The Prematurity Epidemic

November is Prematurity Awareness Month. In honor of our brave, strong boy, I wanted to share a few quotes from an article on prematurity that was published earlier this week. If you want to see the full text of the article, it is available at: http://www.marchofdimes.com/aboutus/49267_61938.asp

The United States’ extraordinarily high number of babies born too soon explains why the nation has an infant death rate significantly higher when compared to Europe...

While survival rates for premature infants is similar between the United States and European countries, the overwhelming high number of preterm births in the United States drove its infant mortality rate higher. For example, one out of every eight US births is preterm, compared to one out of 16 in Sweden, which had an infant mortality rate of 2.4 for every 1,000 live births.

The statistics about prematurity amaze me. 1 in 8 is a LOT of premature babies. There are a lot of things doctors and scientists can point to as contributing factors like an increase in multiple births due to fertility treatments, a sizeable population of pregnant woman who don't have access to prenatal care, smoking and alcohol use during pregnancy, etc - but there are also plenty of premature babies born to people like us: great prenatal care, healthy overall, no warning signs.

We are so lucky. Charlie is happy and healthy and doing great. We have fabulous county resources and good health insurance, allowing us relatively inexpensive access to physical therapy and speech therapy. We have smart doctors studying our boy to help him along the way, a nanny who loves and cares for him wonderfully, and so many family and friends offering him (and us) love and support. And even with all of these resources, Charlie continues to be several months behind. It makes me sad for the babies that don't have the resources at hand that we do.

If your company is like mine and does a charitable giving campaign this time of year, and you are looking for a charity to donate to, please consider giving to March of Dimes. They continue to work to help babies like Charlie survive and thrive. When we look at how far he's come, we are so thankful for the advancements March of Dimes has made and supported.

Have a great weekend!