Babies And Their Mothers

Becoming a new mother is a time of joy, hope, and sometimes a little uncertainty.

The focus of this book is the journey babies have made over the past century. The rise of the middle class in America dictated major changes in the ways babies were fed, cared for, and raised. Social programs focused on improving water and sanitation programs for all, which led directly to decreased infection among infants and improved morbidity and mortality rates.

Almost a quarter of a million babies have been born in the UK since lockdown began. Stacey Dooley reports from Bradford Royal Infirmary to find out how the pandemic is transforming the way we deal with pregnancy and birth. She meets pregnant women terrified of getting the virus, women giving birth and new mums with coronavirus who have had to isolate themselves from friends and family. Stacey also speaks to midwives and doctors who reveal how their lives have changed in order to protect mothers, babies and themselves from the risk of infection.

Louis Theroux returns to the UK to spend time in specialist psychiatric units which treat mothers experiencing serious mental illness whilst allowing them to live alongside their babies. Immersing himself on the wards, he meets women who have been admitted with a range of serious conditions - including depression, anxiety and psychosis - often triggered by birth or the strains of motherhood. As he follows the patients and their families both in hospital and recovering back at home, Louis explores what lies behind their recent crisis and discovers the immense challenge in caring for two people in the most vulnerable state of their lives.

Women came through the doors at a community-based birthing center in the South Bronx seeking prenatal care. They had heard about the center from a neighbor, a parents' group at their children’s school, or the local mosque or church. What they found when they arrived was a brightly-colored waiting area that resembled a living room, children immersed in games in a corner, and staff that reflected the mosaic of cultures living in the surrounding apartments. They also met midwives who asked about their lives, their children, their families and traditions. If pregnancies developed complications, back-up obstetricians were there to give higher levels of care, with the women returning to the midwifery center afterwards. The results were healthy mothers and healthy babies. For over twenty years the center became a haven for women’s health care and a national exemplar.

Elephants are as unique as people. They can be clever and curious or headstrong and impulsive, shy or sociable. Learn to know them as individuals as well as a species in this evocative account of years spent studying elephant behaviour in the wild.