Health for a Lifetime

Studies In Premature Birth, Std's, Etc.

Three Angels Broadcasting Network

Program transcript

Participants: Don Mackintosh (Host), Dr. Neil Nedley

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Series Code: HFAL

Program Code: HFAL00233B


00:01 Welcome back.
00:03 We've been talking with Dr. Neil Nedley.
00:04 We've been talking about
00:05 prenatal influences and how to avoid premature births
00:10 and avoid having children that are maybe low birth weight
00:13 or actually just come too early.
00:15 Dr. Nedley, the definition there, was, just to recap,
00:18 was an early birth is anytime before 37 weeks. Correct?
00:23 Any time before 37 weeks.
00:25 One in eight kids today are born premature.
00:31 Higher than it's ever been in America.
00:33 And that's probably increasing because of some of the risk
00:36 factors we talked about before the break like
00:38 more people smoking, more people drinking...
00:41 Actually, not as many smoking
00:43 although, smoking has cut down in men
00:47 but not near as much in women.
00:49 But most women that get pregnant, they quit smoking
00:53 if they are smokers.
00:54 But there's an increased risk of a host of other problems.
00:57 That we have... Some of which we've talked about.
01:01 such as alcohol, caffeine,
01:04 and maternal obesity, high blood pressure, gestational diabetes,
01:08 and then others that we haven't talked about yet.
01:11 We'll talk a little bit more about
01:13 some of the things that cause it
01:14 but I also want us to really see the impact of it.
01:17 Like, what does this really do to the kids?
01:19 Right. And unfortunately it does..
01:21 increases their likelihood of a lot of bad things that happen.
01:25 For instance, it increases their likelihood
01:27 of having premature heart disease.
01:29 It increases their likelihood of having high blood pressure
01:33 at an earlier age than they should.
01:35 It increases their risk of developing Type 2 diabetes.
01:39 And it's one of the reasons why Type 2 diabetes is increasing.
01:43 So how does that work?
01:44 I mean, why would they get heart disease sooner?
01:45 Why would they get diabetes sooner?
01:47 Does anyone really know?
01:48 Yeah. Those are mechanisms that
01:50 we're just kind of, you know, speculating on.
01:53 We just know the association.
01:56 You can see it when we study statistics
01:59 that out of these one in eight children
02:01 that are born prematurely
02:02 when they're followed
02:04 over the course of the next thirty or forty years
02:07 we see a dramatic increased risk of a number of problems.
02:10 And it's not just physical problems.
02:12 It increases their risk of cancer;
02:14 increases their risk of
02:16 bipolar disorder, of depression,
02:20 of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.
02:23 A lot of the ADHD kids, not all of them but many of them
02:27 were born premature and that increased their risk of ADHD.
02:32 It also... There's a tendency for decreased muscle strength.
02:37 You know, you don't see
02:38 the great physical
02:42 muscle builders coming from those who were born premature.
02:46 So it can even affect, you know, their strength
02:50 and their capacity to be able to even perform
02:53 at a high athletic level.
02:56 It increases their problems intellectually.
03:01 In other words it does have a role in decreasing IQ.
03:05 And some studies show as little as five points,
03:08 others show maybe a 15 to 20 point IQ
03:11 decrease depending on how premature the baby was.
03:15 So, that has to do with brain development.
03:18 Is the brain developed in uterine?
03:21 Is it the last thing being developed?
03:23 Well, no. The brain is actually
03:25 one of the first things being developed.
03:26 The brain is really kind of the prime
03:28 part of embryology that's being developed.
03:32 So the first trimester is very important.
03:33 The second trimester is very important.
03:35 But also the completion of it seems to be important as well.
03:41 So all of these different things make
03:44 what we're saying very, very serious.
03:47 In other words, you don't just mess around with this.
03:49 You don't say oh. You need to be very careful
03:51 about what you're doing with your prenatal care.
03:53 You need to be very careful about it.
03:55 You need to get on the right lifestyle.
03:58 And another factor that was cited
04:01 and this was cited by the US Government
04:03 as reasons for increased prematurity
04:07 and this would be lower down on our list.
04:08 This isn't among the top ten.
04:10 But elective C-sections actually increase the risk
04:14 of preterm delivery.
04:16 Not the emergency C-sections.
04:19 There are women that need to have a Caesarean delivery
04:23 to save their life or to save the life of the child.
04:25 And that's about five percent of cases
04:29 definitely are going to need an emergency Caesarean section.
04:33 But the Caesarean section rate is far higher than that
04:36 in America and it's really due to what we call
04:38 elective Caesarean sections.
04:40 Well people are not
04:42 trying to have a C-section before 37 weeks are they?
04:44 No, but what happens is
04:47 sometimes the calculations are off.
04:49 And so the doctor thinks he's taking a 38 or 39 week baby
04:55 in reality, once they get it out,
04:57 they realize the baby's actually premature.
05:00 All of our calculations are not completely 100% reliable.
05:07 Because it's based on the family history of the mother.
05:09 Well, no. They're taking a look at the
05:12 head size on the ultra sound.
05:15 They're taking a look at the history
05:17 of when the last period was. - Right.
05:19 And they're looking at factors like that.
05:21 But none of those are 100% reliable.
05:24 Sometimes a goof is made.
05:27 So it's better to let nature have its course if you can.
05:33 Exactly. There needs to be a concerted effort.
05:37 In fact the US Government task force has mentioned this.
05:40 There needs to be a concerted effort to try to decrease
05:43 the number of elective Caesarean sections done in this country.
05:47 Okay. So, all of these prenatal influences and then their impact
05:53 What can we do to avoid these problems?
05:58 What kind of things can we be doing?
06:00 Well, one of the things, it a very modifiable risk factor
06:03 is avoiding infectious diseases
06:06 of the mother after she gets pregnant.
06:10 Many mothers don't see that as something that's very vital
06:16 and they just go about their regular routines as far as
06:20 trying to avoid infections.
06:22 But it becomes very important, when you're pregnant,
06:25 to avoid contracting infections.
06:27 So what kind of infections?
06:28 Like the common cold?
06:30 Yeah, the common cold.
06:31 Even the flu virus can significantly
06:34 increase the risk of premature delivery.
06:36 There are other infections
06:40 like the sexually transmitted infections.
06:42 The human Trichomonas infection
06:47 increases the risk of still birth,
06:49 increases the risk of premature delivery.
06:51 And that's a sexually transmitted disease.
06:53 Chlamydia, the most common
06:56 sexually transmitted disease in teenagers
06:59 is actually a cause, again, of premature delivery.
07:05 So, as soon as you get pregnant should you go get
07:07 tested to see if you have any sexually transmitted diseases,
07:10 if you have any question whatsoever?
07:11 Well, that would be a good thing.
07:14 However, another factor is
07:16 if there's inappropriate antibiotic usage
07:18 it increases your risk of preterm delivery.
07:20 So you don't want to use antibiotics indiscriminately.
07:24 But if you do have an infection,
07:25 you want to use a safe antibiotic
07:28 and get that taken care of.
07:30 But actually, the time to check for
07:32 sexually transmitted diseases is before you get pregnant.
07:34 You really want that treated before you have a baby.
07:38 And that's why planned pregnancies
07:41 often are better than the unplanned.
07:44 I noticed tick bites are related to premature...
07:48 Yeah, Lyme's disease, Q fever, these are
07:52 infections that can be transmitted through ticks
07:55 that can increase the risk of preterm delivery.
07:57 So it's very important for mothers to stay out of
08:00 those tick environments, if they can, when they're pregnant.
08:04 So, what about immunizations?
08:08 Now that's a very controversial subject
08:10 for some that are having babies and they say
08:12 Well, I don't want any of that.
08:13 Is that a good thing? bad thing?
08:15 What would you say? I know I don't want you to...
08:17 Well, I can tell you, immunizations are safer today
08:19 than they've ever been before.
08:21 It's US Government law now that
08:24 no mercury can be involved in vaccinations.
08:28 There used to be some mercury there
08:30 and that was increasing the risk of problems, frankly.
08:34 Now that the mercury is out
08:36 and if the vaccine is actually a dead
08:42 vaccine where it's not a live one that also decreases the
08:46 risk. Yes, if the mother contracts measles or rubella
08:51 or rubeola during pregnancy
08:53 it increases her risk of preterm delivery.
08:55 That's why it's important to be vaccinated
09:00 to actually help the health of not only you
09:04 but potentially, your next child.
09:06 Chicken pox?
09:08 Chicken pox as well.
09:10 You can't be vaccinated for that.
09:12 You actually can be now.
09:14 The chicken pox vaccine is out now.
09:17 Just get it before you get pregnant.
09:18 Yeah, that's right
09:20 Nutritionally, I noticed also in your research
09:24 there are some things that you can do to just mitigate
09:26 or try to avoid this premature birth that you mention.
09:30 Do you want to talk about those at all?
09:32 Yes, there are a number of nutritional factors that
09:36 can actually help you carry a baby to term.
09:39 And one of those is getting enough omega-3 fats.
09:42 Another is getting enough calcium,
09:45 enough zinc, enough folic acid.
09:47 All of these nutrients are important,
09:50 particularly during pregnancy.
09:51 We can't stress enough of the role of folic acid
09:54 in helping brain development, as well.
09:58 It also can help prevent preterm delivery.
10:01 So, these things are eating your green leafy vegetables,
10:03 eating like English walnuts, nuts that are
10:06 high in those omega-3s. - Yes.
10:09 All those different kind of things.
10:10 I know in some of your books you have those lists but
10:14 just a simple research on the internet
10:16 or at the library you can figure what those foods are.
10:20 But is it basically, foods as grown of all different colors?
10:22 Would that be safe?
10:24 Well, that would pretty safe. Yeah, that's true.
10:26 And the nutrients there, we can list them are
10:28 Calcium, magnesium, zinc, riboflavin, folic acid,
10:31 antioxidant vitamins such and E and C, omega-3 fats,
10:35 and a very important amino acid called arginine.
10:38 All of these, if they are increased
10:42 to appropriate amounts or above
10:43 are going to decrease a mother's risk of preeclampsia.
10:48 Now, preeclampsia is a condition
10:50 where it tends to occur on the first baby
10:53 but that's where the individual
10:56 can actually end up having a seizure.
10:58 Often they'll have swelling of the ankles first
11:00 and high blood pressure, protein in the urine.
11:02 Then it can develop to a mother having a seizure
11:05 and of course that can threaten her life, the life of the child.
11:07 and if these nutrients are all up there,
11:09 the risk of preeclampsia goes down.
11:12 And so that means the risk of preterm delivery
11:14 because when someone has preeclampsia
11:16 that means preterm delivery is gonna happen.
11:18 Some of the highest foods I noticed on your list here
11:22 are roasted pumpkin seeds, lentils, soy beans.
11:25 These are all seeds. - Yeah.
11:27 There all things from seeds.
11:28 And those are foods high in arginine.
11:30 Arginine really improves the circulation to the uterus,
11:34 to the baby, and actually dilates the blood vessels.
11:38 When we get better circulation to the baby,
11:40 better circulation to the uterus
11:41 we have less problems with preterm delivery.
11:44 The foods that are at the top of the list there, you named them,
11:48 Pumpkin seeds, soy beans, lentils.
11:50 There's also garbanzos or chick peas, kidney beans,
11:54 lima beans, almonds also are up there.
11:57 These are foods that a woman can eat while pregnant
12:04 that are going to help her and the baby.
12:06 This is a very, you know, spiritual time in people's lives
12:09 when they have that first child.
12:10 Is there anything that you'd say as a Christian physician
12:14 as we're closing out this program on having a baby that...
12:18 What do you tell your patients when they're coming in?
12:20 in terms of maybe some spiritual insights as well?
12:25 Studies have shown when you reduce the stress of the mother
12:29 you have a much greater risk of being able
12:32 to carry that baby to full term.
12:34 And part of stress reduction is having a good,
12:38 spiritual, core belief system in place.
12:41 And that is a belief system that can be based
12:44 on something firm and foundational
12:46 such as the Word of God.
12:47 So, you know, in a program like this
12:51 that's so important, spiritual focus
12:53 but in a program like this
12:55 we couldn't cover everything someone needs to know.
12:57 What should someone who wants more information do?
12:59 I would have them contact us.
13:01 We're compiling all of this information
13:03 and putting it in one place
13:05 So someone who's going to have a baby can utilize it.
13:09 Thanks for joining us for Health for a Lifetime.


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Revised 2014-12-17