A glass of milk

GRATITUDE AND UNCONDITIONAL LOVE IS ONE OF THE MOST MOST IMPARTANT VALUES'.ONE NEED TO SPREAD AND INCULCATE THIS VALUS UNTO ONE'S LIFE.
THIS IS MY DESIRE.


One day, a poor boy who was selling goods from door to door to pay his way through school, found he had only one thin dime left, and he was hungry.
He decided he would ask for a meal at the next house. However, he lost
his nerve when a lovely young woman opened the door.


Instead of a meal he asked for a drink of water. She thought he looked hungry
so brought him a large glass of milk. He drank it slowly, and then asked,
How much do I owe you?


"You don't owe me anything," she replied. "Mother has taught us
never toaccept pay for a kindness.
"He said..... "Then I thank you from my heart.


"As Howard Kelly left that house, he not only felt stronger physically, but his faith in God and man was strong also. He had been ready to give up and quit.


Many year's later that same young woman became critically ill. The local doctors were baffled. They finally sent her to the big city, where they called in
specialists to study her rare disease.


Dr. Howard Kelly was called in for the consultation. When he heard the name of the town she came from, a strange light filled his eyes. Immediately
he rose and went down the hall of the hospital to her room.
Dressed in his doctor's gown he went in to see her.
He recognized her at once.


He went back to the consultation room determined to do his best to save her life. From that day he gave special attention to her case.


After a long struggle, the battle was won.


Dr. Kelly requested the business office to pass the final bill to him for approval.
He looked at it, then wrote something on the edge and the bill was sent to her room. She feared to open it, for she was sure it would take the
rest of her life to pay for it all. Finally she looked,
and something caught her attention on the
side of the bill. She read these words.....
"Paid in full with one glass of milk" ........ (Signed) Dr. Howard Kelly.




Tears of joy flooded her eyes as her happy heart prayed: "Thank You, God, that
Your love has spread broad through human hearts and hands.


"There's a saying which goes something like this: Bread cast on the waters comes back to you. The good deed you do today may benefit you or
someone you love at the least expected time.


If you never see the deed again at least you will have made the
world a better place -And, after all, isn't that what life is all about?


Now you have two choices. You can send this page on and spread a positive message. Or ignore it and pretend it never touched your heart.


The hardest thing to learn in life is which bridge to cross and which to burn...
"If God brings you to it - He will bring you through it " - Denny

TOTEM

Mein Totem ist die Schlange Was ist Dein Totem?

Promotion and support of breastfeeding

MEDLINE
Counseling Interventions Recommended to Promote and Support Breast-Feeding
News Author: Laurie Barclay, MDCME Author: Charles Vega, MD
Release Date: October 23, 2008;
Authors and Disclosures
Laurie Barclay, MDDisclosure: Laurie Barclay, MD, has disclosed no relevant financial relationships.

Charles Vega, MDDisclosure: Charles Vega, MD, has disclosed an advisor/consultant relationship to Novartis, Inc.

Laurie Scudder, MS, NP-CDisclosure: Laurie Scudder, MS, NP-C, has disclosed no relevant financial information.

Brande Nicole MartinDisclosure: Brande Nicole Martin has disclosed no relevant financial information.


October 23, 2008 — The US Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) has issued an updated statement recommending counseling interventions during pregnancy and after birth to promote and support breast-feeding. The updated guidelines and evidence review are published in the October 21 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine.
"In children, breastfeeding has been associated with a reduction in the risk for acute otitis media, nonspecific gastroenteritis, severe lower respiratory tract infections, atopic dermatitis, childhood leukemia, and the sudden infant death syndrome," write Mei Chung, MPH, from Tufts-New England Medical Center Evidence-Based Practice Center in Boston, Massachusetts, and coauthors of the accompanying evidence review. "In mothers, a history of lactation has been associated with a reduced risk for type 2 diabetes and breast and ovarian cancer. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, some of the obstacles to initiation and continuation of breastfeeding include insufficient prenatal education about breastfeeding, disruptive maternity care practices, and lack of family and broad societal support."
The goal of the evidence review was to evaluate the efficacy of primary care–based interventions to promote breast-feeding in breast-feeding rates and child and maternal health outcomes.
The reviewers performed electronic searches of MEDLINE, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, and CINAHL from September 2001 to February 2008 as well as references of selected articles. Inclusion criteria for the review were English-language publications describing randomized controlled trials of interventions initiated in primary care to promote breast-feeding, primarily in developed countries.
Pertinent data reviewed by the authors included characteristics of interventions and comparators, study setting and design, clinical and demographic characteristics of the study sample, the proportion of infants continuing to be breast-fed for various durations, and health outcomes in infant and mother.
Of 38 randomized controlled trials identified that met inclusion criteria, 36 took place in developed countries. Breast-feeding promotion interventions in developed countries were associated with significantly increased rates of short-term (1 - 3 months) and long-term (6 - 8 months) exclusive breast-feeding, based on random-effects meta-analyses. Rate ratios were 1.28 for short-term rates (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.11 - 1.48) and 1.44 for long-term rates (95% CI, 1.13 - 1.84).
Compared with either prenatal or postnatal interventions alone, combining prenatal and postnatal breast-feeding interventions had a greater effect on increasing breast-feeding durations, according to the results of subgroup analyses. In increasing the short-term breast-feeding rate, interventions associated with a component of lay support, such as peer support or peer counseling, were more effective than usual care.
Limitations of this review included clinical and methodologic heterogeneity, precluding extensive meta-analyses; and inability to obtain reliable estimates for the isolated effects of each component of multicomponent interventions.
"Evidence suggests that breastfeeding interventions are more effective than usual care in increasing short- and long-term breastfeeding rates," the review authors write. "Combined pre- and postnatal interventions and inclusion of lay support in a multicomponent intervention may be beneficial."
On the basis of the above-described systematic evidence review, the USPSTF evaluated the efficacy of interventions to promote and support breast-feeding that were initiated in, conducted in, or referred to primary care. The resulting guidelines are an update of the 2003 USPSTF recommendation on counseling to promote breast-feeding.
Because the USPSTF concluded that there was moderate certainty that interventions to promote and support breast-feeding have a moderate net benefit, the updated statement recommends interventions during pregnancy and after birth to promote and support breast-feeding (grade B level recommendation).
"There is convincing evidence that breastfeeding provides substantial health benefits for children and adequate evidence that breastfeeding provides moderate health benefits for women," write Ned Calonge, MD, MPH, from the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment in Denver, and colleagues. "Adequate evidence indicates that interventions to promote and support breastfeeding increase the rates of initiation, duration, and exclusivity of breastfeeding. No published studies focus on the potential direct harms from interventions to promote and support breastfeeding."
Although the review did not include a search for possible harms associated with breast-feeding itself, the USPSTF concluded that the potential harms of interventions to promote and support breast-feeding were no greater than small.
The task force noted that interventions including both prenatal and postnatal components may be most effective at increasing duration of breast-feeding, and they also recommended considering multiple intervention strategies. These may include formal breast-feeding education for mothers and their families, direct support of mothers during breast-feeding, training primary care staff regarding breast-feeding and various techniques for breast-feeding support, and peer support.
"Although the activities of individual clinicians to promote and support breastfeeding are likely to be positive, additional benefit may result from efforts that are integrated into systems of care," the statement authors conclude. "System-level interventions can incorporate clinician and team member training and policy development, and through senior leadership support and institutionalization, these initiatives may be more likely to be sustained over time. Although outside the scope of this recommendation and evidence review, community-based interventions to promote and support breastfeeding, such as direct peer-to-peer support, social marketing initiatives, workplace initiatives, and public policy actions, may offer additional sizeable benefits."
The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, US Department of Health and Human Services, supported this evidence review and statement. The authors of the statement have disclosed no relevant financial relationships.
Ann Intern Med. 2008;149:560-564, 565-582.
Clinical Context
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends breast milk as the preferred choice for feeding infants, and the goals of the Healthy People 2010 initiative includes a target of 75% of mothers initiating breast-feeding their infants. In the United States, the rate of new mothers initiating breast-feeding was 73% in 2005, and 20% of mothers breast-fed their infants exclusively for 12 months. These rates in 2005 were higher vs 2002.
In its last recommendation in 2003, the USPSTF recommended counseling to promote higher rates of breast-feeding. The current recommendation uses the results of a systematic review of data available from January 2007 to update this recommendation. The results of this review and new recommendation are described in the "Study Highlights."
Study Highlights
Breast-feeding has been associated with numerous health benefits for both mother and infant. Breast-feeding during infancy has been associated with lower rates of otitis media, respiratory tract infection, and gastrointestinal tract infection. Later in childhood, breast-fed children have a lower risk for asthma, obesity, and type 2 diabetes vs children who were not breast-fed. Finally, breast-feeding is associated with lower risks for breast and ovarian cancer in the mother.
The systematic review included 38 randomized controlled trials of primary care–initiated interventions to promote breast-feeding. Study settings included primary care offices, hospital settings, and patient homes. The majority of these studies were located in developed countries.
Overall, breast-feeding promotion increased the odds ratio of breast-feeding during 1 to 3 months by a factor of 1.28. These programs increased the odds ratio of breast-feeding during 6 to 8 months by 1.44.
One study from Belarus, a developing country, demonstrated that a program to promote breast-feeding not only improved rates of breast-feeding but also reduced rates of gastrointestinal tract infection and atopic dermatitis in children.
Many interventions used multiple modalities to promote breast-feeding, so it was difficult to identify the most effective individual tool to increase the rate of breast-feeding. However, interventions built into health systems seemed to be the most effective, and combining prenatal and postnatal interventions was more effective than either type of intervention alone.
Interventions involving lay workers appeared more effective than usual care in promoting higher rates of breast-feeding.
No harms were reported in research studying interventions to support breast-feeding.
Overall, the USPSTF gives a grade B recommendation to interventions to promote and support breast-feeding. This level means that there is a high certainty of a moderate degree of benefit for these interventions or that a moderate certainty that the benefit is moderate to substantial.
The authors of the current recommendation call for further research into the individual components of breast-feeding promotion programs as well as cost-benefit analyses of these programs.
Pearls for Practice
Breast-feeding during infancy has been associated with lower rates of otitis media, respiratory tract infection, and gastrointestinal tract infection. Later in childhood, breast-fed children have a lower risk for asthma, obesity, and type 2 diabetes vs children who were not breast-fed. Finally, breast-feeding is associated with lower risks for breast and ovarian cancer in the mother.
The USPSTF recommends measures to promote and support breast-feeding in the prenatal and postnatal periods (a grade B recommendation).

Ultimi sprazzi d'estate.

Foto fatte nel mo giardinetto.

"I corbezzoli erano squisiti"

Pubblicità occulta

LONDON - SORTING OUT SUMMER PICS

Gardens

Hare Krishna Festival

Hooked to internet (internet point)

At the gate of British Musem

Havc you ever seen a real dog toilet ?

Dafne has just seen some swans

Red phone boot

A very sociable squirrel

Waterfalls in background

Notizie interessanti

Siamo troppo puliti?
Le insidiose trappole dell’igiene
Meno germi, più allergie. Ora questa ipotesi si estende al diabete e ai tumori
(da www.napscompany.com)L’«ipotesi igienica» non è più una curiosità come sembrava quando fu proposta, alla fine degli Anni Ottanta, dall’epidemiologo britannico David Strachan, che attribuiva alla minore esposizione ai germi durante l’infanzia l’aumento delle malattie allergiche nei Paesi più ricchi. A conferma della sua teoria diversi studi mostravano come la probabilità di soffrire di eczema, raffreddore da fieno, o asma era più bassa tra chi aveva molti fratelli, aveva frequentato l’asilo nido fin dai primi mesi di vita, o comunque, vivendo in contesti socioeconomici più sfavorevoli, aveva contratto l’epatite A, la salmonellosi o altre malattie che si trasmettono in condizioni igieniche inadeguate. «Oggi a queste prove indirette si sono aggiunti esperimenti di laboratorio e studi su modelli animali — spiega Paolo Maria Matricardi, che attualmente è senior scientist presso il Dipartimento di pneumologia e immunologia pediatrica dell’Università di medicina Charité di Berlino —. Esaminando l’incidenza di allergia nei militari, per esempio, abbiamo dimostrato che l’effetto protettivo, più che dalle infezioni respiratorie, che anzi possono innescare l’asma, viene da germi trasmessi da mani poco pulite e da cibi contaminati».
L’ipotesi igienica si è intanto estesa: le difese dell’organismo umano, non dovendosi cimentare con le molteplici infezioni cui è stato esposto per millenni, si rivolgerebbero non solo contro elementi di per sé innocui, come nelle malattie allergiche, ma anche verso tessuti e organi propri, scatenando malattie autoimmuni, come il diabete, la sclerosi multipla o il morbo di Crohn. Per studiare l’applicazione della teoria igienica al diabete di tipo 1 l’Unione europea ha stanziato 6 milioni di euro. Si è osservato, infatti, che in Finlandia il diabete è 6 volte più comune che in Russia e che in alcune regioni della Russia sono più frequenti le infezioni intestinali: il progetto Diabimmune, dovrà stabilire, indagando su 7 mila bambini, se c’è un legame tra queste due circostanze. La linea di ricerca più innovativa e di cui si è finora meno sentito parlare, però, è quella che riguarda i tumori, perché anche la loro genesi è tenuta sotto controllo dal sistema immunitario. Si è partiti dall’osservazione che i bambini inseriti al nido nei primi mesi di vita hanno un rischio ridotto di ammalarsi di leucemia infantile, o di sviluppare da grandi il linfoma di Hodgkin, tumore del sistema linfatico che è meno frequente anche nei giovani con più fratelli maggiori.
«Anche le difese immunitarie contro i tumori vengono attivate dal contatto con i germi, soprattutto dalle componenti di alcuni batteri, chiamate endotossine, — spiega il professor Giuseppe Mastrangelo, del Dipartimento di medicina ambientale e sanità pubblica dell’Università di Padova — con cui vengono particolarmente a contatto alcune categorie professionali, come gli allevatori e i lavoratori dei cotonifici». «Chi lavora nelle stalle, per esempio, ha cinque volte meno probabilità di avere un cancro al polmone rispetto ai contadini che non allevano animali — prosegue l’epidemiologo padovano — . Il rischio diminuisce quante più sono le mucche da accudire e torna ad aumentare col tempo se gli allevatori cambiano lavoro. In maniera analoga, le addette alla lavorazione del cotone sembrano protette, oltre che nei confronti del tumore al polmone, anche verso il tumore al seno, al fegato, allo stomaco, al pancreas. E pure in questo caso l’effetto protettivo è tanto maggiore quanto più intenso e lungo è stato il contatto con l’endotossina, presente nella polvere di cotone, così come nel letame».
Roberta Villa18 ottobre 2008(ultima modifica: 19 ottobre 2008)
Corriere della Sera on line

Domande

Ormai sono molti anni che lavoro presso una Clinica Universitaria e ancora non riesco a capire che cosa c'è che non va.

• Perché nessuno tiene presente l'EBM ( medicina basata sull'evidenza) e tutti agiscono in modo completamente soggettivo?
• Perché non esistono protocolli sull'assistenza ?
• Perché non si tiene conto delle effettive attitudini e delle competenze delle persone che qui lavorano?
• Perché non viene premiato chi effettivamente lavora mentre chi non fa niente ha tutte le strade aperte?
• Perché sembra tutto statico ed immutabile?

C'è qualcuno in grado di rispondere a queste domande?

Buone notizie per gli internauti (appassionati di internet)

RICERCA USA
Internet? Rende più intelligenti
Le ricerche sul web sarebbero un'utile palestra per il cervello di adulti e anziani
Le prestazioni intellettuali di adulti e anziani che usano Internet sono migliori (Newpress) Sarà poi vero che Internet rende più stupidi? Pare proprio di no, visto che una ricerca scientifica indica che le prestazioni intellettuali di adulti e anziani che navigano sul web migliorano e che il cervello viene positivamente stimolato dalle ricerche online, acquisendo migliori funzionalità. Pubblicata sull'American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, la ricerca è di Gary Small, dell'Istituto di Neuroscienze e comportamento Umano dell'Università di Los Angeles. «Le ricerche su Internet - spiega Small - richiedono una complicata attività cerebrale, e potrebbero aiutare ad allenare e migliorare le funzionalità del cervello».
RISONANZA MAGNETICA - Pochi mesi si è acceso un vivace dibattito su cosa significhi per il cervello l'era Google: il dubbio instillato da esperti è che le nuove tecnologie impigriscano la memoria e appiattiscano le nostre possibilità cognitive. Ma a giudicare da questo studio non è vero che Internet ci renda stupidi, anzi. Gli esperti hanno eseguito per la prima volta uno studio con la risonanza magnetica funzionale sul cervello di volontari tra 55 e 76 anni mentre questi navigavano sul web e facevano ricerche online; come test di controllo la risonanza è stata effettuata anche mentre leggevano un libro. Solo una parte dei volontari era già pratica di Internet. È emerso è che l'uso di Internet attiva aree cerebrali in più rispetto alla lettura, soprattutto aree frontali e temporali, sedi decisionali del cervello e fulcri del ragionamento complesso. A risentire più positivamente dell'uso di Internet erano i volontari già abituati ad usarlo: il loro cervello si attiva tantissimo, molto più che quello dei novizi per la prima volta 'caduti nella rete. Secondo i neurologi, quindi, l'uso di Internet, con un pò di esperienza, può essere un buon esercizio per tenere allenato il cervello e migliorarne le performance cognitive.

14 ottobre 2008
Corriere della sera on line

TEN TOP REASONS TO BREASFEED

Come and see the 10 top reasons to breastfeed

http://www.babyfriendly.ca/challenge/2008/BFC2008_Top10_Handout.pdf

Un amico speciale

Kuty ancora cucciolo con Eka
Still a puppy


Un primo piano
A closer look


Amici nemici - Questa è Celestina la nostra gatta
Friends enemies- This is Celestina our cat

Questo è Kuty il nostro cane. Ogni volta che torno a casa è sempre felice di vedermi e lo dimostra chiaramente. Anche se sono di cattivo umore, riesce a farmi dimenticare i problemi che ho ed a farmi sorridere.

This is Kuty our dog. When I come back home he is always happy to see me and he shows it clearly. Even if I'm unhappy, he makes me forget my problems and makes me smile.

Questo, invece, è il gatto del nostro vicino che prende il sole sul barbecue.

This is our neighbour's cat tanning on the barbecue.

Mariana, la bambola che allatta al seno

In una società dove si vedono bambole che prendono il ciuccio ed il biberon, come fanno i bambini ad immaginare che i cuccioli d'uomo possano essere allattati al seno dato che raramente incontrano altri bimbi allattati dalle loro mamme?

In Brasile un gruppo di donne produce delle bellissime bambole di pezza che partoriscono per via vaginale e allattano al seno, si chiamano Mariana , ce ne sono di diversi tipi e sono veramente un'idea originale per un regalo fatto con amore ( non ho alcun interesse economico ).

Amiche - My dear friends

Orgogliosa del pancione

Proud of her belly

Orgogliosissimi dopo nove mesi...

Very proud after nine months...









La gioia di allattare al seno

The joy of breastfeeding

Il sostegno alle mamme che allattano

Il 4 Ottobre 2008, presso la Casa Internazionale delle Donne, il Gruppo Allattamento al Seno del Collegio delle Ostetriche di Roma e La Leche League, nell'ambito della Settimana Mondiale dell'Allattamento al Seno promossa dal WABA, hanno organizzato un'incontro che aveva come tema IL SOSTEGNO ALL'ALLATTAMENTO AL SENO.

Sono intervenute diverse figure professionali: ostetriche, psicologhe, pediatri, Consulenti Professionali per l'allattamento al seno IBCLC e mamme organizzate tra loro per sostenere altre mamme (aiuto tra pari).

Sono stati evidenziati i concetti di empowerment (rendere potente) , ascolto attivo e counselling basilari nel sostegno alle mamme.

Alla fine alcune mamme hanno raccontato le loro esperienze di sostegno e di... mancato sostegno che hanno commosso tutta la platea.

Presenti erano anche tante studentesse/ studenti del Corso di Laurea in Ostetricia che, spero, abbiano fatto tesoro di quanto è stato detto e che facciano in modo che le donne che incontreranno nel corso della loro vita professionale, vengano accolte, rispettate e sostenute.

Pubblicità Progresso negli Stati Uniti

Versioni proposte di Pubblicità Progresso per promuovere 'allattamento al seno

Le prime due versioni sono state contestate perchè troppo forti, la prima metteva in evidenza i rischi all'apparato respiratorio a causa del non allattamento, la seconda evidenziava i rischi di diabete: vedete le tettarelle?A qualcuno non sono piaciute le correlazioni.

Le lobby produttrici di latte artificiale sono potenti, molto potenti!

L'ultima, edulcorata, è stata accettata!

NB Se "cliccate" sulle immagini le vedrete ingrandite con la scritta originale.

La fotografia di un'ovulazione

Per la prima volta, per caso, durante un'intervento chirurgico è stata fotografata l'ovulazione in una donna.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7447942.stm

Traumatic births

GUERILLA MOTHERING: Mama’s baby drama doesn’t have to cause traumaBy LESLEA HARMONLocal Columnist
The Wall Street Journal recently ran an article about Post Traumatic Stress Disorder in new mothers. Evidently, traumatic hospital births with a lot of medical interventions are leaving moms severely emotionally scarred. Imagine that! Someone comes into your hospital room, you’re already half-naked, scared, and in pain, and tells you that the baby you’ve carried and dreamed of for so long might die if they don’t do a certain procedure right away-and even then, no guarantees you’re going home with your little one. Yeah, I’d call that a little traumatic.I’ve not written much about it in this column, but I am one fortunate woman when it comes to birth experience. My first child was one of your stock “high intervention” births, with most of the trimmings. Thank God for Dr. Kegel and his famous pelvic floor exercises, or my son would have been delivered by C-section, I’m quite sure. As it happened, he was born out of my numbed-to-the-point-of-paralysis body after a long night of drugs, having my water broken, and lying around practically tied to a hospital bed, as nervous as though a firing squad was waiting for me on the other side of labor. The very moment he was born, I held my arms out for him, desperate to hold him — but the Dr. took him away immediately to be examined on the other side of the room. I still tear up, just thinking about it, seven years and two additional births later. Is that a sign of trauma? I don’t know. Of all the people to espouse opinions on birth trauma, it’s funny that I don’t feel more confident to speak on this one. In my mid-20s, I was diagnosed with PTSD, myself, following a series of incidents that were outside my control. I received treatment and eventually found healing after years of work and devotion. It was a long time before I forgot I’d ever had PTSD, but eventually that day came, and I realized I’d made it through the woods. Thank God.Sometimes, though, I’m reminded of what it was like — mostly, when I hear about someone else’s suffering. There was that sweet soldier, Joseph Dwyer, whose photo so famously ran in media across the world as the very face of American compassion in Iraq — following his suicide, stories of his PTSD were ubiquitous. Prior to that, a student in my journaling class spoke up to mention he counsels soldiers returning from combat, often suicidal and suffering from PTSD. Stuff like that reminds me I once had PTSD. I remember, but move on.When it comes to birth, I don’t think I was traumatized-not severely. Sure, it was once heartbreaking, and true to the checklist of PSTD characteristics, I felt an overwhelming desire to avoid going back to the hospital (or the doctor’s office), but, really — I’ve had it much worse. Like so many moms, I was just glad to go home with a reasonably healthy baby! He gave me plenty to focus on, and I was way too in love with him to give much thought to my own mental health.While pregnant the second time, I stumbled into some books on birth, including “Birthing From Within,” by Pam England. That book dealt with traumatized mothers, and if you or someone you know might be in need of some help dealing with lingering birth trauma, I highly recommend it. What it did for me, as a disappointed (but eager to try again) birther was empower me to make decisions about my birth. I chose to go natural the second time. I hired a doula. I limply attempted to do breathing training. I succeeded in having a natural birth in the hospital-but my second son was born “sunny side up,” which meant his face was pointing up instead of down when he bulldozed his way into the world. It hurt. A lot. Still, with my loving doula Kim at my side, I came through it in victory. I did hold my baby on my chest, he was completely healthy, and even though having him that way was the hardest thing I have ever done physically, I really did it my way. Looking back on that, the worst I can ascribe to the hospital or its staff was a petty series of annoyances. No trauma, no drama, just get out of the way of this mama!Considering the confusion of my first birth, and the pain of my second, I chose to try homebirth the third time. I spent the entire nine months (seriously), planning for it, and my training paid off. I journaled about the upcoming birth nearly every day. I lined up my supportive friends. I had a caring midwife, as well as an OB/GYN (not as caring, but he was around), and my doula was back. My husband and I went to Bradley classes, and we invested in a library of resources on homebirth. Little by little, I accepted that we human beings really have been giving birth at home, naturally, for thousands of years. Lo and behold, my body managed a very easy birth with the support of loving friends and attendants. It hurt, but not for long, and I never even had to push. Contractions just carried my third child out of me, like a wave crashing into the beach. There he was. Healthy, serene, perfect. There is a photo of me, smiling, holding him in my arms, immediately after he was born. I had finally outrun those birth demons, and what a prize. It was the most beautiful thing I have ever done, and it truly changed my life. I went on to change careers, write a book, visit a monastery for a week, play roller derby — all kinds of things that I still think are not as cool as having a homebirth, but I would perhaps not have had the confidence to do, had I not named and claimed the birth of my third miracle child. That is the total opposite of trauma, without a doubt.I know I was fortunate. I had a healthy child, I was a healthy mom, and there were no complications. I had great (double) pre-natal care, and all was well. But, honestly, I can’t help but wonder-what if all births were approached this way? What if all births were prepared for as if they would be healthy and natural, not riddled with fear and pain? What if television shows involving the “birth in the taxi cab” plotline didn’t climax for once with a panting woman screeching through perfect makeup about how much pain she was in? What if all the reality shows based out of hospital rooms were outlawed, outright? What if we just looked at birth, as a culture and as a society, for the true joy it is and not just for the addition of a new baby, but for the accomplishment that a woman’s body is able to do? That might just be outright empowering for moms, instead of traumatizing. Imagine.I’m grateful for health care professionals and the training they complete in order to save lives and prevent tragedies-but if the intervention is causing PTSD in moms, perhaps it’s time to back off a little, and take a different tact. There’s more to birth than fear, blood and guts. Let’s stop scaring moms, and start giving them the tools they need to go into birth with confidence-no matter where they choose to birth. There has to be a better way.To learn more about PTSD, visit the National Center for PostTraumatic Stress Disorder online at ncptsd.va.gov/ncmain/index.jsp (geared toward veterans), or talk to your health care provider.Leslea M. Harmon is a freelance writer, wife, and mother, in New Albany, IN. She can be reached at Leslea.Harmon@gmail.com, or online at lmharmon.com

telefoni cellulari e bambini

Telefoni cellulari e bimbi: invito alla prudenza
Secondo un ricerca svedese l'uso dei telefoni cellulari sembra destinato ad aumentare di cinque volte il rischio di tumore al cervello per bambini e teenager perché hanno il cranio più sottile e quindi le radiazioni emesse dai cellulari penetrano con maggiore profondità e nocività.
La ricerca sui cellulari è stata coordinata dal professor Lennart Hardell, dell'università di Orebro, ed arriva a sostenere che il rischio di tumore al cervello si quintuplica per bambini e adolescenti anche se vivono in abitazioni dove ci sono telefoni fissi senza fili. Il prof. Hardell è convinto che i bambini sotto i 12 anni dovrebbero far uso di telefonino "soltanto in casi di emergenza" mentre gli adolescenti dovrebbero servirsi dei congegni di 'viva voce' e "concentrarsi sui messaggini". Si dovrebbero adottare queste precauzioni fino all'età di vent'anni quando il cervello arriva al suo definitivo sviluppo. Lo studioso svedese avverte che non si può escludere una vera e propria epidemia di tumori al cervello provocata dall'uso del telefonino durante l'infanzia e l'adolescenza per il futuro perché in parecchi casi ci vogliono decenni prima che il cancro si manifesti. In particolare, il rischio riguarda di due tipi di tumore: glioma e neuroma acustico, il secondo benigno ma spesso causa di sordità. La settimana scorsa il parlamento europeo ha votato con 522 voti su 16 l'urgenza di sollecitare i paesi membri a raccomandare limiti più stretti all'esposizione dei bambini a radizioni di telefoni cellulari, telefoni senza fili, wi-fi e altri dispositivi, poichè il loro sistema nervoso si sta ancora sviluppando.
25/9/2008 Redazione bambinonaturale