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With pregnancy comes many lifestyle changes—you’re about to be responsible for a new human being, and on top of that, you’re likely trying to prioritize healthy choices to benefit both you and baby. If you’ve started to read up on lists of what you should or shouldn’t eat, you may be confused about where—or if—fish and other kinds of seafood can fit within your diet. We’re here to tell you that with a few exceptions, fish can and should be part of a healthy diet even when you’re expecting....

Anyone who’s ever had a smoking habit knows that quitting for good can be one of the most challenging obstacles they’ve ever faced. But it’s also one of the most rewarding, because by quitting you’re eliminating the single greatest source of preventable disease and death out there. That’s especially true if you’re thinking of starting a family, since about 20 to 30 percent of low birth weightin babies and 10 percent of all infant deaths can be blamed on smoking during pregnancy....

Morning sickness might get all the headlines, but anyone who has suffered from heartburn in pregnancy can tell you it’s no walk in the park. The acidity, the tummy fullness, the all-around discomfort—it’s no fun. If you’re struggling and looking to quell the burn (and all the other accompanying symptoms), know that you’re not alone: Pregnancy heartburn is normal and common. Of course, that doesn’t mean you should have to put up with ajada morning, noon and night....

For most new parents, it’s the eternal question: How to get baby to sleep? When it comes to putting baby down to sleep—and helping baby stay asleep—it can feel like mission impossible sometimes, especially in those first few days, weeks or even months with your newborn. That’s because no two babies are exactly alike, and there’s no one-size-fits-all strategy when it comes to how to get baby to sleep at night....

Feeling nauseous during pregnancy comes with the territory—about 70 to 80 percent of pregnant women experience morning sickness, according to research. But if you’re experiencing severe morning sickness and are retching on and off for most of the day, you may be dealing with a different beast: hyperemesis gravidarum (HG). So exactly what is hyperemesis gravidarum, what are the risks associated with it and is there treatment? Read on to learn everything you need to know about managing HG in pregnancy....

Co-sleeping has become a hot-button parenting practice Co-sleep with baby and you increase the risk of SIDS, the majority of pediatricians warn. Don’t co-sleep with baby and you miss out on an important bonding experience, co-sleeping parents say. It’s enough to keep an already overwhelmed mom up all at night (if she weren’t up already) and wishing: if only there were a happy medium. But guess what? There is. Read on to learn the myths and truths of co-sleeping and how to co-sleep safely....

Nobody knows. For several years many doctors have recommended that pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers avoid certain foods such as dairy products, peanuts and other nuts, seafood, etc. However, the general opinion in allergy and immunology is that exposure to small amounts of potential allergens (substances that cause allergy) actually helps prevent allergies. And breast milk passes on only very small amounts of potential allergens to the baby that, together with antibodies and other immune factors, will help baby develop a tolerance to these allergens....

First, know there’s no “right” or “wrong” answer to this one. Folks have all kinds of different opinions (and like it or not, you’ll probably hear more than a few), but it truly comes down to what you and your partner are comfortable with. Click through the articles below for more info. What do CVS and amniocentesis test for? Is my baby at increased risk for birth defects? Do CVS and amnio cause miscarriages?...

Yep. Perfectly normal. “Your metabolic rate is clearly increased in pregnancy, and your hormone levels are dramatically increased. Combine that with increased body mass and it’s very, very common for patients to have complaints of increased sweatiness,” says Michael P. Nageotte, MD, medical director of the MemorialCare Center for Women at Long Beach Memorial Medical Center and Miller Children’s Hospital Long Beach. You can’t really stop the sweating, but you can control any, uh, unpleasant odors....

The three founders of UpSpring still get a thrill whenever they overhear someone name-drop their earliest products. (That would be Walking Wings, which Dede Woodman invented as a back-saving way to hold on to her 10-month-old son without having to hunch over to help him walk, and Milkscreen, a test strip devised by a nursing Julie Jumonville that detects alcohol in breast milk.) “We’re just very excited about the path the company is on,” Woodman says....

It’ll happen suddenly: her pants will no longer button. This is a bittersweet day for your lovely wife. She is thrilled that your baby is growing inside her, but sad that her perfectly-fitting Saturday night jeans will be out of commission for 6-8 months time. When this happens, it’s time to buy some maternity clothes. Now, I know some pregnant women just buy several inexpensive oversized outfits, and they can generally make due with those for a while, but eventually, regardless of who they are, they’ll need to buy maternity clothes....

When it comes to feeding your baby, trust in your decision for what’s best for you and your family. Some mothers nurse their infants, some offer formula and some combo-feed. Some moms choose not to breastfeed, and some—for a variety of possible reasons—simply can’t. At the end of the day, fed is best. Still, there are some powerful benefits of breastfeeding that are important to know about. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends exclusively breastfeeding for six months, then gradually adding in solid foods while continuing to nurse through baby’s first year and beyond....

Wondering what your body will look like after your little one arrives? You’re not alone. Practically every mom-to-be thinks about it—a lot. That’s why we went straight to the source to ask moms who’ve been through it all what their body after baby is really like, and how they feel about it. And if you need a little motivation to get your pre-baby bod back, we got the scoop on that too....

So, you’re a breastfeeding working mom. You’ve returned to the grind, found your rhythm and you’re finally starting to feel like you’re getting the swing of this… And then just like that, boom — you’re confronted with your first business trip! Mine came right at my baby’s four month mark. While I was looking forward to the opportunity and education the trip provided, I was woeful over having to be separated from my little one and I thought that maintaining my exclusive breastfeeding relationship with my baby would prove difficult, if not impossible....

Love her or hate her, one thing is true: Whatever Kim Kardashian West does, it makes headlines. That was certainly the case when she revealed she planned on eating her placenta after the 2015 birth of her son, Saint, to help ward off postpartum depression. But eating the placenta after childbirth—clinically known as placentophagy—isn’t just a fringe Hollywood trend. With the purported benefits, from warding off the baby blues to boosting a woman’s breast milk production, it’s become a practice more women are looking into as they prepare for birth and delivery....

Four new moms suffered from postpartum depression for months, but just days after trying an experimental epilepsy drug, their symptoms were as good as gone. The women were each injected with a dose of SAGE-547 , a drug originally created by Sage Therapeutics to treat epileptic seizures. All four mothers had been admitted to the hospital, where they filled out a questionnaire called the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression. Results were bleak; on a scale where severe depression begins at level 24, they averaged a score of 26....

Punishing your kid has gone public, and one father is speaking out against it. From endless Facebook photo albums to lighthearted Instagram accounts, millions of adults document the highs and lows of parenthood through social media — but " kid shaming" is a growing problem, warns YouTube user mikeknowsbest. In the video, a father threatens to cut off his son’s hair as punishment for disrespecting him. At the last moment, he stops and tells him he loves him, and they share a hug before the little boy heads back indoors....

Talking about who should be baby’s legal guardian if the worst were to happen to you and your partner can be a really awkward conversation. Not only does the whole topic bring up thoughts of death, it’s also difficult to agree on who will best care for baby if both of you aren’t around. It’s not easy to say something like, “Well, I really think my sister would do a better job than your mother....

Communication between doctors and parents is essential, but it might not be effective at making change. In light of the resurgence of the vaccine controversy tied to last year’s measles outbreak, public health professionals are trying harder than ever to get moree parents on board with immunizations. But studies show educating parents on the safety and effectiveness of vaccines usually still won’t convince antivaxxers to change their minds. Seattle’s Group Health Research Institute decided to see if coaching doctors on effective parent communication could make a difference....

You’ll be able to breastfeed future children, but you will probably need to wean your current baby before starting this treatment. Radioactive iodine treatment (I-131) does enter your breast milk and could expose baby to radiation. It is recommended that nursing moms stop breastfeeding several days (or weeks) before the treatment begins and then pump and dump for several weeks after therapy to reduce the exposure of your breast tissue to radiation....