Sensitive Midwifery - Issue 43 - July2019

Be aware of the commercialisation of ultrasound! Pregnant women need to know that ultrasound screening has been commercialised and is not needed in most instances. We also don’t know about all potential harmful effects long-term. Even though thoroughly tested and retested, prenatal ultrasound screening does not improve outcomes, except for slight improvements shown in questionable studies of Doppler velocity among preterm pregnancies suffering from severe preeclampsia. Pregnant women should distance themselves from prenatal testing and focus on lifestyle improvements. Prenatal care can focus on the 80% of controllable factors: diet, exercise, not smoking, limiting drug and alcohol use, education, being employed with adequate income, lifestyle, family and social support, community safety, environmental safety, housing, water supply and energy supply. Cohain, JS, ‘Prenatal Ultrasound does not improve perinatal outcomes’, 2012. Available : https://midwiferytoday.com/mt-articles/ prenatal-ultrasound-does-not-improve-perinatal-outcomes/ Harmful PFAS chemicals pass through the placenta PFAS (perfluoroalkyl substances) chemicals are widely used in consumer products – in clothing, cleaning agents, frying pans, food packaging, and more. Focusing on six of these PFAS substances, Swedish researchers discovered all six in fetal tissue and the placenta. ‘So, when the baby is born, it already has a build-up of these chemicals in the lungs, liver, brain, and elsewhere in the body,’ said Richelle Duque Björvang, doctoral student at Karolinska Institutet’s department of clinical science, intervention and technology. More research on the long-term health effects of everyday chemicals is sorely needed. Mamsen, LS, ‘PFAS chemicals passing through the placenta into the foetus’, 13 February 2019. Available: https://www.medicalbrief.co.za/ archives/pfas-chemicals-passing-placenta-foetus/ Dry, itching or flaking skin To help pregnant women get rid of dry, flaky or itchy skin during pregnancy, a midwife first needs to know what’s causing it. It never goes amiss to enquire what changes took place at the time the symptoms first manifested, because the root cause can then often be more easily tracked. Common triggers of dry, itchy or flaking skin in pregnancy are use of a new skin product, an increase in dairy and processed grain product intake, or sometimes even a pregnancy supplement. Advising mothers-to-be to eliminate these progressively will soon indicate if the cause has been found and corrective steps can be taken. These self-help tips will also assist women with this troublesome symptom: • Use omega-3 plant oils and eat foods that are high in omega-3, like dates, avo, nuts and seeds • Add a pot of rooibos tea to your bathwater and dab cooled rooibos directly onto the area • Apply vitamin E cream or oil that is in a hypoallergenic base • Supplement with zinc, which helps treat rashes and itching Rarely, itching may be linked to the more serious condition obstetric cholestasis, which can be suspected if a woman experiences severe itching on her hands, soles of her feet and abdomen, and later the rest of her body; if she feels very nauseous; her urine is dark and her stools are light; she has pronounced oedema; or if her skin seems jaundiced. Pregnancy 10 eSensitive Midwifery Magazine Issue 43