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Hospitals see significant drop in premature births during lockdown

nytimes.com

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Re: Hospitals see significant drop in premature births during lockdown

#3
post #2

Uneducated guess: I've read a few studies linking air pollution to pregnancy disorders. Maybe the effects are even stronger than previously thought.

I think the article already provides a more likely educated guess:

"By staying home, some pregnant women may have experienced less stress from work and commuting, gotten more sleep and received more support from their families, the researchers said."

I am not saying air pollution should be dismissed as a factor, but the elephant in the room is that the stress levels experienced in a _lot_ of workplaces are not compatible with pregnancy.

It is also unfair to expect someone to just be 'equally performing' in the workplace during pregnancy.

From an evolutionary standpoint high stress levels are created by threats, if there are threats you are better off (from an evolutionary standpoint) suffering a miscarriage or early pregnancy since you would more likely be alive to try another pregnancy later when the external conditions present no threats.

Re: Hospitals see significant drop in premature births during lockdown

#4
post #2

Uneducated guess: I've read a few studies linking air pollution to pregnancy disorders. Maybe the effects are even stronger than previously thought.

I think the article already provides a more likely educated guess: "By staying home, some pregnant women may have experienced less stress from work and commuting, gotten more sleep and received more support from their families, the researchers said." I am not saying air pollution should be dismissed as a factor, but the elephant in the room is that the stress levels experienced in a _lot_ of workplaces are not compat…

My experience has been that people have a net greater degree of stress right now vs. pre-pandemic.

People are changing interpersonal work stress for interpersonal family stress which is itself magnified by the circumstances, plus the stress of a pandemic.

I have no idea what the cause could be, but to argue that "premie births are down because stress is down" can't possibly by tested right now, when stress is at an all-time high.

Re: Hospitals see significant drop in premature births during lockdown

#6
post #2

Uneducated guess: I've read a few studies linking air pollution to pregnancy disorders. Maybe the effects are even stronger than previously thought.

I think the article already provides a more likely educated guess: "By staying home, some pregnant women may have experienced less stress from work and commuting, gotten more sleep and received more support from their families, the researchers said." I am not saying air pollution should be dismissed as a factor, but the elephant in the room is that the stress levels experienced in a _lot_ of workplaces are not compat…

Being in a global pandemic is arguably much more stressful than work. I'm much more stressed than I would be in an office. Could be the particular variety of stress, but that's post-hoc rationalisation.

A good piece of general evidence I once heard against this is: premature births & miscarriages did not increase in London during The Blitz (I think they may have even reduced). There's a big narrative around stress and all of its wild short-term health implications, but I'm not convinced it translates into reality. It's not easy to measure.

Re: Hospitals see significant drop in premature births during lockdown

#8
post #2

Uneducated guess: I've read a few studies linking air pollution to pregnancy disorders. Maybe the effects are even stronger than previously thought.

I think the article already provides a more likely educated guess: "By staying home, some pregnant women may have experienced less stress from work and commuting, gotten more sleep and received more support from their families, the researchers said." I am not saying air pollution should be dismissed as a factor, but the elephant in the room is that the stress levels experienced in a _lot_ of workplaces are not compat…

> It is also unfair to expect someone to just be 'equally performing' in the workplace during pregnancy.

I was equally performing during pregnancy. The thing about pregnancy is that it varies a lot.

Re: Hospitals see significant drop in premature births during lockdown

#9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think the article already provides a more likely educated guess: "By staying home, some pregnant women may have experienced less stress from work and commuting, gotten more sleep and received more support from their families, the researchers said." I am not saying air pollution should be dismissed as a factor, but the elephant in the room is that the stress levels experienced in a _lot_ of workplaces are not compat…

Being in a global pandemic is arguably much more stressful than work. I'm much more stressed than I would be in an office. Could be the particular variety of stress, but that's post-hoc rationalisation. A good piece of general evidence I once heard against this is: premature births & miscarriages did not increase in London during The Blitz (I think they may have even reduced). There's a big narrative around stress an…

> Being in a global pandemic is arguably much more stressful than work.

Depends where you live and on your lifestyle. I know that for me and close friends it actually has the opposite effect, I'm much more chill than before covid and I doubt we're the only ones.

Re: Hospitals see significant drop in premature births during lockdown

#10
post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think the article already provides a more likely educated guess: "By staying home, some pregnant women may have experienced less stress from work and commuting, gotten more sleep and received more support from their families, the researchers said." I am not saying air pollution should be dismissed as a factor, but the elephant in the room is that the stress levels experienced in a _lot_ of workplaces are not compat…

> It is also unfair to expect someone to just be 'equally performing' in the workplace during pregnancy. I was equally performing during pregnancy. The thing about pregnancy is that it varies a lot.

Which is why it’s fair to expect variance, which is what the op was suggesting.
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