Expectant mothers are virtual magnets for unsolicited advice. Mothers, grandmothers, aunts, sisters, sisters-in-law, new mothers, friends, and even strangers offer what seems to be an endless supply of supposedly authoritative opinions on every aspect of pregnancy: A craving for spicy food denotes a boy. Carrying the baby low denotes a girl. Besides gender predictions, a pregnant woman is also apt to acquire an earful of advice about miscarriage, dietary habits and cravings, hair growth, weight gain, and childbirth. And, of course, everyone wants to touch her belly. In this engaging, humorous, and very informative book, Drs Shawn A Tassone and Kathryn Landherr - experienced gynaecologists, a husband-and-wife team of physicians, and parents of four children - explore the most common superstitions and myths surrounding pregnancy. From their combined twenty years of work in a clinic, as well as their own parenting experience, the authors review the anecdotes and beliefs, from the slightly unusual to the stranger-than-fiction, and compare them with the scientific evidence. Moving through each stage, from the early weeks of pregnancy to delivery, they examine the legends about diet, gender identification, pre-term labour, the umbilical cord, initiating labour, and the size and movement of the foetus. As they detail the scientific perspective on these varied and often amusing beliefs, the authors not only entertain but provide a great deal of practical information, which will ease the fears and anxieties of expectant parents as well as clear up many confusing notions. If you are pregnant, you owe it to yourself to get this book. Better yet, suggest it as the perfect gift to all those well-meaning advice givers.
Shawn A. Tassone, MD, FACOG, and Kathryn M. Landherr, MD, FACOG (Tucson, AZ), are the co-owners of La Dea Women's Health in Tucson, AZ, where Dr. Tassone is the medical director and his wife, Dr. Landherr, is a practicing physician. Both Drs. Tassone and Landherr completed a residency in obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center and are board certified in obstetrics and gynecology. Each is also an Associate Fellow of Integrative Medicine under Dr. Andrew Weil at the University of Arizona.
"I found Hands Off My Belly! to be a humorous and informative book that dispels many myths and superstitions in North American culture as well as other cultures around the world - I have read a couple of other popular pregnancy books and although they were also very informative I did not enjoy them very much as they reminded me of reading textbooks from my University days. Hands Off My Belly! provided the right balance of information, anecdotes and humour and I found it hard to put the book down. I thoroughly enjoyed reading Hands Off My Belly! and recommend it to anyone trying to conceive and those already expecting." -- 4 Fabulous Families blog, November 7, 2009 "Laughter being the best medicine, Tassone and Landherr included some downright hilarious examples which provide a good belly laugh, yet also alleviate the sometimes irrational fears which can plague new moms-to-be." -- Monsters and Critics.com, November 20, 2009
