I am always fascinated by the pictures that are taken of a fetus.  It never ceases to amaze me how far technology has come in a relatively short amount of time.  I found by far the coolest gallery of fetus photos.  It shows pictures from the very beginning of conception up until the baby is born.  There are multiple pictures for each week.  It really is amazing and a must see!  Go to EHD and check it out.

We have been hearing that all pregnant women, young children, and elderly people need to get a flu shot. How about your unborn baby? He/she could use one too. “Our data show that a single dose of maternal influenza vaccine provides a considerable two-for-one benefit to both mothers and their young infants,” wrote a team led by Dr. Mark C. Steinhoff, of Johns Hopkins University’s Bloomberg School of Public Health, in Baltimore. They also wrote, “childhood deaths associated with influenza are most frequent in infants under the age of 6 months,”. Unfortunately, for children under 6 months, it is not recommended they receive a flu shot. The researchers knew newborns did receive some immunities to the flu virus from the mother’s antibodies which circulate in the fetal environment. They wondered if a flu shot would have the same effect. To find out, the team tracked 340 Bangladeshi mother-infant pairs during 2004-2005.

The researchers found that babies born to vaccinated mothers had a 63% lower risk of laboratory-confirmed influenza compared to babies whose mothers had not received the flu shot. The incidence of any type of respiratory illness with fever also declined, from 153 cases among infants born to unvaccinated mothers to 110 cases among babies whose mothers had gotten the flu shot. Researchers say this trial offers “unique evidence supporting the strategy of maternal immunization to prevent influenza infection in young infants and their mothers.”

Few pregnant women actually follow CDC recommendations and receive the flu shot. I know I have never had one. Even my kids don’t get one every year. We are a generally healthy family so I don’t really think about it. Maybe this year, I will have to join the line and get injected (oops did I let the cat out of the bag? I guess another post is needed).

If you are pregnant, get your flu shot!

Until recently pregnancy has been some what of a mystery.  Sure we have had the fuzzy black and white ultrasound machine since the 50’s.  The first 3D ultrasound machine was developed by Olaf von Ramm and Stephen Smith at Duke University in 1987.  Relatively not too long ago.  i think sometimes when we have these amazing technologies we forget how new they really are (considering how long woman have been giving birth.  thanks Eve for the pain!).  Because of this amazing technology of the ultrasound machine and medicine in general, we have been able to capture crystal clear images of a fetus.  Whenever i see these pictures i am just in awe of the technology and the miracle of pregnancy.  i have found a really neat video pregnancy calendar called PregnanSee.  It’s a must see! haha