Healthwise Clinic Natural Health Blog » pregnant

More women in Britain are having more babies

Jean — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 13:08:19 +0000

The average number of children born to each woman in Britain has risen from 1.63 in 2001 to 1.96 in 2008, the highest since 1973.

The baby-boom is fuelled by rising fertility rates as well as immigration. The population of the United Kingdom has now reached 61 million.

More than a quarter of a million children were born last year as fertility rates reached the highest levels in a generation according to the Office of National Statistics.

The rise in births helped to increase the overall population in the country by 408,000, the biggest annual rise since 1962.

Image of baby by christine

Births are increasing because women born in Britain are having more babies and also because the number of women of child-bearing age has risen by 20 per cent because of immigration since 2001.

There were 791,000 babies born in 2008, an increase of 33,000 on the previous year. More than half of this rise came from births to mothers born outside Britain, but living in the UK.

In London, 55 per cent of all births were to mothers born outside the country.

Roma Chappell, deputy director of demography at the ONS, said that the changes to the overall fertility rates were highly significant.

“It’s actually quite exciting because it’s the highest fertility rate we have seen in the UK for some time. You have to go all the way back to 1973 to find a time when the fertility rate went higher,” she said.

World’s oldest mother dies – is IVF pregnancy a right?

Jean — Sat, 08 Aug 2009 20:22:03 +0000

The 69 year old single mother of twins born through IVF recently died.

Maria del Carmen Bousada de Lara became the world’s oldest mother. Apparently she lied to doctors that she was 55 when she was in fact 66 at the time of her IVF treatment. She contracted cancer and has died leaving them motherless at the age of two.

She had already reached the menopause.

Lorraine Kelly, the GMTV presenter has spoken out strongly against the treatment.

“ Implanting pensioners with donor eggs and pumping them full of hormones so they can give birth in their late sixties is morally bankrupt and plain wrong,” Lorraine is reported as saying.

“I believed at the time of their birth that she was being horribly selfish. I still maintain she should never have been given the fertility treatment. Having a baby is not a woman’s right it is a privilege.”

The mother developed cancer soon after having the boys which created debate about whether the IVF treatment had in fact contributed to the disease.

Lorraine Kelly herself experienced secondary infertility (SI) after having had her daughter. Although she suffered a miscarriage when six years later she did become pregnant, she did not want to undergo IVF fertility treatment. In her autobiography “Between You and Me” she explained

“ I never went down the road of IVF. I didn’t feel so overwhelmed about it that I wanted fertility treatment. We just tried the old-fashioned way and it didn’t happen. We have accepted that.”

Many of the families we see at Healthwise Clinic feel, like Lorraine, that they want to have a baby the “old-fashioned” way. Unfortunately fertility treatment with acupuncture is less well known than IVF or normal pregnancy so Lorraine may never have heard of it. However it is a way of boosting the body’s natural fertility and there is nothing artificial about the process.

Acupuncture and herbs can help couples have their first or subsequent babies. That a woman who has already reached the menopause can give birth at all highlights the artificial nature of IVF treatment.

Do you agree with Lorraine or not?

Hottest day at Wimbledon – not just for Andy Murray

Jean — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 08:22:51 +0000

Andy Murray was the hottest British tennis star yesterday at Wimbledon on the hottest day for three years. The match was hotly contested, and the temperature meant that the crowd was hot, too.

The heat means everyone needs to take in more water. Most people on Henman Hill probably had a plastic bottle of water with them.

However, n the heat there is a chance that the bottles will warm up. When the plastic is warm toxins are leached from the plastic into the drink. By a coincidence the more environmentally-friendly the plastic, the more likely this is to happen.

Wimbledon tennis stars like Andy Murray and Stanislas Wawrinka take their drinks from a cool cabinet. Between the games we see the players drinking from plastic bottles filled with water or isotonic drinks. But the crowd is more likely to drink from a warmed bottle rather than miss the tennis action. Without knowing it they are risking taking in damaging toxins.

We are being encouraged to take water with us in this heat but many people don’t realise there is a potential health hazard, too.

Prevent toxins being leached from plastic with a few simple guidlines:

Don’t fill an old water bottle with new water

Don’t use an unopened bottle which has been in heat and cooled down as the damage is already done

Use a cool bag if you are going to be out and about in the heat and your water bottle might heat up (obtainable in many supermarkets)

Throw half consumed-bottles into recycling.

Drink from glass if possible.

This advice is important for all ages, from babies to the elderly but is especially vital for women who are pregnant or planning on becoming pregnant.

The new roof at Wimbledon esnures we get the hottest tennis action when it is raining or late into the evening, but we all need to keep our water intake cool.

Sarah Jessica Parker expecting surrogate twins

Jean — Fri, 15 May 2009 12:46:18 +0000

Sarah Jessica Parker of “Sex and the City” fame and her husband Matthew Broderick are expecting girl twins in the summer by a surrogate mother. If this sounds unlikely read it at Reuters.

At Healthwise of course we wonder if they tried acupuncture and herbal medicine. Surrogate parenthood is a huge step. In the clinic we do see quite a number of couples who expected the second baby to appear almost on cue.

Their chances of having the next baby naturally are increased with the acupuncture treatment package, but also their general level of health and well-being. So you can cope better with the pregnancy and with the babies when they appear.

Not all acupuncture is created equal and we are proud of our considerate and personal approach. If you know any celebrities who could easily consider surrogacy but would prefer to get pregnant naturally please refer them to Healthwise. We would love to help!

Fertility Clinic in Burnham, Bucks

Jean — Mon, 11 May 2009 09:43:59 +0000

The Healthwise Fertility Clinic in Burnham in Buckinghamshire is situated in the High Street. When clients walk down the street and find us the often say that they already feel more relaxed.

Burnham is a mix of large village and small town…with interesting independent shops as well as some major supermarkets. You don’t get high rise blocks of offices.

It is a perfect location for those in the Thames Valley who are looking for help with fertility, and want individual and supportive treatment. You get a whole package of treatment including acupuncture, herbal remedies and education which directly relates to you and your condition.

Andrew Loosely’s excellent reputation attracts people from Gerrards Cross, Beaconsfield, Amersham, Taplow, Maidenhead and Henley as well as further afield.

Trains from Paddington to Reading and the West Country stop at Burnham. Sometimes people from London prefer to be seen in Burnham because they enjoy seeing the green fields on the journey, and the fact that we are in a small town High Street. However, they also come to our London clinic which is in Harley Street.

You are very welcome for an initial consultation in Burnham or London so please call us on 01628 668339, and ask for our brochure.

Taking charge of your fertility

Jean — Thu, 07 May 2009 19:07:46 +0000

Fertility is an issue that affects mind, body and spirit.

Couples who come to Healthwise Clinic for acupuncture to help conception, have often had their condition described as infertility, or unexplained infertility.

Our approach is to think in terms of the positive condition rather than describing it in a negative way. Therefore we prefer to use the word fertility for our treatment, rather than infertility.

As the body, mind and spirit are all linked, there is a chance that the description infertility may in inself be counter-productive to conception and pregnancy.

So if you are finding it difficult to become pregnant, an important first step can simply be stop thinking of yourself as infertile.

At Healthwise we encourage you to take charge of your own fertility and offer a course of treatment which is specific to your condition. This includes acupuncture, and a course of herbal remedies in capsule form, plus a wealth of information about small changes you can make in your lifestyle.

If there is anything mechanically wrong with either partner we find it out straight away. Don’t forget, though that because the body, mind and spirit are all linked, there is an infinite capacity for change.

We are delighted that the fertility treatment at Healthwise Clinic has helped couples conceive where once they had no hope. Part of that is due to the fact that we empower you to take charge of your own fertility.

Give us a call if you would like an introductory consultation either in Burnham, Bucks or in Harley Street in London. Telephone 01628 668 339