The path to raising a green child starts even before the baby makes her entrance into this world. When a woman is pregnant, she has to think about how everything she does may affect her unborn baby. In July, I wrote about how the swine flu may affect unborn babies and it has quickly grown to be one of the five most-visited articles on my site. Obviously, the media attention to 
swine flu has caused the concern but every pregnant woman I know has researched how a certain action may affect her developing baby.
Today, I read about two new research studies involving pregnant women that I wanted to share with you, the readers of Raising Them Green.
Certain antibiotics are linked to an increased risk of birth defects
The new study is the first large analysis of antibiotic use in pregnancy. It found that mothers of babies with birth defects were more likely than mothers with healthy babies to report taking two types of antibiotics during pregnancy: sulfa drugs (brand names include Thiosulfil Forte and Bactrim) and urinary germicides called nitrofurantoins (brand names include Furadantin and Macrobid). Source: StarTribune.com
I know of many women that have had urinary tract infections during pregnancy and ultimately took Macrobid. None of my friends had children with birth defects but of course my sampling is much smaller than what was used in the study. I feel that studies like this are important for clinicians and pregnant women to read because the best decision, in my opinion, is an informed decision.
The article does caution that women discuss any antibiotic-related questions with their healthcare providers and I feel that it is important to convey the same message.
Smoking while pregnant linked to behavioural problems in children
There have been numerous studies highlighting the risks of smoking while pregnant. The Guardian is reporting that a new study shows an increase in behavioral problems among children of mothers that smoked while pregnant.
Smoking during pregnancy significantly increases the risk of having a child with behavioural problems, according to research published today. Disturbances can manifest themselves in children as young as three years old, the study in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health claims. Source: The Guardian
Photo: Photos by Lina/Flickr
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