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Old 02-26-2004, 05:44 PM   #1  
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Unhappy Whom ever wants a baby...read this!

http://www.thebostonchannel.com/heal...00/detail.html


I am such at risk! And please note...even "skinny" people can have gestational diabetes.....but obviously obese women are put at a greater risk. It is bad enough that I have read several studies saying that overweight mothers have a higher chance of having a child with a heart defect....my first born...was born with a critical life threatening heart defect
Was it because I was "obese"? (Or I like to put it "overweight"! ) Who knows....but it is bad enough when you have chronically ill infant of any kind...you automaticly blame yourself!!!!! Especially being the mom...and having the baby grow inside of you for hopefully the full 40 weeks. Being overweight is a bad enough stigma while pregnant (I know, I have done it twice!) and their is a lot of not so fat friendly doctors, nurses, and others in the medical establishment .

Geeze, I saw this article on the local news and almost cried to find out that maybe my poor Aidan's breathing issues (just diagnosed Asthma/reactive airway disease) was caused by me!!!! I know there is no use to blame myself....but it just makes me really sad that I perhaps could have prevented this. So, please ladies.....before we have decided to get preggo again...let's get healthy by eating healthier and working out and moving our bodies! Thanks!

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Big Babies Could Spell Big Health Issues
Study Finds Link Between Bigger Babies, Gestational Diabetes

POSTED: 4:16 p.m. EST February 26, 2004
UPDATED: 5:41 p.m. EST February 26, 2004

BOSTON -- Bigger doesn't always mean better, especially when it comes to babies.

NewsCenter 5's Liz Brunner reported that mothers who have diabetes when they're pregnant tend to have bigger children, and that can lead to other problems for both mother and baby.

Tina Allen is expecting her third child and experiencing her third case of gestational diabetes.

Allen said she is careful about what she eats and is able to manage her condition through her diet.

"I know what I can eat and what I can't eat. Occasionally, I'll stretch the diet a little bit to see if I can have something more," said Allen.

A new study of hundreds of thousands of women showed gestational diabetes is up 35 percent since 1991. A family history is just one of several factors that increase risk.

"(Other risks include) women who are overweight, who tend to be older, closer to 40 than 25, women from a population that has an increased risk of Type 2 diabetes," said Dr. Phillip McCrary of Newton-Wellesley Hospital.

Doctors urge women to get screened for gestational diabetes between the sixth and seventh months of pregnancy.

Experts say the best defenses against the disease are the old standbys -- diet and exercise.

"I've always tried for many years now to eat nutritious healthy food, wholesome food," said mother Heidrun Jacobi.

Babies born to mothers with gestational diabetes may be premature, or can be too large, leading to delivery complications or caesarean sections.

The babies are also at greater risk of breathing problems, obesity and developing diabetes themselves.

Allen's watching her children carefully, and is confident they'll beat the odds, despite her gestational diabetes.

"They were monitored when born, no signs of diabetes, and to this day they show no signs, but they are both very active and they eat good, balanced diets," said Allen.

Although the gestational form of the disease goes away after a woman delivers, she is then has an increased risk of developing diabetes later in life.

Last edited by Monkeybabies; 02-26-2004 at 05:52 PM.
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Old 02-26-2004, 06:43 PM   #2  
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Or, you could adopt
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Old 02-26-2004, 07:15 PM   #3  
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Don't put yourself on a guilt trip Gina. It just says that being overweight is a risk factor (same as being closer to 40 than 25) and not conclusive evidence. I had a friend who had gestational diabetes and she was 5' tall and weighed 112lbs. full term! In fact, I weighed less full term than I do now and managed to give birth to an asthmatic daughter. Of course, I don't say this to deter you from achieving your healthy weight loss goals (you're doing great), I just don't think any of us need to feel any more guilty about our weight than we already do.

And yes, Angi, I believe there's a special spot in heaven for adoptive parents
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Old 02-27-2004, 02:42 AM   #4  
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Thanks guys....I knew you would understand....

And yes Angi...adoption is a great option. My DH and I have actually seriously talked about this....but we decided it might not be the right thing for our family. And this may sounds really silly...but if we would adopt...we would prefer a girl....because we already have two boys....but we wouldn't want anyone to ever think...including teh baby....that we wanted another child....because she was a girl. Are you following me here. And I know there is no guarentees either when you conceive a child...50 -50 % chance, right? LOL. So...if down the road we are serious about adopting a child...I know who to turn to forhelp answering my questions!!!!!!!
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Old 02-27-2004, 09:30 AM   #5  
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Gina....

Don't beat yourself up about this. As you know my son also has a heart defect. I know however that his heart defect is due to him also having Down Syndrome as almost half of the babies born with Down Syndrome are also born with some sort of heart defect.

Sure being obese is a big risk factor when pregnant. However there are tons of women whom are obese and having very healthy children. When I was pregnant with both my kids, I was obese. My daughter was the picture of perfect health, and my son wasn't...however my son's issues had nothing to do with me being obese(the doctors all told me this over and over again because I was blaming myself at first). It's just something that happens, and can happen to any woman of any age and of any weight.

So stop blaming yourself and just love your son for who he is, as I am sure you already do.
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Old 02-27-2004, 12:49 PM   #6  
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The reason there are so many MORE cases of gestational diabetes is because it's now routine to test for it. I don't know of ONE person who's been pregnant in the last 10 years that didnt' have their sugar checked and if border-line ... they had to do a gluclose tolerance test where you sat there and drank a bottle of 'coke syrup' and had your blood drawn every 15 minutes.

My sisters who had their kids in the late 60's early 70s were never tested. They were both smokers who delivered babies over 8lbs ... since smoking causes DECREASED birth weights ... these kids would have been HUGE. I don't smoke, I was diagnosed w/ gest.diab, and watched my diet and my daughter was full term, just over 6lbs and healthy.

Gina, one of the little advantages of adopting is that in many cases YOU do get to choose gender. If you choose a "waiting child" ... you know lots about this child, even hair and eye color!! If you wait to be matched things are a bit different ... the ageny (in Waltham) I used to adopt my son has a policy (sort of silly if you ask me) that you cannot specify the gender of first child, but if you have children in the home, they let you do it. You say "I want a boy cuz I love raising boys and want to match the family dynamic" or "I want a girl cuz I have two boys already". There is one exception ... if you choose to adopt from China, they'll let you request a girl, even if it is your first child because so few boys come out of China --- but contrary to the popular belief, SOME Chinese boys are adopted, so if you specify "either gender" you need to be prepared to accept a boy ...

This is way more info than you wanted ... isn't it.
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Old 02-28-2004, 03:46 AM   #7  
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More info yes...LOL....but really interesting and thought provoking. I did not know that...and my options just opened up some...thanks Steph!!!!!! I had no idea that you have adopted...that is wonderful!!! How old is he? Are all your kids adopted???
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Old 02-28-2004, 05:35 PM   #8  
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I was obese while pregnant and had no complications whatsoever. I gained 44 lbs, mostly all baby and fluid, which was all gone within 3 weeks of the birth. Of course it is always better to be in the best possible health before getting pregnant but I don't think that anyone should stop themselves from deciding to have a baby because of obesity.
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Old 02-28-2004, 11:32 PM   #9  
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Hey Jen ... I agree 100%. I only gained 27lbs while pg and at my 6 week checkup I was 11 pounds LIGHTER than before I got pg. I used to joke that all I needed to do to get rid of the excess weight was have another 8 kids

Gina, my oldest was adopted after a brief foray into infertility treatments. I had it in my head since I was a teen that I wanted to adopt and my husband knew that. So when biology didn't work for us, we had some major testing and some pretty non-invasive "help" ... but basically I had two issues ... I had a bit of difficulty getting pg AND I had trouble STAYING pg. So ... it wasn't a very difficult emotional decision for us to abandon the uncertainty of infertility treatment and go after the tedious, stressful but "more of a sure thing" adoption process. Like Angie's son, ours is from Korea. He joined our family when he was 5 1/2 months old ... he turned 7 on Christmas day.

My daugher, who will be 5 next week, is our "biological surprise". As my MD told me, if you are NOT using birth control, you shouldn't be surprised to be pregnant. But the reality of it was, I never expected it to happen and my husband was travelling for work at the time ... but like they tell teens "it only takes one time" ... AND, by using what had been learned during my unsuccessful pgs, I was able to stay pg. But I must confess, it was a VERY stressful time for me. My pg was very easy ... even w/ the Gest.Diab, but I was a headcase, I was afraid to get excited ... I was expecting problems, and of course I had the lovely situation of experiencing my "first" pregnancy and the 'terrible twos' at the same time ... my dd was born a month before my 40th b-day and I had my tubes tied the next day!!! When I first discussed this procedure w/ my MD, I told her that we thought that our family would be complete w/ 2 and that if we changed our minds we could always adopt. She laughed and said "I hear that all the time ... and really don't believe some people, but YOU, I believe ... you've already proven it!!"

Last edited by Step; 02-28-2004 at 11:37 PM.
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Old 02-29-2004, 01:58 AM   #10  
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Thanks for sharing your story. Awwwww, I love to hear about peoples personal lives on these boards...it gives a such a complete picture of everyone here. There is so much more in our lives than dieting and getting healthy (although it seems like lately that is all I think about).
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