News Target is reporting that the January issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition has published an intresting study that indicated that breast-fed infants have better vision as young children than those who were not breast-fed.

Because scientists have previously hypothesized that chemical known as docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) — found in higher concentrations in breast milk than in formula — enhances the vision of developing children, the researchers randomly added DHA to the formulas of some of the non-breast-fed children.

DHA is an omega-3 fatty acid that is added to many brands of infant formula, which are then marketed as being "closer" to breast milk. Some studies have suggested that children who consume formulas fortified with DHA have higher cognitive function than children who drink unfortified formula. However, these studies have not compared DHA-fortified formulas to breast milk itself.

The study found that the breast-fed children were significantly more likely to score higher on tests of stereo-acuity (depth perception) than the formula-fed ones. There was no significant difference in stereo-acuity between the formula-fed children who had received the DHA supplement and those who had not.

As interesting as the article is, the concluding paragraph summerizing past studies about breast-feeding is quite shocking:

Previous studies have linked consumption of infant formula to a higher risk of asthma, eczema and insulin-dependent diabetes, as well as higher rates of respiratory, intestinal, middle-ear and other bacterial infections. Breast-fed children have also been shown to have better cognitive development than their formula-fed peers.

Pretty amazing stuff that mommy's milk. Even more so when you consider it changes over time to adapt to the needs of the growing child.

Reuters is reporting (via MSNBC) that a new study by Canadian doctors indicates elective Caesarean Sections (C-Sections) show a significant increase in risk compared to normal vaginal births.

Dr. Shiliang Liu from the Public Health Agency of Canada, Ottawa, and colleagues have evidence that the rate of severe complications, such as major bleeding, infection and blood clots, is three-fold higher overall in women having a planned Caesarean section compared with women who planned a natural birth....

Liu’s team found that the rate of severe complications in the planned Caesarean group was 27.3 cases per 1,000 deliveries, compared with 9.0 per 1,000 deliveries in the planned vaginal delivery group.

These findings follow another study released in September 2006 that noted a three fold increase in infant mortality for infants delivered via C-section compared to normal births.

MacDorman and her colleagues had previously identified a 49-percent increase in C-section rates between 1996 and 2001 among women in this "no risk" category.

The risk of death in the first 28 days of life was 1.77 per 1,000 live births among women who had C-sections, compared to 0.62 per 1,000 for women who delivered vaginally. Even after analyzing the various causes of infant death, the researchers could find no clear explanation for the difference.

"Understanding the causes of these differentials is important, given the rapid growth in the number of primary Caesareans without a reported medical indication," they conclude.

Both studies note the growing popularity of elective C-sections for otherwise normal pregnancies. Caesarean rates have risen from 14.6% of all first-time births in 1996 to 20.6% of all first-time births in 2004--a 41% increase in C-sections in a 9 year period. And for women in the no-risk category C-sections (i.e. elective C-sections) rose a staggering 49% between 1996 and 2001.

To put this into perspective only 5.5% of births in 1970 were C-section. From 1970 to 2005 there has been a 549% increase in C-sections per-birth in the United States.

These increases are surprising considering the efforts to bring down the C-section rate in the US. The rate of C-sections rose from 21% in 1996 to 29% in 2004 , and was a record 30.2% of births in 2005. "Many experts believe a large number of C-sections are medically unnecessary and done only for the convenience of the mother or her doctor."

One of the reasons for the increased Caesarean deliveries is that Vaginal Births After Caesarean (VBAC) are being discouraged with 90% of Caeserean births in 2004 being repeat procedures. Compared with 2003, VBACs dropped by 13% in 2004 to a total of 9.2% births. VBACs are being discouraged due to malpractice issues as well as the discouraged use of prostaglandins for cervical ripening.

These are all very interesting statistics that Tammy and I have been tracking for a while. C-Sections are such a common procedure these days that we forget that it is a major surgery. As of statistics collected in 1990, the risk of a woman dieing after a cesarean birth is less than 1 in 2,500, while the risk of death after vaginal birth is less than 1 in 10,000 (although individual risks may alter these odds). Women who have C-sections have a significant increase in difficulties with a second delivery and it is not infrequent to have issues with later pregnancies, to the point it is recommended that women who want large familes should not seek a Caesarian section as an elective.

To conclude, a doctor summerized our feelings on this issue well when he said, "It's unethical to recommend a practice [elective C-sections] that leads to more patient deaths."

MSNBC.com is reporting that twisting of the intestines hsa been reported after babies received RotaTeq (by Merck) rotavirus shots.

The government warned doctors and parents Tuesday of reports of potentially life-threatening twisting of the intestines in infants vaccinated against a virus that is the leading cause of early childhood diarrhea.

The condition, called intussusception, is the same that led to the withdrawal of the first rotavirus vaccine eight years ago.

The Food and Drug Administration said it was unknown whether the recently approved vaccine, called RotaTeq, caused the 28 new cases. The condition also can occur spontaneously.

About 3.5 million doses have been shipped by Merck, although not all of the supply has been administered. According to the AP 2.7 million children are sickened by the rotavirus with 70,000 resulting in hospital visits. Sadly, there are 20-70 deaths each year from the virus.

In her home outside Arnold [ed. - a city in Missouri], Christina Palczynski felt a few light contractions, and then a whopper.

Six or seven minutes later, she gave birth to a baby girl, her second daughter.

The St. Louis Today website has a good report about this amazing birth which must have been a very intense 7 minutes! I can just see it now: the mother bumping into stuff, the husband on two phones at once, and their poor little daughter being told, "Go get ready... wait, go to your room!" The newborn's name is Mary and is doing exceedingly well after her prompt delivery on the kitchen floor. hehe

While this may be the world's easiest documented labor, we prefer a little more notice than 7 minutes ;) And here we thought two and a half hours (Eliyahu) was quick.

Thanks to ruthieroo for this bit of news.

MSNBC.com ran a recent article about certain states mandating certain procedures for infants, regardless of parental consent. While the exact situation doesn't apply to most of us, it does raise some very important questions about the role of government, who is the primary provider for children, and the cost of liberty. Two quotes really stuck out in the article to us. The first is from a hospital defending the laws that require blood tests of newborns, even if parents object:

“Some parents may not comprehend the risks they are taking with their children’s health,” said Bruce Rieker of the Nebraska Hospital Association.

The second quote is from one of the parents who challenged the law in court:

Louise Spiering said: “There was a very steep cost in terms of the intrusion on our private lives.”

These sort of stories hit home not only because we have children and believe Yahweh has put them under our care (not Big Brother's), but also because we have heard well intended people speak passionately about the necessity that everyone receive certain medical treatments regardless of the person's individual will. For example we have read material from people who passionately believe every pre-teen girl should receive the HPV vaccine regardless of lifestyle and parental consent. I could write quite a bit on this topic, but I will let others comment for now :)