Home Births Rise, Mostly By Choice

Home Births Rise, Mostly By Choice: "

By Brenda Wilson

The mad dash to the hospital after a pregnant woman's water breaks has become pretty well established in the birthing lore of the United States. But there's been an uptick in births at home, suggesting that an alternative to childbirth in hospitals is getting some traction.

Giving birth at home is gaining ground. (iStockphoto.com)

There was a five percent increase in out-of-hospital births in 2005, says an analysis just out from the National Center for Health Statistics. The proportion of births outside hospitals held steady in 2006. That year, more than 38,000 babies (of more than 4 million babies born) came into the world somewhere other than a hospital.

The medical establishment doesn't endorse skipping the hospital. 'Despite the fact that the American College of Obstetrician and Gynecologists and the American Medical Association say it's not a good idea,' says statistician Marian MacDorman who wrote the report. 'Some women still choose home births and prefer them.'

The American Public Health Association, the World Health Organization, and, as you might expect, the American College of Nurse Midwives, all support home and out-of-hospital births for low-risk women.

Sixty-one percent of non-hospital births are supervised by midwives, most often at home but also at birthing centers that aren't attached to a hospital.

Most women who opt for home births made a conscious choice about it. Birth certificates in about half the states lets parents note whether a home birth was planned. They were 83 percent of the time.

Where is home birth most popular? With more than 2 percent of babies born at home, Montana and Vermont had the highest rates. Louisiana and Nebraska were the lowest at 0.2 percent.

Some of the states with big increase: Alabama, California, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Minnesota, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Ohio, Virginia and Wisconsin.

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Drivers find electric cars have enough range

Drivers find electric cars have enough range: "

To all those cities worrying about getting wired for electric vehicles: Fret not. Early studies of electric car drivers show they generally get back home before they need to recharge.

Electric car - Transportation - Electric vehicle - Business - Energy"

Darwin Foes Add Warming to Targets

Darwin Foes Add Warming to Targets: "Critics of evolution are gaining ground by linking the issue to climate change, arguing that dissenting views on both should be taught in public schools.


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Love in DC today

Love in DC today: "Today was the first day same-sex couples could apply for marriage licenses at the Superior Courthouse in the District of Columbia. Couples started lining up in the wee hours of the morning. Below is a picture of Sinjoyla Townsend and Angelisa Young, the first couple to obtain their marriage license:

h/t to Cathy Renna for the photo

By 11:30 AM, over 100 couples had applied for marriage licenses and the clerk said she was processing 20-25 per hour. The language was changed to 'I now pronounce you legally married' instead of 'I now pronounce you man and wife'. Kudos to HRC, GLAAD and Renna Communications for providing media assistance on the ground to spread the word about how the nation's capital is now providing equality to all.

For those counting, this now makes DC the sixth jurisdiction in which same-sex couples currently have the freedom to marry, along with Iowa, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Vermont and Massachusetts. Previous same-sex weddings performed in California between June and November 2008 have also been ruled legally valid, and in states like New York and (moving forward) Maryland, out-of-state weddings are legally valid. More and more states are recognizing marriage is about love, and today's couples show that once again. Congrats to all the couples.

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I Am

I Am: ""

Analgesics contribute to hearing loss, study finds

Analgesics contribute to hearing loss, study finds: "

Perhaps it wasn't those years of listening to rock 'n' roll that damaged my hearing after all. New research suggests that regular use of aspirin, acetaminophen and other analgesics can substantially increase the risk of hearing loss, especially in men younger than 50. Researchers report in the American Journal of Medicine that use of acetaminophen more than twice a week by such men doubles the risk of hearing loss, use of ibuprofen and related non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) increases the risk by nearly two-thirds, and regular use of aspirin increases it by about a third.

Hearing loss is the most common sensory disorder in the United States,afflicting more than 36 million people. It is prevalent in the elderly, but about a third of those ages 40 to 49 already suffer some hearing loss. Common risk factors include loud noises, alcohol, hypertension, diabetes and the use of the diuretic furosemide.Studies in animals and anecdotal reports in humans indicate high doses of the analgesics can interfere with hearing, but there have been few studies looking at regular use and none studying acetaminophen (one brand name is Tylenol), according to the authors.

Dr. Sharon G. Curhan of Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston and her colleagues studied 26,917 men enrolled in the Health Professionals Follow-up Study. Their ages ranged from 40 to 75 at enrollment in 1986. Every two years, the men filled out questionnaires about their use of various drugs, as well as other lifestyle factors. They were also asked if hearing loss had been professionally documented. During 369,079 person-years (a statistical measurement that represents one person at risk of disease for one year) of follow-up, the team identified 3,488 new cases of hearing loss.

Controlling for a variety of other risk factors, the researchers found that among all men who used aspirin at least twice a week, there was a 12% increased risk of hearing loss. Among those who used ibuprofen and related analgesics, there was a 21% increase; for those who used acetaminophen, a 22% risk. But the risk was much higher when they considered only men younger than 50. In that group, there was a 33% increased risk for aspirin use, a 61% increase for ibuprofen and related NSAIDs, and a 99% increase for acetaminophen.

The researchers cautioned that the study group involved only men and that most of them were Caucasian. It is not clear how the results might extrapolate to women and other racial groups.

-- Thomas H. Maugh II

Photo: Tylenol capsules. Regular use of acetaminophen (a well-known brand is Tylenol) can double the risk of hearing loss in men under 50. Credit: Brendan Smialowski / Getty Images

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Despite Evidence, 1 in 4 Parents Skittish About Vaccines And Autism

Despite Evidence, 1 in 4 Parents Skittish About Vaccines And Autism: "

By Scott Hensley

Proving a negative is one of the biggest challenges in medicine. Even if a bunch of studies show an absence of serious problems with vaccines, for instance, skeptics can fret that a risk still lurks in the scientific shadows.

Vaccination still unsettles many parents. (Jeff J Mitchell / Getty Images)

Worries that vaccines cause autism have proved remarkably durable, even after years of solid scientific work to the contrary. Most recently, an influential 1998 paper that contributed to the controversy was withdrawn by the journal that published it.

Yet a national survey of parents found more than 1 in 10 had refused a vaccine over worries about safety. Twenty-five percent agreed with the proposition that 'some vaccines cause autism in healthy children.'

Perplexingly, 90 percent of the parents responding to the survey also agreed with the idea that vaccination is 'good way' to protect kids from disease.

Researchers from the University of Michigan who did the work concluded that information to address parents' safety concerns isn't reaching them effectively or convincingly.

The results were published online by the journal Pediatrics.

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Orange officials sue couple who removed their lawn

Orange officials sue couple who removed their lawn: "City codes require that live landscaping cover 40% of the yard. Quan and Angelina Ha say their water use has dropped 80% since they replaced the grass with wood chips and drought-tolerant plants.





Some Southern California cities fine residents for watering their lawns too much during droughts.

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In Obesity Epidemic, What's One Cookie?

In Obesity Epidemic, What's One Cookie?: "Small caloric changes have almost no long-term effect on weight, studies show.

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