After watching "The Business of Being Born" (its on netflix for free) I began to wonder if there was a connection between oxytocin and breastmilk production. I was also wondering if there was a connection between the use of pitocin and the development of autism. I thought that a study should be done on this. Well it turns out that they have been looking into this and here is an article about it.
Public health authorities have identified an enormous increase in the incidence of childhood autism. In California, the number of kids receiving state services for autistic disorders has nearly quadrupled since 1987. (1) A recent news report on National Public Radio noted 775 news cases, a 33% increase over the previous quarter in which only 550 new cases were identified. This brain development disorder results in a lack of normal language skills and inability to form human bonds of affection with parents and other people. The majority of its victims are boys. Many also suffer from epilepsy. The physical, mental, emotional and social disabilities combined are so sever that most autistic children end up in institutions by the age of 13. This is a tragedy for the child and its parents, a loss to society and an economic burden of great proportion. Autism is now thought to affect one person in 500, making it more common than Downs syndrome or childhood cancer. According to Dr Marie Bristol Power from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, it is a not a rare disorder but a "pressing public-health problem". (1)
Neither the cause of this disorder nor the reason for its exponential increase is well understood by researchers at this time. However there is data associating autistic disorders with the use of an artificial hormone (Pitocin) which is given to pregnant women to induce or speed up labor (1, 2). Pitocin is a synthetic exogenous source of the natural hormone oxytocin which stimulates the gravid uterus to contract. It was developed as a drug by the Parke-Davis pharmaceutical company in 1953 and put into general use in 1955. It comes from the pituitary glands of cattle and includes acetic acid for pH adjustment and .5 percent chloretone as a preservative. The lead story in the July 31, 2000 issue Newsweek magazine was devoted to exploring this growing health problem. The Newsweek reporter, Geoffrey Cowley, interviewed Dr Eric Hollander of New York's Mount Sinai School of Medicine, a physician who specializes in treating autistic kids. Dr Hollander reported that several years ago he noticed that 60% of the autistic patients in his clinic had been exposed to this drug as a fetus. Material published by the World Health Organization also notes an association between the use of Pitocin and autistic disorders (2).
In spontaneous labors the mother's pituitary gland makes an endogenous (i.e. internal) oxytocin that triggers the physiological onset and progress of labor. The hormone oxytocin is also produced during breastfeeding (causing the let-down of breast milk) and it accompanies sexual orgasm. For this reason it is referred to as the "love hormone" by obstetrician Christianne Northrop, MD as each of these biological events are associated with experiences of great emotional bonding and include meaningful social interaction between the individuals involved. Since autistic disorders produce an inability to make or maintain affectionate bonds or have normal social relationships, one cannot help but wonder if perhaps there is an causal relationship between these disorders and exogenous sources of an artificial form of oxytocin. Perhaps flooding the immature body of the fetus (especially boy babies) with this gender-specific synthetic hormone from animals somehow interferes with the eventual function of these psychological systems. It is an intriguing question.
However, Pitocin is not the only drug received by women whose labors are being induced or augmented. The use of Pitocin requires that the mother also be given IV fluids, have continuous electric fetal monitoring in place and remain sedentary in her hospital bed while connected to this equipment. Pitocin-induced uterine contrations and enforced maternal immobility makes labor more painful, so much so that under these circumstances most laboring women also receive narcotic pain relievers and/or epidural anesthesia. The use of these drugs and anesthetics is also associated with an increase in operative deliveries (vacuum extraction or forceps). It is possible that the causative agent or trigger event for autism is a particular combination of drugs or certain physical problems or propensity for either the mother or baby, in combination with certain drugs, rather than a simple direct effect of Pitocin per se.
The use of Pitocin to induce or augment labors and concomitant use of epidural anesthesia has been steadily climbing for the last 20 years - about the same period that the increase in autism has been reported. Estimates of the use of Pitocin in laboring women over the last 2 decades range from 12% to 60%. However, a 1992 survey by a medical anthropologist at the University of Texas found that 81% of women in US hospital receive Pitocin to either induce or augment labor. Epidural use is as high as 95% in many urban hospitals. When one factors in a Cesarean rate of 23% (acknowledging some overlap), the proportions of these facts is staggering as virtually 100% of medically-managed births are subjected to a high level of pharmaceutical interventions that have never been approved for use in fetuses. It certainly seems prudent to research the possible association with pharmaceutically-augmented labors in an attempt to discover the cause of the rising tide of autistic disorders. It may be necessary to amend our current obstetrical practices to prevent an epidemic of this expensive and emotionally-crippling disorder.
Existing data on babies born at home under the care of midwives as a control group in Autism research
For research purposes it seems only logical to utilize the subset of healthy childbearing women who received physiological management of the intrapartum and experienced no medical treatments during the labor and birth (i.e. - no Pitocin or other labor-inducing drugs, no narcotic pain medications, no general or regional anesthetics and no operative deliveries, etc) as a control to determine if intrapartum medical treatments are causative or contributory to the development or exacerbating of autism disorders. In the early 1990s the Midwives Alliance of North America (MANA) embarked on a retrospective statistical study of domiciliary birth outcomes. More recently they have been conducting a prospective study by enrolling nationally certified professional midwives as a requirement of their re-certification. To date they have compiled statistics on about 15,000 births. This would provide the demographic data for follow-up questionares to ascertain the rate of autism within this substantial group of babies who were unmedicated during the labor. Also a recent change in the California birth registration law authorizes for the first time since 1915 the filing of birth certificates by professional midwives providing community-based birth services (client home and free-standing birth centers) so that the gathering of statistical data in California on this subset of births is now possible.
An informal survey among the dozen or so community midwives practicing in our geographical area and spanning the last 20 years, failed to identify any babies born at home who have since been diagnosed with autistic disorders. Every year I attend a national midwifery conferences sponsored by MANA which includes an exchange between midwives of practice problems and unusual trends. Among the 400 or so community midwives (CNMs and direct-entry midwives), no cases of autism have been reported. Admittedly this is not a rigorous scientific study but it does raise questions as to whether strict adherence to physiological management of intrapartum events, either alone or in combination with the self-selection of healthy women choosing home-based midwifery care, may confer some protective effect relative to autistic disorders.
We are very much interested in facilitating this form of research and would be happy to follow your lead in helping to bring about interest in it by scientists at US-Davis and elsewhere who are involved in the study of autistic disorders.
(1) Newsweek Magazine, July 31, 2000
(2) Care in Normal Birth: A Practical Guide-W.H.O's "Safe Motherhood" series
(3) Mothering Magazine, Spring Issue, 2001
cc: Ken Johnson, PhD, MANA Statistical Project
Robbie-Davis Floyd, PhD, University of Texas
Midwives Alliance of North America (MANA) http://www.mana.org/
American College of Domiciliary Midwives/California College of Midwiveshttp://www.goodnewsnet.org/
Here is a link to the article
Friday, July 29, 2011
Mouthwashing moms less likely to have a preemie
Interesting study. I have always believed that most heart disease starts in the mouth. Poor teeth and gums are breading grounds for bacteria and this bacteria can get into the blood stream. This is why the dentist always gives you antibiotics after you see him. so i guess that this would make some sense if bacteria is getting into the mothers blood stream. This study was done by Proctor and Gamble to sell their mouth wash. Personally I would use a 50/50 solution of 3% Hydrogen Peroxide and water for about a minute a couple of times a week.
(Reuters Health) - Expectant mothers who have gum disease are less likely to deliver their babies prematurely if they use mouthwash throughout their pregnancy, a new study suggests.
Pregnant women with gum disease, also called periodontal disease, are known to have more preemies than women with healthy gums.
But it's unclear whether that link is causal, and so whether better oral hygiene would make a difference.
The new study, although not ironclad proof, found that regularly using an alcohol-free mouth rinse appeared to cut women's risk of early labor by about three-quarters.
"I think this is extremely encouraging," said Dr. Steven Offenbacher, a professor at the University of North Carolina's School of Dentistry, who was not involved in this study.
"We haven't known the best way to manage these patients."
The research team, which included staff and funding from Procter and Gamble, the company that markets the mouthwash used in the study, asked 71 pregnant women with gum disease to rinse twice a day for 30 seconds with Crest Pro Health mouthwash. The mouthwash does not contain alcohol.
They compared the number of pre-term births among this group to 155 pregnant women who also had gum disease, but rinsed only with water.
Among the water-only group, 34 mothers -- or about one in five -- delivered their babies prematurely, before 35 weeks of pregnancy.
In the mouthwash group, just four mothers delivered their babies prematurely, which is about one in 20 births.
The difference between the groups "was just incredible," said Dr. Marjorie Jeffcoat, the lead author of the study and a professor at the University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine.
But she pointed out that the women knew which treatment they were getting -- water or mouthwash -- which in principle might have influenced the results.
Jeffcoat's team did not identify why the mouthwash was linked to fewer premature babies, but gum disease might play a role.
Gum disease starts when bacteria on the teeth infect the gums and cause swelling, and pregnancy can exacerbate the condition.
Inflammation in gum disease involves the hormone-like substance prostaglandin E2, Jeffcoat explained. This same chemical is involved in labor.
Her hypothesis is that gum disease leads to inflammation and more prostaglandin E2 circulating through the body, which might then spark an early labor. On the flip side, by treating the gum disease, women can cut their prostaglandin E2 levels and reduce their risk of going into labor early, Jeffcoat believes.
The study, published in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, found that mouthwash did appear to help the gum disease.
Mothers who didn't use the mouthwash had more inflammation and sites along the gums where the tissue would bleed.
Aggressive teeth-cleaning is also used to fight gum disease during pregnancy, and a study from April found the procedure appeared to be safe for expectant mothers.
But whether it has an effect on pre-term births is still unclear.
"We are seeing that those types of treatments are usually not adequate to prevent mothers from getting worse during pregnancies," Offenbacher told Reuters Health.
Mouthwash is a less-invasive alternative to teeth cleaning, and it typically costs less than $10 a bottle.
But, Jeffcoat cautioned, "Obviously, if you don't have periodontal disease this is not going to help" your risk of pre-term birth.
Both dentists agreed it's important for pregnant women to take care of their oral health.
"They need to use a soft toothbrush and floss the right way," wrapping the floss around the tooth, Jeffcoat told Reuters Health earlier this year. "The first goal with almost all dental disease is prevention, prevention, prevention."
SOURCE: bit.ly/n5rjFX American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, online July 20, 2011.
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Officials fear for infants born to prescription drug addicts
Prescription drugs are far more dangerous than most so called street drugs. This is the new addiction that is sweeping the nation. Prescription drugs are just way to easy to get, far more easier than street drugs, and they are far more dangerous.
(CNN) -- According to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, prescription drug overdose deaths in Florida are up a staggering 265% since 2003. But it's not just the deaths that have Florida officials worried; it's the births.
"We saw the number of crack babies that died, and this is just another version of that," Broward County Sheriff Al Lamberti said. "We all need to be concerned."
According to state health records, 635 Florida babies were born addicted to prescription drugs in the first half of 2010 alone. South Florida doctors and intensive care nurses report an dramatic uptick in babies born hooked on pills that their mothers abused while pregnant.
"They go through withdrawal symptoms," said Mary Osuch, the head nurse at Broward General Medical Center's neonatal intensive care unit. "They're crampy, miserable. They sweat. They can have rapid breathing. Sometimes, they can even have seizures."
According to the White House Office on Drug Control Policy, prescription drug abuse is the nation's fastest-growing drug problem.
Marsha Currant, who runs the Susan B. Anthony Recovery Center near Fort Lauderdale, says prescription drug addiction overtook crack in 2009 as the main problem afflicting the pregnant women who are treated there.
"In the very beginning, it was really 100% crack cocaine," said Currant, who started keeping track of drug trends in 1995. "We see a lot more prescription drugs now."
Currant says new mothers who are hooked on prescription drugs are often reluctant to seek help for fear the authorities will take their babies from them.
"We wanted to have a place where women didn't have to chose between getting treatment and having their children go into foster care," she said.
Compounding the problem, women who are addicted to prescription drugs and find themselves pregnant cannot safely go off the drugs without medical supervision. They need to be weaned off slowly, or the baby will go into withdrawal in the womb.
At the Susan B. Anthony Center, one mother who became hooked on prescription drugs after her husband died says she felt her baby suffering while she was getting clean.
"I know that I'm going through stuff getting off the pills. So what's she going through? She can't talk. She's just a baby," Jessica said.
Thanks to the center, Jessica was weaned off oxycodone before her baby, Casey, was born. But she fears the long-term effects of her drug abuse on her daughter, who has been suffering from respiratory problems.
"I want to make sure that she doesn't hurt anymore," Jessica said. "She doesn't deserve that, because she's a princess."
Jessica graduated from the center's recovery program last week.
Cataracts, hips, knees and tonsils: NHS begins rationing operations
Hip replacements, cataract surgery and tonsil removal are among operations now being rationed in a bid to save the NHS money.
Two-thirds of health trusts in England are rationing treatments for "non-urgent" conditions as part of the drive to reduce costs in the NHS by £20bn over the next four years. One in three primary-care trusts (PCTs) has expanded the list of procedures it will restrict funding to in the past 12 months.
Examples of the rationing now being used include:
* Hip and knee replacements only being allowed where patients are in severe pain. Overweight patients will be made to lose weight before being considered for an operation.
* Cataract operations being withheld from patients until their sight problems "substantially" affect their ability to work.
* Patients with varicose veins only being operated on if they are suffering "chronic continuous pain", ulceration or bleeding.
* Tonsillectomy (removing tonsils) only to be carried out in children if they have had seven bouts of tonsillitis in the previous year.
* Grommets to improve hearing in children only being inserted in "exceptional circumstances" and after monitoring for six months.
* Funding has also been cut in some areas for IVF treatment on the NHS.
The alarming figures emerged from a survey of 111 PCTs by the health-service magazine GP, using the Freedom of Information Act.
This is what obama has brought us and these are the death panels that people have been talking about. Are these really death panels? No not really, people aren't going to die because of this. But when you start to run out of money they are going to ration care, if they think that your to old and not worth the surgery then they will deny you. This would never happen in the free market. If you have the money to pay then you will get what you want.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)