12 Pregnancy Myths Worth Ignoring By Simeon Margolis, M.D., Ph.D. - Posted Wed, Jun 27, 2007, 9:29 am PDT

1. Posted by A Yahoo! Health User on Wed, Jun 27, 2007, 8:59 pm PDT

LOLOL!! Oh, I remember that! All those stories and bits of advise! Thank goodness I had medical training long before I was ever pregnant, as well as a common-sense Mom and a great midwife. I can only imagine what stress many women go through trying to sort it all out! LOL! On a more serious note, I would like to question #4 regards to always sleep on your left side: it is actually recommended that late in pregnancy a woman should sleep on her left side and avoid sleeping on her right side, because there is much more pressure on the vena cava (the largest vein returning blood to the heart and lungs for re-oxygenation and recirculation), and so blood flow may be impeded. I know in emergency medicine, when working with a pregnant patient, the default position is for the woman to placed on her left side, lying down, for that very reason. So it's not a total myth!

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2. Posted by A Yahoo! Health User on Tue, Jul 03, 2007, 4:06 am PDT

I Love To Preganent By My Husband,Or To Spent Night While DOing Some Sex.

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3. Posted by A Yahoo! Health User on Tue, Jul 03, 2007, 4:10 am PDT

Yea i agree, in late pregnancy #4 is not a myth!

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4. Posted by A Yahoo! Health User on Tue, Jul 03, 2007, 4:10 am PDT

Never been a fan of men giving women medical advice, but it was an interesting read and I've heard many of these lines before, and we have been through this pregnancy thing 3 times!

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5. Posted by A Yahoo! Health User on Tue, Jul 03, 2007, 4:11 am PDT

It is interesting that in the 21st century so many rediculous falsehoods remain in our advanced society. Many seem to forgo education in favor of old wives tales! Parents must educate themselves in order to offer their child the most that modern science has to offer. It all starts with the babies!

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6. Posted by A Yahoo! Health User on Tue, Jul 03, 2007, 4:11 am PDT

Good article to take care.

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7. Posted by A Yahoo! Health User on Tue, Jul 03, 2007, 4:11 am PDT

so all those myths are false? their not true at all??

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8. Posted by A Yahoo! Health User on Tue, Jul 03, 2007, 4:11 am PDT

Number 4 (Avoid sleeping on your back; or, always sleep on your left side) probably relates to supine hypotension in late pregnancy so I suppose there is an element of truth in that

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9. Posted by A Yahoo! Health User on Tue, Jul 03, 2007, 4:11 am PDT

I do not beleive in all these myths. I am a mother of a 1year old and he is a healthy perfect little boy. This is all to make moms to be scared that's all. ST SOUTH AFRICA

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10. Posted by A Yahoo! Health User on Tue, Jul 03, 2007, 4:11 am PDT

What about the one about holding a needle over the woman's belly? The direction the needle moves supposedly determines the baby's sex.

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11. Posted by A Yahoo! Health User on Tue, Jul 03, 2007, 4:12 am PDT

It is a fine Doctor to admit he has never been pregnant and his employers are the finest in the world. I am sorry that he included xrays in the list and I think this was careless medical practice. The list is obviously old wives tales per se not myths. They are actually humorous. In the middle the inclusion that you "can not have xrays" is grounds for medical malpactrice termination of license I believe. I wonder how many see the list, know it is insane and then assume all imaging and xraying is safe in pregnancy which is not true. It is true you can have some, but you always tell everyone in contact with you that you are pregnant. I know, I told the imaging department and they were horrified my doc sent me. They told me to come back after I had the baby. The other myth of pregnancy - Men can tell you how it is to feel to be pregnant. How do they know?

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12. Posted by A Yahoo! Health User on Tue, Jul 03, 2007, 4:13 am PDT

I gave birth prematurely 4 times during full moons, doesn't sound like a myth to me!

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13. Posted by A Yahoo! Health User on Tue, Jul 03, 2007, 4:13 am PDT

I heard it all. Days after announcing my pregnancy, I was advised to sit at all times, not lift/shift anything, and tons of other silliness. Despite daily walks/extreme stairclimbing, I still carried to term. Initiated labor with massive doses of castor oil. Not a fun way to go, although effective. My colleagues were shocked that I walked two miles (downhill) to work until seven months pregnant and drank beer throughout. They were sure my baby would be born with two heads.

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14. Posted by A Yahoo! Health User on Tue, Jul 03, 2007, 4:14 am PDT

Sounds good, except for number 9 - I was a physician on the labor ward in Jamaica for four months, and I noticed that the rainy nights had the most deliveries. The most deliveries I ever had in one night was 30 the night before a tropical storm.

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15. Posted by A Yahoo! Health User on Tue, Jul 03, 2007, 4:14 am PDT

It is best not to sleep on your back while you're pregnant-- this is true. In fact, most women find it makes them feel quite ill to do so because of restricted blood flow caused by laying on your back. The left side is optimal, but no one is saying you are going to kill your baby by sleeping on your back. It's scary that a doctor has never heard these myths before, seeing as a lot of them are quite common.

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