Just a quick up-date from your "Feet on The Street".  I am in Atlanta at a Nurses Conference and I'm excited to share a quick story with you.  I came to this conference last year and met a wonderful woman whose daughter was pregnant with twins.  This soon-to-be grandmother gave her daughter the BabyPlus Prenatal Education System to use, starting in her 32nd week of pregnancy.  With twins, the mother reported lots of activity, with both babies moving and jostling for position throughout the day.  But she reported that when she would introduce BabyPlus, the babies would each try to position themselves close to the BabyPlus, and settle right down for their lesson.  When the twins were born, they were both very relaxed, with hands and eyes open.  Well, the twins are now 11 months old and their grandmother has reported some wonderful outcomes for her grandchildren. She stated that the pediatrician has been confirming at well baby visits that these twins are indeed advanced.  They are achieving their pediatric milestones ahead of their peers.  Mother reports that the twins were very good sleepers from the beginning.  The grandmother in this case is so pleased with the BabyPlus Prenatal Learning System that she has expressed interest in becoming a distributor for BabyPlus in Nigeria. 

This is just another example of how the BabyPlus Prenatal Education System enhances prenatal care. Infant development is enhanced by simply using BabyPlus and the results speak for themselves.

Visit our website at www.babyplus.com to learn how easy it is to enhance your childs cognitive development!

What an interesting article Dr. Logan sent me. It echo’s the message of BabyPlus with the rhythmic sounds heard with the BabyPlus Prenatal Education System and the first words a baby utters.

Why 'Mama' and 'Dada' are baby's first words

Study: Many cultures' words for mom and pop feature repeating sounds

MSNBC LiveScience, Aug. 27, 2008

A baby's first words are often "mama" and "dada," much to the delight of parents. Now scientists think they know why.

Beyond the obvious - Mommy and Daddy are around a lot and babies are drawn to them languages in many cultures have apparently made the task easy by creating words for mothers and fathers that feature patterns of repeating sounds, a new study suggests.

To arrive at this finding, brain scans were made of 22 newborns (age 2 days to 3 days) while they listened to recordings of made-up words. They heard words that end in repeating syllables, such as "mubaba" and "penana," as well as words without them, such as "mubage" and "penaku."

Brain activity increased in the babies' temporal and left frontal areas whenever the repetitious words were played. Words with non-adjacent repetitions ("bamuba" or "napena") elicited no distinctive responses from the brain. 

Recent studies show that babies who learn two or more languages at once actually perform better at certain tasks.

This suggests "mama" and "dada" (or "papa") are well-chosen words to teach a baby, and it also indicates that the ability to more easily recognize these sorts of repetitive sounds is hard-wired in the human brain.

The research, led by University of British Columbia post-doctoral fellow Judit Gervain, was published online this week in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

"It's probably no coincidence that many languages around the world have repetitious syllables in their 'child words,'" Gervain said, citing "papa" in Italian and "tata" (grandpa) in Hungarian as examples.

"The language center of most right-handed adults is located on the left side of the brain," Gervain said. "This is consistent with our finding with newborn babies and supports our belief humans are born with abilities that allow us to perceive and learn our mother tongue systematically and

efficiently."

"The brain areas that are responsible for language in an adult do not 'learn' how to process language during development, but rather, they are specialized - at least in part - to process language from the start."

How amazing is that? 

Just a quick update from your "Feet on the Street".  I was visiting my "high risk pregnancy" friend yesterday and saw something I've NEVER seen before.  She said her baby was very active all the time, but yesterday I saw for myself just what she meant.  We were sitting on her couch talking, and suddenly her dress started moving and flapping around.  At first, I thought it was just her moving, but I saw that her abdomen would push out in several different directions at the same time and it became very obvious that it was actually the baby.  We started laughing about it, and the baby really started moving. If I didn't know that she was in her third trimester, I would have thought she had a puppy under her dress. She said he moved like that a lot, and that she would used BabyPlus when she needed a rest.  She stated that BabyPlus has actually started putting the baby to sleep, so when he becomes so active as to cause her pain, she would bring out BabyPlus.

My friend and I have talked about the benefits of prenatal stimulation, so I'm very happy that she can use the BabyPlus Prenatal Education System to stimulate her prenatal child's development.  Lucky for her, she can also use it to enhance his sleeping schedule as well.

I know my friend will have a smart baby, but I wonder if she's ready for a future Olympic gymnast?

I'll keep you posted!!!

Your "Feet on the Street".   

OK you Dads-To-Be,  Listen up!  You guys are going to take really good care of the Mom-To-Be in your life. Remember men, she's the pregnant one, not you. She needs the TLC and you are just the one to give it to her.

Last time we talked about all the things that you have to investigate and learn about when you are having a baby. Fetal development, baby stimulation and how to have a smart baby are just a few. Not to mention all the infant sleeping schedules, breast feeding schedules and even something called prenatal learning!

Well let me tell you all that is fine and good, but if your Mom-To-Be is not happy, that's not good for anyone. So let's try to help her feel comfortable. It will result in a happier and healthier baby and mom.

Previously I explained how to give your lady a back massage, well how does a foot massage sound to you? I'll  tell you what, it will sound like heaven to her! No doubt about it. I'm going to give you a few pointer about foot massage.


Fill a large tub with warm water, and then add Epsom salts and eucalyptus oil. Place the tub on a towel in front of a comfortable chair or sofa. Have your Mom-To-Be sit down and place her feet in the tub and soak for 5-10 minutes. Then dry her feet with a soft fluffy towel.

Do basic stretches with the foot; pushing the top of the foot away from you and pulling the top toward you.

Warm up the foot by rubbing it all over and appling lotion or oil in a sweeping motion. Include the top, heel and arch. Gliding strokes work best. It is important to rub the entire foot first to warm it up. If you start to apply deep pressure to the foot before warming it up, there is a greater risk of causing injury.





Cup the foot with your hands and squeeze with the appropriate amount of pressure. You may move up and down as you are holding the foot.





Wrap your hand around the top of the foot, and then apply pressure with your fist to the underside of the foot. You can apply pressure by pushing in and out or in a circular motion.





Using your thumb and a moderate amount of pressure, start at the top of the foot on each side. Now glide toward the bottom along the sides of the foot. There are tendons that run along each side of the foot, these can be good to stretch.





Wrapping your hands around the foot from the front, squeeze firmly and pull upward alternating hands as you pull upward.






Rotate each toe starting the largest working to the smallest.




Finish giving a foot massage with a few sweeping strokes then gently rest your hands on her feet.

Trust me, she will love it!

Hey Dad-to-be! Pregnancy isn't just for women. If your woman is pregnant there is a lot you can do. I know you have been reading a bunch of articles on Prenatal development, baby stimulation and fetal development. You have seen everything there is about Critical period in prenatal development, having a smart baby and fetal brain development.

But what do you know about taking care of your new mom-to-be? Let me tell you that a happy mom-to-be = a healthy mom-to-be = a healthy baby. And you can do something about it. In the next several blogs I will tell you how you can pamper the mom-to-be in your life.

The Pampering Dad-To-Be Massage

The healthiest and safest time to begin having pregnancy massages is in your second trimester. Lying on your back is  not a good idea after the 20th week of pregnancy, so the position that works best is to have your mom-to-be straddle a chair, with the back facing her front. This works especially well if you place the chair in front of a table, and then stack one or two pillows over the back, allowing them to spill out on to the tabletop. This will enable her to lean forward during the massage and rest her head.

Now, lubricate your hands with either high-quality commercial massage oil, or one you make yourself. This can be done by combining a few drops of a relaxing essential oil, such as lavender or chamomile, with a carrier oil such as sweet almond or jojoba. Be sure to warm the oil by pouring a small amount into your hands and rubbing them together. This is an important step, since cold oil causes muscles to tense, causing her to feel stressed.

Now, place your hands on her lower back just below the waistline, and slowly begin sliding up her back on either side of her spine. Never massage directly on the backbone, or over the spinal column. As you reach her shoulders your hands should slowly move across the upper back, then down the opposite side of the spine, to the starting point. This up-and down motion should continue for at least several minutes, until the muscles of her back start to warm and relaxed.

Your can then begin applying gentle pressure to any area of her back where she is feeling pain -- using the heel of your hand or the pads of your fingers, bearing down slightly and continuing to move in a circular motion. The operative word here, however, is "gentle." The point of massage is to relax and soothe muscles, so a rubdown should never hurt. If it does, you are is pressing too hard -- so ask her if she experiencing discomfort.

Your massage finishes with a repeat of the up-and-down motion that started the back rub, done for a several more minutes. You should then wrap her body in a soft blanket or beach towel, to keep muscles warm. Have her remain in her massage position for five to 10 minutes.

The massage can be as short as 10 minutes, or as long as 60 minutes; it's not a good idea to go beyond that time limit, no matter how great it feels. During her second trimester, you can give her a massage once a week; during the third trimester, you can increase massages to twice weekly or more if needed. Again, never give her a massage during the first trimester, even by a professional therapist

Go green if you are pregnant or are thinking about getting pregnant. I’m talking about eating more green! It’s important not only for fetal brain development but also for mom’s health. The fact is, healthy prenatal development is up to you. What you do and eat will directly affect the development of your baby in every stage of fetal development. If you continue a healthy diet after your baby is born, you will enjoy better breast feeding and a healthier you.

Healthy Spinach-Stuffed Sole Recipe

Ingredients:

1 tsp olive oil
1/2 lb fresh mushrooms, sliced
1/2 lb fresh spinach, chopped
1/4 tsp oregano leaves, crushed
1 clove garlic, minced
1 1/2 lb sole fillets or other white fish
2 Tbsp sherry
4 oz (1 C) part-skim mozzarella cheese, grated
as needed nonstick cooking spray

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 ºF.

2. Coat 10- by 6-inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.

3. Heat oil in skillet and sauté mushrooms for about 3 minutes or until tender.

4. Add spinach and continue cooking for about 1 minute or until spinach is barely wilted. Remove from heat and drain liquid into prepared baking dish.

5. Add oregano and garlic to drained sautéed vegetables. Stir to mix ingredients.

6. Divide vegetable mixture evenly among fillets and place in center of each.

7. Roll each fillet around mixture and place seam-side down in prepared baking dish.

8. Sprinkle with sherry, then grated mozzarella cheese. Bake for 15–20 minutes slotted spoon.

Yield: 4 servings   Serving size: 1 filet roll

Folic acid it the nutrient to remember if you are pregnant or are thinking about getting pregnant. It is crucial for fetal brain development. You can’t start too soon adding more Folic Acid to your diet. The fact is that healthy prenatal development is up to you. What you do and eat will directly affect the development of your baby in every stage of fetal development. If you can keep track of your diet week by week during your pregnancy you can insure a healthy pregnancy and a happy baby.

Try this easy recipe alone or as a side to a grilled chicken breast.

Lentils and Rice

Ingredients

3/4 cup lentils, washed and sorted
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup grated Swiss cheese
1/2 cup uncooked brown rice
4 cups vegetable or chicken broth
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions

Combine everything except 1/2 a cup of the Swiss cheese in a bowl. Pour into a 2-quart baking dish, cover, and bake at 350 degrees F for about two hours, stirring occasionally. Uncover and top with the remaining cheese. Bake another five minutes.


click on the bowl of rice to read more about pregnancy and nutrition

Sometimes I get asked, "What is BabyPlus?" working in Customer Service.  I am able to share with them the exciting benefits of using a prenatal care curriculum such as BabyPlus. 

Lisa Jarrett, President of the BabyPlus Company, says "BabyPlus introduces a safe, simple set of sounds to a child as early as 18 weeks in the womb.  These sounds are patterned after the mother's heartbeat, the one language the baby can recognize at this early stage of life.  It is the only true and consistent sound of the prenatal environment.  The variation of sounds stimulates the baby's cognitive development and as the child progresses through the BabyPlus curriculum, he or she learns to discriminate between those sounds.

Well over 100,000 families, including doctors, teachers and childhood development experts around the world have experienced the benefits of early education through the BabyPlus Prenatal Education System.  Right from birth, BabyPlus parents report babies more readily nurse, display an increased ability to self-soothe and are more relaxed and alert; and, later in life, reach earlier developmental milestones, show improved school readiness and greater creativity and independence, have longer attention spans and enhanced intellectual abilities."

I love being able to introduce people to how babies can learn in the womb during development.

 Your womb...the perfect classroom...

You take a prenatal vitamin every day to enrich your child's earliest physical development.

Your child's brain development begins during these prenatal months, too.

Now is the time for the BabyPlus Prenatal Education System.  Click on the picture to learn more about prenatal care, our prenatal care curriculum, and, most importantly, prenatal development facts.

BabyPlus Compared to Other Prenatal Devices...

The only sound your baby clearly recognizes is the sound of your heartbeat. 

All other sounds are equally confusing.

BabyPlus is distinctly different from all other prenatal education devices or techniques because only this approach has been tested for effectiveness and safety in clinically controlled measurements by independent professional evaluators. Neither music, spoken material, tactile, nor multimodal methodologies meet these standards.

The scientific explanation for this is as follows:

To determine appropriate material for the unborn child's growing mental structure, the child's normal environment must be assessed. That analysis reveals that the maternal heartbeat is the predominant influence - the mother's blood continuously pulses through the placenta at 95 decibels (as loud as a passing train). BabyPlus tones are preset to reach the baby well below this natural level. This natural sonic stimulus, the mother's heartbeat, occurs at about one cycle per second when the mother is resting. Throughout life, the BabyPlus advantage means the child will be better able to absorb and appreciate far more of his or her environment than a child who did not receive this benefit.

The BabyPlus tones passing through the maternal abdomen sound exactly like the mother's blood pulsing through the placenta, only increasing in rhythm and complexity. Standardized tests show that these natural, progressive sound lessons are the most effective form of stimulation. Music is too random and complex. It is the repetitive curriculum of BabyPlus and the changes in the pattern that are most beneficial for earliest learning. BabyPlus may sound repetitive to adults, but it is optimally effective for benefiting the prenatal child's forming mental structure - a developmentally appropriate curriculum.

This is why the only sound your baby clearly recognizes is the sound of your heartbeat.

Physical and Occupational Therapists agree that the BabyPlus Prenatal Education enriches the earliest developmental environment for a lifetime of benefit.

"As a pediatric physical therapist, the developmental strengths of the BabyPlus children I've seen in my practice are very convincing.  These children consistently demonstrate very strong fine and gross motor skills, early milestones, and long attention spans.  Now, I am a BabyPlus mother of three and have seen countless additional benefits in my own children.  What a wonderful investment!" Paula Ryan, Pediatric Physical Therapist

I heard about BabyPlus in a FitPregnancy Magazine when I was about 6-8 weeks along with our first child and decided to give it a try. My mother bought it for me (and the baby!) as my birthday gift and I began using it at 18 weeks. I must say that I am so very pleased with the product! Our beautiful baby boy is now 10 weeks old and a day never goes by that someone doesn't comment on how alert he is for his age. At 3 MINUTES old the doctor handed him to me; when my husband spoke, he turned his head completely around to look for his daddy!! He watches BabyFirst TV for 45-60 minutes if I let him, and will squeal and kick as the colors and pictures change! He has never been a crier either! He only cries when hungry or needs his diaper changed! I have been told by many people that he is the most content infant that they have ever been around. As an occupational therapist I have been very watchful of his milestones and have been pleased to find that he has reached ALL of them ahead of schedule. It seems that he started learning early and has thrived since being born. I truly feel that BabyPlus played a huge role in his calm demeanor, alertness, and quick learning. In utero, he enjoyed the lessons and would move along with the beats and from birth he has been an absolute angel!! I would recommend this product to anyone! I am already planning to use it with our next child! Stacy L. Moses, Occupational Therapist

BabyPlus parents report about the benefits of using the BabyPlus:

Babies at birth and infancy:
more readily nurse
display an increased ability to self-soothe
are more interactive and responsive
are more relaxed and alert at birth

And, later in life demonstrate:
earlier developmental milestones
improved school readiness
enhanced intellectual abilities
great creativity and independence
longer attention spans

Using the BabyPlus Prenatal Education System's simple and safe lessons during the stages of pregnancy can show these tangible benefits and more. 

What Do the Experts Say?

Our patented prenatal curriculum is designed to strengthen your baby's learning capabilities with naturally derived audio lessons.  For your child, the developmental benefits of BabyPlus last a lifetime.

"For their child's lifetime development, every parent should hear about this discovery, an innovation representing the single most significant step science has taken toward increasing infant potential."  Rene Van de Carr, M.D., author of While You Are Expecting.

"The list of developmental benefits we've seen in our son, now age 4, is too long to go through in full.  Even my colleagues acknowledge he is an amazing child." Sarah Stroup, Ph.D., Professor and BabyPlus mother.

 What are they saying about BabyPlus?

The BabyPlus company thanks the thousands of progressive, thoughtful early adopters of this technology and the countless media outlets that have featured our product.  Tens of thousands of mothers worldwide have enriched the prenatal environment of their baby with BabyPlus.

We believe in the benefits of infant stimulation, and many experts in the field of prenatal development agree.

"BabyPlus is a brilliant invention.  I have used it myself, will definitely use it again, and have only positive things to say about it in my book."  Sarah Brewer, M.D., author of SuperBaby: Boost Your Baby's Potential from Conception to Year One.

It's not very often that you get a hug at work.  But that is exactly what I got at a recent conference I attended. A nurse walked into my booth, wrapped her arms around me, and said "Thank you for BabyPlus". (I wished I could take credit for it, but I told her "your welcome" anyway.)  She proceeded to tell me that I had given her a BabyPlus Prenatal Education System at a conference we had both attended.  Her baby was now four months old, and she credited BabyPlus with her child's very calm demeanor, his very contented nature, and that he was a very good sleeper, but she said the most noticible thing about her baby was that he nursed like a pro from the very beginning. (As a mother of two, I know what a struggle breast feeding can be.)  I was happy to tell her that many first time parents who used the BabyPlus Prenatal Education System, have reported the same thing to lactation consultants. I'm excited to hear from this wonderful mother in the future about her childs developments.

See you next time!
From Your "Feet on the Street"

You want to make sure that your BabyPlus system is in working condition for your prenatal care curriculum.  If you encounter any issues, there are several things you may want to try.

First, be sure you have a fresh set of batteries.  As you probably know, the BabyPlus requires fresh batteries every 7-10 days to operate at optimum performance. Even new batteries at the store could be old. Always check the date for fresh new batteries. We recommend the Duracell brand battery.

The next thing you can do is check the battery contacts. If they are no longer a tight fit, you can remove the batteries and pull the contacts out a bit to create a tighter fit.

In most cases, this solves any issues that you may encounter with your system so that you may get all benefits during prenatal development.

The real question is, "Why wouldn't you use BabyPlus?"

The BabyPlus Prenatal Education System is safe, scientifically validated, and the benefits are remarkable. The benefits are a baby who more readily nurses, has an increased ability to self-soothe, is more interactive and responsive, and is more relaxed and alert at birth.  In order to give your child every advantage, you take care of your health while you're pregnant - eating right, taking prenatal vitamins, avoiding alcohol, etc. Basically, you commit to taking care of the physical environment of your developing baby. 

The great news is - you can also begin taking care of your baby's early cognitive development.  The scientific research community is in agreement with your natural instincts.  Why not start educating your child as early as possible - with an age-appropriate curriculum for the stages through pregnancy - based on your own heartbeat? 

Click on the picture to see some of the research behind the use of baby stimulation week by week during pregnancy.

About the Comfort Pouch

The BabyPlus Prenatal Education System includes a comfort pouch.  You put your system in the pouch to wear during these critical times in child development.  One question we often hear is "How do I adjust the size of the comfort pouch?"  Click on the picture of the comfort pouch straps for directions to "re-size" the comfort pouch.  Some moms even buy two or three pouches to have extras on hand!  The pouch should be worn snug to your belly, and your baby will hear the sounds similar to a mother's heartbeat sounds.  This is how learning begins! 

As we continue our discussion on the benefits of Folic Acid to the developing fetus' brain, we learn that many fruits and vegetables are high in folic acid. Early brain development during pregnancy can be greatly affected by the addition or lack of this critical nutrient. It's easy to include these foods in your diet. Fruits high in folic acid include strawberries, oranges and other citrus fruits, tomatoes, cantaloupe, honeydew melon, raspberries, avocados, bananas and watermelon.

Try this simple but tasty recipe to help insure healthy fetal development. Click on the picture to visit the March of Dimes website to learn more about the importance of Folic Acid

Simply Salad 
Combine halved strawberries with chunks of other folic-acid-rich fruits, such as bananas, oranges, and melons.  Sprinkle with chopped nuts.  Serve with a dressing of plain yogurt seasoned with a little thawed frozen orange juice concentrate.