Not long ago, pregnant women deciding whether to get a COVID-19 vaccine had to weigh their concerns about the coronavirus against the unknowns of new vaccines that hadn’t been tested in pregnancy. Now, with all American adults eligible for a vaccine, evidence that pregnant women can and should get a COVID-19 shot is mounting. One,…
Being pregnant is never easy, and the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic brings new challenges to pregnant mothers, who are considered to be a high-risk group. This means that if infected, pregnant women are more likely to be hospitalized and require ventilation, and their risk of preterm birth increases. Besides health concerns for mothers and…
You’re pregnant! Congrats! You might be feeling excitement, anxiety, joy, trepidation or all of the above. That’s normal. Not only are you on the verge of a new chapter in life—especially if this baby will be your first—but it also seems there is so much to keep track of in those approximately 40 weeks of…
Though not everyone talks about it openly, marijuana and related products like CBD (cannabidiol, one of the active ingredients in marijuana) are a big topic in the world of motherhood. While there is limited research available on what effect marijuana has on a baby in utero, researchers and physicians warn against its use by moms-to-be.…
Today, obstetricians have many tools at their disposal to learn important information about the health of a baby. Most people are familiar with ultrasounds, in which a technician runs a wand over the belly to pick up high-frequency sound waves and make an image of the developing baby. But moms-to-be might be surprised that much…
When Nicole Starling was 18 weeks pregnant, she found out she was having a girl. And she learned that her baby girl had myelomeningocele, the most severe form of spina bifida, a birth defect that occurs when the spine and spinal cord don’t form properly. “At first, we were super excited to hear we were…
Pregnancy can be a very exciting and rewarding time in a woman’s life, but for the 1 in 5 women who experience a mental illness—including anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder and other mental health conditions—it might also bring new challenges. We talked to Mary Kimmel, MD, medical director of UNC’s Perinatal Psychiatry Inpatient Unit about pregnancy,…
The cries of babies whose mothers used cocaine during pregnancy have increased amounts of “hyperphonation,” a new study finds.
UNC researchers found that Chiari type 1 malformations of the brain are more common in children of depressed mothers treated with a certain group of antidepressants during pregnancy; genes and severity of illness may be involved.
If you’ve ever fibbed to your healthcare provider about how much you exercise or how many glasses of wine you have per week, you’re not alone. Between 60 to 80 percent of people have admitted to not being forthcoming with doctors about information that could be relevant to their health. “The No.1 reason patients may…
Pregnant and breastfeeding women have so many things to think about when it comes to what they put in their bodies, to protect their health and the health of their babies. But women carrying, birthing and nursing babies during the COVID-19 pandemic have had a new challenge to consider: Should they be vaccinated against COVID-19…
