Birth Defects In Babies: Everything You Should Know

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Birth Defects In Babies
Everything You Should Know
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• Birth Defects are basically structural changes in
  a babys body, which might cause problems in the
  overall health and life of a baby. Structural and
  Developmental birth defects are some of the
  common birth defects in babies.
• Structural Birth Defects like heart defects,
  cleft lip or palate, spina bifida and clubfoot
  occurs when a specific part of a babys body is
  missing or malformed.
• Developmental Birth Defects like down syndrome
  (Physical and mental developmental delay), sickle
  cell disease (red blood cells become misshapen),
  and cystic fibrosis (damage in the lungs and
  digestive system)

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What Causes Birth Defects In Babies?  Birth
defects are not just a sudden occurrence in
babies. While most of them take place during the
first 3 months of pregnancy, (when the babys
organs are forming inside the mothers womb),
there are certain birth defects which can take
place in the later stage of pregnancy,
(especially in the last 6 months), when the
babys tissues and organs are developing. There
are also various other factors (under research)
that can cause of birth defects during
pregnancy. Genetic Factors When one or more
genes change from working properly or a part of
genes might have gone missing. Fragile X Syndrome
is one of them, for example. Chromosomal
Factors Chromosome are those structures that hold
the genes. In some birth defects, a chromosome or
part of a chromosome might be missing. In Turner
syndrome, a condition that affects only females,
results when one of the X chromosomes (sex
chromosomes) is missing or partially missing.
However, in Down Syndrome, the birth defective
child might have additional chromosomes. 
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Environmental Factors Your environment is
everything. In fact, the place where you live in,
the place where you work in, the kind of food
that you eat and the way you spend your time are
some of the things that can be harmful for the
baby during pregnancy. Even baby birth defects
occur from smoking, drinking alcohol or taking
certain drugs during pregnancy.
Pre-existing Medical Condition Your developing
baby is the most vulnerable to injury during the
embryonic stage. This is the period or stage when
the baby organs are forming. Your Being plus
size or experiencing uncontrolled diabetes, at
this point, might increase the risk of birth
defects in babies during pregnancy.
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Getting Infected During Pregnancy Yes! During
pregnancy, due to the hormonal changes, your
immune system might be slightly compromised. You
might be more susceptible to contracting Zika
virus or cytomegalovirus or rubella during
pregnancy.
Taking Certain Medicines Can Also Lead To Birth
Defects In Babies If you take certain
medicines, like Thalidomide and Isotretinoin,
especially during the first three months of your
pregnancy, they might result in birth defects in
your developing baby.
Maternal Age The biological clock may not be
your best friend! Especially, when youre trying
for pregnancy or youre already pregnant. That
is, if youre 35 years old or more, youre more
likely to develop high pressure and diabetes
during your pregnancy. In which case, your health
care provider might have to carefully monitor
both the health conditions as there might be a
high chance of your giving birth to a baby, whos
significantly larger than the average size. The
risk of chromosomal abnormalities in the baby in
utero (inside the womb) might also be high. 
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• How To Avoid Birth Defects During Pregnancy?
• To prevent the birth defects during your
  pregnancy, you might have to take these necessary
  steps
• Including at least 400 micrograms (mcg) of folic
  acid every day, in the pregnancy-diet.
• Saying No to alcohol or smoke 
• If possible, keep certain medical conditions
  under control (in consultation with the doctor)
  and try to stay active before conceiving.
• Taking important pregnancy vaccines and avoiding
  traveling to areas where Zika virus is spreading.
  Although this Covid-19 situation cannot be
  avoided, but pregnant women can still protect
  themselves by wearing masks, washing hands and
  using hand sanitizers whenever possible.
• Consult the health care provider about taking any
  prescribed medicines, over-the-counter (OTC)
  medicines, supplements and herbal products. 
• High-mercury fish (like shark, swordfish, king
  mackerel, tuna, marlin, tilefish and orange
  roughy), raw and processed meat, raw eggs, intake
  of caffeine, raw sprouts, unwashed fruits, Raw
  milk, unpasteurized cheese, and soft-ripened
  cheeses and processed or junk food are some of
  the foods that cause birth defects during
  pregnancy. So, try to avoid them.

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Research has it that 1 out 33 babies across the
world are born with birth defects.  All birth
defects may not be prevented, but if a would-be
mother understands the reasons for it , takes the
necessary steps, (as mentioned above), and
doesnt miss the doctors appointment  during her
pregnancy, she can certainly increase her chances
of giving birth to a chubby baby. 
Also, visiting the blog page of Cordlife
India to understand more about conceiving,
pregnancy, childbirth, postpartum, baby care,
parenting and of course cord blood banking would
be helpful.
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Source https//www.cordlifeindia.com/blog/birth-d
efects-in-babies/