Health News
Home birth is making a resurgence in the U.S., reports Shari Roan of the Los Angeles Times. It used to be commonplace in rural areas where doctors were few and transportation wasn't easy. As those factors faded, mothers chose hospitals over bedrooms, and the rate of home birth fell to less than 1 percent of all births by 1969. It's still not as common, but the rate has risen 29 percent from 2004 to 2009, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The trend is strongest in northwestern states, including Oregon at 2 percent and Montana at 2.6 percent, probably because of "sheer lack of transportation in rural areas," Roan reports. Cost may also be a factor because home births are about one-third the cost of hospital births. About 62 percent of home births in 2009 were attended by midwives, and the trend is increasing most among white women. (Read more)
- Anthem Gives $140,000 For 3-county Program To Cut Smoking By Pregnant Women, Still At 21.9% In Ky., Among Highest In U.s.
Health departments in Christian, Hopkins and Madison counties will start a program called Giving Infants and Families Tobacco Free Starts, with a $140,000 grant to the state health department from the Anthem Foundation. The GIFTS program was created to...
- Older Rural Residents Are More Likely To Seek Care At Rural Hospitals, National Study Finds
Rural hospitals are more likely to serve older patients seeking hospitalization, while younger rural residents seek medical care in urban areas, says a study by the National Center for Health Statistics at the federal Centers for Disease Control....
- Study Says '16 And Pregnant' Reality Tv Show Is Responsible For 5.7% Decline In Births To Teens, But Numbers Still High In Kentucky
The MTV show "16 and Pregnant" has been highly criticized, not only for featuring pregnant teens, but because some of the cast members have since been arrested, gotten into trouble with drugs and alcohol, and one was featured in a sex tape. But, a study...
- As U.s. Teen Birthrate Reaches 70-year Low, Ky. Still 7th Highest
The teenage birth rate nationwide is the lowest in nearly 70 years, but Kentucky's rate is much higher than the national average ? 46.2 births per 1,000 compared to 34.3 across the U.S. That ranks it seventh highest in the nation, but the figure is...
- Ky. Premature Births Declining, But Still Above National Average
Giving birth to a baby before it has been brought to full term has become less common in the U.S. and Kentucky, but the nation still only received a C, and the state a D, in the 2011 Premature Birth Report Cards compiled by the March of Dimes. Each year,...
Health News
Home births increase, mostly in rural areas
Home birth is making a resurgence in the U.S., reports Shari Roan of the Los Angeles Times. It used to be commonplace in rural areas where doctors were few and transportation wasn't easy. As those factors faded, mothers chose hospitals over bedrooms, and the rate of home birth fell to less than 1 percent of all births by 1969. It's still not as common, but the rate has risen 29 percent from 2004 to 2009, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.The trend is strongest in northwestern states, including Oregon at 2 percent and Montana at 2.6 percent, probably because of "sheer lack of transportation in rural areas," Roan reports. Cost may also be a factor because home births are about one-third the cost of hospital births. About 62 percent of home births in 2009 were attended by midwives, and the trend is increasing most among white women. (Read more)
- Anthem Gives $140,000 For 3-county Program To Cut Smoking By Pregnant Women, Still At 21.9% In Ky., Among Highest In U.s.
Health departments in Christian, Hopkins and Madison counties will start a program called Giving Infants and Families Tobacco Free Starts, with a $140,000 grant to the state health department from the Anthem Foundation. The GIFTS program was created to...
- Older Rural Residents Are More Likely To Seek Care At Rural Hospitals, National Study Finds
Rural hospitals are more likely to serve older patients seeking hospitalization, while younger rural residents seek medical care in urban areas, says a study by the National Center for Health Statistics at the federal Centers for Disease Control....
- Study Says '16 And Pregnant' Reality Tv Show Is Responsible For 5.7% Decline In Births To Teens, But Numbers Still High In Kentucky
The MTV show "16 and Pregnant" has been highly criticized, not only for featuring pregnant teens, but because some of the cast members have since been arrested, gotten into trouble with drugs and alcohol, and one was featured in a sex tape. But, a study...
- As U.s. Teen Birthrate Reaches 70-year Low, Ky. Still 7th Highest
The teenage birth rate nationwide is the lowest in nearly 70 years, but Kentucky's rate is much higher than the national average ? 46.2 births per 1,000 compared to 34.3 across the U.S. That ranks it seventh highest in the nation, but the figure is...
- Ky. Premature Births Declining, But Still Above National Average
Giving birth to a baby before it has been brought to full term has become less common in the U.S. and Kentucky, but the nation still only received a C, and the state a D, in the 2011 Premature Birth Report Cards compiled by the March of Dimes. Each year,...