Category: Science
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Don’t Fear Sunday’s Child – A Look At Today’s Headlines On Weekend Births
If I was pregnant at the moment I suspect I’d find today’s headlines pretty scary. They report that giving birth at the weekend, something most women can not control or predict, puts babies lives at risk. It would be great if we could dismiss this as yet another case of media hype, a rouge press…
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A Mum’s Guide To Dodgy Science: Publication By Press Release
Sometimes, it sucks being a grown up. I’ve actually had enough time to write some blog posts recently but other events have left me with a lack of motivation for anything other than eating cake and reading Tudor crime novels under a blanket (it’s a fairly niche slump). Anyway, in an attempt to drag myself…
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Acupuncture For All – On the NHS?
I was really disappointed to read this article today in the Guardian, The general gist is that some doctors think acupuncture works and should be available on the NHS with all doctors learning at least a little about it in training and midwives being trained to administer it to ease labour pain. According to the…
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Why It’s Not Science V Nature
Getting back to nature seems to be increasingly important to many people. Wander about health advice on the internet or in print and you’ll soon find stories about how eating, living and parenting like our wilder ancestors will make us happier and healthier. That we can, if we learn from them, get back to a…
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C Section Rates – The Economist Edition
So I was going to take a break from blogging this month. It’s the school holidays and I’ve been trying to juggle childcare, work and my new sideline reviewing festivals (check out the fab Festival Kidz website btw). Frankly, I’m exhausted. But, MrSB sent me an article in the Economist and now I’m sneaking back in…
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Should You Eat Your Placenta?
In 1998 Chanel 4 was was reprimanded by the broadcasting standards commission for a program in which a TV chef helped a new mother cook up placenta pate to serve to party guests. At the time it was judged to be a taboo and considered “disagreeable to many”. Things have changed a lot since 1998.…
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Are Women Losing The Ability To Give Birth Naturally?
Or, Has Michael Odent finally jumped the shark dolphin…* Has something happened that is stopping women from performing the most ordinary but amazing act in nature? Well according to French surgeon and Obstetrician Michael Odent it has. But I’m not so sure… Firstly big hat tip to Kiran Chug who has already blogged about this…
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The Measles Vaccine – With Extra Life Saving Bonus
Or – why science is amazing and wonderful and cool. Two things happened this week which reminded me just how fascinating science, and especially biology, (sorry Prof. Brian Cox) can be. Firstly I gave a tour of our lab to some non scientists. I had 45 minutes to fill and it was a little daunting.…
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Normal Not Normal
A #MatExp post N is for Normal Today we reached N in the #MatExp ABC and that brings me to “Normal” birth. Regular readers of this blog will have noted that I tend to put normal in ” ” and may also have guessed that that is because I’m not very keen on the the…
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The WHO Recommended Caesarean Section Rate (2015 Edition)
Yesterday the World Health Organisation (WHO) issued a statement about Caesarean sections- the title was: Caesarean sections should only be performed when medically necessary This was, of course, picked up by the press, with The Guardian pretty much copy-pasting the headline. So, does the WHO have some striking new evidence that there are far too many…
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