Do Chocolate Lovers Have Sweeter Babies?: The Surprising Science of Pregnancy

What a fun pregnancy book! I had reviewed the Mayo Clinic book and stated that it was the only prenatal book one would need in preparation for baby. Well, that might be the case for all of the important, basic information needed during pregnancy, but I have to qualify that previous review because, after skimming sections of this Chocolate Lovers book (I just received it today), I find that it's a great addition for those of us who are fascinated by the science of pregnancy and the strange things the body does. It's a light, fast read, especially considering the good amount of references to scientific studies, and surprisingly enjoyable because the topics covered are interesting and sometimes odd-ball. I'm not one for pop-science as a rule, and I can't stand cutesy pregnancy books like the "Girlfriend's Guide" kind of stuff (bleh), but I needed something a bit more unusual and off-beat than the overly straightforward May Clinic book to keep me entertained and engaged during this pregnancy. Plus, for those of us who want a list of works cited....it's here! Yes! My one complaint about the Mayo Clinic book was that there isn't a bibliography or "further reading" section for those of us who understand that the sciences include "gray areas" as "facts" become out-dated, debatable, or whatever. Jena Pincott gives various studies, all presented as objectively as anything really can be presented without it sounding absolutist, and she does so with a nice, flowing, engaging, readable style. As someone who teaches rhetoric and literary analysis, style and presentation are as important to me as the information given in a text; Pincott is just scholarly enough without being pedantic, and she includes personal anecdotes and some literary styling that is much more engaging than the typical fare. And after reading Baby 411, which has a terribly condescending and judgmental tone, I appreciated that Pincott respects her readers enough to assume we have brains in our heads: she speaks to the reader and not at the reader, as though she's sharing some really fascinating, strange information she's learned while asking her own crazy questions about why and what her body is doing during her pregnancy, just in case we might find it fascinating, too. Very nice. : )Things to keep in mind:- This really is a pop-science book with some educational value mixed with a heavy dose of entertainment value.- This is not a guidebook: it is not meant to offer specific advice about doing one thing or another during pregnancy and/or child-rearing, but there is a nice, concise "Lessons from the Lab: A Summary of Practical Tips" section just before the list of source material that could be useful for some. It's mostly common sense, but sometimes we need reminders of that common sense stuff, right? I know I do! Like everything else in this book, I appreciate how Pincott presents these lessons.- This includes bits and pieces of personal experience, so if you're not into the use of personal-story-as-frame-narrative before scientific studies are referenced, you might find it off-putting and too subjective for what you're looking for. As a reader, I found this technique engaging and effective in holding my interest.- Along with personal anecdotes, Pincott references pop culture every now and then. I didn't find it annoying, pandering, or excessive at all.I look forward to reading this in more depth and highly recommend it!

Just fascinating facts and research bits about everything happening to you, your body and baby, plus your partner! It’s less traditional information about what kind of changes to expect and what to do for a healthy pregnancy, and more the science behind a lot of the things our minds ponder as we go through this.

Fun book to read with your husband while pregnant, but only if you don't think about it too much. Once you really start thinking about some of the content of this book, you just might raise an eyebrow skeptically...Here's a specific example. The author repeatedly, flatly defines preeclampsia (one of the best known and yet most poorly understood disorders of pregnancy) as "a disorder that may result in miscarriage". Well, folks, it's a little more than that (it's also hypertension, seizures and stroke for mom, low birth weight for the baby, possible death for both -- generally scary stuff). And her description gets a little more sticky. In a section called "Can sex prevent miscarriage?", she puts forth some ideas... I really just need to quote directly from the text: "Here's the weird reason that sex might prevent preeclampsia. Every time you have sex with a man, you're exposed to proteins and hormones in his semen. If your immune system is unfamiliar with the concoction, it may attack the placenta, which has the father's foreign proteins in it, resulting in preeclampsia....Does sex reassure out bodies that the baby's biological father is still in the picture and will therefore be around to help support the baby? It's an interesting idea. If intercourse during pregnancy seems unappealing, a Dutch study found that oral sex is equally effective against preeclampsia.... Either way, it's an ounce of prevention."Hmmmm.... so you're saying if I had only given my husband more blow jobs, maybe my blood pressure would have been lower during my pregnancy?When I read that passage aloud to my husband, he said, "YES!! Wait, was the Dutch study conducted by a man?" Unfortunately, the author doesn't say and a cursory online look up of the references she provides didn't help much.Nobody really knows why preeclampsia happens or what kind of disease process it is. So why the author presents such a one-dimensional view of it, I don't understand. The whole thing did make me laugh, though.Otherwise, there's a lot of fun stuff here and it is worth a read for a fun time during pregnancy. Just take it with a grain of salt.

I like this book for a light hearted read about the process of pregnancy. Offers good advice on common pregnancy concerns and goes further to explain why certain things happen the way they do from an evolutionary perspective.

I am just towards the end of this, and can't even wait til finishing to review it. It is easily read, backed by extensively cited scientific studies, which are wonderfully explained. I am pregnant, and just mesmerized by all the things here to learn, and implement wherever relevant. I like it along with "Origins", as a practical, useful, and also extremely absorbing read about the pre natal experience, and what can influence a babies future well being. Although they are slightly different in approach, and not strictly apples to apples, I much prefer this and "Origins", to "The Better Baby Book", for exploring and explaining impact of the in utero environment on your baby. "The Better Baby Book", which I had hoped to devour and live by, seems more like a marketing tool to sell the author's supplements and "coaching services". Some interesting things there, but LOTS to be skeptical of!

Terrible book.Reads like a summer project written in a perfunctory way to get published.Not entertaining and not insightful. Basically it’s a compendium of quotations from research papers with no conclusion or analysis beyond that. And it’s dry and humourless.

Start reading it, a bit boring and very contradictory.. There are some interesting informations, but still not impressed...

Brilliant book,fascinatingly interesting and intelligent angle on the pregnancy process when you're fed up of the regular bland information on your progress during the months such as 'this week you're baby is the size of a melon seed' etc. Highly recommended although it can lead you to obsess over shaping your baby's personality beginning in the womb.

Pregnant with baby no.2 and didn't want to read about the whole growth thing/childbirth again so this was a really nice alternative. Highly recommend if you like knowing a bit more about what's going on with your body/mind/pregnancy

An amazing book - full of interesting facts and scientific research, made me feel prepared and excited being pregnant. I've given it to several friends to prepare them too and they've all loved it to - a great gift for pregnant friends!