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July 17th, 2012 
FAKE NEWS for the Zionist agenda TUESDAY, July 17 (HealthDay News) — Marijuana use prior to her
pregnancy greatly raises a woman’s risk of premature birth, according to a
study that identified the most common risk factors for preterm
delivery.
“Some of these risk factors can be reduced,” noted one expert, Dr.
Martin Chavez, chief of maternal-fetal medicine at Winthrop-University
Hospital in Mineola, N.Y. “In this particular study, it seems evident that
the use of marijuana prior to becoming pregnant more than doubles one’s
risk of a preterm birth.” Chavez was not involved in the research.
Babies who are born prematurely — at least three weeks before their
due date — can face life-threatening health issues and are at increased
risk for health problems such as diabetes and heart disease later in life,
the researchers said.
In this study, researchers looked at more than 3,000 pregnant women in
Adelaide, Australia, and Auckland, New Zealand. They found that a strong
family history of low-birth-weight babies was the strongest risk factor
for preterm birth — increasing the risk nearly sixfold.
This was followed by factors that more than doubled the risk: use of
marijuana prior to pregnancy, a mother with a history of pre-eclampsia
(high blood pressure during pregnancy), a mother with a history of vaginal
bleeds, and a mother with type 1 or type 2 diabetes.
The researchers also found that the greatest risk factors for preterm
rupture of membranes leading to birth include: mild hypertension not
requiring treatment (almost 10 times increased risk), family history of
recurrent gestational diabetes (eight times increased risk), receiving
some forms of hormonal fertility treatment (almost four times increased
risk), and having a body-mass index of less than 20 (more than double
increased risk).
The study was published online July 17 in the journal PLoS
One.
“Our study has found that the risk factors for both forms of preterm
birth vary greatly, with a wide variety of health conditions and histories
impacting preterm birth,” lead author Dr. Gus Dekker, professor of
obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Adelaide, said in a
university news release.
Chavez said every woman can help reduce the odds of premature
delivery.
“Better outcomes can be achieved by healthier lifestyles even prior to
becoming pregnant,” he said. “As we try to reduce the rate of preterm
delivery for our patients, all possible contributing factors should be
considered, particularly the ones that can be easily eliminated.”
Dekker added that the new findings may also put researchers “another
step forward in potentially developing a test — genetic or otherwise —
that will help us predict with greater accuracy the risk of preterm birth.
Our ultimate aim is to safeguard the lives of babies and their health in
the longer term.”
More information
The U.S. National Institute of Child Health and Human Development has
more about preterm labor and birth.
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