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Moms may feel like they shouldn’t take medications during pregnancy to protect the baby  but, the illness or condition may be more harmful for the baby than the medication. Toughing out an illness usually isn’t better for baby.

Holly Menino sits down with Al Romeo, a registered nurse with the Utah Department of Health’s MotherToBaby/Pregnancy Risk Line program on this episode of the Baby Your Baby Podcast. Together they discuss the risks and benefits of taking certain medications and vitamins.

 *Correction: Carbamazepine use in pregnancy may have an increased risk of approximately 1% for neural tube defects (spina bifida). Ondansetron (Zofran) use in pregnancy is not associated with an increased risk of neural tube defects (spina bifida). * 

 There is always a chance for a baby to have a birth defect since the background chance for a major birth defect for all healthy pregnancies is between 3% to 5%. When we look at the research studies, we expect to see some birth defects in each study. We are looking to see if the rate of birth defects is higher than that background risk and we are looking for the same pattern across the studies.   

Sometimes the condition is worse than the medication. Talk to your doctor to weigh the risks and benefits especially when it comes to fever, depression and diabetes.

Some vaccines do more to protect mom while other vaccines do more to protect baby. We’ll talk about 3 common vaccines. The influenza vaccine helps protect mom from the flu virus. Having the flu during pregnancy increases the chance that mom will have difficulty breathing and adults can die from complications of the flu. The varicella, or chicken pox, vaccine is one that helps protect baby. Getting the chicken pox vaccine before pregnancy helps mom avoid chicken pox during pregnancy which can lead to scarring in the fetus, limb defects, eye defects, and other complications. The tDap vaccine, tetnaus, diptheria, and pertussis, helps protect baby. Getting the Tdap vaccine late in pregnancy gives a boost of immunity just before baby is born in case baby gets exposed to whooping cough, which can be deadly for baby.

Listen to our podcast about immunizations here.

Protecting baby sometimes means that mom has to take care of her own health so that those illnesses and chronic conditions don’t harm the baby. It’s a complex balance that may require different decisions for different situations based on mom’s medical condition. If moms or providers have concerns or questions about a particular medication or the situation, they can contact  MotherToBaby.utah.gov.

The Baby Your Baby program provides many resources for all pregnant women and new moms in Utah. There is also expert advice from the Utah Department of Health and Intermountain Healthcare that air each week on KUTV 2News. 

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It’s summer — and a great time for families to spend fun days in the sun! Just remember to use extra caution with kids around water and cars to prevent tragedy — especially as we transition to summer and our schedules change.

Holly Menino sits down with Jessica Strong, Community Health Manager at Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital, in this week’s Baby Your Baby Podcast. They discuss three of the most dangerous ways kids can be injured during the summer and give tips on how to avoid a tragedy. 

Water Safety

In Utah, drowning is the second leading cause of death for children under age 14.

Teach your children to swim and always supervise them around water.

Use extra caution and care to supervise children near lakes, rivers and streams.  

Water at any depth can be hazardous.

Prevent Heatstroke: Never Leave A Child Alone in a Vehicle

About 40 children across the country die each year after being left in a hot vehicle. Of these fatalities, 87 percent are children ages 3 years and younger. 

Never leave your child alone in a vehicle – even for a few minutes. A child’s body temperature can increase 3-5 times faster than an adult’s. 

Keep a visual reminder that a child is with you.

• Place a stuffed animal or diaper bag in the seat next to you
• Place something you will need when you arrive at your destination in the back seat, like a cell phone or purse
• Order your free Baby Safety Snap at PrimaryChildrens.org/safetysnap.

If you see a child left alone in a car, contact the police or call 911.

Spot the Tot

During warm weather months, Utah children are at increased risk for being accidentally run over by a vehicle in a driveway or parking lot, most often by a parent or caregiver. 

Prevent injury by doing these three things:

• Walk completely around the car before getting in to drive
• Eliminate distractions (put phone away, turn off music)
• Roll down windows and listen before backing up

Additional Information & Resources:

-Visit primarychildren’s.org/safety for more tips on how to keep kids safe this summer.

-Primary Children’s “Hold On To Dear Life” Water Safety PSA: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2vuSAzkBkwk&list=PL84577120D5FE83BE&index=20

-Child Backovers: National Data can be found here https://www.kidsandcars.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/backover-19-map.pdf

-Kids and Cars safety information: https://www.kidsandcars.org/

The Baby Your Baby program provides many resources for all pregnant women and new moms in Utah. There is also expert advice from the Utah Department of Health and Intermountain Healthcare that air each week on KUTV 2News. 

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The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services reports that dental decay is the most prevalent infectious disease in our nation’s children. By the age of three, 5-10% of U.S. children have oral health issues; and by the age of five, about 60% of kids will have had at least one cavity. Children with oral health issues are more likely to experience oral pain, miss school, and perform poorly academically. 

In this week’s episode of the Baby Your Baby Podcast, Holly Menino heads up to Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital to talk with Dr. Hans Reinemer, DMD, Residency Program Director for Pediatric Dentistry. They discuss the importance of baby teeth and explain why mom’s oral health is extremely important, not just for her own teeth, but to the health of her child’s mouth as well. 

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The Baby Your Baby program provides many resources for all pregnant women and new moms in Utah. There is also expert advice from the Utah Department of Health and Intermountain Healthcare that air each week on KUTV 2News.

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Autism spectrum disorder (ASD), is complex condition that refers to a person who has challenges with social skills, repetitive behaviors, and communication — both verbal and nonverbal. According to the Centers for Disease Control, autism affects an estimated 1 in 59 children in the United States. Signs of autism usually appear by 2-3 years of age, however some indicators can diagnose autism even earlier. For people with autism, research shows intervention is key to positive outcomes later in life. 

In this week’s Baby Your Baby Podcast, Holly Menino sits down with Colin Kingsbury, the Autism Systems Development Program Manager at the Utah Department of Health, and Dr. Amanda Bakian, Principal Investigator of the CDC’s Autism and Developmental Disabilities Program in Utah. Together they discuss what parents need to know about autism spectrum disorder. 

Resources:

• Utah Department of Health
• Medical Home Portal
• Utah Parent Center
• Autism Council of Utah 

The Baby Your Baby program provides many resources for all pregnant women and new moms in Utah. There is also expert advice from the Utah Department of Health and Intermountain Healthcare that air each week on KUTV 2News.

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It wasn’t what they ordered, but an extra chromosome is what they got. For Jessica and Josh Egan, the news that their baby had Down Syndrome was difficult to receive. However, they now see this change in their order as an upgrade — as described in their birth announcement. 

In this week’s Baby Your Baby Podcast episode, Holly Menino sits down with Jessica and Josh Egan to talk about their journey to becoming parents.  They talk about the emotional roller coaster they went through during IVF, pregnancy, genetic testing, discovering that Baby Gwen had an extra chromosome, and what it was like when they’re birth announcement went viral. 

You can follow Baby Gwen and the Egans on Instagram or Facebook. 

The Baby Your Baby program provides many resources for all pregnant women and new moms in Utah. There is also expert advice from the Utah Department of Health and Intermountain Healthcare that air each week on KUTV 2News.