OUR BABIES.

Otago Witness, Issue 3338, 6 March 1918, Page 52

OUR BABIES.

By Hygkia.

Published under the auspices of tha Royal New Zealand Society lor the Health ot Wome-n and Children. "It is wiser to put up a lencc at the top ol a precipice than' to maintain an ambulance at the bottom."

i MATERNAL IMPRESSIONS. I Judging by the frequency with which we receive inquiries on tne subject of maternal impressions, we must conclude that many expectant mothers worry themselves a good deal about the matter. The following are samples of the questions asked: — INQUIRIES. (1) I was very much worrying over a '■ previous miscarriage, and fearing, perhaps, i would never have a normal child, and then just before I discovered I was pregnant I got a great shock. Could that worrying and then the shock have any injurious effect on my baby, especially mentally? You see, the shock was such that I felt numbed with it, and couldn't even sleep that night because of it, and I am afraid it might also have conveyed a shock to the embryo brain. I hope I am only imagining nonsense, but I should be so thankful it you would advise me. I am in continual anxiety about it: it is a case of "a little knowledge." (2) Ts it a fact or fiction that, during the first three months of pregnancy, one is liable .to disfigure one's child through fright or injure it by violent exercise, such, as riding ? (3) Could you kindly let me know through your column how birthmarks are caused, and if there is any truth in the idea that if yon get a fright, or if your mind is thinking of any particular thing, and if you touch yourself, will, the mark of the object, be there on that certain spot on the child? I have been told that it happens in" the early months of pregnancy. ANSWERS. BIBTHMARKS. There is no reason to suppose that there is any connection between the mother's thoughts or such so-called "maternal impressions" as are instanced and birthmarks. Birthmarks arise from some slight local deviation from the normal ,in the course of growth and development while the baby is still in the womb, just as similar departures may take place after birth. Nature drops a few stitches, as it were, or puts in a few extra, and the effect of this may be to mar the pattern over a considerable area, especially if it occurs very early in pregnancy. According to the extent or position of the defect, the result may be a_ more birthmark or a distinct malformation. A mistake at the start may spoil the whole stocking, but an error in the last row can only affect the finish. Shock oh Fbight.

A severe shock or fright may cause abortion by setting up irregular contractions of the womb; but a fright to the mother has no direct epecific influence over the offspring. Of course, an upsetting of the mother's health through fright would necessarily tend to prejudice the offspring more or less. Thus, if a pregnant woman comes to suffer from hysteria, dyspepsia, and malnutrition through fright or shock, the growth of her baby will be impaired, because the mother's blood will no longer be normal.

The Motheb's Thoughts, Feelings, etc. The mother's thoughts, feelings, or impressions have no power of directly exercising any influence over the structure of her unborn babe; but, in an indirect way, the mother's mental and emotional state can and does influence the whole body, and mind of her offspring through the benefi cial effect exercised by happiness and contentment, for instance, as contrasted with worry and discontent. The mental and emotional state of the mother has a tremendous effect on her appetite, digestion, nutrition, blood, secretion, excretion, and bodily processes and health generally. Before birth the baby is built cell by cell out of the mother's blood; therefore the expectant mother should make s>ure that her blood stream is pure. She should study the Government pamphlet "The Expectant Mother and Baby's First Month," and follow the advice given in it, and on pages 3 to 10 of the Society's book, "Feeding and Care of Baby." Riding Duhing Phegnanoy. Undoubtedly there Is a risk in riding, because one may ba thrown from a horse at any time, and there is always the risk of extreme jerks through a horse suddenly propping. These risks in riding are certainly greater than in ordinary forms of exercise i and this applies also to bicycling. Hence these are not the forms of exercise one would tend to choose, though it can scarcely be said that they should bo absolutely forbidden, where either happens to be tho woman's accustomed and practically her only available form, of pleasurable exercise. Habit exerts a great influence in theso matters. Certainly no novel form of exercise liable to be violent should be entered upon during pregnancy, and as far as possible excessive strains and jerks should bo avoided. However, it should be understood

that a woman runs far more risks, both for herself and her offspring-, through being over-sedentary rather than through taking even excessive exercise. The great causes of abortion and deformity are debility and relaxed unhealthy tissues. A 3 bearing on the whole subject, I shall make a few quotations from a physician who has devoted his life to investigating the various factors affecting the welfare of the infant, especially before birth, and whose title to speak with authority in this connection is universally recognised A pregnant woman ought to take sufficient exercise to keep her body in health; but excessive exertion, whether in the form of bicycling, or of walking, or of golfing, or of dancing, or of household work, should be forbidden. The clothing should be hygienic, and abdominal compression should be prevented. . . The pregnant woman ought to be encouraged to think lightly of so-called "maternal impressions," and to bo strengthened by the assurance that there :s no real scientific evidence of their potency to deform her infant. As to "maternal impressions" directly affecting the child, these are mere errors and superstitions handed on from the past. There is no ground whatever for supposing_ that mental or emotional shocks to which' the mother may be subjected can be directly transmitted to the embryo, and thus affect its future appearance, feelings, ideas, eto.