Having a baby? Don’t be brave – take the drugs | Barbara Ellen

There’s no point in false machismo when giving birth when pain relief is so close to hand

A study by Which? Birth Choice reveals that pregnant women in London are more likely to request pain relief before going into labour than in other areas of Britain. The study of 48,000 prospective parents found that age and location could influence preferences in other ways – two-thirds of Scottish women were interested in birthing pools, while women over 40 were more likely to want medical intervention (foetal monitoring, episiotomies) than young women.

Reading all this was interesting. But at the same time, I thought that while choice is all-important, let’s not fall into the trap of turning options for pain relief – or, rather, turning it down – into a gigantic, virtue-signalling competition.

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Half of adult women in Brazil put off pregnancy by Zika virus – survey

Fifty-six per cent of women of reproductive age taking part in research say they are avoiding pregnancy over health concerns

More than half of adult women of reproductive age in Brazil have actively tried to avoid pregnancy because of the Zika virus epidemic, according to a survey carried out there.

Brazil has confirmed far more malformations of the brain in babies born to mothers who were infected with Zika than any other country.

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Marie Stopes UK abortion clinics put women at risk, CQC finds

Health watchdog report says family planning provider failed to adequately train staff and neglected to obtain proper patient consent

One of Britain’s biggest abortion providers put women at risk by failing to adequately train staff and neglecting to obtain proper consent from patients, a watchdog report has revealed.

Staff at Marie Stopes International (MSI) had “limited training” in resuscitation and clinicians were found to be “bulk-signing” forms authorising abortions, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) said.

Related: Marie Stopes suspends some abortion services over safety issues

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Pregnant women's stem cells could treat osteoporosis, say scientists

Stem cell infusions could treat babies affected with rare bone conditions, as well as older people – and even astronauts who lose bone mass in orbit

People with fragile bones could have their skeletons beefed up with infusions of stem cells harvested from pregnant women, researchers say.

Scientists proposed the unusual therapy after studies showed that the treatment led to 78% fewer fractures in animals that were bred to have a brittle bone disorder.

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Pregnancy causes long-term changes to brain structure, says study

Decrease in volume of grey matter in certain areas of the brain could help boost a mother’s ability to care for her child, research suggests

Pregnancy appears to trigger long-term changes in brain structure, researchers have revealed, suggesting that the transformations could boost a mother’s ability to care for her newborn baby.

The study, based on brains scans, found that the volume of grey matter in certain regions of the brain decreased in women who had been pregnant – a shift that was found to last for at least two years.

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Labour of love: the volunteers helping fellow refugees give birth

When Safa came to the UK from Syria, she faced having her baby alone. Now Fatoma, who fled Sudan 10 years ago, will be with her as part of a groundbreaking scheme

Bouncing a chattering toddler on her knee, a patterned headscarf framing her broad smile, Safa shows few signs of how difficult her life has been. But as she describes the past five years, her hand moves instinctively to her pregnant stomach.

In 2012, Safa and her husband, both in their late 20s, were living in Aleppo when a blast destroyed their home, injuring him and leaving them with nothing. The young couple travelled by bus to Lebanon where, for six months, they shared a room and one toilet with 10 other people. Surviving on a tiny stipend from the UN, they were eventually given their own room – “about the size of this”, she says, gesturing to a small table – in return for collecting all the rubbish in the block. It was there that she gave birth to her first child, a daughter, now 18 months old. “We were treated like animals,” she says.

I was scared. Where we come from, when you do this sort of operation, either the baby or the mother dies

Befrienders make the most enormous difference. They are figures of trust for women who may be scared to trust others

Related: Please help us help #childrefugees survive the winter - Guardian/Observer 2016 Appeal

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What social workers need to know about surrogacy

Surrogacy offers hope to thousands of childless couples, but a lack of regulation means social workers must be alert to the dangers and complications

Popularly billed as either a “miracle” solution for involuntarily childless couples or as a “step too far” that should be halted in its tracks, surrogacy is becoming big business around the world, posing many challenges for social workers.

The fact is that social care agencies can and do get drawn in. They may get cases referred during the surrogate’s pregnancy because of concerns about her exploitation or the arrangements for the child. They may become involved if family difficulties later develop – in either the “new” family or the surrogate’s own family, or if parents separate. They may see any of the parties via mental health services. Care workers must be well informed if they are to recognise the human rights and social work principles that need to be respected in order to practise safely and ethically.

Related: It is time to focus on the rights at the heart of social work

Related: Child protection is changing, but safety must remain a priority

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I had a miscarriage and I'm not afraid to talk about it – video

When journalist and author Janet Murray had her second miscarriage, her main priority was not being a burden to others. She says that even though one in four women experiences miscarriage, the culture of silence around it implies that it is something to be ashamed of. The sooner we rethink the way we talk about miscarriage, she argues, the better

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Autism linked to vitamin D deficiency during pregnancy, researchers find

Study finds pregnant women with low vitamin D levels at 20 weeks more likely to have a child with autistic traits

The important role vitamin D plays in early life is back in the spotlight after Australian researchers noticed a link between a deficiency during pregnancy and autism.

The study found pregnant women with low vitamin D levels at 20 weeks’ gestation were more likely to have a child with autistic traits by the age of six.

Related: Study offers potential breakthrough in care of children with autism

Related: You think autistic people have no empathy? My little boy is so empathetic it hurts | Louise Milligan

Related: The fake cures for autism that can prove deadly | Frances Ryan

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Caesarean sections are rising – but don’t blame mothers | Rebecca Schiller

Research saying mums with small pelvises perpetuate the need for caesareans simply feeds the media’s insatiable appetite for woman-blaming

Just when you thought the pressure on mothers couldn’t be any greater, science and the media machine that interprets it have come up with a brand new Darwin-shaped stick to beat us with. According to a “simple mathematical model” published this week, the rising rate of caesarean sections could be explained by an evolutionary trend whereby the procedure itself perpetuates small pelvises in women.

Babies who would previously have died during childbirth because they were unable to fit their large heads through their mothers’ narrow pelvises are now saved by caesarean sections. According to the theory, the small-pelvis genes of the mother are then passed on to the next generation, defying natural selection. Researchers predict that this will lead to an evolutionary loop requiring increasing numbers of caesareans as the generations go by.

Related: Forcing a woman to have a caesarean is an assault we won't tolerate | Rebecca Schiller

Related: 'A baby made his first sound on the 106 bus': readers share amazing birth stories | Guardian readers and Sarah Marsh

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Pregnant women in UK told to watch for heart disease symptoms

Condition is leading cause of death in UK in months before and weeks after childbirth, says audit led by medical royal colleges

Pregnant women are being told to look out for the symptoms of heart disease, which is now the leading cause of death in the months before and weeks after childbirth.

Two in every 100,000 women who gave birth between 2009 and 2014 died as a result of heart disease in the UK – nearly a quarter of all maternal deaths in the period, according to an audit led by the medical royal colleges.

Related: Lesley Regan: ‘I have a responsibility to tell pregnant women the truth’ | Sarah Boseley

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Lesley Regan: ‘I have a responsibility to tell pregnant women the truth’ | Sarah Boseley

The new president of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists is determined to be honest about the dangers of obesity and other health issues

Lesley Regan, the new president of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, is only the second woman to hold that office and the first in 64 years. If that seems extraordinary in a profession where the clients are exclusively female – as are most new doctors – there is no doubt that Regan will soon sweep out any lingering male bias in dusty college corners.

Related: More babies face health risks due to obese parents, experts warn

We have to persuade the government that the health of a nation is determined by the health of its girls and women

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Row over allowing research on 28-day embryos

Scientists say increasing limit from 14 days will give greater insight into congenital conditions

Scientists will make a controversial call this week to extend the current 14-day limit for carrying out experiments on human embryos to 28 days. The move follows recent breakthroughs that have allowed researchers to double the time embryos can be kept alive in the laboratory.

By extending the current research period, major insights into congenital conditions, heart disease and some cancers could be gained, they will argue at a conference in London on Wednesday.

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Simone Lia on pregnancy

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