#neural tube defects

[biology-geology-beaches-india]

TSRNOSS, page 373.

[sciencesolutions]

[chiefobservationpeace]

 Know how a diet affects pregnancy

Know how a diet affects pregnancy

Did you know that your diet during pregnancy will have an effect on your baby’s health, tastes, and preferences? Hence as soon as a woman gets to know she is pregnant, it is vital to make immediate changes to her diet and lifestyle. Healthy nutritious food along with a perfect routine of physical activity will definitely help to keep the baby and mother healthy in a long-term. What you eat for the next nine months of your pregnancy can impact your baby’s health as well as yours for decades to come.

Poor diet during pregnancy and its effects

Pregnant women need to follow a healthy and nutritious diet for optimal development of their baby. Although a timely treat to satisfy a pregnancy craving is generally alright, but too much junk food during pregnancy can be hazardous to both mother and baby.

Neural Tube Defects and Low IQ

Folate and essential fatty acids are very important during pregnancy for the growth and development of the fetus. Lack of these essentials are associated with poor brain development and can also hinder the growth of the spine and spinal cord.

Malnutrition

Pregnancy diet and nutrition plays a vital role during these nine months for the healthy development of the fetus and also for the mother. Hence, a proper and nutritious meal plan should be followed by the pregnant women which include all the vitamins, proteins, carbs, fats, minerals and other nutrients. Lack of this might lead to malnutrition among the babies.

Heart diseases and hypertension

The pregnant woman who eats more of junk food, carbonated drinks, and other sugary items are at a risk to develop obesity for themselves as well as their babies. This will lead to increase in bad cholesterol levels and also spikes the blood sugar levels which can, in turn, be a reason to cause various heart diseases, breathing problems, obesity, diabetes and also hypertension among the babies.

Underdeveloped bones

A lack of vitamin D can affect the growth and development of bones in fetuses and lack of vitamin K can hinder the development of the face and teeth and with mineral deposition in fetal bones. Minerals like calcium, zinc, iron, and iodine are vital for both the baby and the mother to have a full term pregnancy.

Pregnancy foods

During pregnancy, eating a healthy and well-balanced diet which is low in saturated fats and rich in fresh fruits and vegetables is crucial. Some pregnancy foods include:

Fortified Breakfast Cereal

Dried Beans and Lentils

Non-fat milk

Broccoli

Eggs

Cheese

Bananas

Oatmeal

Leafy greens

Whole grain bread

Oranges

Dry fruits and nuts

Soy foods

Salmon

Sweet potatoes

Greek yogurt

Water

Poor health and nutrition during pregnancy directly affect a baby’s building blocks and its ill effects cannot be reversed. Pregnant women need to make sure that their diet provides enough nutrients for the baby to develop and grow healthily. They also need to make sure that her body is strong enough to deal with the changes that will occur.

READ MORE...Best Indian Diet Plan Weight Loss Weight gain

[coffee-mage-sans-caffeine]

Last night, the Trump administration froze federal assistance, grants, and loans. As a person married to a research scientist, I was already reeling from the defunding of the NIH and worrying what that meant.

And then he froze federal assistance, defunding WIC, and my blood ran cold.

Why did my blood run cold for WIC in particular?

For those not in the know, WIC is a public assistance program for pregnant people and babies or small children. It's designed to boost nutrition for pregnant people and little kids. It pays for formula and breast pumps and bread and cheese and milk, many food items.

It also links these struggling families with social workers. Many low income families don't have health insurance coverage. Those social workers get pregnant people onto state run programs to make sure they can afford prenatal care.

I work labour and delivery. If this freeze lasts more than a few days, my job is going to get harder and more terrifying because I will get people coming in labouring with no prenatal care. I won't know their due date, their medical history. I won't know how many fetuses to expect.

I will lose patients, and not just babies born with life limiting conditions, I'm going to lose birthing people because they didn't get screened for gestational diabetes and pre-eclampsia. I'm going to lose babies who should have been born healthy. Since WIC helps with nutrition and folic acid is a nutrient that prevents neural tube defects, I'll see more babies born with no brains or with their spinal cord exposed.

My trauma will be myriad, but nothing in comparison with the children whose future is forever made more difficult. It's nothing in comparison with the parents I'm going to end up sending home with empty arms or in a casket. My hospital uses a cooling cot for people to spend time with their babies born sleeping. Will we be able to afford enough cooling cots?

WIC offices also offer vaccinations. We're in the middle of RSV season and whooping cough is on the rise. How many babies will die because they didn't get their shots?

Trump is killing American children. Period.

[mammoth-clangen]

I love seeing the colour patterns on your clan gen homotherium and smilodon.

They remind me of cat colours. Colour mutations in animals (cats and prehistoric animals on general too) are my special interest

I remember that my favourite smilodon design was the one from Primeval. I still have the box sets and they were my favourite as a kid (and now lol).

Sad that Smilodon was most likely tawny like lions. It apparently lived in open areas so most likely wouldn't have spots or stripes. But that doesn't mean we can't draw them like it. Also I wonder what mutations they did have in real life (like white lions, white tigers, "strawberry" erythristic leopards, albino leopard, and melanistic leopards and jaguars do appear in the wild)

I actually discovered your comic when I followed the homotherium tag after seeing the frozen cub. I once saw lyuba the mammoth at the natural history museum, London, at a limited exhibition. I'm completely obsessed with the permafrost mummies. I hope I get to see more in person one day.

Here's my kitty, Zoe.

Oh my goosh what a cute cat ;A;

here's my creature, Fat Tilly! She's an 11yr old Selkirk rex who likes loafing and lying in the sun c:

And thank you! I adore colour mutations in extant animals and I agree that it's really fun to contemplate them in extinct ones c:

I'm gonna preempt this getting long and put a cut here jhrjhrf

I'm sure you will already have seen this, but for anyone interested in paleoart depictions of colour mutations, I'd really recommend this great article all about it

White Cat, Gold Plains was actually all about the premise of a Homotherium with piebaldism. Pied is one of my favourite pigment mutations because it's so much deeper than integument patterns; it's actually a neural tube defect that leads to distinct behavioural changes. WC,GP was about Kiina, the pied cat, and her struggles with always being view as 'childish' by her peers and struggling to fit in. There was also more human impact in this story, as Kiina gets picked up as a cub by a group of early humans. It was sort of my own experience/musings on neurodivergency played alongside some thoughts on early domestication attempts humans must have had (though we all know that, sadly, Homotherium did not end up domesticated). Pied animals are typically more trusting, which is why you see so many pied domestic animals! (Fat Tilly and Zoe both are, for example lolol)

Also the Primeval Smilodon has one of the most gorgeous and distinct designs of any media sabercat tbh, I really loved the episode as a whole even though it had a sort of sad-but-expected ending.

I don't remember where I read it, but there was someone discussing Smilodon patterns and the conclusion was basically "we can't be sure". While lions are solid as adults, they're spotted as cubs and likely had spotted ancestors seeing Pantherines seem to have strongly contrasting patterns as the default. Machairodontids aren't even the same lineage as Pantherines, so we really can't know what patterns they had except for Homotherium latidens having dark brown cubs! They could just as easily grow into a different adult coat, like hyena do. (side note, I was sorta hoping that absolutely amazing Homotherium mummy news might drag some people to my comic so I'm glad it did lolol)

Smilodon was also likely very ambush dependent, being too bulky for pursuits even as long as modern lions. Disruptive colouration could have helped with this even in fairly open habitats. This is actually why I gave the Ice Fangs very faint stripes; high contrast tiger striping didn't make much sense, but breaking up the outline a little couldn't be a bad thing even in a steppe environment. I also didn't want them completely solid because there are actual lions to differentiate cx

[capricornbones]

I never posted here to Tumblr! This is my best work to date.

This post is long overdue, but finally, this long anticipated project is ready to share. Pictures just don’t do this sweet little soul justice for how unique he truly is. This stillborn kitten was born with a deformity known as Diprosopus, which causes two faces to form in the same skull.

Diprosopus is a rare, life-threatening developmental defect during embryogenesis, and a subtype of conjoined twins, characterized by partial or complete duplication of the facial structures on a single head, neck, trunk and body.

Diprosopus often occurs in combination with other congenital disorders, particularly anencephaly, neural tube defect and cardiac malformations. When present, the brain may show abnormalities ranging from partial to complete duplication of brain structures, and/or underdevelopment of brain tissues. Cats with the condition are known as 'Janus cats', after the Roman god.

This was such a strange and yet amazing specimen to be trusted to work with. I’m so pleased with how he turned out and I couldn’t be happier with the outcome.

[brittanyearnestauthor]

How to Effectively Write About Human Defects

Writing diverse characters is essential for creating stories that resonate with a larger audience and reflect the complexity of the real world. When portraying characters with birth defects or genetic conditions, it’s important to approach the subject with care, accuracy, and respect rather than relying on stereotypes or harmful biases.

One key point to remember is that individuals born with a birth defect are not "defective"—they simply experience life differently and deserve to be written thoughtfully and respectfully. To help guide your writing, I’ve compiled a list of common conditions and considerations to keep in mind. While this serves as a starting point, further research will be necessary to accurately represent these experiences in your stories.

Types of Birth Defects

- Cleft Lip or Palate – A gap or opening in the lip or roof of the mouth.

- Congenital Heart Defects – Structural abnormalities of the heart present at birth.

- Neural Tube Defects – Issues in brain and spinal cord development, such as spina bifida.

- Limb Abnormalities – Structural differences in arms, legs, fingers, or toes.

- Chromosome Abnormalities – Genetic variances involving too many or too few chromosomes or structural chromosome issues.

- Down Syndrome (Trisomy 21) – A chromosomal condition caused by an extra copy of chromosome 21.

- Fetal Alcohol Syndrome – A birth defect caused by prenatal alcohol exposure, affecting development.

- Sickle Cell Anemia – A genetic disorder affecting red blood cells, often leading to pain and health complications.

- Inborn Errors of Metabolism – Genetic conditions that prevent proper processing of certain substances.

Causes of Birth Defects

Birth defects can arise due to several factors:

- Genetic Factors – Mutations or inherited conditions.

- Environmental Factors – Exposure to harmful substances or infections during pregnancy.

- Unknown Causes – Some birth defects occur with no identifiable cause.

Prevention and Early Intervention

While not all birth defects can be prevented, certain steps can reduce risks and improve outcomes:

- Prenatal Care – Regular checkups help identify potential risks early.

- Genetic Counseling – Genetic testing and counseling can provide insights for families at risk.

- Avoiding Teratogens – Steering clear of alcohol, tobacco, and harmful medications during pregnancy reduces certain risks.

Understanding Life with Birth Defects

Birth defects are common and a natural part of life. While individuals with these conditions may navigate certain challenges, many live full, fulfilling lives like anyone else. Some conditions may be inherited, while others result from environmental influences or a combination of both.

The severity of birth defects varies widely—from mild to complex—but medical advancements and adaptive strategies help many individuals thrive. In storytelling, highlighting their strengths and unique experiences rather than only focusing on limitations can create authentic, meaningful representation.

Conclusion

By using this guide as a foundation and continuing thorough research, you can craft inclusive, realistic characters that reflect the diverse experiences of real people. Thoughtful storytelling offers representation, encourages understanding, and helps amplify voices that may not always be heard.

Happy writing!

[darkmaga-returns]

The following is Dr. Vernon Coleman’s folic acid story.  It will tell you how they plan to poison your food and create more cancer.

In the following article, Dr. Coleman explains that governments are trying to harm their citizens, and one way they are doing this is by adding folic acid to food supplies, which can be toxic and possibly carcinogenic in high doses.

He cites various studies that suggest high doses of folic acid can increase the risk of cancer, mask vitamin B12 deficiency and have negative effects on cognitive development in children.

The UK Government’s plan to add folic acid to non-wholemeal wheat flour in 2026, he says, is not to prevent neural tube defects in babies, but rather to reduce the population.

[moopsy-daisy]

A Lifetime Secret

TW: Birth Defect/Surgery/Houselessness

I always knew about it, but my teachers were never told. Not once. All secrets are meant to protect, and this one protected my teachers from their own possible biases. Biases that could have taken a child's quirks and turned them into 'developmental disabilities' if seen through the right (wrong) lens.

I had an invisible birth defect. Well, it'd be plenty visible to anyone who cuts my hair, because the scar from the corrective surgery is currently about 2.5 inches wide. I don't know how big it was back when I was 3 months old. It must've grown with me. They were careful to keep the line hidden in my hair line.

The exact term was occipital encephalocele and only look it up if you're prepared for the pictures, they are unpleasant. The important things to know are:

• It's a neural tube defect. TL:DR my skull didn't fully grow closed and you really need a fully enclosed skull.

• It was a really small one, only about the size of the tip of an adult's pinky finger.

• The doctors said I'd probably be blind due to the location (occipital lobe of the brain does vision stuff).

• They also said I'd probably need to be institutionalized because my cognitive disability would be so severe.

My parents nodded along, got the surgery done, and my childhood began. Except, neurosurgery on a 3 month old was expensive. My family had no way to pay for it. They went bankrupt pretty much immediately. A significant part of my infancy was unhoused due to this and other hurdles.

Whenever reasonable, my parents kept the secret of my birth defect, even from doctors if they could. They wanted to see what developmental progress I made without the lens of assumed disability. It worked out nicely, I actually hit most milestones early. My unaware teachers gave me high grades and I ended up in the Gifted and Talented Education pile like so many other tumblrinas.

I'm talking about this now, for the first time publicly, because I want people to know why medical debt matters to me. By virtue of being born, I destroyed my family's finances for the next 15 years. Knowing that, by merely existing, you're unwittingly responsible for your parents going without food so that you could eat - well, my OCD's run with that story for a long time.

Except, it didn't have to be that way. If the debt hadn't existed, my needs would have simply been that. Needs. Just the needs of a newborn who got a rough dice roll.

I think it'd be amazing to wipe out debt for families or individuals, no one deserves that hanging over them. It'll be a specter looming over me for my entire life, even with therapy.

[biology-geology-beaches-india]

The Science Diaries of S. Sunkavally, page 336.

[wafflenati0n]

Incase you didn't know. This is what the different ribbon colors mean!

❤ - The red ribbon represents AIDS/HIV, alcohol and substance abuse, Vasculitis, love, heart, and disease.

🧡 - The orange ribbon represents hunger, leukemia, animal protection awareness, self harm awareness, multiple sclerosis, ADHD (attention defficent hyperactive disorder) and kidney cancer.

💛 - The yellow ribbon represents supporting our troops, suicide prevention, genocide awareness, sarcoma and bone cancer awareness.

💚 - The green ribbon represents tissue and organ donations or transplants, mental health, mental illness, leukemia, environment, kidney neural tube defects, save the earth movement, go green movement, and the recycling movement.

💙 - The blue ribbon represents child abuse prevention, arthritis, sex trafficking and slavery, and prostate cancer.

💜 - the purple ribbon represents Sarcoidosis lupus, fibromyalgia, religious tolerance, violence against women, domestic violence, cycstic fibrosis, Alzheimer's disease, pancreatic cancer, and epilepsy.

Violet - Hodgkin's lymphoma.

🤍 - The white ribbon represents victims of Terrorism, peace, blindness, and Holocaust Remembrance.

🖤 - The black ribbon represents mourning and melanoma.

Lime green - The lime green ribbon represents lymphoma, Non-hodgkin's lymphoma, muscular dystrophy, and mental health.

Teal - The team ribbon represents gynelogicial cancer, and sexual assault.

Periwinkle - The periwinkle ribbon represents eating disorders, pulmonary hypertension esophageal cancer and stomach cancer.

💗 - The pink ribbon represents breast cancer.

Cream - The cream ribbon represents Paralysis, spinal cord injuries, spinal diseases and disorders.

Light Blue - The light blue ribbon represents prostate cancer and men's health.

Lavender - The lavender ribbon represents all cancers (general cancer awareness), and Eplisey.

Pearl - The pearl ribbon represents lung cancer and lung disease, and multiple sclerosis.

Gray - The gray ribbon represents diabetes, brain cancer, and asthma.

Silver - The silver ribbon represents Brain disorders.

Gold - The gold ribbon represents childhood cancer.

Zebra Patterned - The zebra patterned ribbon represents rare diseases and cancers, such as nueroendocrine, tumors, carcinoid cancer, Ehlers-Danlos Syndromes and Whipple's disease. These are just examples, this is not excluding any other rare dieseases or cancers. (Credit to @

Hope this helps someone! If I'm missing one or got one wrong, let me know in my asks box.

[soysaucevictim]

I'm not particularly squeamish, but it is intellectually fascinating stuff like diprosopus and neural tube defects.

It can teach us about the genes that signal various clumps of embryonic cells to develop into functioning organs.

But I'm not under any illusion that keeping diprosopus anything alive is a mercy (in all but the absolute mildest presentations of that genetic error).

Also just gotta remind anyone who needs to know - eat plenty of folate-rich food if you're pregnant. It's one of the best things you can do to prevent NTDs.

[cannabiscomrade]

I've never seen the term "grey" used in context with degenerative conditions. I tried looking it up, but am not sure if I got the correct meaning. Does it mean that it has something to do with grey matter in the brain?

So “grey” in this context is referring to diagnoses that aren’t explicitly or immediately terminal, but can become terminal over time with complications and comorbidities.

ALS is considered a degenerative disease that is classified as terminal, but not generally classified as such until the individual is showing signs of progression beyond the point that interventions have shown signs of improvement and remission. MS is similar in that it takes on individualized presentations in people and reduces life expectancy, but is not considered terminal. These are both “grey” diagnoses because they don’t immediately qualify you for end-of-life support, but they can progress enough to be deadly or the complications and comorbidities can indirectly cause death.

Another example are in-utero diagnoses that can be considered “grey” because the disabled fetus may or may not survive pregnancy and labor/delivery like Dandy Walker Syndrome, gastroshisis, encephalocele and other neural tube defects, and CMAMMA.

[shebirth]

During pregnancy, it's crucial to ensure you're getting a variety of nutrients to support both your health and the development of your baby. Key nutrients include folic acid, which helps prevent neural tube defects, iron to support the increased blood volume, calcium for bone development, omega-3 fatty acids for brain and eye development, and protein for overall growth. Additionally, staying hydrated is essential, so drink plenty of water. A balanced diet rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins, and dairy products can help provide these nutrients. However, it's also advisable to consult with a healthcare provider or a registered dietitian to ensure you're meeting your specific nutritional needs during pregnancy.

#HealthyPregnancy #NutritionForMomAndBaby #PrenatalHealth #FolicAcid #Iron #Calcium #Omega3 #Protein #Hydration #BalancedDiet #MaternalHealth #shebirth

[krujuice]

Avocados: they're not just for plastering on toast and charging you an extra $2 at your favorite brunch spot. No, these wrinkly green wonders are like the Swiss Army knives of the fruit world—versatile, useful, and full of surprises. Just without the hidden toothpick and mini-scissors, of course.

Firstly, let's talk health benefits that everyone can enjoy, whether you identify as male, female, or a moody houseplant. Avocados are crammed full of good fats—specifically, monounsaturated fats. Now, despite being called "fat," these nutrients are not plotting against you in a secret underground lair. They actually help lower bad cholesterol levels, making your arteries as smooth as a jazz radio host's voice (Hu, F.B., Stampfer, M.J., Manson, J.E., et al., 1997, [Journal of the American Medical Association](https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/417034)).

Fiber? Avocados have got it in spades. One avocado contains about 13.5 grams of fiber, which is roughly 45% of the daily recommended intake. It's like the fruit is telling your digestive system, "I've got you, buddy!" (U.S. Department of Agriculture, FoodData Central, 2019, [USDA Website](https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/index.html)).

Now, for the gents out there concerned with testosterone levels: avocados have your back, or should I say, your glands. They're rich in zinc, a mineral that plays a critical role in testosterone production. So, no need to buy that "Macho Man Vitality Elixir" you saw advertised during late-night infomercials. Nature’s got you covered (Prasad, A.S., Mantzoros, C.S., Beck, F.W., Hess, J.W., Brewer, G.J., 1996, [Nutrition](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8875519/)).

For women, avocados come equipped with a hefty dose of folate, a key nutrient during pregnancy. It helps protect against neural tube defects in the developing fetus. It's like baby-proofing, but at the cellular level (Czeizel, A.E., Dudás, I., 1992, [New England Journal of Medicine](https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJM199201163260301)).

So let's recap: avocados are fantastic for your heart, your digestion, they boost testosterone, and they're prenatal superheroes. If avocados had a LinkedIn profile, it'd be endorsed for "Skills in Nutritional Overachievement" by everyone.

And let’s not forget the micronutrients! Potassium, vitamins K, E, C, and various B-vitamins. Avocados are like the multi-level marketing scheme of nutrition, except they actually deliver on their promises and won’t make family gatherings awkward.

So, the next time you're grumbling about the extra charge for guacamole, just remember: you're investing in your health, one creamy, green scoop at a time.