Stress On Prenatal Development

Giving birth to a baby is the most amazing and miraculous experiences for parents and their loved ones. Every woman’s birth story is different and full of joy. Furthermore, the process from the moment a woman knows that she’s pregnant to being in the delivering room is very critical to both her and the newborn baby. Prenatal care is extremely important and it can impact greatly the quality of life of the baby. In this paper, the topic of giving birth will be discussed thoroughly by describing the stories of two mothers who gave birth in different decades and see how their prenatal cares are different from each other with correlation of the advancement of modern medicine between four decades.

There were numerous powerful testimonies and striking findings noted throughout the and first two chapters of the book Birth Matters by Ina May Gaskin. As a health care provider, and therefore someone who is entrusted to care for individuals during their most private and sacred times, I found Gaskin’s statements regarding the environment and care surrounding birth experiences very impactful. According to Gaskin (2011), the “women’s perceptions about their bodies and their babies’ capabilities will be deeply influenced by the care they recieve around the time of birth” (p. 22). The statements made by Gaskin in Birth Matters not only ring true, but inspires one

Development of children begins at conception however the parent’s health and lifestyle prior to conception could influence a baby development.

As indicated by Kotch (2013), "Maternal and Child Health (MCH) is characterized as the scholastic field that focus on determinants, components and frameworks that advance and keep up the well-being, security, prosperity and proper improvement of kids and their families. Maternal and child well-being is critical on the grounds that with the energy of the mother it is sufficient to know the importance of birthing new life, which is the kid or the offspring without bounds. A solid mother possibly makes a sound child. Amid fetal advancement poor maternal human services, for example, absence of access to fundamental sustenance and poor living or ecological conditions is connected to a possibly undesirable child with creating issue and inability. This can bring about numerous troubles and difficulties as the child ages into adulthood.

The amount of care a newborn child needs is immense, in some cases this is like a full-time job. Parents who are not able to give this nurturing to their child negatively affect the overall well-being of the child. Most emotional and psychological problems arise from the way a child was taken care of from birth all the way through adolescence. However, not every pregnant woman is able to provide for her child due to finances, relationship stability, age, living conditions or

Physical development of the human begins at conception when the egg is fertilized by the sperm. Once the ovum is fertilized, the process of mitosis begins, allowing the cells to split and form the human being. Through this process, each parent contributes 23 chromosomes, which are present in every cell of our bodies, and are made up of DNA and genes (Broderick & Blewitt, 2015). The genes that we inherit from our parents determine our physical features, such as hair and eye color, and height. Furthermore, the combination of various genes within the body at the time of conception may result in the individual carrying unexpected traits and illnesses (Broderick & Blewitt, 2015).

Although there are many factors that affect the development of the fetus, research on the specific effects of prenatal maternal stress and the resulting negative outcomes for the development of the fetus will be reviewed. While there is knowledge of these harmful effects in scientific and medical communities, researchers are still in the midst of discovering the results of these negative effects on human development. An overall review of the literature suggests that this topic is still relatively new in research as most of the articles make note that despite the amount of current research studies, there are still many unanswered questions.

Teratogens are any environmental agents that cause damage during the prenatal period and the roles they have on an embryo is causing malformations. Prescriptions and non-prescriptions while they may seem harmless and specific for their use can cause so serious malformations. For instance Accutane, which is simply used to treat very bad acne; if taken while pregnant can affect the embryo by causing eye, ear, skull, brain, heart, and immune system abnormalities. Alcohol is another teratogen and affects the embryo by causing facial abnormalities, brain injury, and includes neurodevelopment issues. Even though teratogens can cause damage during the entire length of the prenatal period the time in which it has the strongest affect is the Embryonic

The physiological and behavioral effects of early life stress (ELS) on the developing and adult brain are a subject of great interest in the field of neuroscience today. The ability to delineate the mechanisms and structures that are affected during postnatal exposure to chronic stress has the potential to provide invaluable insight into the development of a multitude of neuropsychiatric disorders. While we have come to understand a few of the mechanisms involved in many of these illnesses – such as the significance of the serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT) neurotransmitter in many depression cases – the complex nature of these disorders and our ability to effectively treat them remains elusive. Such an understanding of how the brain adapts and differentially develops as a result of chronic stress, particularly in early life, may also be able to broaden our understanding of the way in which the brain codes and responds to a variety of emotional triggers.

The first article I’ve chosen in relation to my topic deals with researching whether exposure to prenatal maternal stress affects the path of a child’s development. The findings from the author’s previous research indicates the human fetuses are extremely sensitive to the physiological and psychological effects of maternal stress and that these influences can be measured (Sandman, Davis, Buss, & Glynn, 2012). The main objective of this particular study was to gather evidence on whether a fetuses’ exposure to prenatal stress can influence it’s development significantly and whether this can result in consequences that can last through childhood and possibly adulthood (Sandman et al., 2012). The assessment protocol involved collecting maternal

Prenatal exposure to stress impairs biopsychosocial functioning of the infant with possible lifelong effects. During periods of maternal stress exposure, hormones pass through the placenta and fetal stress hormones mirror those hormones of the mother (Parke & Gauvain, 2009). These hormones can negatively impact the neurodevelopment of the fetus and lead to disorders such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, anxiety, and language delays (Talge, Neal & Glover, 2007). Exposure to stress hormones can also lead to difficult temperament and decreased stress responsiveness (Parke & Gauvain, 2009). Difficult babies often receive less contact from caregivers, and this lack of contact can hinder brain development in both emotional

According to dictionary.com a teratogen is “a drug or other substance capable of interfering with the development of a fetus, causing birth defects”. Teratogens are also substances that are found in the environment which are known to cause defects in fetal development. Teratogens are one of the leading causes of death to newborns in the nation. “There are four major factors that depend on the extent of fetal defects and those are the dosage, genetic makeup of the mother and the developing fetus, fetal age, an other negative influences on pregnancy” (Berk, 2012). Some of the common teratogens include alcohol consumption, exposure to radiation, environmental pollution, tobacco and or drug use, and certain prescription and non-

Why it is important in our society to know what teratogen is, and some ways to prevent this birth defect in our society. Teratogen is a agent that disturbs the development of an embryo. Well, what exactly causes these disturbances in the embryo? By taking medicine during pregnancy, medicine prescribe to new mothers can cause abnormality in pregnancy. Although many women take medications during pregnancy, the medicine prescribe can be harmful. A example may be a woman during pregnancy comes across morning sickness; therefore, she may ask her doctor to prescribe medicine to treat her morning sickness. A common medicine to take during the 60's was thalidomide. However, over the years researchers found that thalidomide caused partial absence

Infants are very helpless and extraordinarily dependent. Their earliest behaviors are goal driven for gaining a caregiver to focus and engage reciprocity in their behavior (Sroufe, 2011). The infants task is to gain their survival needs and regulate fear and stress by creating contingent responses so that the world may be predictable and comprehensible (Sroufe, 2011). Regulating emotions can only occur in relationship with the parents; an infant is ill equipped to reduce arousal on their own (Seigel, date, Sroufe, 2011, cite.) The infants work is most effective when circumstances and contingent responses are anticipated and more challenging when they encounter unpredictability and transitions (Hughes, 2014).

Preterm Birth is one of the most important and interesting topics to any prospective parent. One of the reasons is because it happens so often and unexpectedly. Preterm Birth has become a personal interest in research simply because it has made a tremendous impact in my life. Having a Preterm Birth has taught me lots of things, such as, to grow as a person and as a mother, to see things from a different perspective, to get up, continue with my life, and perhaps to learn how to say “good bye” to a little one without even saying “hello.” For all the reasons above, there are some questions I would like to address: Why do preterm births happen and how can it be prevented? What kind of help is offered to parents and family members who go through the process of having a preterm birth? How effective and relevant is that help?