On My Wish List: Healthy Babies

Lindsey and I at Breezy Point Resort, 2004.

My babies aren't really babies anymore.

I am at that strange place in parenthood where my kids are young enough that they need lots of guidance and parenting while they are still at the age when they'll listen, but we are beyond babyhood and toddlerhood by several years. The world of diapers and bottles seem like they are so far behind me that it's almost a foreign concept.

Many years ago I was hobnobbing with some direct marketing associates from New York. One of the women, a dear, wonderful lady in her 60's, remembered her labor story like it happened yesterday. Well, she remembers what she could of it, considering she had been at a New Year's Eve party and was incredibly drunk.

She got nauseous and began throwing up around 11:30 pm. She knew she'd been drinking a bit much but hadn't realized how much. Her husband was bummed that they had to miss the big New Year's countdown, but understood and took her home.

Once they arrived home the nausea got worse and worse, and around 1 a.m. she finally realized she was in labor.

They rushed to the hospital and within hours she had her baby. Her first.



Today, we can't imagine the scenario. What we've learned about the impact of alcohol during pregnancy is enough to scare pregnant women sober. My obstetrician had a "zero tolerance" policy during pregnancy. She told me flat out "If you think you need to have even a single drink while you're pregnant, I'm not your doctor. Go find someone else."

Marissa and I in 2005. She was a happy baby, honest!

From the negative impact of smoking and alcohol to the positive effects of Vitamin B and prenatal vitamins, we've learned a lot over the years about what it takes to have healthy babies.

But there's more to learn, and the March of Dimes is on the leading edge of research to find out what we need to know to ensure that every pregnancy ends with a healthy baby being brought into this world.

There's a new message that the March of Dimes wants pregnant women to hear. But I've decided to share that message on my friend's blog. So hop on over to Marketing Mama for the latest discovery that March of Dimes needs pregnant women to know.

P.S. If you don't already follow Missy's awesome blog, you need to. She is an amazing single parent to two beautiful kids, one of whom has life-threatening food allergies. She's also an incredible healthcare marketer by day. What doesn't this woman do? Oh that's right, organize blogger conferences in her "spare time." A serious overachiever if ever I met one. You can like her page on Facebook, or follow her on Twitter. (@Marketingmama)