Maternal obesity and diabetes in pregnancy result in early overgrowth of the baby in the womb

08 April 2016

The babies of obese women who develop gestational diabetes are five times as likely to be excessively large by six months of pregnancy, according to new research led by the University of Cambridge. The study, which shows that excessive fetal growth begins weeks before at-risk women are screened for gestational diabetes, suggests that current screening programmes may take place too late during pregnancy to prevent lasting health impacts on the offspring.

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Smoking girl

Shopping vouchers could help one in five pregnant women quit smoking

26 February 2015

Financial incentives could help one in five women quit smoking during pregnancy, according to new research published today in the journal Addiction. The study, led by researchers at the University of Cambridge and King’s College London, found that only a small number of women ‘gamed’ the system to receive the incentives whilst continuing to smoke.

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Section of normal testes of a young man

Study finds increased DNA mutations in children of teenage fathers

18 February 2015

New research reveals that the sperm cells of adolescent boys have more than six times the rate of DNA mutations as the equivalent egg cells in adolescent girls, resulting in higher rates of DNA mutation being passed down to children of teenage fathers. The findings suggest that the risk of birth defects is higher in the children of teenage fathers as a consequence.

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Illustration of sperm

Male infertility is ‘culturally invisible’, finds research

01 May 2014

Research for a new book reveals a culturally sanctioned suppression of dialogue around male infertility – despite it being equally as common as female infertility – to the extent that many infertile men receiving treatment still don’t actually consider themselves infertile.

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