News of Interest for Late-in-Life Moms September 15, 2008

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News to know:

Baby bottle chemical draws mixed messages from U.S.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is reopening the debate over bisphenol A, or BPA, a chemical used in many plastic products -- including baby bottles.
An FDA panel of outside experts plans to review the agency's draft report issued last month saying that BPA is safe. Critics argue the FDA ignored strong evidence in animal studies that BPA is harmful.


CNN Report: Why infants still die from SIDS
Story Highlights:
Fewer than 2,500 infant deaths this year will be classified as SIDS
SIDS may be underreported because causes of infant deaths are mislabeled
Babies who begin daycare before 4 months of age may be at increased risk

Study: Kids of Privileged Working Moms Fare Worse
A Newsweek article highlighted a study that reported kids from high-socioeconomic-status families have difficulties when their moms work outside the home.
According to economist Christopher Ruhm, at ages 10 and 11, kids perform more poorly on cognitive tests and are also more likely to be overweight than those whose high-status mothers leave the workforce.
Children from low-status families, on the other hand, don't seem to suffer as much when their moms work.

News of Interest for Late-in-Life Moms, July 24, 2008

News to know:


Twin sisters "Team" has triplets
Darla and Mark Pritchard struggled with infertility for five years. Her twin sister, Dana, volunteered to be a surrogate. Both Darla and Dana, 39, got pregnant when Mark's fertilized eggs were implanted.
On Feb. 27, Darla gave birth to twins, Mallory and Wesley. Six weeks later, Dana had a girl, Mattie. They're considered triplets and biological siblings. All three will be raised by Darla and Mark, who will adopt Mattie.
To see a video of an interview with Darla and Dana on the Today show, go here.

Cord blood choices: Private fears vs. public good
Parents-to-be have to decide what to do with their child’s cord blood, a rich source of stem cells, the building blocks of blood that can potentially be used to treat certain cancers and other diseases.
About 97 percent of these moms and dads will do nothing, and the umbilical cord and the cells it contains will be discarded as medical waste. The other parents will be caught in the debate between private cord blood firms vying to cash in on an estimated $1 billion industry and public registries trying to boost diverse donations to fuel research and save lives in the community at large.

Baby bottle chemical levels safe, EU agency says
The amount of a controversial chemical bisphenol A (BPA) found in baby bottles is tiny and cannot harm human health, the European Union's top food safety body said.
A scientific panel of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) studied how people metabolize BPA and concluded that tiny amounts of the chemical to which humans are exposed leave body quick enough to cause no harm.

Soy-based foods may lower sperm count
Eating a half serving a day of soy-based foods could be enough to significantly lower a man's sperm count, according to U.S. researchers who studied 99 men who went to a fertility clinic between 2000 and 2006.
The serving amount, based on isoflavone content, equaled one cup of soy milk or one serving of tofue, tempeh or soy burgers every other day.
Men in the highest intake category had 41 million sperm per milliliter less than men who ate no soy foods. A normal sperm count ranges from 80 million and 120 million per milliliter, and a sperm count of 20 million per milliliter or below is considered low.
The researchers found the association between soy foods and lower sperm count was stronger in overweight men, suggesting hormones are playing a role.

News of Interest for Late-in-Life Moms April 21, 2008

In the news:

Motherhood can leave pregnant pause in career
In Spain some are questioning whether Carme Chacon, Spain's first woman defense minister, should be able to take the state-mandated 16 weeks of paid maternity leave, given the importance of her job.
An MSNBC article examines how that kind of dilemma resonates for women anywhere who have jobs they need and value: What do you do when the timing of motherhood clashes with the upward trajectory of your career?

Breastfeeding while on seizure meds doesn't harm babies
A new study finds that mothers who breast-feed while on certain seizure medications do not appear to harm their children's cognitive development. Almost 200 2-year-old children whose mothers were taking the epilepsy drugs lamotrigine, carbamazepine, phenytoin or valproate were tested in the study. Of these children, 41 percent were breast-fed.

Traditional breast-feeding schedule best approach
Following a traditional breast-feeding schedule appears more beneficial for early infant weight gain and is more supportive of continued breast-feeding than a "baby-led" routine, researchers report.
The traditional recommendations-- breast-feeding using both breasts at each feeding for no more than 10 minutes per breast--have been largely replaced by "baby-led" breast-feeding. Proponents advise letting infants feed for an unlimited time from the first breast and that both breasts need not be used at each feeding.

U.S. questions plastic baby bottle safety
A chemical used to make baby bottles and other shatterproof plastic containers could be linked to a range of hormonal problems, according to a preliminary report.
The federal National Toxicology Program said experiments on rats found precancerous tumors, urinary tract problems and early puberty when the animals were fed or injected with low doses of the plastics chemical bisphenol A.