The use of Complementary and Alternative Medicine in pregnancy: Data from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC)

Objectives - To report the frequency of Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) use by a population of pregnant women in the UK. Design - Four postal self-completion questionnaires completed at 8, 12, 18 and 32 weeks’ gestation provided the source of CAMs used. Questions asked for written descriptions about the use of any treatments, pills, medicines, ointments, homeopathic medicines, herbal medicines, supplements, drinks and herbal teas. Setting - An observational, population-based, cohort study of parents and children of 14,541 pregnant women residing within the former county of Avon in south-west England. Data was available for 14,115 women. Results - Over a quarter (26.7%; n = 3774) of women had used a CAM at least once in pregnancy, the use rising from 6% in the 1st trimester to 12.4% in the 2nd to 26.3% in the 3rd. Herbal teas were the most commonly reported CAM at any time in pregnancy (17.7%; n = 2499) followed by homeopathic medicine (14.4%; n = 2038) and then herbal medicine (5.8%; n = 813). The most commonly used herbal product was chamomile used by 14.6% of women, the most commonly used homeopathic product was Arnica used by 3.1% of women. Other CAMs (osteopathy, aromatherapy, acupuncture/acupressure, Chinese herbal medicine, chiropractic, cranial sacral therapy, hypnosis, non-specific massage and reflexology) accounted for less than 1% of users. Conclusions - CAM use in pregnancy, where a wide range of CAMs has been assessed, has not been widely reported. Studies that have been conducted report varying results to this study (26.7%) by between 13.3% and 87% of pregnant women. Survey results will be affected by a number of factors namely the inclusion/exclusion of vitamins and minerals, the timing of data collection, the country of source, the number of women surveyed, and the different selection criteria of either recruiting women to the study or of categorising and identifying a CAM treatment or product

The profiling of diet and physical activity in reproductive age women and their association with body mass index

Pre-pregnancy, pregnancy and postpartum are critical life stages associated with higher weight gain and obesity risk. Among these women, the sociodemographic groups at highest risk for suboptimal lifestyle behaviours and core lifestyle components associated with excess adiposity are unclear. This study sought to identify subgroups of women meeting diet/physical activity (PA) recommendations in relation to sociodemographics and assess diet/PA components associated with body mass index (BMI) across these life stages. Cross-sectional data (Australian National Nutrition and Physical Activity Survey 2011-2012) were analysed for pre-pregnancy, pregnant and postpartum women. The majority (63-95%) of women did not meet dietary or PA recommendations at all life stages. Core and discretionary food intake differed by sociodemographic factors. In pre-pregnant women, BMI was inversely associated with higher whole grain intake (β = -1.58, 95% CI -2.96, -0.21; = 0.025) and energy from alcohol (β = -0.08, -0.14, -0.005; = 0.035). In postpartum women, BMI was inversely associated with increased fibre (β = -0.06, 95% CI -0.11, -0.004; = 0.034) and PA (β = -0.002, 95% CI -0.004, -0.001; = 0.013). This highlights the need for targeting whole grains, fibre and PA to prevent obesity across life stages, addressing those most socioeconomically disadvantaged

Australian women's use of complementary and alternative medicines to enhance fertility: exploring the experiences of women and practitioners

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Studies exploring the use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) to enhance fertility are limited. While Australian trends indicate that women are using CAM during pregnancy, little is known about women's use of CAM for fertility enhancement. With the rising age of women at first birth, couples are increasingly seeking assisted reproductive technologies (ART) to achieve parenthood. It is likely that CAM use for fertility enhancement will also increase, however this is not known. This paper reports on an exploratory study of women's use of CAM for fertility enhancement.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Three focus groups were conducted in Melbourne, Australia in 2007; two with women who used CAM to enhance their fertility and one with CAM practitioners. Participants were recruited from five metropolitan Melbourne CAM practices that specialise in women's health. Women were asked to discuss their views and experiences of both CAM and ART, and practitioners were asked about their perceptions of why women consult them for fertility enhancement. Groups were digitally recorded (audio) and transcribed verbatim. The data were analysed thematically.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Focus groups included eight CAM practitioners and seven women. Practitioners reported increasing numbers of women consulting them for fertility enhancement whilst also using ART. Women combined CAM with ART to maintain wellbeing and assist with fertility enhancement. Global themes emerging from the women's focus groups were: women being willing to 'try anything' to achieve a pregnancy; women's negative experiences of ART and a reluctance to inform their medical specialist of their CAM use; and conversely, women's experiences with CAM being affirming and empowering.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The women in our study used CAM to optimise their chances of achieving a pregnancy. Emerging themes suggest the positive relationships achieved with CAM practitioners are not always attained with orthodox medical providers. Women's views and experiences need to be considered in the provision of fertility services, and strategies developed to enhance communication between women, medical practitioners and CAM practitioners. Further research is needed to investigate the extent of CAM use for fertility enhancement in Australia, and to explore the efficacy and safety of CAM use to enhance fertility, in isolation or with ART.</p

The Idea of Progress

Abstract This chapter discusses the entwinement of the idea of progress with the theory of international law. Because of the topic’s extensive scope, the chapter limits itself to two arguments. The first is that the impact of the idea of progress in international law should be measured not only against the traction of paradigmatic progress narratives; but also against the pervasiveness of humdrum, prosaic varieties of progress talk. The second point of this chapter is that any kind of progress talk, from the uppercase to the lowercase and back, is theoretical ‘all the way down’. The idea of progress does not merely describe reality ‘an sich’ but imposes a frame over it. Move the frame, and the image becomes muddled. One’s progress is another’s regression, stagnation, or mere directional movement.</jats:p

Intellectual Continuity and Authority:: Interrogating the Construction of National Traditions in International Legal Scholarship

Over the past decades, there has been a noticeable resurgence of interest inthe intellectual history of international law, with a heightened focus on scholarlytraditions1. National traditions have habitually been recognized as distinctand enduring intellectual currents that shape the broader stream of globalscholarship. In the realm of international law, the concept of national scholarlytraditions (e.g., the United States, the Hellenic, the Italian tradition) and regionaltraditions (e.g., the European, the Asian or the Latin American) havegarnered a lot of attention as an object of study or as an analytic, with scholarsattributing various palpable characteristics to these traditions, highlightingtangible connections, shared experiences, and social structures in shapingcommunal identities.Over the past decades, there has been a noticeable resurgence of interest inthe intellectual history of international law, with a heightened focus on scholarlytraditions1. National traditions have habitually been recognized as distinctand enduring intellectual currents that shape the broader stream of globalscholarship. In the realm of international law, the concept of national scholarlytraditions (e.g., the United States, the Hellenic, the Italian tradition) and regionaltraditions (e.g., the European, the Asian or the Latin American) havegarnered a lot of attention as an object of study or as an analytic, with scholarsattributing various palpable characteristics to these traditions, highlightingtangible connections, shared experiences, and social structures in shapingcommunal identities