Just picking up some ordinary vitamins at the drugstore is not enough for a healthy pregnancy. Prenatal vitamins contain important nutrients in stronger dosages than regular multivitamin supplements (even those formulated for women). Here is a look at what prenatal vitamins should contain and the benefit of each ingredient for new mother. Prenat

Everyone knows that smoking is hazardous to health; and that the sooner one quits, the better the body is able to repair and reverse the effects smoking has had on various bodily functions and systems. Most studies and public warnings focus on the adverse effects of smoking on the respiratory and the cardiovascular systems. However, the effects on

A pregnancy after 40 has increased risk for both the mother and the baby. In fact, getting pregnant after the age of 35 does carry the increased chances of developing complications during the pregnancy and during the delivery. Being in good health before you become pregnant and obtaining prenatal care as early as possible is essential. It is very c

A false pregnancy refers to a situation when a woman has all the signs and symptoms of being pregnant, yet this woman is not pregnant. It is not common in humans, yet it does happen. However, it is mainly psychological. False pregnancies have been reported all throughout history. Hippocrates wrote about 12 women who he encountered as early as 300 B

Popular culture has made the pregnancy process seem almost too easy. A couple decides to have a baby, and they almost immediately become pregnant. In fact, there is even a show about a family that has had close to twenty children! However, for every couple that seems able to have dozens of children, there are those who are having trouble conceiving

Can you come and see me, pleeeease? Alison was sobbing down the phone. When I had seen her as an antenatal client she was a strong, capable professional woman, pro-active about being prepared for becoming a mum. Now, she was vulnerable, teary and awash with post birth hormones. Being in hospital with helpful people prodding her body was an experie

You are three weeks into your second trimester when you are 15 weeks pregnant. You will find that your energy is returning and you are able to stay up later at night. In spite of how energetic you feel, you still need to get a full nights sleep because the baby benefits from your rest just as much as you do. Your belly is also growing at this stage

As a child enters puberty, he or she might become confused by all of the body changes that are occurring, some of which happen quite fast. Boys grow facial hair, their voices deepen, and they sexually mature. Girls grow breasts, more body hair, and start to menstruate. No matter how fast or how slowly a child enters puberty, it is very important

Most mothers to be want to know about how the baby is developing during each week of the pregnancy. At 16 weeks pregnant, your baby is only about the size of an avocado. At this point the fetus is only about 5 inches long and weighs only about 3 ounces, even though you have started to develop a baby bump so that others do notice that you are pregna

If you are a new mother of an unborn child and you smoke, this would be one of the best times to quit. One of the main reasons for this mother to quit is because not only is the mother smoking but so is your unborn child. This unborn child can and probably will be born with the same problems that a person that has smoked all of their lives will hav

Towards the end of the third trimester women begin to worry about the labour and when it will happen, some women worry about this throughout their entire pregnancy. Labour is different for all women but there are some general commonalities between all pregnancies that give doctors the knowledge to know what to look for. The one thing that confuses

The first trimester of pregnancy is the first twelve weeks. For at least the first month of this trimester you may not even realize that you are pregnant until you miss your first period. It is then you realize that there have been signs and symptoms that would have alerted you to the fact earlier ?such as feeling tired, having to go to the bathroo

Nursing gowns come in many different styles and options for openings. They are not granny type nightgowns and are very modern, such as in pyjamas with short and long bottoms. You can also have sexy nightwear when you are a nursing mother instead of having to get into bed covered from head to toe. You can lounge around in your pyjamas during the day

Gone are the days when being pregnant was an excuse to eat for two. Women that had spent much of their lives on diets gave themselves over to the brooding and nesting instinct and allowed themselves to sit back and nurture the new life growing inside of them. Of course, there were those who did this in the extreme and became excessively overweight

There has been a lot of talk about surrogacy these days. Many people, worldwide, who have not had any real need to explore surrogacy might be confused about exactly what is done in order for the surrogate mother to become pregnant. It is common that outsiders think that some sort of "hanky panky" goes on between the intended father and the surro