{"id":530,"date":"2013-08-16T15:18:07","date_gmt":"2013-08-16T15:18:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/content.scienceofecd.com\/secd-intro\/?page_id=530"},"modified":"2025-09-12T17:52:03","modified_gmt":"2025-09-12T17:52:03","slug":"bd-3-1-advancing-maternal-and-prenatal-health","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/content.scienceofecd.com\/secd-intro\/bd-3-1-advancing-maternal-and-prenatal-health\/","title":{"rendered":"BD 3.1 Advancing maternal and prenatal health"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-block-image size-medium wp-image-1671\">\n<figure class=\"alignright\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/content.scienceofecd.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Natasha-Doerksen-1-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1671\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Photographer: Natasha Doerkse<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Investing in expectant mothers and their young children is a powerful equalizer and a key tool for economic and social stability&#8221; (Mustard, 2011, p. 7).<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As you have seen throughout this module, at birth, the baby&#8217;s brain has already been influenced by the environment in the womb. For example, <strong>teratogens<\/strong> <span style=\"color: #000000\">(environmental substances that can cause a birth defect or damage during the prenatal period),<\/span> maternal stress, and maternal malnourishment are some of the factors that can influence the developing brain of the fetus. A discussion on healthy brain development must include ways to ensure that pregnant women have healthy prenatal experiences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Focusing on the prenatal stage is an important part of providing a healthy foundation for societal health and well being. Dr. David Butler-Jones, the former Chief Public Health Officer for Canada, discusses the need to consider health before individuals even conceive:<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"lazyblock-watch-expand-transcript-Z1o7BkS wp-block-lazyblock-watch-expand-transcript\"><div class=\"watch-expand expand-container context-container\">\n   <div class=\"watch tap-to-expand tap-container\">\n      <div class=\"tap-icon\"><\/div>\n      <div class=\"tap-content\">\n         <span class=\"tap-label\">VIEW<\/span>\n         <span class=\"tap-description\">Butler-Jones &#8211; pre-conception health (2:00)<\/span>\n        \n      <\/div>\n   <\/div>\n   <div class=\"output-content collapse\" style=\"height: 0px;\">\n      <div class=\"vimeo-container\">\n         <iframe webkitallowfullscreen=\"\" mozallowfullscreen=\"\" allowfullscreen=\"\" src=\"\/\/player.vimeo.com\/video\/90180631?api=1\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe>\n      <\/div><br>\n      <p><a href=\"https:\/\/content.scienceofecd.com\/transcript\/transcript-butler-jones-pre-conception-health\/\" target=\"_blank\">Butler-Jones &#8211; pre-conception health &#8211; Text Transcript<\/a><\/p>\n   <\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image size-full wp-image-3871\">\n<figure class=\"alignright\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/content.scienceofecd.com\/third-edition\/files\/2011\/10\/ultrasound.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3871\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">fetal ultrasound &#8211; 11 weeks gestation<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you work with children and families you may have opportunities to provide information and answer questions about health, growth and development. The information you provide must be accurate. The readings below from Abilio are very good examples of resources targeted to parents.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"lazyblock-read-ZkiGt6 wp-block-lazyblock-read\"><div class=\"read context-container\">\n   <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/www.child-encyclopedia.com\/sites\/default\/files\/docs\/coups-oeil\/nutrition-pregnancy-info.pdf\" class=\"tap-container\">\n      <div class=\"tap-icon\"><\/div>\n      <div class=\"tap-content\">\n         <span class=\"tap-label\">READ<\/span><span class=\"tap-description\">Nutrition: Developing healthy eating habits during pregnancy<\/span><\/span>      \n      <\/div>\n   <\/a>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n<div class=\"lazyblock-read-ZwQGP6 wp-block-lazyblock-read\"><div class=\"read context-container\">\n   <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/www.child-encyclopedia.com\/sites\/default\/files\/docs\/coups-oeil\/tobacco-use-during-pregnancy-info.pdf\" class=\"tap-container\">\n      <div class=\"tap-icon\"><\/div>\n      <div class=\"tap-content\">\n         <span class=\"tap-label\">READ<\/span><span class=\"tap-description\">Tobacco use during pregnancy: Getting off to a good start with good information<\/span><\/span>      \n      <\/div>\n   <\/a>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When working with families, parents and\/or parents to be, professionals should have a clear understanding of factors that might affect each family and their approach to family life. For example, are there traditional teachings and practices to consider? Are there particular opportunities or challenges? The next reading discusses considerations related to parenting in First Nations communities. It refers to the cycle of life as a \u201csacred journey\u201d and is organized in four phases: pre-conception, pregnancy, birth, and parenting. It includes information on historical factors and challenges, as well as suggestions and resources to support culturally sensitive services for First Nations families.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"lazyblock-read-ZThHY2 wp-block-lazyblock-read\"><div class=\"read context-container\">\n   <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/parentchildmothergoose.org\/resource\/supporting-the-sacred-journey\/\" class=\"tap-container\">\n      <div class=\"tap-icon\"><\/div>\n      <div class=\"tap-content\">\n         <span class=\"tap-label\">READ<\/span><span class=\"tap-description\">Supporting the sacred journey<\/span><\/span>      \n      <\/div>\n   <\/a>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n<div class=\"lazyblock-reflect-2fvhqE wp-block-lazyblock-reflect\"><div class=\"reflect\">\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">What are some ways you can have an impact on maternal and prenatal health in your life and\/or in the work you do?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Are you in a position to promote awareness about the importance of health and well-being throughout pregnancy and the post-natal period?<\/p>\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Healthy prenatal experiences lay the foundation for healthy development for individuals and communities. On the next page, you will look at the need to pay close attention to how well individual children are developing.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Investing in expectant mothers and their young children is a powerful equalizer and a key tool for economic and social stability&#8221; (Mustard, 2011, p. 7). As you have seen throughout this module, at birth, the baby&#8217;s brain has already been influenced by the environment in the womb. For example, teratogens (environmental substances that can cause [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-530","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/content.scienceofecd.com\/secd-intro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/530","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/content.scienceofecd.com\/secd-intro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/content.scienceofecd.com\/secd-intro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/content.scienceofecd.com\/secd-intro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/content.scienceofecd.com\/secd-intro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=530"}],"version-history":[{"count":34,"href":"https:\/\/content.scienceofecd.com\/secd-intro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/530\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8556,"href":"https:\/\/content.scienceofecd.com\/secd-intro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/530\/revisions\/8556"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/content.scienceofecd.com\/secd-intro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=530"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}