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	news bulletins may 2006

• Activists Get Hasbro to Shelve Pussycat Dolls
• Move That Body, Mama!
• New Website Gives Voice to Creative Parents
• Having Twins Doesn't Have to Mean Having a Cesarean
• Mothering's Mama and Daughters, On the Air

Activists Get Hasbro to Shelve Pussycat Dolls

Thanks to a grassroots campaign initiated by the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood (CCFC) and Dads and Daughters (DADs), toy giant Hasbro has announced that they are canceling their planned line Pussycat Dolls, based on a real-life burlesque troupe/music group of the same name, famous for their sexualized lyrics and dance routines. Last week, CCFC and DADs launched a letter-writing campaign urging Hasbro to reverse its plan to market the blatantly eroticized dolls to girls as young as six. Efforts of parents around the country were rewarded when the company issued the following statement:

"Hasbro and Interscope have jointly agreed that Hasbro will not move forward with the line of dolls based on the recording group, The Pussycat Dolls. Interscope's current creative direction and images for the recording group are focused on a much older target than we had anticipated at the time of our original discussions, thereby making a doll line inappropriate for Hasbro."

"We're thrilled that Hasbro responded to the concerns expressed by the many people who participated in our letter-writing campaign, and that they are putting the well-being of children above their bottom line," said Dr. Susan Linn, CCFC's co-founder. "Hasbro's decision underscores the importance of working together to stop the commercial exploitation of children."

Lisa Flythe, a CCFC member who had written to Hasbro and first alerted CCFC about the dolls, was gratified by Hasbro's decision: "As a parent of a four-year-old girl, I'm grateful that Hasbro has decided not to join with other toy, media and marketing companies in escalating the sexualization of little girls. I hope that other companies will follow their example."

Dads & Daughters President Joe Kelly called Hasbro's decision a victory for families and responsible corporate practice. "We asked Hasbro executives to imagine encouraging their own six-year-old daughters and granddaughters to engage in developmentally unhealthy behavior. It appears that they did that, and then made the right decision for their families, our families, and the company."

Source:
www.commercialfreechildhood.org

Move That Body, Mama!

Gone are the days when doctors worried that moderate to rigorous exercise might harm fetal development. It's now widely recognized that exercise during pregnancy provides profound benefits for both the mother and her growing baby, and is a key determinate of maternal, fetal, and childhood health.

However, contradictory advice, misinformation, and myths about prenatal exercise persist, leaving women confused about what fitness activities are safe as pregnancy progresses. To clear the confusion and help women have healthier pregnancies and babies, BeFit-Mom has published a free, in depth guide on prenatal and postpartum fitness and exercise at www.befitmom.com.

"The mission of BeFit-Mom is to motivate and inspire all women to be as fit and healthy as possible during pregnancy by giving them the tools, information, and support that they need," explains perinatal fitness expert, author, and founder of BeFit-Mom, Helene Byrne.

Fit mothers have easier pregnancies with fewer complications, stronger immune systems, shorter labors, fewer cesarean sections, gain less weight, and bounce back from pregnancy and childbirth much more quickly that less fit women. Moreover, fitness activities reduce anxiety and stress, elevate mood, boost energy levels, improve body image, and enhance self-confidence and overall quality of life for pregnant women.

Just as importantly, babies born to fit mothers are leaner, stronger, and healthier from day one, and have dramatically reduced risk for developing common health problems like obesity, diabetes, and asthma later in life. Intriguing new animal studies show that regular aerobic exercise during pregnancy enhances fetal brain development; so exercising during pregnancy may even make babies smarter!

www.befitmom.com provides comprehensive information and practical tips on how all pregnant women, regardless of fitness level, can achieve optimal health for herself and her developing baby.

New Website Gives Voice to Creative Parents

The craft of parenting, in our culture, is most often discovered in isolation, with little or no support from extended family and the wider community. It is the single most challenging (and many would argue, stimulating and joyful) task a person can ever do—and yet many are left floundering in a wilderness of confusion and doubt.

All these new feelings—from boundless joy at the sight of our beloved newborn or toddler, to the blackest anger when our pre-schooler presses our carefully concealed buttons—need an outlet. As adults, we have needs too!

These are some of the reasons behind the launch of a new website featuring the writing of creative people who raise children. The website, ParentingExpress, debuted in January, 2006 and includes poems, stories, memoirs and anecdotes about the range of experiences a parent lives through in raising a child.

"Being a parent can be exhilarating, joyful, bittersweet, maddening or exhausting—sometimes a combination of all these emotions just in one day!" says Anne-marie Taplin, editor and creator of ParentingExpress. "There is a real need for people who care for children to express themselves—the challenges of raising the next generation can seem insurmountable and all-consuming. My website gives a voice to parents, in a world that doesn't much value parenting."

Anne-marie is the mother of two young boys: Harry, four and Georgie, 18 months. She has been a writer and editor for almost 20 years and was inspired to create the website as a vehicle for self-expression and a way to link parents around the globe.

"It can be hard to connect with like-minded people and even harder to find a way to express all those pent-up feelings," she said.

"We'd all do a better job of raising our children if we could get some time out for self-expression or even reading about other parents' experiences. On my website, I'm looking for honest stories that show the full range of what it's like to raise children—from birth to babyhood to preschoolers to teenagers."

The website has submission guidelines for those willing to put pen to paper and, for those readers who have access to the internet, it offers a wide range of stories, memoirs and poetry, plus book reviews and recommended weblinks.

Anne-marie can be contacted via the website and welcomes feedback from readers and writers.

Having Twins Doesn't Have to Mean Having a Cesarean

When it comes to twin births, two times the fun doesn't always mean twice as many complications. Cesarean surgeries are not requirements for women pregnant with multiple babies. Not only is it possible for mothers of multiples to give birth vaginally, but research shows that it often is the safer option.

From the beginning of their pregnancy, women carrying multiple babies may be labeled high-risk and inundated with precautionary information. The assumption, which often is supported by hospitals, is that unplanned cesarean surgery in labor is likely and therefore planned cesarean surgery is the safer option. Lamaze International, an advocate for normal birth and a leader in childbirth education, warns women not to make this assumption and points to research showing the dangers of unnecessary cesarean surgery.

A study published in the Cochrane Library, an international repository research on the effects of health care practices, reports that there is not enough evidence to suggest that elective cesarean surgery with twins results in better outcomes. A second study on multiple births reveals that cesarean surgery for delivery of the second twin (when the baby is not in the head-down position) increases the risk of infection and produces no obvious benefit for mother or baby.

In today's "culture of cesareans,"mothers of multiples face an uphill battle for choices in childbirth. While women carrying multiple babies are more likely to encounter complications than mothers of single babies, cesarean surgery is not mandatory and increases risks. Research indicates that women who undergo cesarean surgery increase the risk of infection, hemorrhage, surgical and anesthetic complications, and maternal death, as well as newborn respiratory problems. Future reproductive problems associated with previous cesarean surgery include infertility, uterine rupture, preterm birth, low birth weight, and stillbirth. According to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, a vaginal birth is possible for mothers of twins when the first twin is positioned head-down, which is nearly 80 percent of the time. Additionally, a mother of triplets is a candidate for a vaginal birth if she has an uncomplicated pregnancy, has not has previous uterine surgery and is at least 32 weeks pregnant at the time of birth.

"I would advise any woman expecting twins to find a caregiver who does not routinely perform cesareans for twin births," Judith A. Lothian, RN, PhD, LCCE, FACCE, author of The Official Lamaze Guide: Giving Birth with Confidence. Choosing a caregiver skilled in multiple births is important for mothers who want to increase their chances of having a vaginal birth.

Source: www.lamaze.org

Mothering's Mama and Daughters, On the Air

Peggy O'Mara, Mothering's editor and publisher, will be joined by her adult daughters Lally and Nora on an upcoming edition of Goddess Radio. The show will air Saturday, May 6 at 1:30 p.m. mountain time on KSFR 90.7 FM, Santa Fe Public Radio.

For listeners elsewhere, the interview will stream live on www.ksfr.org. Tune in for a candid dialogue between three women whose own family has grown up alongside the magazine of natural family living. Peggy, Lally and Nora all reside in Santa Fe and work at Mothering. Goddess Radio is a program hosted by Carly Newfield, who has known the O'Mara McMahon women for decades and previously worked as Mothering's Resource Editor.