A Week in the News - 13th December 2013

With the world still celebrating the life of Nelson Mandela the news has seen stories of his life feature heavily. As a man who is renowned around the world it is interesting to see how leaders across the globe, and normal citizens have reacted to the news. Even Obama and Raul Castro managed to shake hands - whilst someone else using his hands managed to sign nonsense during the remembrance ceremony in Soweto. Time to move onto stories in our arena though.

Childlessness, Marriage and Older Mothers

An interesting article in the Guardian looks at why the number of women without offspring at 45 is double that of their mother's generation. For those born in the 1920s around 1 in 9 women were childless at the age of 45, but it's predicted that for those born in the 1970s it will likely change to 1 in 4. Clearly this shows to us that society has changed, and confirms that for some other things are more important than children nowadays. As the article suggests, the statistics do not show a split between those who chose not to have children, and those who could not have children. That being said it is interesting to see how things have changed over the past 100 years, and whether or not this trend will continue in the future.

Reports like this one in the Telegraph don't help those who are thinking of having children. A High Court judge has suggested that if you aren't ready to get married, you shouldn't have children. If you read the article it may seem slightly more sensible that the headline suggests, as the judge concerns himself with parents attitudes towards children if a relationship breaks up - and how children are seen as rights rather than responsibilities. Many people will not accept others judging them, and every relationship is different, but with the Government's policies it's clear to see that the establishment think differently to some.

Alongside these stories it may be interesting to note that a study found mothers over 30 are at a great risk of negative birth outcome. The research shows that mothers over 30 risk premature and stillbirths, which may come as a surprise to those who usually associate this with mothers over 35. The study does state that the increase is small in comparison to those aged between 25-29, but that it could be significant if more mothers wait until they are older.

Pregnant Again, Brainy babies and Age

A blog on the Telegraph looks at how one mum might be pregnant soon after having a baby, she seems to think it's not common but we know on Mum Network that you're extremely fertile in the months after giving birth. So if you aren't intending to have another baby come along straight away, there's plenty of helpful advice on contraception out there!

Also in the Guardian was a report that newborn babies are actually more cognitively developed than we think. Studies have shown that babies do react differently to stimuli which appear frequently and those which appear less frequently. It is suggested that babies definitely have preferences, and it can be shown by how long they stare at one thing in comparison to another. Whilst this study may be too detailed to go into here, it's and extremely interesting article and one we'd recommend you read. The brain is fascinating, and the more we discover about it, even with babies, is remarkable.

Finally, it's estimated that two thirds of today's babies could live to 100, which is an amazing statistic - how many 100 year olds do you know? No wonder the Government want to increase the pension age.

We'll be back in the New Year with more news on babies and pregnancy, see you then - in the meantime why not follow us on Twitter?

About the author

James Brighton

Since 2011 James has been in charge of working with and organising all our writers to put together Pregnancy.co.uk and Babies.co.uk. Anna, his girlfriend, knows he will be an encyclopaedia of knowledge if she ever falls pregnant!

Click here to read my full biography.

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