Comments on: Double Dose: Illinois Court Rules on Sterilization; Choosy Mothers Choose … Well, Not This C-Section Story; Fundamentalism Comes Under Public Health Scrutiny; Botox, Body Image and Aging; Coming of Age on Antidepressants; and More http://www.ourbodiesourblog.org/blog/2008/04/double-dose-illinois-court-rules-on-steriliza Daily dose of women's health news and media analysis Wed, 08 Feb 2012 16:46:25 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1 By: Jacqueline http://www.ourbodiesourblog.org/blog/2008/04/double-dose-illinois-court-rules-on-steriliza/comment-page-1#comment-443 Jacqueline Tue, 29 Apr 2008 15:28:45 +0000 http://ourbodies.s467.sureserver.com/?p=531#comment-443 I really liked the information put out in the Irish menopause study and it's format on the web-- balanced, included lots of personal anecdotes, and just seemed so woman-friendly. Very accessible. I have found in the U.S. the womentowomen.com site to be pretty helpful and user-friendly for menopause related articles, but when it comes to the NIH or other govt agencies, not so much. Am I missing something? Oh and Anita, I agree about botox. Botox and breast implants make me think I'm living on another planet. I really liked the information put out in the Irish menopause study and it’s format on the web– balanced, included lots of personal anecdotes, and just seemed so woman-friendly. Very accessible. I have found in the U.S. the womentowomen.com site to be pretty helpful and user-friendly for menopause related articles, but when it comes to the NIH or other govt agencies, not so much. Am I missing something?

Oh and Anita, I agree about botox. Botox and breast implants make me think I’m living on another planet.

]]> By: Anna Clark http://www.ourbodiesourblog.org/blog/2008/04/double-dose-illinois-court-rules-on-steriliza/comment-page-1#comment-442 Anna Clark Tue, 29 Apr 2008 14:06:53 +0000 http://ourbodies.s467.sureserver.com/?p=531#comment-442 I'm frightened by the normalization of Botox and other plastic surgeries. I’m frightened by the normalization of Botox and other plastic surgeries.

]]> By: Kiki http://www.ourbodiesourblog.org/blog/2008/04/double-dose-illinois-court-rules-on-steriliza/comment-page-1#comment-441 Kiki Mon, 28 Apr 2008 11:49:35 +0000 http://ourbodies.s467.sureserver.com/?p=531#comment-441 An ob/gyn wrote a scathing response to the "Choosy Mothers Choose..." story. Hopefully Time will print it, but if not, here's what he said: Dear Editors: Your writer glamorizes a major surgical procedure that,if performed unnecessarily, can have serious outcomes for the mother and baby. This is not a face-lift,it is major abdominal surgery that has three times the maternal death rate as vaginal birth. Are the women who elect this [usually when prodded by their doctors] made aware of that? Are they also aware that their baby may be born too soon or too small and have long-term educational problems because their brains are not fully developed? Do they understand that,after the first cesarean, the next pregnancy has twice the stillbirth rate and can have life-threatening problems with the placenta because of the uterine scar? Do they know that there is no epidemiologic evidence that cesarean prevents future urinary incontinence and in fact can make future abdominal surgery more difficult due to abdominal adhesions? My point is that most women with normal pregnancies who agree to elective induction of labor or scheduled cesarean haven’t a clue about some of the very negative consequences of the surgery. Cesarean section is a very important and life-saving intervention in some high risk situations. However there is plenty of evidence that vaginal birth has a toning and protective effect on the baby’s brain and results in babies with less asthma,chronic lung disease, and learning disabilities. In my opinion,if this unfortunate trend continues, our society may find out in the near future that “It’s not nice to fool Mother Nature.” Charles Mahan, MD, FACOG Professor,USF Chiles Center for Healthy Mothers and Babies An ob/gyn wrote a scathing response to the “Choosy Mothers Choose…” story. Hopefully Time will print it, but if not, here’s what he said:

Dear Editors:

Your writer glamorizes a major surgical procedure that,if performed unnecessarily, can have serious outcomes for the mother and baby. This is not a face-lift,it is major abdominal surgery that has three times the maternal death rate as vaginal birth. Are the women who elect this [usually when prodded by their doctors] made aware of that? Are they also aware that their baby may be born too soon or too small and have long-term educational problems because their brains are not fully developed? Do they understand that,after the first cesarean, the next pregnancy has twice the stillbirth rate and can have life-threatening problems with the placenta because of the uterine scar? Do they know that there is no epidemiologic evidence that cesarean prevents future urinary incontinence and in fact can make future abdominal surgery more difficult due to abdominal adhesions?

My point is that most women with normal pregnancies who agree to elective induction of labor or scheduled cesarean haven’t a clue about some of the very negative consequences of the surgery. Cesarean section is a very important and life-saving intervention in some high risk situations. However there is plenty of evidence that vaginal birth has a toning and protective effect on the baby’s brain and results in babies with less asthma,chronic lung disease, and learning disabilities.

In my opinion,if this unfortunate trend continues, our society may find out in the near future that “It’s not nice to fool Mother Nature.”

Charles Mahan, MD, FACOG
Professor,USF Chiles Center for Healthy Mothers and Babies

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