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pregnant vaccination

Pregnancy immunisation

If you are pregnant, getting a flu vaccine is not only a good idea for your health, but also the health of your unborn baby.

Varicose veins

We've got a few tips on how to deal with varicose veins in pregnancy and talk through the treatment options.

Thrush in pregnancy

Thrush can't affect the baby when it is in utero, but if a woman has thrush when she gives birth, a baby can develop an infection.

Family's terrible loss

The day after her third baby was born, Megan Menlove was diagnosed with terminal cancer - many of her symptoms had been dismissed as part of pregnancy.

Constipation in pregnancy

Getting blocked up is just part of pregnancy. Here are some hints to help prevent constipation and haemorrhoids.

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PREGNANT

Bed rest and prems

Having a short cervix increases a pregnant woman's chance of delivering prematurely, and a new study suggests going on bed rest does nothing to allay that risk.

Crying newborn

Best places to give birth

New Zealand narrowly missed the top 10 list of the best countries to give birth in- with a one in 3300 chance of dying during pregnancy or childbirth.

Pill

Iodine and poor tests

Even a mild iodine deficiency in pregnant or breastfeeding women could lead to children who perform poorly in tests.

sonogram

Ending a high risk pregnancy

It was around the 12-week mark that joy gave way to heartbreak, as tests revealed serious health issues for the baby.

preg fitness

Pregnancy and exercise

Can you exercise when you are pregnant and how much is too much?

A pregnant woman

A high risk pregnancy

High risk. I'm not sure if I've ever heard two more frightening words. For the consultant who used them at the hospital last month, they probably rolled off the tongue.

Pills

Antidepressants and growth

Despite concerns that antidepressant use during pregnancy could affect infants' growth and development, a small new study finds no size differences.

Vitamins

Omega-3 may prolong pregnancy

For pregnant women, supplements of an omega-3 fatty acid may help to reduce the likelihood of giving birth very prematurely, according to a new study.

Pregnant driving

Driving while pregnant

New research in New Zealand shows that motor vehicle crashes involving pregnant women accounts for more than half of the country's foetal deaths.

A pregnant woman

Buckle up

Despite some women's worry that seat belts or air bags could harm a baby in utero in the case of a car accident, belting up is the best option.

IVF alternatives

Stress impacts unborn babies

The placenta of a pregnant woman absorbs more than just nutrition and oxygen, a new study has found.

sonogram

The medical maternity journey

My maternity care journey in London has begun, and I can already see it's going to be very, very different from my first pregnancy. My experience of being pregnant in Wellington was overwhelmingly positive.

Erin Coulter and her daughter Grace

Fight to prevent allergies in the womb

Allergies, asthma and eczema could be "turned off" in babies by mothers taking probiotics during pregnancy and breastfeeding, researchers say.

Doctor

Folic acid tied to lower autism

Women who took extra folic acid in the weeks before and just after becoming pregnant were less likely to have a child with autism, in a new study from Norway.

A pregnant woman

Birth defects in multiples rising

The number of birth defects among twins and triplets increased nearly two-fold in 14 European countries between 1984 and 2007, according to a new study.

belly

Obstetric cholestasis: the facts

Obstetric cholestasis is a complication of pregnancy where pregnancy hormones (particularly oestrogen) affect the liver by preventing the flow of bile into the intestines.

busy phillips

I'm not fat, I'm pregnant

OPINION: Does pregnancy make you feel 'fat and unattractive', or is your body image not such a big deal when you're growing a baby?

belly

Supplement reduces diabetes risk

A nutritional supplement called myo-inositol may help protect women at risk for gestational diabetes, according to a small pilot study.

preg ill

"Dystextia" could save lives

A misspelled text from a pregnant woman to her husband may have saved her life, the new phenomenon of garbled English which indicates illness in text communications has been named "dystextia" by doctors.

Woman at gym drinking water

BPA common in pregnant women

A recent Australian study found that the majority of pregnant women have a chemical in their urine that's believed to cause behavioural issues in children.

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