According to Science Daily almost 60,000 women are hospitalized each year for an extreme form of nausea called Hyperemesis Gravidarum or HG. In many cases this can force a pregnant woman to unwillingly terminate her pregnancy. If a woman’s maternal or paternal grandmothers, aunt or cousins are afflicted with the same condition, women are often more likely to experience it themselves. Not only was HG found to be genetically linked, but women who have a sister who had HG are 17 times more likely to get it themselves. A good friend of mine dealt with this throughout her entire pregnancy earlier this year. She could hardly keep anything down, was in and out of the hospital for IV food and fluids, and was vomiting nearly everyday up until the time she delivered. It's hard enough worrying about taking care of yourself without having the added pressure of not getting enough nutrients to support your growing child. Luckily her baby was born, full term, at a healthy 7lbs 1 oz.
Have you, or anyone you know been effected by HG?
Experts say teen pregnancy is an epidemic in the U.S. (Central NY, Your News Now)
The article states that nearly 1/3 of teenage girls will become pregnant in the US each year. Thanks MTV! OK, so I can't totally blame Teen Mom for their dramatic look at this epidemic. Let's face it kids were getting their "unprotected swerve on" long before shows like this ever existed (I was one of them). But what message is that sending to kids? Long gone are the days of secretly sending your daughter to an Aunt's house for "summer vacation" or being shunned by family and hauled off to a nunnery. Don't get me wrong being a parent when you can't even vote is NOT the worst thing that can happen to you, but it also isn't like buying a pair of shoes and then changing your mind. Today you can get knocked up, have 15 minutes of fame, and be on the cover of Star Magazine. I think the show’s intention might have been to illustrate how difficult it is to balance school, a social life, and oh yea a CHILD, but I feel like that message has gotten lost in the paparazzi photos and red carpet events.
Is our culture to blame for the rise in teen pregnancy?
Poor Women Often Gain Too Many Pregnancy Pounds (Fox News.com)
Wow FOX News, thanks for bringing obvious information to our attention. Apparently a new study conducted by Yale University shows young, lower income women, often gain more weight and tend to hold on to nearly 10% of it a year after delivering. This study included women between the ages of 14-25.
First off let me point out as a mom who gave birth to her first child at 17, and had preeclampsia due to poor eating habits I can understand why they came to this conclusion. Before getting pregnant I could live off of Mc Donald's and Twinkies without gaining a pound. Unfortunately, it was difficult to change those habits once I was with child. I think most 14-year-old's would choose to eat delicious crap over a well balanced diet. As a teen, and young adult, I figured eating A LOT of food (no matter what it was) was better for me and my growing baby then not eating enough. I could've saved Yale of a lot of money by also pointing out that people living in poorer economic conditions are more likely to be over weight because unhealthy food is cheaper, per calorie then nutritious choices. I could buy a dollar bag of potato chips and get 1000 calories, or I can buy the same dollars worth of carrots but only get 250. Add to that equation that most cheap fast foods are packed with refined sugars or obscene amounts of filling carbohydrates and you have a recipe for overweight individual.
Do you think poverty has a negative effect on pregnancy weight gain?
2 COMMENTS:
Yes and No, if I were poor I think I would be eating worse foods but less, because I wouldn't have anything I want near me. I find that sometimes if I want a certain brand of chips while pregnant, I just hop in the car and go get them, but if I didn't have the money I wouldn't be able to do it or would just have to eat whatever I had. I don't gain lots of weight while pregnant which is a shock and surprise, but I also think that the overall idea of being pregnant, eating for two and just the basic excuse of "cravings" is what causes the xtra xtra lbs.
I think our culture needs to take a lot of blame for the rise in teen pregnancy. That show teen mom although shows that being a teenage mother is hard, it also shows that those 4 or 5 girls are making it. Shows like the Secret life of the american teenager are even worse, because she's got a huge amount of support and help. Aside from TV the schools don't talk to the parents and the parents don't know what's going on in the schools no one is on the same page. The school preaches abstain while the parents allow their 15 yr old to have their boyfriend stay the night. I honestly thing that the schools should do more sex ed and less stay away from sex all together. I hate to say it but we can't trust parents to actually sit down and talk to their kids, we can't trust parents to hear their 13 yr old daughter when she says she wants to go on the pill. If a mother is bringing many men in the house all hours of the night then why wouldn't her son or daughter? But the schools, they just have to add it in the circu.
Stephanie, I have also used the excuse "I'm eating for 2" in my previous pregnancies. Thjs time around I've only been eating enough to nourish myself and my baby. I am blessed to be able to make good food choices, unfortunately its not that easy for everyone.
I knew I wasn't the only one who felt that way about Teen Mom and 16 and Pregnant. Don't get me wrong becoming a mom so young was the best thing that could happen to ME, but not all girls have the same experience. I agree that teaching abstinence is not going to fix the problem, it needs to be a combined effort between parents and schools. Thanks for commenting!
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