The last three months of pregnancy are thought to be a key time for intake of fish oil because
there is a growth spurt in the human brain during this time, which carries on into the first few months of a baby's life, says UrBod Nutritionist Melody Mackeown.

Other research suggests cod liver oil taken during pregnancy may increase birthweight and reduce the risk of the baby developing type 1 diabetes.

As well as immediate benefits to the child, studies show fish oils can help mums-to-be in a number of ways, including reducing high blood pressure and easing post-natal depression. As omega-3 oils are also essential for good memory, supplementing with fish oils and eating oily fish on a regular basis may help prevent mumnesia, says UrBod Nutritionist Melody Mackeown.

To find out more about Nutritional support during or before your pregnancy, contact UrBod Nutritionist Melody Mackeown Dip.ION (mBANT), specialist in pre-conceptual care, fertility and pregnancy care in the city of London, EC2. I have also written a free e-book on how you can improve your pregnancy diet which can be obtained by clicking on my link.

Even drinking small amounts during pregnancy can damage your baby

The British Medical Association (BMA) recommend that women who are pregnant or trying to conceive should not drink any alcohol, says UrBod Nutritionist Melody Mackeown, who specialises in pre-conceptual care, fertility and pregnancy. Complying with the guidance would eliminate fetal alcohol spectrum disorders, which include fetal alcohol syndrome and can lead to learning and physical disabilities and behavioural problems.

Fetal alcohol syndrome is the most clinically recognisable type of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) and is characterised by abnormal facial features, growth deficiency, intellectual disabilities, and hyperactivity. FASD are lifelong conditions that can significantly impact on the life of the individual and those around them, says UrBod Nutritionist Melody Mackeown.

Furthermore, they are completely preventable. Even if you drink a little bit during your pregnancy you may be putting your child at risk, as some genetic variables make your baby even more vulnerable to FASD, says UrBod Nutritionist Melody Mackeown.

In 2002-3 a total of 128 cases were recorded in England. However, there is no reliable evidence on the incidence of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders in the United Kingdom, something which needs to change, says the BMA.

To find out more about Nutritional support during or before your pregnancy, contact UrBod Nutritionist Melody Mackeown Dip.ION (mBANT), specialist in pre-conceptual care, fertility and pregnancy care in the city of London, EC2. I have also written a free e-book on how you can improve your diet during your pregnancy, which can be obtained by clicking on my link. To find out more about Fetal alcohol syndrome, go to the link below.

http://www.bma.org.uk/ap.nsf/Content/SearchResultsPage?OpenDocument&sid=080317200345BMAW-7CTRJE&FreeText=fetal%20alcohol%20spectrum%20disorders%20

What is a Molar Pregnancy?

A molar pregnancy or hydatidiform mole comes about from an abnormal proliferation of foetal rather than maternal tissue, says UrBod Nutritionist Melody Mackeown, who specialises in pre-conceptual care, fertility and pregnancy. It is rare, occurring in around 1 in 2000 pregnancies in the UK.

Most signs and symptoms occur between 9 and 13 weeks and are often confused with symptoms of a normal pregnancy and, thus, are often disregarded.

The two most important diagnostic tools to detect this disease are the ultrasound and a markedly raised beta-human chorionic gonadotropin (BHCG) blood test. Treatment includes dilation and evacuation of the uterus and strict follow-up of BHCG blood levels.

A hydatidiform mole is often harmless. However, it can keep growing and, if left untreated, can bury itself into the organs around it, including the uterus (womb) and even spread via the blood to other distant organs including the lungs, liver or brain. It is, once it has reached this stage that it can have serious effects and is referred to as Persistent Gestational Trophoblastic disease.

What causes it?
Molar pregnancy is thought to be caused by a problem with the genetic information of an egg or sperm. Factors that may increase your risk of having a molar pregnancy include:
¨ Age. Risk for complete molar pregnancy steadily increases after the age of 35
¨ History of molar pregnancy, particularly if you've had two or more
¨ Possible ovulatory disorders
¨ History of miscarriage
¨ A diet low in carotene (a form of vitamin A). Women with low carotene or vitamin A intake have a higher rate of complete molar pregnancy
¨ Living in certain geographic locales (especially Southeast Asia and Mexico)

As it may be an ovulatory disorder and a deficiency of vitamin A may contribute the disorder, nutritional therapy (diet and supplement therapy) may help prevent future recurrences of this condition, says UrBod Nutritionist Melody Mackeown.

To find out more, please contact UrBod Nutritionist Melody Mackeown Dip.ION (mBANT). Melody offers pre-conceptual care, fertility and pregnancy care in the city of London, EC2.

Chlamydia Common in Pregnant Women

Almost 1 in 10 pregnant women (9.4%) studied by Australian investigators had Chlamydia, according to a report in the March issue of the Australian and New Zealand Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. This increased to nearly 1 in 7 (13.5%) among women under 20.

Chlamydia, says UrBod Nutritionist Melody Mackeown, who specialises in pre-conceptual care, fertility and pregnancy, can lead to complication during pregnancy, leading to risk of premature labour, for example. If undiagnosed, it can put the newborn at risk for conjunctivitis and pneumonia. It is also thought that it can lead to miscarriage.

Testing is simple and can be treated by one course of antibiotics, says UrBod Nutritionist Melody Mackeown. However, antibiotics also destroy good as well as bad bacteria. As it is extremely important to maintain a healthy digestive system throughout pregnancy and to support the immune system, I would advise a course of probiotics if antibiotics are taken during your pregnancy. Furthermore, research has shown that prebiotics taken during pregnancy can lower the risk of babies developing allergies, says UrBod Nutritionist Melody Mackeown.

To find out more about Nutritional support during or before your pregnancy, contact UrBod Nutritionist Melody Mackeown Dip.ION (mBANT), specialist in pre-conceptual care, fertility and pregnancy care in the city of London, EC2. I have also written a free e-book on how you can improve your diet during your pregnancy, which can be obtained by clicking on my link.

PCOS helped by vitamin B therapy

A recent study was undertaken among women diagnosed with polycystic ovary syndrome. It was hypothesised, says UrBod Nutritionist Melody Mackeown, who specialises in pre-conceptual care, fertility and pregnancy, that intervention using an isoform of inositol (myo-inositol), belonging to the vitamin B complex, would improve the insulin-receptor activity, restoring normal ovulatory function.

PCOS is often characterized by lack of ovulation or an absence of periods. In addition, 30-40% of PCOS women have impaired glucose tolerance, and a defect in the insulin signaling pathway seems to be implicated in the pathogenesis of insulin resistance. PCOS patients are subfertile as a consequence of such ovulatory disorders, which makes pregnancy very difficult and often need drugs, such as clomiphene citrate or follicle-stimulating hormone, for ovulation induction, which increases the risk of multiple pregnancy and ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome.

The outcome of the study demonstrated that twenty-two out of the 25 (88%) patients restored at least one spontaneous menstrual cycle during treatment, of whom 18 (72%) maintained normal ovulatory activity during the follow-up period and a total of 10 pregnancies (40% of patients) were obtained.

It is known says, UrBod Nutritionist Melody Mackeown, that vitamin therapy as well and dietary changes can help with PCOS and glucose tolerance.

To find out more, please contact UrBod Nutritionist Melody Mackeown Dip.ION (mBANT). Melody offers pre-conceptual care, fertility and pregnancy care in the city of London, EC2.