My February article written by Denis Campbell, health correspondent to The Guardian is called "Women with diabetes warned to take precautions when having a baby".
Link
http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2012/feb/06/women-diabetes-pregnancy-childbirth
Summary
The article is a report on how diabetic women are almost four times more likely to have a baby with a birth defect. The overall chance of a diabetic (Type I and II) woman having a baby with a birth defect is 7% compared to a 2% chance for females without diabetes. The level of the mother's glucose level at the time of conception is related to the chance of the baby having birth defects. The article mentions how valuable it is for women who are diabetic and are considering having a child to alert their doctors so that appropriate steps can be taken to deliver the healthiest baby possible. Stabilizing the health of diabetics women who have the potential to become pregnant can reduce the risk of birth defects by using insulin pump therapy and continuous monitoring of glucose levels, however it is hard to get every diabetic women in a healthy state before they become pregnant because of socioeconomic barriers.
One question I have
Do you think it is irresponsible for a diabetic woman to have a baby? What about fertile women who have a debilitating mental/ physical condition that is capable of being inherited by the child or capable of producing a birth defect - should they be allowed to have children?
I do think it is irresponsible for a diabetic women to have a child, IF they do not take the correct steps to prevent an unhealthy baby. I think this because who does not want a healthy baby? I know I would want a healthy baby! It would be only fair for the baby too because if they do not have a responsible mother before they are born, would you think their childhood and up bringing is going to be stable? Women with diabetes should also be constantly informed about their health, which I am sure they are because they have to keep themselves healthy too! Other women with debilitating mental/ physical condition should be able to have a baby, depending on the severity of it. Because if they can not really do for themselves or be mobile, then they most likely will not be able to provide for their baby.
ReplyDeleteI think those diabetic women should really know their body as well as their limitations before becoming pregnant. No one wants the mother to die during childbirth, therefore they really should consider the consequences first. In this day and age, there are other options such as surrogacy and adoption. Those women should utilize those methods due to their physical constraints. As for the women with inheritable mental/physical traits, they may want to have a child, but they have to realize that they should do what is best for everyone and not get pregnant. By passing on traits that make that baby's life harder, it puts more stress on the child as well as the mother. For women in both of these situations, they really just need to be responsible as to what they do with their bodies and how it will affect others.
ReplyDelete