Folic Acid and Baby Health: Out of Quebec, Dr. Philippe De Wals of Université Laval published a study in which he reports that Canada experienced a 45% drop in babies born with neural tube defects (such as anencephaly and spina bifida) because of the fortification of flour with folic acid. The findings may affect public health policies in other countries, as presently, only Canada, Cuba, and the US require that folic acid be added to flour.

It happens in 1 in 55 million pregnancies: A 32-year-old Mexican woman gave birth to quintuplets, conceived without the aid of fertility treatments. The hospital reports that the three boys and two girls are in stable condition and doing well. Congratulations, mom, and we hope you have lots of help lined up!

Should twins, triplets, and higher order multiples be kept in the same classroom in school, or should there be a mandatory separation?

It all depends on who you ask.

Some parents of twins say that to be separated from each other is too hard on the kids, who have otherwise constantly been in each other’s company, and that the children’s performance is actually better together.

“It makes a huge difference to have that comfort zone there. They can then concentrate on their academic studies and not have to worry about, ‘Where is my brother?’” [one mother] says.

Other mothers feel that it is important to separate multiples in order to highlight each child’s individuality and to reduce competition. Whether the separation should be required, though, is another issue.

Not having twins, I can’t really say what I think would be best - though I tend to lean toward the group favoring a case-by-case basis for separation vs. keeping the kids together. Some children might learn best without the distraction of their siblings in the same room, and others might not be able to function well without that presence.

When was the last time that one solution made everyone happy, anyway?

Posted by Sunshining.

Incentive to bank cord blood? A small pilot study finds that preserved cord blood may be useful as a treatment therapy for children newly diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. Though early results do not promise a cure-all, a child’s own cord blood may help preserve the insulin-production capabilities he still has at the time of diagnosis.

Never too late? Controversial cable news personality Nancy Grace revealed that she recently wed an investment banker whom she has known since college, and that the pair are expecting twins, due next January. Ms. Grace, 47, declined to reveal whether or not she used fertility treatments to conceive. Ms. Grace shares that it is never too late to be lucky in love: “Tell women out there that there is hope.”

What’s in a name? Please welcome Autumn Sullivan Corbett Fitzsimmons Jeffries Hart Burns Johnson Willard Dempsey Tunney Schmeling Sharkey Carnera Baer Braddock Louis Charles Walcott Marciano Patterson Johansson Liston Clay Frazier Foreman Brown, daughter of British mommy Maria Brown. The newcomer has 25 middle names, all in honor of prize fighters. This, by the way, is a family tradition. Ms. Brown and her two siblings have 103 middle names among them.

Lotta Babies: An Arizona woman has given birth to sextuplets, three girls and three boys. The babies arrived ten weeks premature, and all but one weighed in at less than three pounds, but their doctor reports he’s pleased with their progress. The parents had tried for years to have children with no luck, so they turned to artificial insemination plus an ovulation-stimulating medication. It appears to have worked. The newcomers are named Bailey Elizabeth, Savannah Jane, Molli Grace, Cole Robert, Blake Nickolas, and Grant William.

What next? Out of the UK, the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists is advising pregnant women to avoid being in the sun, particularly in those first three months of pregnancy. The reason? A 2005 study found that babies who are exposed to high temperatures in utero early on are prone to low birth weight, which has been linked with lower IQ, learning disabilities, and behavior problems. Apparently, when a woman becomes overheated, her blood vessels contract as her body tries to cool itself; this restricts the flow of nutrients to the developing baby.

Does your mom still dress you? She does if you’re a side-blotched lizard. (Are you?) A new study published in the journal Ecology Letters finds that female side-blotched lizards give an extra helping of hormones to their offspring that gives them either long or horizontal stripes on their backs, permanently, depending on which type the mother senses will help the baby escape winding up as dinner for a snake.

Their name might ring a bell - they are the Duggar family.  And mom, Michelle, is due to give birth to their 17th child in the upcoming months.  Michelle is 40 years old and gave birth to their first child 19 years ago at age 21. Most of the 17 children were single births, with only 2 sets of twins. Yeah, do the maths - she has been pregnant most of her adult life. (Kudos to her for having the strength to do that!) And she apparently has no plans to stop.

Large families seem to be a thing from past generations.  But there are still many large families around!  Families, like people, come in all sizes.  I always wanted to be in a large family as a�kid.��While I�was growing up with just one brother, my best friend was from a family of 8 kids, and I used to LOVE going to their house for Sunday lunch!  And while she complained about sharing a bedroom with 3 sisters, I was thrilled to squeeze next to her�in her little pullout trundle bed for a sleepover.

I always try to look at something from many angles.  As a mom who at times finds it difficult to balance the needs of three kids, I wondered if these kids were getting enough special “mommy time”.  But they have a bigger brother/sister to “buddy” with, so what they lack in individual parental attention is certainly made up with family love.  And as a mom who often struggles to find some “me” time, I applaud Michelle for being able to make their family unit work so well!  (And gosh if I don’t feel selfish right now!)

The Duggars seem like wonderful loving parents - and I am sure their family is blessed.  I guess all I can say is that this is their individual choice, and if they can accomplish this independently without “living off the system”, great for them.

But one thing keeps bugging me.  They have given a lot of media interviews and have even had reality shows taped of their family life.  Is it worth it to display your family in a reality TV show and open them up to the often cruel criticism of strangers to be able to finance yourself to have even more kids? Again, it is their choice.  While I would expect someone (with fewer brain cells) like Ozzie Osbourne or Gene Simmons to do this, it surprises me that the Duggars have.

Well, I will close my post with this.  If I could ask Michelle Duggar one question… I would ask her how in the world does she find the time, privacy and energy to make the next kid?

Posted by Meganlux.

Ahhh, my celebrity baby fix for the day. People magazine has done a lovely cover and spread on Desperate Housewives star, Marcia Cross, and her two baby girls born February 20 of this year. Not only does she look wonderful (all airbrushing aside) but the girls are adorable.

My fave snip-it from the article, when talking about how she’s handling motherhood, the author mentions that she’s breastfeeding both! Way to go Marcia!!

Posted by Dorian.

After years of struggling with infertility and after spending a small fortune in treatments, Suzanne Sanchez was finally pregnant. She went in at six weeks and discovered that she was having triplets.

Great news, right? Imagine this:

My mouth fell open. My husband had to steady himself against the wall. There was no jumping for joy at the tiny heartbeats. I continued to stare in disbelief at the monitor. How could I possibly carry three babies to term in my 120-pound body? And what would happen if I couldn’t?

Sometimes one or two of the fetuses can fade away after a few weeks,� the doctor said. �But in your case, all three heartbeats are very strong. I think we need to talk about a reduction.�

A reduction?

You need to consider reducing to one or two fetuses. In triplet pregnancies the babies often are born very premature with a lot of complications. You may be saving the lives of the other two by eliminating one.

When I read this, I immediately thought, “Oh, my God. Of course she wouldn’t abort one or two of her long-awaited children.” I got angry at the very idea. Then I read further, and realized that the choice wasn’t as black-and-white as I’d assumed, and both options carried risks.

Mrs. Sanchez did not reduce the number of babies she carried, and the road ahead was a terrifying roller coaster ride.

By 19 weeks, she was on bed rest. By 22 weeks, she was hospitalized in fervent hopes of snatching a few more weeks’ time before delivery. At exactly 26 weeks, she gave birth to three tiny, fragile boys. Her gamble, it seemed, had not paid off well. The boys were alive, but would they remain so?

After struggling with guilt and feelings of maternal failure, Mrs. Sanchez was able to begin bonding with her diminutive sons. She provided breastmilk for them, touched and spoke to them, and although there were many setbacks along the way, her boys - Nicolas, Benjamin, and Sebastian - were discharged three months later, weighing around 4.5 pounds each. They are now four years old and enjoying preschool.

With a million-dollar hospital bill (which thankfully was covered by insurance!) and some horrific memories, Mrs. Sanchez knows exactly how lucky she and her family are. Would things have been different for the child(ren) if the parents had opted for reduction? Perhaps. That’s one of those things that nobody can ever predict, no matter how much greener the grass might appear on the other side of the fence at times.

What would I have done in her shoes? I honestly don’t know. I don’t know that anyone can know what they would do in that sort of situation without actually being in it. Congratulations on your three healthy boys, Mrs. Sanchez.

Posted by Sunshining.

Dirty Momma: Dutch royal Princess Maxima, who is seven months pregnant, brought some Dutch dirt with her on her trip to Turkey, in case her baby makes an early arrival. According to tradition, the first soil the baby’s feet touch must be Dutch.

FAS Therapy: Researchers from San Diego State University report that choline may help mitigate some of the effects of fetal exposure to alcohol. (Choline has already been identified as vital to brain development, which is why pregnant women are advised to consume 450 mg per day, and breastfeeding women 550 mg.)  Though choline may help some infants recover from the effects of alcohol exposure, the researchers caution that “Choline is not going to be a panacea for all symptoms of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders. Women need to be continually reminded of the damaging effects of alcohol on the developing fetus.”

But does it still keep Vampires away? A study out of Stanford University offers compelling evidence that consuming garlic, taken naturally or in tablets, does not lower cholesterol.

Two for Dharma: Celebrity Baby Blog is reporting that pregnant Jenna Elfman and her husband have learned that they are having twins!

Porn Intrusions: A study to be published in the medical journal Pediatrics finds that more than 40% of teens and preteens report that they have come across nudity and porn on the Internet; most were not looking for it, but most were not very disturbed by the accidental encounters. Filtering software appears to lower the risk, and one expert advises parents to keep an open line of communication with children about the issue.

Bree’s Babies: Desperate Housewives’ Marcia Cross welcomed her twin girls on Tuesday, People reports. The newcomers, Eden and Savannah, and mom are reportedly doing well. Congratulations!

CMV Vaccine News:  Researchers funded by the National Institutes of Health have developed an experimental vaccine that reduces the stillbirth rate of the babies of guinea pigs infected with cytomegalovirus (CMV).  CMV is a common virus that in pregnant women can result in stillbirth, or can cause hearing loss or mental retardation in children infected early on in fetal development. Each year around 40,000 U.S. children are born with the virus, and currently there is no vaccine for pregnant women.

Bollywood Babies: Gurinder Chadha, director of Bend It Like Beckham and Bride and Prejudice, is pregnant with twins. She shared, “No film experience can compare with this…In fact, I’ve put my big project ‘Dallas’ on hold until the babies come.”

Who’s confused? A study appearing in the medical journal The Lancet reports that children of women who consumed fish while pregnant have better developmental skills than their peers. Moreover, the researchers note that limiting fish intake to 12 oz. per week, as the U.S. government does because of contamination concerns, is detrimental to fetal brain development.

Preggo on the Mini-Pill? The FDA is looking into data that suggests that an increasing number of women are becoming pregnant while on the Pill because the new lower dose formulas do not protect against pregnancy as well as the “old school” pills. In particular, overweight women may need the higher dose pills in order to be adequately protected.

Hospital birth, home birth…trouser birth? 24-year-old Pennsylvanian Rebecca Johnson and her mom just about made it into the hospital before Rebecca’s baby arrived, but he made a surprise appearance just as his mom got out of the car in the hospital parking lot. Says Ms. Johnson, “I didn’t know what happened until he was in my pant leg.” Doctors report that mom and baby Mason are doing well.