Product Description

This new Mayo Clinic book on pregnancy provides you with practical information and reassurance on pregnancy and childbirth. Compiled by Mayo Clinic experts in obstetrics, it offers a clear, thorough and reliable reference for this exciting and sometimes unpredictable journey. This comprehensive book includes:

• A month-by-month look at mom and baby


• In-depth "Decision Guides" to help you make informed decisions on topics such as how to select a health care provider, prenatal testing options, pain relief for childbirth, and many others


• An easy-to-use reference guide that covers topics such as morning sickness, heartburn, back pain, headaches and yeast infections, among others


• Information on pregnancy health concerns, including preterm labor, gestational diabetes and preeclampsia, along with an overview on being pregnant when you have pre-existing health conditions such as asthma, diabetes or hyperthyroidism

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #11283 in Books
• Published on: 2004-04-01
• Format: Bargain Price
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 624 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Would-be mothers looking for precise, accurate information from a reputable source will appreciate this mammoth pregnancy guide from the celebrated Mayo Clinic. The volume actually provides much more information than most parents will need: week by week accounts of the baby's development, entries on how pregnancy can be affected by dozens of previous health conditions (such as HIV and diabetes), self-care tips for side effects like nausea and back pain, sidebars that explain the difference between identical and fraternal twins, etc. But the book contains at least one feature that most pregnant women will find indispensable: charts that indicate how to handle "troublesome signs and symptoms" during each three week period. For example, if a woman has slight spotting during the first four weeks of pregnancy, the chart tells her to notify a doctor during her next hospital visit. But if she has any bleeding at all during weeks 29 to 32, the chart indicates that she should tell her doctor immediately. Another stellar feature is the book's even-handed series of "decision guides," which help parents make those hard (and even guilt-inducing) choices about breastfeeding, circumcision and whether or not to go back to work. Some parents may find the book's cool, no-nonsense tone intimidating, or even scary, but when deciding what to do about mid-term cramps or pain, most readers will find great reassurance this volume's carefully vetted facts.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Total Health
...clear and compassionate answers to many of the questions and decisions that parents often encounter.

About the Author

Mayo Clinic took root in farm fields near Rochester, Minn., in the late 1800s. It grew from the medical practice of a country doctor, William Worrall Mayo, and the partnership of his two sons, William J. and Charles H. Mayo - affectionately known as Dr. Will and Dr. Charlie.

The brothers' innovative ideas and tireless work in learning and creating new surgical techniques attracted international attention. Physicians from around the world came to watch the Mayo brothers perform surgery.

The Mayo brothers invited other doctors to join them, forming teams of medical experts. Today, Mayo Clinic - one of the world's oldest and largest multispecialty group practices - comprises more than 45,000 physicians, scientists, nurses and other staff at its three locations in Rochester, Minn., Jacksonville, Fla., and Scottsdale, Ariz., and its regional community-based health care practices.

Customer Reviews

like having a Dr at home
This is such a great book to keep you calm when worried, informed when ignorant, and practical when overwhelmed. It is divided into four sections a month by month look at pregnancy, a decision guide to all the main thing you need to worry about health wise, a general reference guide for any doubts that might arise from dyeing your hair to headaches and the last is about complications. It's nice to have a book that includes possible complications, but that leaves it at the end so you don't worry more than you need to.

Very informative
This was my main resource book throughout my entire pregnancy and I highly recommend it.

Better than my medical education
I am a first time mom and also a family practitioner and this book has been better than my medical school and residency training combined for practical knowledge! It is especially helpful for the "constant worrier" in its algorithms for telling you when to act on your concerns. It is also a great resource for someone who is just curious about what is developing in your baby week by week. I plan on recommending this to my pregnant patients!