The Norwegian Institute of Public Health and colleagues looked into the use of folic acid supplements before and during early pregnancy, and any impact on the risk on the autism spectrum.

“Our main finding was that maternal use of folic acid supplements around the time of conception was associated with a lower risk of autistic disorder,” the authors wrote in the Journal of the American Medical Association.(list what date this article appeared )

In some countries, flour is recommended to be enriched with folic acid to lower the risk of birth defects. Women are often advised to take folic acid supplements before and during pregnancy.

Despite the practice, European and North American studies have found that many pregnant women take less folate in their diet than is required to prevent neural tube defects.

The Norwegian Institute of Public Health’s research appears to confirm that taking folic acid supplements is well-founded.

The 85,176 Norwegian children who took part in the study were born between 2002 and 2008.

Among the sample, 270 children, or 0.32 percent, were diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders, and researchers found that there was an inverse association between folic acid use and subsequent autism risks.

According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 1 in 88 children, or 1.14 percent, in the United States are identified with an autism spectrum disorder.

Mothers who took folic acid supplements in early pregnancy had a 40 percent lower risk of having children with autistic disorder compared with mothers who did not take folic acid, the researchers found.

Folic acid is found in naturally high levels in foods such as dark leafy greens, asparagus and broccoli, as well as citrus fruits. If you are looking to become pregnant, setting up an appointment at Healthy Woman OB/GYN is recommended to ensure that the appropriate levels of folic acid are incorporated into your diet.

If you would like more information on how nutrition can improve health feel free to contact our sister company Pop Weight Loss.

But what if baby isn’t ready? There are several natural “tricks” that can help encourage your baby into entering the world.

One way to help the labor along is to go for a long walk. Gravity, combined with hip movement, help draw the baby towards the pelvis. The pressure will help prime your cervix for labor, or if labor contractions have already started, help move along the birthing process.

Sex can also help induce labor. Sperm contains prostaglandins, or hormones that can help thin and dilate the cervix, ripening it for delivery. Even an orgasm can help with the process, releasing the hormone oxytocin which can trigger contractions.

Spicy foods are rumored to irritate the intestines and cause the uterus to contract. While there is no medical evidence to prove spicy foods can naturally induce labor, many women swear by this urban legend. Just remember, spicy foods can cause heartburn, especially during pregnancy!

Massages and relaxation are a great way to encourage baby to come along. Studies show that a massage can raise your body’s level of oxytocin, the hormone that can cause contractions. Some massage therapists swear by their ability to help jump-start labor when a mom-to-be is overdue. Meditation and even just cuddling with your partner can help relax you, which might get your oxytocin levels pumping. A majority of labors start during the night when an expectant mom is in a state of relaxation, which triggers the release of oxytocin. So if you’re anxious about that baby who doesn’t want to leave his cozy bed, try a stress-relieving activity like meditation during pregnancy. Even if your efforts don’t directly trigger labor, you’ll be waiting in a more-relaxed frame of mind.

As a leading prenatal provider, with offices in Colts Neck and Freehold, Healthy Woman OB/GYN encourages parents to learn the facts, and benefits, to screening newborns before coming home for the first time.

But what is newborn screening? What does it involve? And what exactly are physicians looking for?

Newborn screening is a simple blood test each newborn infant undergoes that tests for a variety of conditions that might not appear at birth, but can cause permanent or long term problems.

The screening process is very simple, and is completed by a nurse before leaving the hospital. A nurse pricks the heel of the infant and takes a few drops of blood, which will be used to test for 54 different types of conditions that can cause serious health issues.

According to the Department of Health and Human Resources and the CDC, all babies are required by law, unless petitioned by the parents, to be screened for amino acid metabolic disorders, organic acid metabolic disorders, fatty acid oxidation disorders, hemoglobinopathies (blood disorders), and other health issues such as hearing loss and jaundice.

Testing for these conditions early can make a huge difference for a child. The best way to protect your infant is to know exactly what to protect them from – and newborn screening can help.

If you have questions about newborn screening and the conditions tested for in New Jersey, please contact Healthy Woman OB/GYN and set up your next appointment.

You’ve endured nine-plus months of nausea, backaches, restless sleep and something reminiscent of Mike Tyson’s prize-winning jabs in your ribs—now comes the fun part. Before you head out to the hospital to deliver, make sure you’ve packed enough to ensure you’ll be as comfortable as possible during your stay, but resist the urge to schlep your entire bedroom’s contents. Unsure of what should go—and stay?

Here are our top tips for a well-packed hospital bag:

Music

Music can create any kind of mood you’d like, so pack your iPod with speakers and be sure to program a few playlists to carry  you through labor and even delivery.

Breathing exercises

If you’re too uncomfortable to stretch, try a CD or download of breathing exercises, which will both physically and mentally calm you down and make you feel more at ease.

Handheld massager

For the knots and cramps that are bound to come during labor, a handheld massager will be your new best friend—and a much-needed backup for your husband!

Camera

Get ready for your close-up,  Mrs. New Mom. A fully charged camera is key to capture those priceless shots just after the baby is born.

Socks

Hospitals are notoriously chilly, and your feet will get even colder when you get ready to give birth. Pack your warmest, most comfortable pair for the big day.

Luxurious robe

It’s not always easy to feel glam when you’re ready to pop. Opt for a luxurious to drape over your nightgown when visitors arrive. It’ll look—and feel—great.

Stretchy pants

Unfortunately, your belly won’t be flat immediately after delivery (or months afterwards, but that’s another story…..). Bring along something comfortable to wear home (read: roomy and with an elastic waistband), especially if you have a c-section.

Stress cream

You’ll want a face cream to keep skin hydrated, but a stress cream has the added bonus of soothing and relaxing skin during difficult times. The lotion will come in handy for your hands and feet, too.

Baby’s first outfit

For your newborn’s first picture, you’ll want an outfit that’s adorable and classic.

Linen spray

Bring the spray that you use on your linens at home to personalize your hospital room. Some mothers like to bring their own pillows, too, but a quick spritz of your favorite linen spray will make the hospital feel more like home.

Lanolin cream

There’s no better cure for sore or cracked nipples.

Breastfeeding support pillow

Give yourself a hand when learning to breastfeed (and beyond) with a breastfeeding support pillow that easily positions baby for prime nursing.

Healthy snacks

Post-push, you’ll want to load up on healthy foods that are preferably organic, low in sugar and high in protein. Prepare a snack pack of your favorite foods, including fresh organic fruit, protein bars, hummus and vegetables and whatever else deliciously and nutritiously floats your boat.

Car seat

Make sure you have properly installed your infant car seat—you can’t get the little one home with out it. If you have questions, get it inspected by your hospital or local police or fire station, many of which offer this service for free.

Don’t forget, your hospital is not in isolation nor is it 100 miles from your house. If you forget something, don’t panic; someone will be able to bring you whatever you want whether he or she goes to your home to get it or goes to a local convenience store. Your short stay in the hospital should be happy, calm and worry-free and the right comforts from home can make all the difference.

Pregnancy can throw a lot of curveballs your way—morning sickness, Braxton-Hicks contractions, strange cravings—but one development that catches many women by surprise and turns your 40 weeks into a whole new ballgame is the onset of gestational diabetes.

The result of high blood sugar in pregnancy, gestational diabetes affects approximately 18 percent of women, according to the American Diabetes Association. Why this happens to women who otherwise have no history of diabetes is still being researched, but it likely involves pregnancy hormones blocking the insulin in your body from properly doing its job, which is to help glucose (sugar) become fuel.

There typically aren’t any symptoms associated with gestational diabetes, so you’ll be screened at about 28 weeks for it. If your glucose levels are high, you’ll take an additional test to determine your diabetes status.

Whom It Affects

You’re more likely to be diagnosed with gestational diabetes if you are obese, have had gestational diabetes in a prior pregnancy, have a family history of diabetes, or previously gave birth to a large baby (around 9 pounds). For reasons that are unknown, women who are not white are more likely to be affected. Those 25 and younger are at a lower risk.

What It Means for You

To keep your gestational diabetes in check, you’ll need to be even more vigilant about having a healthy diet than you were before. Keeping sugar to a minimum is important, as is eating at regular intervals—no skipping meals! If your balanced diet and exercise routine don’t control your diabetes, you may have to take medications or insulin.

After you give birth, your diabetes is likely to disappear, but recent studies have shown that women who had gestational diabetes are more likely to be diagnosed with type 2 diabetes down the road. Make sure your doctor screens you for diabetes symptoms as time goes on, and keep up the nutritious eating that was necessary during pregnancy. Exercise also helps.

What It Means for Your Baby

Babies born to moms with gestational diabetes are more likely to be bigger at birth, which could cause problems with delivery (or necessitate a C-section). They’re also at a higher risk for having low blood sugar levels and breathing problems in the first few days of their life. Because your baby will store extra fat if you have elevated sugar levels while pregnant, this could lead to a higher risk of being overweight in both childhood and adulthood.

The better you manage your gestational diabetes, the less likely it is that any problems will occur. So knock it out of the park with a healthy diet, moderate exercise and following your doctor’s recommendations, and you’ll have a great shot at being home free of any lasting complications to you or your newborn.

For help with a healthy eating plan for your pregnancy and beyond, consider A Better You, Dr. Rebecca Cipriano’s weight loss and weight management program. Call 732.866.8446 or email to set up an appointment to meet Dr. Rebecca and discuss how she can help you get on track now.

The Physical Changes

As the weeks wear on, your body will continue to change to accommodate the baby, which could make for an uncomfortable few months while you wait for labor to arrive. As you gain weight, your breasts will keep growing and perhaps leak colostrum (the liquid produced before milk), your back may ache, you might get winded easily, and you’ll likely have to visit the restroom for bathroom breaks a lot more often than you did pre-pregnancy (things like sneezing and laughing could lead to some leakage—embarrassing, yes, but totally normal). The unlucky will have to deal with stretch marks on the abdomen; spider veins in the face, arms and neck; and varicose veins in the legs and rectum—also known as hemorrhoids when they pick this spot to strike.

You may start to have noticeable Braxton Hicks contractions as well. These “practice” contractions differ from the real deal in that they don’t get stronger or closer together as they go, but they may be uncomfortable.

The Emotional Changes

Playing the waiting game can be difficult, especially with all the physical discomfort that goes along with it. The reality that you’re about to be a parent for the first time (or again!) will hit you harder than it has before, and that can spark anxious thoughts. Talking about your fears with your partner or other moms (and even your baby) can be helpful, as can journaling. You can never totally prepare for what’s about to happen, but reading books, taking classes and getting everything ready can help ease your concerns and make you feel as ready as possible.

The Baby’s Changes

During the third trimester, your baby’s getting all the finishing touches, if you will—his eyes blink for the first time, his bones fully form, and the lanugo (fine, downy hair) on his body sheds. At this stage, babies gain weight rapidly, sprouting up from around 2.5 pounds at the beginning of the trimester to their delivery weight of 6 to 9 pounds or so. It’s even possible that your baby is having sweet dreams when he sleeps now—although it’s anyone’s guess as to what they’re about. Pretty soon, you’ll get to ask him yourself!

The Doctor’s Visits

From 28 to 34 weeks, your appointments will increase to every other week. We’ll monitor your weight gain, blood pressure and urine; listen to the fetal heartbeat; and check the baby’s position. You can also expect to be screened for gestational diabetes and Group B strep (bacteria that can cause an infection with your baby), and, as a part of our OB VIP program, we’ll review your birth plan, including cord blood banking and breastfeeding, to make sure you are ready and set to go. At 36 weeks, we’ll start to see you every week, and if you go past your due date, you’ll come in twice a week until the baby is born. Whatever questions you have, please ask! We are here for you and are committed to making sure that you have a great birth!

The Physical Changes

There’s good news on the physical front for this middle trimester: Morning sickness usually subsides, your sex drive is in top form, and any tenderness in your breasts from the first trimester is likely to disappear. As baby grows, though, so will you—expect to put on about three to four pounds a month. This trimester is probably the one in which you’ll put away most of your wardrobe staples and embrace maternity clothes.

Darkening, stretch marks and dryness are three potential effects on your skin, so be diligent about using sunscreen and moisturizers. Leg cramps may also strike; stretching your calves, especially before bed, will help with that. Breathlessness is normal now, as your lungs are working overtime. If you were exercising vigorously in your pre-pregnancy days, you’ll want to change your routine to something lower impact now. Swimming, prenatal yoga and walking are all good choices.

The Emotional Changes

You should be adjusted to those hormonal fluctuations that might have caught you off guard in the first trimester, so you’re likely to feel more on an even keel now. As your body changes, though, you may start to worry about weight gain, stretch marks and swelling. Some women feel extra beautiful with the changes pregnancy brings; others struggle with body image. Whatever you’re feeling, you’re definitely not alone.

The Baby’s Changes

Most significantly for many, this is when your baby’s sex will reveal itself. It’s also the stage in which you’ll probably start to feel some movement, and your baby might be able to respond to familiar sounds, like your voice. He or she is undergoing rapid changes—developing fingerprints and footprints, sprouting hair, accumulating fat, developing the ability to swallow and make sucking motions, and forming bones.

The Doctor’s Visits

Throughout your second trimester, you’ll have doctor’s visits once a month. At Healthy Woman, you’ll see physicians on a rotating basis so you can feel comfortable with all the doctors on staff. During your appointments this trimester, your weight gain, blood pressure, uterine size and urine will be checked, and your baby’s heartbeat will be listened to. There are optional tests that can be performed during this time that doctors will discuss with you, and you’ll have an ultrasound around 20 to 22 weeks. This is also a good time to create a birth plan; at Healthy Woman, as a part of our OB VIP program, one of the co-founders will meet with you to go over your expectations and hopes for the birthing process. For a detailed explanation of the schedule of doctor’s visits, see our schedule of prenatal visits here.

What should your birth plan include?

Here are questions to consider:

• Who do you want present in the delivery room?
• What kind of pain relief do you want?
• How often do you want fetal monitoring?
• In what situations would a C-section be okay?
• Who should cut the umbilical cord?
• Do you plan to bank cord blood?
• Do you want to be coached when to push?
• What positions do you want to try to push in?
• Do you want the lights dimmed? Music playing? Total quiet?
• Do you want photos or video taken during birth?
• When do you first want to hold your baby?
• When do you first want to breastfeed, if you’re planning to?

For a look at what else you might want to include, you can find a sample birth plan template here.

The great news is that as a Healthy Woman patient, you don’t have to create your birth plan alone. As a part of our OB VIP program, you will have a special prenatal visit at 24 weeks of pregnancy with Dr. Rebecca Cipriano or Dr. Joseph Cipriano, the Healthy Woman co-founders, to go through your birth expectations and ensure that your experience is just as you want it to be. The doctor will talk to you about how you want things to go, give you the options and empower you with the information you need to make the best decisions for yourself.

Perhaps the most helpful aspect of creating a birth plan is that it gets you thinking about important questions that may not have crossed your mind, particularly if this is your first child. Keep your plan as concise as you can; you might want to highlight the things that are most important to you so that they’re not missed.

You may not be able to plan for everything—but you can sure try.

Lately, we’ve been thinking about what makes us different from other groups? The answer: A whole lot. This realization sparked us to launch a new and groundbreaking program called OB VIP.

What is it and what can it mean for you?

OB VIP is an optional specialized program for our pregnant patients—and a big reason why our group is so different from the rest.

The program includes:

• Access to our prenatal coordinator Grace Kasnowski (also called our maternity concierge), who, along with our doctors and medical assistants, is here to help you every step of the way
• Full access to our website, which features blog posts ripe with need-to-know info, created just for you
• Daily social media support
• Weekly email support
• Access to our Pregnancy Connect program, which offers you entree to the best businesses, services and organizations for pregnant and new moms.
• Breastfeeding classes, in conjunction with BestforBabes.org, a celebrity and new mommy loved organization that is giving breastfeeding a makeover by removing the Booby Traps that stop women from achieving their own personal breastfeeding goals—whether those goals are for one day, one week or one year.
• Postpartum support
• And lots more!

The crowning jewel of program? A special 24-week prenatal visit to create your birth plan. All prenatal patients get a 24-week prenatal visit with myself or my husband to go through birth expectations and ensure that the experience can be just as she hopes it will be. Let’s face it: Having a baby is scary! There are also many options available to moms now. Whether you choose to get an epidural or go completely natural, it’s your choice—but making that decision—and many others involved in the birthing process—isn’t always so easy. We will talk to you about how you want your birth to be, give you the options and empower you with the information you need to make the best decisions for yourself.

We are here to support you—whatever your decisions.

We are your advocates.

And that means that we will be there for you on the big day too. You will always be delivered by one of our docs. This is a big deal. We have no laborists and many practices do. Almost every week in the office, I see a new pregnant patient who is changing doctors because she did not realize that someone she did not know (who was covering for her doctor) did her previous delivery.

So hopefully, if you are pregnant, you are already a Healthy Woman patient but if you are not, please make sure your questions are answered thoroughly and you feel supported by your practitioner.

We want you to get the VIP treatment during her most exciting, exhilarating and sometimes even exasperating time in her life. Why? Because you deserve it!

We’re here for you, so call us 732.431.1616.

The Physical Changes

You may find that you feel like giving all the contents in your stomach the old heave-ho as early as three or four weeks into your pregnancy. Morning sickness, as it’s known (even though it can happen at all times of the day), is likely caused by the body’s changing hormones and a pregnant woman’s heightened sense of smell. About 75 percent of women will experience nausea or vomiting during this trimester—and half will go through both. Other physical symptoms common during this time include tender, swollen breasts that may expand a cup size; an increased urge to pee; food cravings; heartburn; fatigue; and constipation. If none of this happens, though, don’t worry—the effects of pregnancy are different in everyone.

The Emotional Changes

Finding out you’re having a baby is big news, whether you were expecting it or not. With changing hormones and all the stress that comes with bringing a little one into the world, you can expect to go through a range of feelings—sometimes all in one day—from worried to jubilant to overwhelmed to ready for it all to be over. Remember that your partner is going through a whole set of emotions, too.

The Baby’s Changes

The process from fertilized egg to fully formed human is an amazing one, and a good portion of this happens during those first few months. Organs and muscles develop, hair follicles and nail beds form, white blood cells produce, arms and legs sprout, and the vocal cords that will let out that first cry come together. The best thing you can do to keep all this on track is to be as healthy as you can. Be sure to exercise; fill up on fruits, veggies and whole grains; and take your prenatal vitamins.

The Doctor’s Visits

You’ll likely have your first appointment between six and eight weeks, when you’ll have a thorough physical exam with pap smear and ultrasound and go over your medical history. Be prepared to give your doctor as much information as you can about your health and your family’s health. At this initial checkup, your doctor will establish your due date and do blood work, as well as discuss optional tests to screen for fetal abnormalities. Now’s the time to ask all those questions that have been racing through your brain—at Healthy Woman, we’ve heard them all before and want you to be armed with all the information you need to comfortably move into the next trimester and beyond.

For more on what to expect over the next 40 weeks, here is a detailed explanation of your prenatal care.