Do Chocolate Lovers Have Sweeter Babies?
The Surprising Science of Pregnancy
A bright book of brain candy about the surprising science behind pregnancy
SUMMARY
Science writer Jena Pincott spent her pregnancy and postpartum months asking the questions that doctors don’t answer, and finding answers that expectant mothers will not expect. In this curiosity-led exploration into the “hidden side” of pregnancy, learn how amniotic fluid carries flavors and genes can play favorites, semen can be a fetus’s friend or foe, the brain shrinks then grows, and what mind-control chemicals are doing in breast milk, sweat, and tears.
Drawing on studies in evolutionary psychology, biology, social science, neuroscience, reproductive genetics, endocrinology, and epigenetics, the influence of environment on the behavior of genes, Pincott explores questions such as:
- Why are your dreams more vivid?
- Why do skinny chicks have more daughters?
- Is the fetus tinkering with your brain?
- What does the baby’s birth season predict about her personality?
- What do fetuses learn when they eavesdrop?
- Do boys really give you basketball bumps?
- Do fidgety fetuses become feisty babies?
- Where does maternal instinct come from?
- Does your stress sharpen your baby’s mind — or dull it?
- Can men breastfeed?
- Do mommies have better brains?
- How could Grandma’s diet affect your child?
- Could eating chocolate during pregnancy actually improve your baby’s temperament?
A lively, accessible romp through the science of pregnancy...with wit, personal anecdotes and playful humor.
Kirkus
(starred review)
Utterly fascinating...and a great read.
Christiane Northrup, M.D., ob/gyn physician and author of Women's Bodies, Women's Wisdom and The Wisdom of Menopause
Delightful! This book is destined to become every woman's -- and man's -- secret guide to pregnancy. A must read.
Louann Brizendine, M.D., neuropsychiatrist and author of The New York Times bestsellers: The Female Brain and The Male Brain
...A wide array of subjects expectant parents will find utterly captivating...Readers will be entertained and fascinated by this text from start to finish...Pincott writes with humor and vibrancy, bringing science to life.
Publisher's Weekly
A fascinating tour through the science of pregancy...answers questions, shares stories, and passes on insights gleaned from her exhaustive research...Everything you wanted to know about pregnancy bu were afraid to ask.
Annie Murphy Paul, author of Origins: How the Nine Months Before Birth Shape the Rest of Our Lives
A survey of cutting-edge research...full of useful thinking that will inform and comfort expectant mothers (and fathers) everywhere.
Cacilda Jetha, M.D., co-author of Sex at Dawn
