Pregnancy News

Week Of March 25 To April 1, 2005

March 31, 2005

Baby Talk May Help Infants Learn Language
New research is showing that infants may gain a better understanding of language and where words begin and end when adults talk to them in "baby talk". Studying 40 infants between the ages of 6.5 months and 7.5. months, investigators at the Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh played a set of nonsense sentences spoken in either a regular adult tone or in "baby talk", the sing-song voice many parents use when talking to their child. Next, using a flashing light to attract the baby's attention, researchers repeatedly played either a partial word or a whole word until the baby looked away. Babies who gazed longer at the light while a whole word was played were assumed to be recognizing a distinct word. Babies who heard whole words in a "baby talk" voice were more likely to continue staring at the light than those who only heard partial words. Infants who heard whole words in an adult tone did not appear to distinguish between whole words and partial words. However, the study only used the singsong tone characteristic of the "baby talk" but did not include other features of the unique language, such as long pauses and short sentences. Researchers felt that the sing-song quality allowed the babies to distinguish between the start and end of a word although it is believed that all the features of "bay talk" contribute language development.
Source: Amy Norton, Reuters

March 29, 2005

Australians Find Infertility Gene
Australian researchers have identified a gene that may be responsible for some male infertility. Known as Dnmt3L, the gene produces a protein that can cause DNA to turn on or off. In the study, male mice that had had the Dnmt3L gene switched off were found to be infertile. Scientists are now taking DNA samples from fertile and infertile men and comparing their Dnmt3L results for variations. This study backs-up earlier American research, which found that the absence of Dnmt3L in female mice led to early miscarriage. Previous studies have shown that children conceived through IVF had a slightly increased risk of disease because their genes were switched on at the wrong time.
Source: Janelle Miles, The Courier-Mail

March 25, 2005

Pregnant Women Flock to Give Birth in Store
Famed British department store Harvey Nichols has been seeing an increase in the number of heavily pregnant women wandering around their Edinburgh, Scotland store recently. A rumor is swirling that any woman who gives birth in the posh store will receive a £500 gift certificate. As a result, a spokesperson for the store has reported that, despite the absence of a maternity department, up to four very pregnant women per day can be seen wandering around the store with no intention of buying anything. The urban myth has become so popular that women who have already started their labor are calling from their cell phones en route to the hospital to confirm whether or not the rumor is true. A Harvey Nichols spokeswoman has said that, while a pregnant woman may receive a small gift from the store, there is no truth to the rumor that a woman would receive £500.
Source: ITV.com

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