Fallopian Tubes

What springs to mind when Fallopian tubes are mentioned?  That they “connect” the ovaries to the uterus which leads finally to the vagina and the outside of the body?  Perhaps you think about ectopic pregnancies, as most ectopic pregnancies are indeed “tubal” pregnancies.  Whatever you may think of when Fallopian tubes are brought up, they [...]

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Diet and Gender Determination

I have been hearing and reading for some time now about the belief by some that a mother’s diet can help determine the gender of a fetus.  Generally, this possibility is rejected by scientists and physicians alike.  I too reject this notion–in general.  A British study performed in 2008 argues that “you are what your [...]

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Hormonal Differences

If you are anything like me and read the medical headlines every day you have probably noticed in the past few weeks a spate of articles about how hormones can affect a person’s social behavior.  The first such article was a timely piece, considering the state of the economy, that argues that the length of [...]

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Rare Ectopic Pregnancy, again

In the last blog entry I detailed the story of Zahra Aboutalib, a Moroccan woman with a rare complication of an ectopic pregnancy, a lithopedion.  The second incredibly rare complication of an ectopic pregnancy that I will cover happened to an English woman named Jane Ingram.  Jane was a 32 year old woman living in [...]

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History of the IUD

Speaking of Dr. Ernst Gräfenberg, let’s talk about intrauterine devices (IUDs) since Dr. G is recognized as the first developer of the modern IUD.  IUDs, in a crude sense, have existed for an untold number of years.  Women and men have inserted various implements into human and animal uteri to prevent pregnancy for many years.  [...]

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Lactation: Mother’s Milk

So, since we talked about conventional cow milk a couple of days ago as well as soy and organic milks, I thought we should spare a thought for human-produced milk.  I have no firsthand experience with human lactation, so please feel free to jump in with your two cents!  Many new mothers will tell you, [...]

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Is Milk Really That Good for You?

After recently spending four days in Cleveland at a bioethics conference I came away with several new, and renewed, perspectives on women’s health issues.  The first that comes to mind is something that my roommate, another bioethics graduate student, and I discussed.  That is early menarche in females.
Now, a little personal background:  I was one [...]

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