<ul class="summary-list"><li>An effective home remedy for treating <keyword id="7462110" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="yeast-infections">yeast infections</keyword> is taking a probiotic with Lactobacillus or eating it in fermented foods like miso. </li><li>Boric acid, which can be purchased at most grocery stores, is another home remedy that can treat a yeast infection. </li><li>Some <keyword id="54649" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="home-remedies">home remedies</keyword> to avoid for a yeast infection include garlic, apple cider vinegar, and coconut oil. </li><li><strong>This article was <a href="https://www.insider.com/insider-medical-review-board" target="_blank" rel="noopener">medically reviewed</a> by <a href="https://nyulangone.org/doctors/1982081873/olivia-p-myrick" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Olivia P. Myrick</a>, MD, who is a clinical assistant professor with the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at <a href="https://med.nyu.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">NYU Langone</a>.</strong></li></ul><p>Roughly <a href="https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/yeast-infection/symptoms-causes/syc-20378999" target="_blank" rel="noopener">75% of women</a> experience a yeast infection in their lifetime, making it a common — but no less irritating — predicament. It should be no surprise then that the internet is filled with advice on how to cure one, from douching with vinegar to lathering on yogurt. Many of these suggestions are not only ineffective but can actually harm your body. </p><p>Here is what the science says about which at-home remedies for yeast infections are helpful, and which are not. </p><h2>What are yeast infections? </h2><p>Yeast is a type of microscopic fungi, and <a href="https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/yeast-infection/symptoms-causes/syc-20378999">most yeast infections</a> are caused by an overgrowth of a fungus called candida albicans. This fungus is present in all healthy vaginas and is kept in check by other bacteria. But, at times, this equilibrium can be disrupted <a href="https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/5019-yeast-infections" target="_blank" rel="noopener">due to causes</a> such as antibiotic use and hormone imbalance — like during pregnancy. This can result in an overgrowth of yeast, causing an infection.  </p><p>Typical symptoms of a yeast infection include: </p><ul><li>Itching and burning of the vulva and vagina </li><li>Painful urination</li><li>Swelling of the vulva</li><li>Redness of the vulva</li><li>Thick, white discharge </li></ul><p>The typical treatment for a yeast infection is an antifungal medication — usually a cream. Over-the-counter creams include Monistat and prescription creams include <a href="https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/yeast-infection/diagnosis-treatment/drc-20379004#:~:text=Short%2Dcourse%20vaginal%20therapy.,(Monistat%203)%20and%20terconazole." target="_blank" rel="noopener">terconazole</a>. Some patients may also be prescribed a one-time dose of an oral antifungal, such as <a href="https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/yeast-infection/diagnosis-treatment/drc-20379004#:~:text=Short%2Dcourse%20vaginal%20therapy.,(Monistat%203)%20and%20terconazole." target="_blank" rel="noopener">fluconazole</a>. </p><p>But, for those who would prefer to treat their yeast infection naturally, here are the home remedies that may work — and the ones that don't. </p><h2>Home remedies that may help treat yeast infections </h2><p>The following natural remedies have been well-studied, and there is sufficient evidence that they can naturally treat a yeast infection at home, or at least decrease the likelihood of a recurrence: </p><h3>1. Take probiotics </h3><p>Certain strains of probiotics, specifically Lactobacillus, supply the vagina with <keyword id="6354750" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="health">health</keyword>y bacteria. This may help treat yeast infections and improve vaginal health altogether, by restoring the balance of bacteria in the vagina.</p><p><a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12879-015-0971-3" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A 2015 study published in BMC Infectious Diseases</a> involving 19 women with recurrent yeast infections found that the probiotic Lactobacillus effectively prevented the recurrence of infection. Participants who used vaginal capsules with Lactobacillus for 10 days in addition to medication saw an 89% cure rate one year later. Meanwhile, the 12-month cure rate for those who just used medication was 70%. </p><p><a href="https://www.medstarhealth.org/doctor/dr-tamika-auguste-md/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tamika Auguste, an obstetrician and gynecologist</a> at Medstar Washington Hospital Center in Washington, DC, says "it's actually when someone stops or removes the probiotics from their regimen when they will develop a yeast infection." Therefore, <a href="https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/should-you-use-probiotics-for-your-vagina-2019122718592" target="_blank" rel="noopener">some physicians caution against</a> relying solely on probiotics as a treatment. Instead, they could be more of a preventative measure. </p><p>Some easy ways to integrate probiotics into your diet include eating more Lactobacillus-rich foods like kombucha, sauerkraut, and miso. Probiotic supplements that contain <a href="https://awog.org/posts/gynecology/how-probiotics-can-help-bacterial-vaginosis-and-a-yeast-infection/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">at least 1 billion colony-forming units (CFUs)</a> may also be helpful for improving vaginal health. </p><h3>2. Try boric acid </h3><p>Boric acid is a powdery substance with <a href="https://www.drugs.com/mtm/boric-acid-vaginal.html#:~:text=Vaginal%20boric%20acid%20is%20a%20homeopathic%20prescription%20medicine%20used%20to,listed%20in%20this%20medication%20guide." target="_blank" rel="noopener">antifungal properties and probiotics</a> like Lactobacilliales, meaning it balances the bacteria in the vagina, thereby treating yeast infections. Early evidence of boric acid's ability to treat yeast infections is promising.</p><p>For example, a 2011 literature review in the <a href="https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/full/10.1089/jwh.2010.2708?casa_token=lsm8f29fbw8AAAAA%3AA1oDJwndx4SJPP8ZsKi9W-LLAPLyOIhSsyHP9b91v2xWdHPSoyQMr7iCgq-f9axg6bW07cSbwkqsYXc" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Journal of Women's Health</a> looked at 14 separate studies where the efficacy of the substance was compared to nine other antifungals like fluconazole and terconazole. The review found that boric acid cured between 40% to 100% of patients. </p><p>You can find boric acid at a grocery store, usually in the pharmacy or cleaning aisle. </p><p>To treat yeast infections, <a href="https://www.uofmhealth.org/health-library/tn9595" target="_blank" rel="noopener">place about 600mg of boric acid into suppository capsules — cone-shaped pills that dissolve in your body — </a>that can then be inserted into the vagina. Standard treatment requires using a pill once a day before bed for seven days straight. </p><p>Take note that there are some side effects to using boric acid. Some people have complained of <a href="https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/full/10.1089/jwh.2010.2708?casa_token=lsm8f29fbw8AAAAA%3AA1oDJwndx4SJPP8ZsKi9W-LLAPLyOIhSsyHP9b91v2xWdHPSoyQMr7iCgq-f9axg6bW07cSbwkqsYXc" target="_blank" rel="noopener">vaginal burning, watery discharge, and vaginal reddening</a>. Pregnant women should not take boric acid suppositories, as the substance is toxic to a fetus.</p><h2>Home remedies that don't treat yeast infections</h2><p>The following natural remedies lack evidence for their effectiveness at treating yeast infections at home: </p><h3>1. Avoid Garlic </h3><p>Some have suggested garlic is a good over-the-counter remedy for yeast infections. That's because allicin, a substance released when fresh garlic is crushed, has <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10594976/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">well-known antimicrobial and antibacterial properties</a> that can damage bacterial yeasts. However, these benefits do not outweigh the risks.</p><p>Auguste says she does not recommend garlic as an at-home treatment for yeast infections due to potential side effects. Placing raw garlic in your vaginal canal not only introduces a foreign object, but she says it can also cause skin in the canal to burn and become irritated. </p><p>Moreover, there's limited research to suggest that garlic is more effective than other treatments. For example, a <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3208935/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2010 study</a> published in the Iranian Journal of Nursing and Midwifery looked at the effect of treating yeast infections with a medicinal cream filled with garlic and thyme, and how it compared with a typical clotrimazole vaginal cream, an antifungal cream available over the counter or by prescription. The garlic cream was just as effective as the clotrimazole. However, the population studied was quite small, and the group using the garlic treatment reported more side effects overall. </p><p>According to Auguste, "there's no proof that a clove of garlic alone will prevent or treat an infection." </p><h3>2. Be wary of tea tree oil </h3><p>Tea tree oil is often marketed as a natural substance to <a href="https://www.insider.com/home-remedies-for-acne#:~:text=Home%20remedies%20for%20acne%20include,water%20to%20apply%20to%20blemishes" target="_blank" rel="noopener">help manage acne</a> and other <a href="https://www.insider.com/home-remedies-for-dandruff" target="_blank" rel="noopener">skin conditions</a>. But, there is debate as to <a href="https://health.clevelandclinic.org/do-home-remedies-actually-work-for-yeast-infections/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">whether it can help</a> with yeast infections.  On its own, it certainly won't cure an infection. But it could prove helpful when combined with other treatments in certain cases.</p><p>For example, a <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4334616/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2015 study published in Biomedical Research International</a> examined how 32 strains of antibiotic-resistant Candida Albicans reacted to tea tree oil. The researchers found that tea tree oil may reduce this yeast's level of resistance. In other words, tea tree oil could increase susceptibility of certain yeast infections to fluconazole — the antifungal medication often used to treat these infections.</p><h3>3. Skip coconut oil </h3><p>While coconut oil is often touted as a cure-all thanks to its antimicrobial properties, there is little evidence it can combat yeast infections. </p><p>Some preliminary studies have found that coconut oil may be effective in combating candida overgrowth. However, these studies were conducted in <a href="https://home.liebertpub.com/publications/journal-of-medicinal-food/38/overview" target="_blank" rel="noopener">petri dishes</a> and mice making it unclear if coconut oil would safely treat yeast infections in humans. </p><h3>4. Never douche with apple cider vinegar </h3><p>Some research suggests apple cider vinegar inhibits yeast growth, which in turn allows white blood cells <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5788933/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">to consume yeast bacteria</a>. However, the general consensus among the medical community is that douching with apple cider vinegar — or with anything else — will cause more harm than good when it comes to vaginal health.</p><p>That's because douching can alter the delicate pH balance in the vagina, which can actually lead to <a href="https://www.womenshealth.gov/a-z-topics/douching" target="_blank" rel="noopener">more yeast infections</a>. Douching is also associated with pelvic inflammatory disease and problems getting pregnant. </p><p>"In the past, [apple cider] vinegar douching was really common. And some women at the time thought that was to help cleanse the vagina. That is not necessary," Auguste says. </p><p>In rare cases, apple cider vinegar has helped. For example, a 2017 case study published in <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29112940/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine</a> described a patient with <a href="https://hospitals.jefferson.edu/diseases-and-conditions/yeast-infection.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">chronic yeast infections</a> that did not respond to traditional medication. The patient was successfully treated with topical application of apple cider vinegar. But this was just one patient and does not mean that the same approach will work for you.</p><p>In fact, most doctors caution against using apple cider vinegar to try to fix a persistent yeast infection. </p><h2>How to prevent a yeast infection</h2><p>Some women are naturally more <a href="https://hospitals.jefferson.edu/diseases-and-conditions/yeast-infection.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">prone to recurrent yeast infections</a> than others due to compromised immune systems, pregnancy, or genetics. But, there are <a href="https://www.womenshealth.gov/a-z-topics/vaginal-yeast-infections" target="_blank" rel="noopener">some practices one can follow</a> to reduce their risk of infection and otherwise maintain vaginal health, such as: </p><ul><li>Wear loose-fitting clothing and cotton underwear </li><li>Wipe from front to back after using the bathroom </li><li>Avoid scented tampons or pads </li><li>Change tampons and pads often</li><li>Never douche</li></ul><h2>When to see a doctor</h2><p>Auguste recommends visiting a doctor whenever you experience yeast infection-like symptoms, even if you hope to treat it without medication. This way you can speak to your doctor about the best treatment options for you and your body. </p><p>"If discharge that is present is clear, no odor, no itching, most times it is normal," Auguste says. "It's when that discharge either changes color, extra yellowish or green, becomes thickened or clumpy, or there is a strong odor, that is the time when you should go and see a gynecologist." </p><h2>The bottom line</h2><p>The nuisances of yeast infections are quite common. Certain home remedies like taking probiotics may aid in recovery, but others may actively harm you. Above all, your best bet is seeing a doctor who can guide you to the most appropriate treatment plan.</p><h2>Related stories from <a href="https://www.insider.com/health-reference">Health Reference</a>:</h2><ul><li><strong><a href="https://www.insider.com/home-remedies-for-cough" target="_blank" rel="noopener">8 science-backed home remedies to soothe coughing naturally, according to doctors</a></strong></li><li><strong><a href="https://www.insider.com/how-to-get-rid-of-ingrown-hair" target="_blank" rel="noopener">How to get rid of ingrown hairs</a></strong></li><li><strong><a href="https://www.insider.com/how-to-treat-vaginismus" target="_blank" rel="noopener">How to treat vaginismus through dilation training and counseling</a></strong></li></ul>

Home remedies for yeast infections that actually work — and which to avoid

<ul class="summary-list"><li><keyword id="159997" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Melatonin">Melatonin</keyword> is a hormone that naturally occurs in the body and regulates the sleep-wake cycle.</li><li>If you are taking melatonin supplements, start by taking .5 to one milligram about two hours before bedtime.</li><li>Some ways to increase your natural melatonin production are avoiding bright lights before bed, creating a drop in body temperature, or eating foods like milk or grapes which contain melatonin.</li><li>This article <a href="https://www.insider.com/insider-medical-review-board" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was medically reviewed</a> by <a href="https://keck.usc.edu/faculty-search/rajkumar-dasgupta/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Raj Dasgupta</a> MD, FACP, FCCP, FAASM, Assistant Professor of Clinical Medicine with the Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care &amp; <keyword id="6372996" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="sleep">Sleep</keyword> Medicine University at Southern California (USC). </li></ul><p>There's a reason we go to bed at night when it's dark and wake up in the morning when the sun's out, and it's not just because society says so. Our sleep-wake cycle — when we feel sleepy, and when we feel wakeful — is a part of our natural circadian rhythm, which is regulated by the body's internal clock. </p><p>Melatonin is a hormone naturally produced in the body that plays a crucial role in the circadian rhythm and our ability to fall asleep. Here's what you should know about melatonin, melatonin sleep supplements, and whether or not it can help you get a better night's rest. </p><h2><strong>Melatonin is a hormone that naturally occurs in the body</strong></h2><p>"Melatonin is a hormone that is made by the pineal gland in response to cues and signals coming from the hypothalamus, the part of the brain that has what we call the central clock," says <a href="https://www.faculty.uci.edu/profile.cfm?faculty_id=5402" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Paolo Sassone-Corsi Ph.D.</a>, Director, Center for Epigenetics and Metabolism at University of California, Irvine. The cues telling the brain to produce (or not produce) melatonin are light and darkness.</p><p>A tiny gland in the brain called the pineal gland produces melatonin at high levels every evening in response to darkness, helping the body get ready for sleep. Melatonin levels drop significantly in the early morning hours, and the pineal gland is relatively inactive during the day, until darkness comes and the cycle repeats. According to Sassone-Corsi, melatonin has been identified as the key hormone regulating the sleep-wake cycle.</p><p>A person's natural circadian rhythm along with light and darkness are the main factors that affect natural melatonin production.</p><p>Production of the sleep hormone can be affected if the person experiences a disruption to their circadian rhythm, such as travelling to different time zones or working non-traditional hours. A 2017 study published in <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5862149/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><em>Biological Research for Nursing</em></a> found that compared to traditional daytime workers, those on the night shift produced 33.8% less melatonin. </p><p>The amount of artificial light you look at, particularly blue light emitted from electronics, is also tied to the amount of melatonin you produce. A 2017 study published in <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28548897" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><em>Chronobiology International</em></a> concluded blue light before bedtime is linked to suppression of melatonin production and reduced quality of sleep. This is due to blue light's <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6280115/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">short wavelengths</a>.</p><p>If you're looking to increase your natural melatonin production, here are some things you can do.</p><h2><strong>How to naturally increase melatonin production</strong></h2><ul><li><strong>Avoid light exposure at night:</strong> Stop using your blue light emitting devices<a href="https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/blue-light-has-a-dark-side" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> two to three hours before bed</a> if possible. Otherwise, consider getting blue light blocking glasses that can counteract the effect. Room lights should also be dimmed or turned off to kick melatonin production into gear.</li><li><strong>Create a drop in body temperature:</strong> One of the most effective ways to amplify melatonin production is to cause a change in core body temperature, according to <a href="https://www.uclahealth.org/alon-avidan" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Alon Y. Avidan, MD, MPH,</a> Professor and Vice Chair in the Department of Neurology at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, and Director of the UCLA Sleep Disorders Center. "If someone gets out of the shower or a hot bath, that drop of temperature from the bath to the room's temperature is allowing for a more robust melatonin release, he says. Similarly, turning the heat down in your bedroom to fall asleep in a cooler environment can do the trick, too.</li><li><strong>Eat foods containing melatonin</strong>: Melatonin has been discovered in many foods. A 2017 study published in <em><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5409706/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nutrients</a></em> reported detectable levels of melatonin in milk, some fruits (grapes, cherries, and strawberries), seeds, legumes, and nuts (pistachios appear to have the highest levels of melatonin than other nuts).</li></ul><h2><strong>Melatonin supplements are used to promote sleep</strong><strong><br /></strong></h2><p>Melatonin supplements are a more natural way to promote sleep, as opposed to taking hypnotics such as Ambien or benzodiazepines like Klonopin. According to Avidan, melatonin supplements promote sleep by raising your melatonin levels as the hormone enters your bloodstream, blocking the "alerting effect" of the circadian clock. Prescription sleeping pills work completely differently by binding to receptors in the brain that promote sedation. </p><p>In general, research surrounding the effectiveness of melatonin for sleep has been promising. A 2013 meta analysis published in <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3656905/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><em>PLOS One</em></a> determined that among 19 studies and 1683 subjects, participants taking melatonin rather than a placebo fell asleep about seven minutes faster and slept for about 8 minutes longer. More recently, a 2017 review in <em><a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/01616412.2017.1315864" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Neurological Research</a></em> also concluded that melatonin supplements can help people fall asleep faster as well as improve quality of sleep. </p><p>While plenty of research has been conducted on melatonin, there are still a lot of unknowns when it comes to the effectiveness, dosing, and safety of melatonin. According to Avidan, there's no universal dose of melatonin that will be effective for everybody — and not everybody will feel the effect of melatonin. If melatonin doesn't help you fall asleep, it's possible you need a higher dose, or, that your sleep troubles are caused by something else. </p><h2><strong>How to take melatonin</strong></h2><p><strong>Dosing varies depending on the person.</strong> A low dose of melatonin is considered .5 milligrams to one milligram, which Avidan says can be enough to adjust somebody's circadian pattern in the case of situations like jet lag or daylight savings.</p><p>If someone is really struggling to fall asleep, they might need to move up to a three milligram dose, which can be considered the "hypnotic dose." </p><p>Certain conditions may call for even higher doses. "High doses between five to 15 milligrams are available for people who have a certain parasomnia – an abnormal behavioral activity that occurs during sleep, for example, sleepwalking," Avidan says. However, a dose of five milligrams or more should not be taken without approval from your doctor. </p><p>As far as when you should be taking it, be sure to take a melatonin supplement about two hours before your desired bedtime. Since melatonin affects circadian rhythms, it is important to avoid taking it too late at night. For example, taking melatonin at 3am after tossing and turning could throw off your sleep schedule and affect your rest for the remainder of the week. </p><p>Just remember that melatonin is most effective when combined with a regular bedtime schedule and good sleep hygiene. </p><p><strong>It is impossible to overdose on melatonin </strong>since toxic levels of melatonin [that put life at risk] have never been registered," says <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Lorenzo_Franceschetti" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Lorenzo Franceschetti M.D.</a>, a researcher at the University of Milan, who has conducted extensive studies on melatonin. He says unpleasant side effects can occur when taking high doses of melatonin, but that's about the extent of it. Possible common <a href="https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/adult-health/expert-answers/melatonin-side-effects/faq-20057874" target="_blank" rel="noopener">side effects of melatonin</a> include nausea, dizziness, and headaches. Taking too much can also result in next day drowsiness or a disruption in your circadian rhythm. </p><p>However, both Avidan and Sassone-Corsi say we don't have enough concrete evidence to say what dose is unsafe, or what particular groups of people melatonin may be unsafe for. For example, we don't have sufficient evidence surrounding taking <a href="https://www.insider.com/is-melatonin-safe-during-pregnancy" target="_blank" rel="noopener">melatonin during pregnancy</a> to say if it's safe or not. </p><p>"We don't know enough yet. I will not say that it's dangerous, but I would use some caution," Sassone-Corsi says. It is possible for melatonin to interact with prescription drugs, so if you take any medications, be sure to check with your doctor to make sure the supplement is safe for you. </p><p>Something else to keep in mind is the fact that the FDA doesn't regulate melatonin, since it's a supplement and not a drug. This means that the supplements you're taking might not be the dosage you think. According to Avidan, a lot of doses are inconsistent with what the bottle says.</p><p><strong>The people who would benefit the most from taking melatonin, </strong>according to Avidan are</p><ul><li>People dealing with jet lag</li><li>Alzheimer's or dementia patient's dealing with insomnia due to neurodegeneration </li><li>People with parasomnia (abnormal sleep behaviors REM movement disorder, for example)</li><li>People with delayed sleep phase syndrome (DSPS) – which usually occurs in preteens and teens going through puberty</li></ul><h2><strong>Other <keyword id="6354750" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="health">health</keyword> benefits of melatonin</strong></h2><p>As more research is conducted surrounding melatonin, scientists are finding more uses for melatonin – and they aren't just surrounding sleep. "Regarding health conditions, melatonin can be called a 'Swiss army knife' since it can impact every cell of the human body," Franceschetti says. However, it is important to note that these uses are very experimental and, especially as a treatment for dementia or as an anti-inflammatory agent, melatonin has not been used in clinical practice.</p><p>In a 2017 study that he co-authored, published in the <em><a href="https://www.hindawi.com/journals/ije/2017/1835195/#conclusion" target="_blank" rel="noopener">International Journal of Endocrinology</a></em>, Franceschetti and his team concluded melatonin can act as an anti-inflammatory and an antioxidant, protecting cells from damage and death. <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4310837/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Free radicals</a> (atoms or molecules that are highly reactive) can cause cellular death and lead to various health conditions, and antioxidants can prevent it – and that's where melatonin comes in. </p><p>"Because of the ability to neutralize radicals, melatonin can defer age-related dysfunction of several organs, such as the heart, for example," Franceschetti says. </p><p>Some other possible uses for melatonin are:</p><p><strong>Endometriosis pain relief:</strong> People who suffer from endometriosis, a uterine disorder that causes chronic pelvic pain, can get relief with melatonin due to its anti-inflammatory effects. A 2013 study published in <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S030439591300081X" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><em>Pain</em></a> found that 10 milligrams of melatonin was more effective than a placebo in reducing daily pain by 39.80%, and were less likely to use other pain relievers. <br /><br /><strong>IBS treatment: </strong>Since the gut has melatonin receptors, research has been conducted to see if melatonin can help stomach conditions, such as IBS, and the findings are promising. A 2014 review published in <em><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3949259/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">World Journal of Gastroenterology</a></em> concluded that those who took melatonin versus placebo in various studies did experience some relief from abdominal pain, and that the anti inflammatory properties can reduce intestinal inflammation. </p><p><strong>Reduce cancer risk:</strong> Sassone-Corsi says melatonin can possibly act as an anti-tumor agent and may prevent certain types of cancer, though there's not enough research to say for sure. However, a 2018 review published in the<em><a href="https://www.hindawi.com/journals/ije/2018/3271948/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> International Journal of Endocrinology</a></em> said that upon analysis of multiple studies in humans and rats, melatonin seems to have anti-tumor effects in hormone dependent cancers: ovarian cancer, breast cancer, and prostate cancer. </p><p><strong>Lower risk of Age-Related Macular Degeneration (AMD): </strong>According to a 2016 review published in <a href="https://www.hindawi.com/journals/omcl/2016/6819736/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><em>Oxidative Medicine and Cellular Longevity</em></a>, melatonin can counteract the oxidative stress on the eyes that may get worse with age, due to its antioxidant properties. They note one study where participants with AMD took three milligrams of melatonin nightly for three months. After the three months, their vision remained stable. </p><p>It's an exciting time in science where we are learning a lot more necessary information about melatonin and its uses. Hopefully, more research will continue to be conducted to get some concrete answers regarding long term safety and effectiveness of melatonin supplements. </p><p>If you're having trouble falling asleep, consult your doctor before you buy melatonin supplements and start taking them. But once you get the green light, it could be lights-out and sweet dreams.</p><h1>Related <a href="https://www.insider.com/category/health-explainers" target="_blank" rel="noopener">health explainers</a>:</h1><ul><li><strong><a href="https://www.insider.com/is-too-much-sleep-bad" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Is too much sleep bad? How oversleeping could signal something is wrong</a></strong></li><li><strong><a href="https://www.insider.com/can-lack-of-sleep-cause-heart-disease" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A consistent lack of sleep can potentially cause heart disease</a></strong></li><li><strong><a href="https://www.insider.com/what-temperature-kills-germs" target="_blank" rel="noopener">What temperature kills germs? How to use heat properly to get rid of bacteria and viruses</a></strong></li><li><strong><a href="https://www.insider.com/how-to-get-rid-of-a-cough" target="_blank" rel="noopener">How to get rid of a cough and whether medication can help</a></strong></li><li><strong><a href="https://www.insider.com/what-exercises-burn-belly-fat" target="_blank" rel="noopener">How to sculpt abs and burn belly fat without leaving your home</a></strong></li><li><strong><a href="https://www.insider.com/how-do-viruses-spread" target="_blank" rel="noopener">How do viruses spread and how to protect yourself against infection</a></strong></li></ul>

How melatonin can make you sleep better: what it is, how much to take, and the health benefits

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Two different teams of scientists are <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/27/health/coronavirus-estrogen-men.html?smtyp=cur&amp;smid=tw-nytimesscienceence">trialing hormone therapies like estrogen and progesterone</a> as possible treatments for cisgender male coronavirus patients. </li><li>The trials are aimed to combat the gendered gap in <keyword id="8763838" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="covid-19">COVID-19</keyword> deaths, as<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/why-more-men-die-from-coronavirus-than-women-2020-3"> men across the world are dying at a higher rate</a> than women. </li><li>Some researchers believe this has to do with the higher amount of hormones like <keyword id="84303" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="estrogen">estrogen</keyword> and progesterone in people assigned female at birth. </li><li>People who rely on these medications, <a href="https://twitter.com/JuliaSerano/status/1254829702289620992?s=20">like transgender people</a> and people going through menopause, are worried excitement about these treatments may cause a shortage. </li><li>Some lupus patients who rely on hydroxychloroquine were not able to access the drug after President Trump touted it as a potential treatment for COVID-19.</li><li><a href="https://www.insider.com/?hprecirc-bullet">Visit Insider's homepage for more stories</a>.</li></ul><p>Two different teams of scientists are <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/27/health/coronavirus-estrogen-men.html?smtyp=cur&amp;smid=tw-nytimesscienceence">trialing hormone therapies using estrogen and progesterone</a> as possible treatments for male coronavirus patients.</p><p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/27/health/coronavirus-estrogen-men.html">The New York Times reported</a> two teams of medical researchers and doctors — one in Los Angeles and one in Long Island, New York — are racing to see if estrogen or progesterone treatments could help narrow the gender gap in COVID-19 deaths, <a href="http://weekly.chinacdc.cn/en/article/id/e53946e2-c6c4-41e9-9a9b-fea8db1a8f51">as</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/why-more-men-die-from-coronavirus-than-women-2020-3">men across the world are dying of the virus at a higher rate</a> than <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/24/health/coronavirus-gender-mortality-intl/index.html">women</a>.  </p><p>Researchers believe the gender gap may be linked to higher levels of certain hormones, like estrogen and progesterone, in people assigned female at birth. </p><p>"There's a striking difference between the number of men and women in the intensive care unit, and men are clearly doing worse," Dr. Sara Ghandehari, principal investigator for one of the team is LA working on the progesterone study, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/27/health/coronavirus-estrogen-men.html?smtyp=cur&amp;smid=tw-nytimesscienceence">told the New York Times.</a> "So something about being a woman is protective, and something about pregnancy is protective, and that makes us think about hormones."</p><p>Ghandehari said that while pregnant women are typically considered to be immunocompromised and are at a higher risk when contracting illnesses, pregnant women who contracted the virus have tended to have more mild cases. She said this may be an example of the protective properties of estrogen.</p><p>To test how hormones could be helpful against COVID-19, each team is running clinical trials on how estrogen or progesterone impacts COVID-19 patients. </p><p>In Long Island, New York, the team at Renaissance School of Medicine at Stony Brook University started treating <a href="https://www.them.us/story/scientists-hormones-covid-19-treatment">a group of COVID-19 patients</a> — adult men and women over the age of 55 — with estrogen last week. And in Los Angeles, Ghandehari's team will begin treating male COVID-19 patients with estrogen to see how it impacts their immunity. </p><p>If these trials go well, it could be a breakthrough in the fight against COVID-19. </p><p>However, like other drugs that have been advertised as possible coronavirus treatments before them, people who rely on these hormones for everyday life like <keyword id="6358953" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="Transgender">transgender</keyword> people and people going through menopause are concerned an increase in demand for progesterone and estrogen could lead to a shortage if researchers and officials are not careful. </p><h2>People who rely on hormone replacement therapy are concerned the push towards this possible treatment may cause a shortage</h2><p><div type="image" title="medical coronavirus flu virus covid19 hospital doctor nurse tools stethoscope blood pressure pills vitamins medicine pharmacy pharmaceutical lab vaccine cox 19" height="1667" width="2222" msid="75476369" hostid="261"></div></p><p>Estrogen and progesterone have long been life-changing and at times <a href="https://www.insider.com/transgender-people-turn-to-grey-market-for-hormones-during-pandemic-2020-4">life-saving drugs.</a></p><p>Transgender people have been using estrogen and progesterone for decades to <a href="https://www.insider.com/south-dakota-bill-transgender-youth-gender-affirmation-2020-1">treat gender dysphoria as part of hormone replacement therapy (HRT). </a></p><p><a href="https://www.menopause.org/for-women/menopauseflashes/menopause-symptoms-and-treatments/the-experts-do-agree-about-hormone-therapy">Cisgender women going through menopause</a> have also utilized these hormones to help with symptoms like <a href="https://www.webmd.com/menopause/news/20100622/progesterone-alone-may-help-hot-flashes">hot flashes</a> and mood swings. </p><p>Some people who already rely on estrogen and progesterone have expressed concern that if these trials are effective, people may begin to hoard hormones and cause a shortage. </p><p>"I am theoretically ok with this, just so long as 1) cis men don't start hoarding estrogen, 2) they promise not to write any 'I took estrogen for Covid-19 &amp; now I'm an expert on gender' op-eds," Julia Serano, a transgender activist and writer, <a href="https://twitter.com/JuliaSerano/status/1254829702289620992?s=20">tweeted in response to the New York Times article. </a> </p><p>Other Twitter users raised similar concerns, writing "if even <a href="https://twitter.com/JacquieSwears/status/1254825442533683201">one trans woman loses estrogen access to a cis man</a>, this means war" and "<a href="https://twitter.com/plantjoys/status/1255239394396639232">if there is an estrogen shortage</a> due to this i will go full Mad Max Fury Road and kill men for E."</p><p>Another group of Twitter users <a href="https://twitter.com/emnesoi/status/1254841628512182279">critiqued how quickly cisgender men were able to get HRT</a> compared to how difficult it is for many transgender people. </p><p>"how did they get them so fast? it takes at least half a year (if ur lucky) for trans ppl to have access to hormones bc of "iRrEvErSiBlE cHaNgEs &amp; BlOoDcLoTs!!!!!" but one lul cough and y'all distributing estrogen like it's halloween candy?" <a href="https://twitter.com/eveadrienne/status/1254805526166351874">one user tweeted. </a></p><p>Concerns over shortages aren't unfounded. <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/apr/29/online-demand-for-hydroxychloroquine-surged-1000-after-trump-backed-it-study-finds?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other">Demand for hydroxychloroquine shot up 1,000%</a> after President Donald Trump backed it as an effective treatment for COVID-19 (despite questions about its effectiveness), leaving some <a href="https://www.propublica.org/article/lupus-patients-cant-get-crucial-medication-after-president-trump-pushes-unproven-coronavirus-treatment">lupus patients who rely on the drug unable to access it</a>. </p><p>A shortage of <keyword id="108180" type="CITY" weightage="60" keywordseo="HRT">HRT</keyword> could be especially dangerous to transgender and nonbinary people, as many are already struggling to get access to hormones and <a href="https://www.insider.com/transgender-people-turn-to-grey-market-for-hormones-during-pandemic-2020-4">having to turn to unregulated grey markets during the pandemic. </a></p><h2>Some experts are not entirely convinced it is hormones that protect women against COVID-19</h2><p>Not all researchers are convinced that hormones protect women from developing more severe cases of COVID-19.</p><p>Sabra Klein, a scientist who studies sex differences in viral infections and vaccination responses at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public <keyword id="6354750" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="health">Health</keyword>, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/27/health/coronavirus-estrogen-men.html?smtyp=cur&amp;smid=tw-nytimesscienceence">told the New York Times</a> that other differences between genders, like how often people wash their hands and how much they typically smoke throughout their lifetime.</p><p>"We see this bias across the life course," Klein said. "Older men are still disproportionately affected, and that suggests to me it's got to be something genetic, or something else, that's not just hormonal."</p><p>"Estrogen has immune-modulatory properties — don't get me wrong," she continued. "You could get a beneficial effect in both men and women. But if women are better at recovery at 93 years old, I doubt it's hormones."</p><p><em><strong>Read More:</strong></em></p><p><a href="https://www.insider.com/transgender-people-turn-to-grey-market-for-hormones-during-pandemic-2020-4">People are sharing hormones on Google Docs and turning to 'grey market' pharmacies to get gender-affirming care during the pandemic</a></p><p><a href="https://www.insider.com/lgbtq-teens-are-building-community-online-while-quarantined-2020-4">LGBTQ teens are cut off from support networks in quarantine, so they're building community online instead</a></p><p><a href="https://www.insider.com/quarantine-increase-depression-suicide-risk-in-lgbtq-youth-2020-4">Quarantines could increase the risk of depression and suicidal thoughts among LGBTQ youth, according to a new report</a></p>Read the original article on <a href="https://www.insider.com/coronavirus-mens-estrogen-treatment-leads-to-hormone-shortage-fears-2020-4">Insider</a>

Men are being treated for the coronavirus with female sex hormones in two trials. People who rely on hormones are worried it could lead to a shortage.

<ul class="summary-list"><li><keyword id="721539" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Natural-remedies">Natural remedies</keyword> for a <keyword id="60887" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Stomach">stomach</keyword> ache include ginger, peppermint, and diluted apple cider vinegar.</li><li>You can also try using a heating pad or a hot water bottle to relax the muscles in your body and soothe a stomach ache.</li><li>Dehydration could also cause a stomach ache, so drinking lots of water could ease abdominal pain.</li><li>This article <a href="https://www.insider.com/insider-medical-review-board" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was medically reviewed</a> by <a href="https://www.memorialcare.org/providers/ashkan-farhadi">Ashkan Farhadi</a><strong>, MD, a gastroenterologist at MemorialCare Orange Coast Medical Center and director of MemorialCare Medical Group's Digestive Disease Project in Fountain Valley, CA.</strong></li></ul><p>Dull pain, sharp pain, throbbing pain, cramping — stomach problems can evoke it all. Many times, these stomach aches are impossible to ignore and can really throw a wrench in your day if you don't do something to treat them. </p><p>However, certain remedies are more effective than others. For example, the popular <a href="https://www.insider.com/what-is-the-brat-diet" target="_blank" rel="noopener">BRAT diet</a> of bananas, rice, applesauce, and toast is no longer recommended for stomach bugs. In this article we discuss common causes for your stomach ache and offer five natural home remedies proven to ease your pain and get back to feeling better.</p><h2>Causes of a stomach ache</h2><p>There are many reasons you may have a stomach ache, ranging from something as simple as taking medication on an empty stomach to something more serious, like an ulcer, says <a href="https://www.providence.org/doctors/profile/198965-rudolph-albert-bedford" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Rudolph Bedford, MD</a>, a gastroenterologist at Providence Saint John's <keyword id="6354750" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="health">Health</keyword> Center in Santa Monica, California. </p><p>Acute, short-term stomach aches usually last for between two to three days and don't necessarily require a doctor's visit. Here are some common causes of acute, <a href="https://medlineplus.gov/ency/article/003120.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">short-term stomach aches:</a></p><ul><li>Gas and indigestion</li><li>Allergic reaction to food</li><li>Food poisoning </li><li>Stomach flu</li><li>Eating spicy foods</li><li>Taking certain medications on an empty stomach</li><li>Constipation</li><li>Dehydration</li><li>Stress and <a href="https://www.insider.com/what-is-anxiety" target="_blank" rel="noopener">anxiety</a></li><li><a href="https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/appendicitis/symptoms-causes/syc-20369543" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Appendicitis </a>(This condition is acute but very serious. Seek medical attention immediately if you believe you have appendicitis) </li></ul><p>Chronic stomach pain can be a sign of a more serious underlying condition and you should consider scheduling an appointment with a doctor. <a href="https://www.mayoclinic.org/symptoms/abdominal-pain/basics/causes/sym-20050728" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More serious stomach aches</a> may be caused by the following: </p><ul><li><strong>IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome)</strong>, an intestinal disorder.</li><li><strong>Stomach ulcers</strong></li></ul><ul><ul><li><strong>Gallstones</strong> (Gallbladder stones and inflammation)</li><li><strong>Pancreatitis</strong>, a condition that causes the pancreas to become inflamed.</li><li><strong>Crohn's disease</strong>, a type of inflammatory bowel disease (IBS) which is caused by an inflamed digestive tract.</li><li><strong>Ulcerative colitis</strong>, a type of IBD that causes chronic inflammation and ulcers in the digestive tract.</li></ul></ul><ul><li><a href="https://www.insider.com/do-i-have-endometriosis" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Endometriosis</strong></a></li></ul><ul><li><strong>Certain cancers</strong> including stomach, liver, pancreas, gallbladder, and kidney</li></ul><h2>Remedies for a stomach ache </h2><p>Bedford says that many patients respond well to home remedies, whether natural or over the counter. Here are five remedies to help ease your pain.</p><h3>1. Ginger</h3><p>Ginger is a natural remedy that's been <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK92775/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">used since ancient times</a>. Ancient people native to India and China are thought to have used ginger 5000 years ago to treat their ailments. </p><p>Today, ginger is still widely used as an effective remedy — and Bedford recommends it too for his patients suffering from stomach discomfort and nausea.  </p><p><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6341159/#fsn3807-bib-0002" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ginger can help with stomach pain because it acts as an anti-inflammatory</a>. Additionally, if you're struggling with nausea, Bedford says ginger can <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4818021/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">relieve and prevent nausea and vomiting</a>, and you don't have to chew on raw ginger to get relief. Bedford says any form of ginger can be beneficial. You can consume it in multiple ways:</p><ul><li>Chewing on the fresh ginger root itself</li><li>Drinking ginger ale (Ginger ale can be high in sugar, so if you're trying to <a href="https://www.insider.com/how-to-cut-sugar-out-of-your-diet" target="_blank" rel="noopener">cut back on sweets</a>, this may not be the best option.)</li><li>Drinking ginger tea </li><li>Eating ginger chews </li><li>Ginger supplements </li></ul><h3>2. Peppermint</h3><p>Bedford says peppermint has provided his patients with relief from stomach aches, gas, and bloating. This is because <a href="https://www.mountsinai.org/health-library/herb/peppermint" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the two main ingredients in peppermint — menthol and methyl salicylate — have antispasmodic properties</a>, meaning they relieve spasms, such as those that IBS sufferers may experience.</p><p>"For many people who have stomach aches, it's usually caused by spasming of the lining or the walls of the small bowel, colon, or stomach, and peppermint oil just seems to relax those muscles," says Bedford.</p><p>Overall, the stomach and surrounding muscles will relax thanks to these properties, reducing spasms, which can lead to relief from stomach ache, gas, bloating, and nausea. </p><p>Studies surrounding peppermint and stomach aches have mostly been centered around IBS, and results are promising. For example, a meta-analysis published in 2019 in the <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6337770/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine</a> reviewed 12 studies for a total of 835 participants. The meta-analysis found that peppermint oil capsules are more effective at providing symptom relief than a placebo, with a low risk of adverse effects. </p><p>The two main ways to consume peppermint are:</p><ol><li>Peppermint oil capsules</li><li>Peppermint tea</li></ol><h3>3. Apply heat</h3><p>Using a heating pad or hot water bottle can help relieve patients' stomach pain, Bedford says. Just make sure that there is a barrier between your skin and the heating pad or water bottle to avoid burns. Lie down in a position that's comfortable and then place it on your upper or lower abdomen, wherever you are experiencing the pain. <br /><br />The heat acts as <a href="https://www.mayoclinic.org/self-care-approaches-to-treating-pain/art-20367322" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a muscle relaxer</a> for the muscles in your belly which can help relieve pain associated with muscle cramping and gas. Heating pads are great if your stomach ache may be stemming from stress and anxiety. Additionally, if your belly pain is due to <a href="https://www.insider.com/how-to-get-rid-of-period-cramps" target="_blank" rel="noopener">menstrual cramps</a>, a heating pad is a great remedy for that, too. </p><p>Additionally, researchers at the <a href="https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/07/060705090603.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">University College London</a> discovered that applying heat of at least 104º Fahrenheit externally can block internal pain receptors, which in turn will make the original pain less detectable by the body. The researchers found that this mechanism works at a molecular level, similar to pain medications. The heat works by blocking pain receptors, called <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3854565/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">P2X3 receptors</a>, which transmit pain signals to the brain.</p><p>Aside from using a heating pad, you can also take a hot bath for a similar effect.</p><p>However, people who are pregnant should not use a heating pad on their stomach at any point during pregnancy because <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/repro/heat.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">excess heat can increase the risk</a> of birth defects.</p><h3>4. Stay hydrated</h3><p>Dehydration can cause a <a href="https://www.nhsinform.scot/illnesses-and-conditions/nutritional/dehydration" target="_blank" rel="noopener">mineral imbalance</a> in your body, which disrupts normal bodily function and can trigger a <a href="https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/dehydration/symptoms-causes/syc-20354086" target="_blank" rel="noopener">series of symptoms</a> including stomach pain. </p><p>So, if your pain is from dehydration, make sure you're getting enough fluids in your diet. Especially if you're sick and sweating a lot, have diarrhea, or are vomiting as these conditions can worsen dehydration.</p><p>The notion that you need to drink e<a href="https://www.insider.com/how-much-water-are-you-supposed-to-drink-a-day" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ight glasses of water a day is a myth</a>. The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine recommend that women get 91 fl. oz. of fluids per day and men get 125 fl. oz. This can come from water, other beverages, and foods.</p><h3>5. Drink diluted apple cider vinegar</h3><p>If you're dealing with a stomach ache caused by gas or indigestion, <a href="https://www.insider.com/what-is-apple-cider-vinegar-good-for" target="_blank" rel="noopener">apple cider vinegar</a> might do the trick to help aid <keyword id="98600" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="digestion">digestion</keyword>. Bedford says the "recipe" that homeopathic doctors usually recommend is:</p><ul><li>One cup of warm water</li><li>One tablespoon of apple cider vinegar</li><li>One tablespoon of honey</li></ul><p>Taking the apple cider vinegar alone undiluted is not recommended since the acidity can irritate your throat and deteriorate tooth enamel. Plus, mixing it with water and honey can make the vinegar more palatable. </p><p>Most of the evidence for apple cider vinegar and stomach aches is anecdotal, and more research is needed to determine if this is a sure-fire remedy for most.</p><h2>Takeaways </h2><p>Different remedies work for different stomach aches. And what works for your friend may not work for you. So it may take some trial and error to figure out what remedy you respond to best.</p><p>If your symptoms are persistent, not responding to home remedies, and interfering with your daily life, Bedford says you should see a gastroenterologist to figure out what's going on and get you on the right treatment plan. </p><p>Additionally, he says if you're seeing any blood whether in your bowel movements or if you're coughing or vomiting blood along with your stomach ache, this could be a sign of more serious conditions such as diverticulitis, ulcers, colon cancer, or rectal cancer, and you should seek medical attention as soon as possible. </p><h1>Related articles from <a href="https://www.insider.com/health-reference" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Health Reference</a>:</h1><ul><li><strong><a href="https://www.insider.com/how-often-should-you-wash-your-face" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Here's why you should be washing your face twice a day</a></strong></li><li><strong><a href="https://www.insider.com/how-much-sleep-do-you-need" target="_blank" rel="noopener">How much sleep you need each night and warning signs that you're not getting enough, according to neuroscientists</a></strong></li><li><strong><a href="https://www.insider.com/can-diabetics-eat-fruit" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The best fruits for diabetics — and how much you should eat</a></strong></li></ul>

The best natural remedies for a stomach ache, according to a gastroenterologist

<ul class="summary-list"><li>The <keyword id="43587" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="pandemic">pandemic</keyword> changed the way people live, and for mothers, it came with a new set of challenges.</li><li>Five mothers spoke to Insider about the past year of raising infants.</li><li>The moms grieved the loss of what should have been, and marveled at the strength they had.</li></ul><p>On March 28, 2020, Jennifer Thompson gave birth to her son alone.</p><p>The normal hallmarks of delivery - a bustling circus of family, medical personnel, and hospital photos - were nowhere to be found. Instead, Thompson lay in her hospital bed by herself, with her husband, Trevor, on FaceTime to keep her company.</p><p>About two weeks before, on March 7, she developed a sore throat and a cough so bad she thought it "was going to cause my water to break." By March 13 she was in the emergency room. A positive COVID-19 result arrived on March 22.</p><p>By the time she reached the hospital to give birth, it had been two weeks since she'd developed symptoms. But the hospital in Royal Oak, Michigan, barred Thompson from having visitors, which meant Trevor wouldn't be present for the birth of his son, Hollis.</p><p>"I let myself feel that moment for about a minute. I started to cry. Then I was, like, 'OK, let's do this,'" the 41-year-old told Insider. Trevor watched via FaceTime as Hollis came into the world.</p><div type="image" title="Jen Thompson" height="900" width="1200" msid="82280138" hostid="261"></div><p>Over the past year, <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr70/nvsr70-02-508.pdf">millions of mothers</a> welcomed <keyword id="6415538" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="babies">babies</keyword> into a world filled with isolation, sickness, and uncertainty. Although <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/infected-after-covid-vaccination-cdc-numbers-breakthrough-infections-2021-4">vaccinations in the US</a> are trending upward, the world continues to grapple with the fallout from the pandemic.</p><p>As their babies now begin to walk and talk, Insider spoke with five new moms about grief, perseverance, and how the peculiar act of marking "firsts" evolved during a crisis.</p><p>"It attests to the strength that you have as a mom," Justine Jackson, who gave birth to her daughter, Rosie, on March 30 of last year, told Insider. "You were strong not because you wanted to be or you chose to be, but because you had to be."</p><h2>Welcoming a baby in an uncertain world</h2><div type="image" title="Kelsey Nixon" height="900" width="1200" msid="82280140" hostid="261"></div><p>In a matter of three days, Kelsey Nixon drafted six birthing plans. </p><p>The 36-year-old mother of two had planned to welcome her third child late last March with the help of Megan Blackhurst, her gestational surrogate.</p><p>Two weeks earlier, the World <keyword id="6354750" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="health">Health</keyword> Organization had officially <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/coronavirus-pandemic-timeline-history-major-events-2020-3#january-23-chinese-authorities-placed-the-11-million-person-city-of-wuhan-under-quarantine-and-the-rest-of-the-hubei-province-followed-days-later-8">declared the novel coronavirus outbreak a pandemic</a>. As it reached the US, the hospital setting was changing drastically and expectant parents were caught in the lurch. In New York, for example, some hospitals <a href="https://www.insider.com/new-york-presbyterian-hospitals-will-reportedly-ban-partners-visitors-2020-3">barred visitors</a> and mothers gave birth in isolation. Other hospitals across the country shifted to a one-visitor policy.</p><p>As news of the spreading virus trickled to Idaho, where Nixon had planned to welcome her daughter into the world, fear set in.</p><p>Nixon didn't want the momentous event - for her family and Blackhurst's - to happen without everyone present. The families decided to switch from a hospital birth to one at home, which guaranteed that both families could attend.</p><p>Nixon was part of a growing population of families changing their birth plans in response to the pandemic. Theresa Gildner, a professor at Dartmouth College, led the <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7283869/">"COVID‐19 and Reproductive Effects (CARE)" study</a>, which surveyed pregnant women about their birthing plans in April of last year. About 45% of the 1,400 mothers said their plans changed in some way; 81 mothers said they switched from hospital birth to home birth.</p><p>"From the get-go, it just was so atypical in an already atypical situation," Nixon told Insider. "It forced us to throw our expectations out the window and adjust."</p><p>The families prepared for a home birth, and they waited for Blackhurst's water to break. Days passed, then weeks. When nearly two weeks passed after Blackhurst's due date with no sign of labor, the doctors decided to induce pregnancy in the hospital. Once again, the families adapted. At the time, the hospital had a one-visitor policy, so only Nixon joined Blackhurst for the birth of her daughter, Penelope Egan, on April 11.</p><p>Nixon described the birth as "sacred" and completely different from the birth of her previous child, Nora.</p><p>"With my daughter Nora, the doctor joked that it was like Mardi Gras in there because we had so many people in the room," Nixon said.</p><div type="image" title="Justine Jackson copy" height="682" width="911" msid="82280142" hostid="261"></div><p>Across the country, Justine Jackson was giving birth to Rosie in Portland, Oregon. In those moments, Jackson said she felt overwhelmed. Her mother was supposed to be present for Rosie's birth, but she died suddenly a few months earlier.</p><p>"I remember thinking, 'How many people felt the weight of that absence of their loved one?'" she said of birthing moms, like her, who couldn't have all their support present in the hospital.</p><h2>Parking-lot introductions and window meet-and-greets</h2><div type="image" title="Justine Jackson" height="900" width="1200" msid="82280143" hostid="261"></div><p>In his mother's arms, in the cold parking lot of Beaumont Hospital in Michigan, Hollis Thompson, who was by that time 24 hours old, finally met his father in person.</p><p>As they left the parking lot, the Thompsons arrived home to a new challenge: navigating <keyword id="50554" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="newborn">newborn</keyword> care without the help of family.</p><p>New parents typically welcome support from extended family and friends after birth, but for many the pandemic put a six-foot barrier in the way of that help. In-person support, often a key lifeline for parents, suddenly vanished.</p><p>New moms couldn't turn to their own moms for in-person advice. Parents couldn't hand off crying babies to excited aunts and uncles. Moments of escape were impossible to find.</p><p>"At that point the world was so afraid of <keyword id="8764262" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="covid">COVID</keyword> that we didn't allow anybody in our home," Thompson said. "If people wanted to see him, they saw him through the glass in the front door or through the windows."</p><p>Much was still unknown about the coronavirus in the spring of 2020, and all five mothers who spoke with Insider said they drastically cut back on the visitors they welcomed into their homes. Some saw the forced isolation as a silver lining after the physical and mental toll of giving birth.</p><p>"It gave me the time to heal without feeling like I had to entertain," said Thompson, who remembered creating appointments for friends and family to visit her son, Mack, when he was born two years ago.</p><p>But constant physical isolation - with its onslaught of Zoom, phone calls, and FaceTime - had its downsides. For new mothers, isolation was the biggest challenge, said Jessica Dashevsky, a clinical supervisor at <a href="https://maternitycarecoalition.org/">Maternity Care Coalition</a>, an organization that works to improve the health and well-being of pregnant women and families.</p><p>Part of Dashevsky's role involves leading a team in Philadelphia that provides in-home health and social services to families. As the program pivoted to a virtual platform, she saw the challenges mothers faced through a computer screen.</p><div type="image" title="Pinsi Lei and her husband, Richard Lorenzen, in the hospital." height="900" width="1200" msid="82280145" hostid="261"></div><p>Pinsi Lei, a first-time mom in New York who gave birth to son Charley Lei Lorenzen on March 13, thinks access to an in-person expert could've made a big difference when it came to her struggles with breastfeeding.</p><p>Lei turned to ready-to-feed formula. But shipping was delayed, so Lei relied on pharmacies, which had purchase limits on the formula. Every day Lei, her husband, and any available neighbors would trek to the Walgreens to purchase their allotted amount. When that wasn't enough, she hopped on Facebook groups asking other mothers in the Upper West Side if they had any formula to spare.</p><p>"We were living meal to meal for a little bit," the 30-year-old told Insider. "It was super stressful."</p><h2>Entering survival mode</h2><div type="image" title="Walks were once as easy as stepping out the door, but a pandemic and infant created new barriers." height="900" width="1200" msid="82280148" hostid="261"></div><p>Jackson, Lei, and others described those first few months as "survival mode."</p><p>"Between the lack of support, the stress of the pandemic, and her colic, I definitely went through a lot of postpartum depression," Jackson said.</p><p>Jackson isn't alone. Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston <a href="https://www.webmd.com/depression/postpartum-depression/news/20201209/covid-fuels-depression-among-pregnant-women-new-moms">surveyed</a> pregnant women during the coronavirus and found that 36% had significant levels of depression - a number that hovered around 15% prepandemic. </p><p>On top of raising an infant in a pandemic, mothers faced the same challenges as the rest of the world - the fear of losing their loved ones, prolonged isolation, and a cratering economy. </p><p>Those challenges often resulted in increased stress for pregnant and infant mothers.</p><p>At the early stages of the pandemic, Dr. Wanjiku Njoroge, the medical director of the <a href="https://www.chop.edu/centers-programs/young-child-clinic">Young Child Clinic at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia</a>, and her colleagues at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania wanted to look at <a href="https://covid19resilience.org/">resilience and stress in pregnant mothers</a> across the city.</p><p>They surveyed women at different stages in their pregnancy with different socioeconomic, educational, and racial backgrounds.</p><p>"What we know about stress generally is that a little bit of stress is OK, but a lot of stress is problematic," Njoroge said.</p><p>Njoroge said the survey showed that mothers had higher levels of stress and anxiety, but they also had increased levels of resilience.</p><p>In Njoroge's survey, Black pregnant women reported a greater likelihood of having their employment negatively affected and had more concerns about a lasting economic burden, along with more symptoms of depression, loneliness, isolation, and distress when compared to white non-Latinx women.</p><p>When Melissa Koch reflects on the first few months of the pandemic, they were filled with stress and uncertainty. A week before Koch's due date, her HR representative rang. Koch said she assumed it was to discuss maternity leave. </p><p>Instead, Koch was laid off.</p><p>Koch's husband, Ryan, had planned to be the primary caretaker. Now Koch was facing a major unexpected life shift. Fortunately, Ryan was able to continue working, and Koch started preparing mentally to be a stay-at-home mother.</p><div type="image" title="Melissa Koch's two daughters, Maeve and Nora, and her son, Lon." height="2034" width="2713" msid="82280153" hostid="261"></div><p>"We had to rally," she told Insider. On March 22, Koch gave birth to twin girls, Nora and Maeve. As she came home from the hospital in Jacksonville, Florida, reality set in that she would be home awhile.</p><h2>Realizing there's no end in sight</h2><div type="image" title="Jen Thompson said she never imagined Hollis would celebrate his first Halloween indoors." height="2400" width="3200" msid="82280155" hostid="261"></div><p>The mothers who spoke with Insider said that while they were quick to realize they would be giving birth during a pandemic, they did not anticipate an entire year spent raising pandemic babies.</p><p>Self-care was down the drain, and the mothers often found their only respite was in the shower. Lei purchased fancy body wash and lotion to add a little extra luxury.</p><p>"It was not a year of self-care," Nixon said. "It was a year of survival."</p><div type="image" title="Kelsey Nixon's husband, Robby Egan, with his three children." height="1200" width="1053" msid="82280157" hostid="261"></div><p>Isolation also provided some partners with a window into the endless work of raising an infant.</p><p>Nixon said her husband, Robby Egan, who worked 9 to 5, was able to be a much bigger part of Penny's first year of life because he worked from home. It made him more aware of the balancing act Nixon faced with <keyword id="6381498" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="parenting">parenting</keyword> and her career.</p><p>"It's done wonders for our marriage just as far as awareness goes for creating kind of equal responsibilities in parenting," Nixon said.</p><p>Jackson's husband, Chris, had a similar revelation. Both of Jackson's daughters had colic, but when Eleanor, who is now 3, was born, Chris was at school teaching. This time, he experienced firsthand the toll nonstop crying can take on a family.</p><p>"It opened his eyes to what it was like the first time," Jackson said. "He just had this new understanding and appreciation for what I went through."</p><h2>Coping with a year of missed firsts</h2><div type="image" title="Photos with Santa this year featured a plastic barrier." height="809" width="1080" msid="82280159" hostid="261"></div><p>Thompson had been looking forward to hospital photos, while Koch had wanted a Christmas card with Santa Claus. Adventures to the zoo or aquarium also would've been part of each family's routine.</p><p>The things mothers were able to do looked drastically different than they'd anticipated. Thompson did manage to get pictures with Santa Claus, but Santa was sitting behind a plastic shield.</p><p>To fill the gap of missed firsts, families celebrated small milestones. The first smile or first steps were cherished even more in the Nixon household.</p><p>"Other years, maybe I wouldn't have noticed some of those things as much, or we wouldn't have celebrated them as much," Nixon said.</p><p>They also took comfort in knowing that their babies wouldn't remember their strange first years of life. "It's more sadness for me than it is for her," Nixon said.</p><div type="image" title="Charley_210312 02617_WiniLao" height="900" width="1200" msid="82280161" hostid="261"></div><p>As they reflected on the past year, each recognized the challenges they faced, admired the strength they found to persevere, and found moments of joy, unity, and laughter.</p><p>Now their pandemic babies are celebrating their first birthdays, and spring is bringing warmth and sunshine.</p><p>The vaccine rollout is gaining speed across the US, and grandparents, aunts, uncles, and friends are receiving shots and reconnecting.</p><p>Thompson celebrated Hollis' first birthday with a drive-by birthday party and Jackson hosted a cake smash for Rosie.</p><p>The moms are looking forward to the kisses from grandparents, Sunday brunches with friends, and a sense of normality they hope will arrive soon.</p><p>"There were so many facets of chaos," Koch said. "I just have to tell myself that my children are beautiful and they're healthy. What more could you ask for in a pandemic?"</p>

The pandemic babies are turning 1: How 5 new moms got through a year of isolation and chaos

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Chuck Burton/AP</span></p><p class="caption">Serena Williams takes a selfie with husband Alexis Ohanian and their baby, Alexis Olympia.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><ul><li><strong>Serena Williams reveals that she almost died giving birth to her daughter, Olympia.</strong></li><li><strong>In a first-person account for CNN, Williams detailed the pulmonary embolism she suffered and the other complications that followed after her emergency C-section.</strong></li><li><strong>Williams told her story in an effort to raise awareness for the high rates of childbirth-related deaths among black women and the poor.</strong></li></ul><p><br /><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2018/02/20/opinions/protect-mother-pregnancy-williams-opinion/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">In a first-person account for CNN</a>, Serena Williams reveals that she almost died following the birth of her daughter in September.</p><p>"I almost died after giving birth to my daughter, Olympia," Williams wrote.</p><p>Williams suffered a pulmonary embolism, the blockage of an artery in the lungs, after having an emergency C-section. Williams has a history of blood cot issues and knew to immediately seek medical help when her breathing became difficult, however, the embolism led to other complications.</p><p><a href="https://www.vogue.com/article/serena-williams-vogue-cover-interview-february-2018" target="_blank" rel="noopener">During an interview with Vogue in January</a>, Williams revealed that she had to convince the doctors and nurses to look for blood clots in her lungs.</p><p style="padding-left: 30px;">"She walked out of the hospital room so her mother wouldn't worry and told the nearest nurse, between gasps, that she needed a CT scan with contrast and IV heparin (a blood thinner) right away. The nurse thought her pain medicine might be making her confused. But Serena insisted, and soon enough a doctor was performing an ultrasound of her legs. 'I was like, a Doppler? I told you, I need a CT scan and a heparin drip,' she remembers telling the team. The ultrasound revealed nothing, so they sent her for the CT, and sure enough, several small blood clots had settled in her lungs. Minutes later she was on the drip. 'I was like, listen to Dr. Williams!'"</p><p>The blood cot led to "intense coughing," which in turn caused Williams' C-section wound to pop open. When she returned to surgery, doctors discovered a large hematoma (clotted blood) in her abdomen. This led to another procedure to keep any additional clots from traveling to the lungs.</p><p>Williams says she was confined to a bed for six weeks after the birth of her daughter.</p><p>The 23-time Grand Slam champion wrote about her experience to help bring awareness to the higher rate of childbirth-related deaths among black women and people in poor countries.</p><p>Williams wrote that she considers herself "fortunate" and "grateful," noting she had access to good doctors and nurses, and was in a hospital with state-of-the-art equipment. She also knows many others aren't as well-off.</p><p>"According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, black women in the United States are over three times more likely to die from pregnancy or childbirth-related causes," Williams wrote. "But this is not just a challenge in the United States. Around the world, thousands of women struggle to give birth in the poorest countries. When they have complications like mine, there are often no drugs, health facilities or doctors to save them."</p><p>Williams called on people to demand governments, businesses and health care providers do more to help and for people to donate to organizations such as UNICEF.</p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/suki-kim-north-korea-sent-hundreds-cheerleaders-olympics-2018-2">Why North Korea sent hundreds of cheerleaders to the Olympics</a></h3>        <div>                    </div>    </div>

Serena Williams: 'I almost died after giving birth to my daughter'

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Eduardo Munoz/Reuters</span></p></div><p></p></div></div></p><ul><li><strong>Millions of Americans vape, but little is known about the comprehensive health effects of e-cigarettes.</strong></li><li><strong>The National Academies of <keyword id="41551" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="100" keywordseo="science">Science</keyword>, Engineering, and Medicine aimed to address that dearth of knowledge with a new report on e-cigs.</strong></li><li><strong>In line with the Academies' previous approach to other drugs, the report pools its findings into categories based on how much evidence there is to draw a conclusion.</strong></li><li><strong>Two key findings from the report suggest that while vaping may help adults quit smoking conventional cigarettes, the practice may also encourage young people to start.</strong></li></ul><p><br />It's been almost a decade since the first vape pen hit store shelves. The whiteboard marker-sized devices, which vaporized liquid nicotine rather than burning tobacco and creating tar, were designed as a healthier alternative to cancer-causing conventional cigarettes.</p><p>Since then, thousands of models of vape pens have been made available, but a question among public health researchers continued to linger: Do these devices help smokers quit or glorify a potentially unhealthy habit?</p><p>The answer, according to a <a href="https://www.nap.edu/catalog/24952/public-health-consequences-of-e-cigarettes">large new report</a> from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, is a little bit of both.</p><p>While vaping may help adults quit conventional cigarettes, the practice may also encourage young people to start, the authors of the report found. Still, although vaping comes with health risks, it is likely to be far less harmful overall than smoking conventional cigarettes.</p><p>"E-cigarettes cannot be simply categorized as either beneficial or harmful," <a href="http://sph.washington.edu/faculty/fac_bio.asp?url_ID=Eaton_David">David Eaton</a>, the chair of the committee that wrote the report and the dean and vice provost of the Graduate School of the University of Washington, Seattle, said in a statement.</p><p>Eaton said that in certain circumstances - such as when teens use them and become addicted to nicotine - e-cigarettes' "adverse effects clearly warrant concern." But in other cases - like when adults turn to e-cigs to quit smoking - "they offer an opportunity to reduce smoking-related illness."</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Thomson Reuters</span></p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>For his report, Eaton and his team reviewed roughly 5,000 studies and narrowed down their analysis to include findings from more than 800 papers. In line with the Academies' previous approach to other drugs, the new report pools its findings on e-cigarettes into categories based on how much evidence there is to draw a conclusion.</p><p>When there is only limited evidence that there's a relationship between two things, such as vaping and cancer, the researchers use the phrase "limited evidence." The same logic applies when there is conclusive evidence for such a relationship.</p><p>Here are some of their key findings:</p><ul><li><strong>Young people who vape are at a higher risk for ever using a conventional cigarette</strong> than young people who don't - substantial evidence.</li><li><strong>Exposure to nicotine from vaping is highly variable</strong> and depends on the device and the e-liquid - conclusive evidence. That said, the report also notes that experienced users can and do use e-cigs in a way that allows them to get a comparable amount of nicotine from the devices as they would from a regular cigarette.</li><li>Except for nicotine, <strong>exposure to potentially toxic substances from e-cigs is significantly lower</strong> compared with conventional cigarettes - substantial evidence.</li><li>While there is substantial evidence that <strong>vaping results in symptoms of dependence</strong>, there is moderate evidence that <strong>the risk and severity is lower for e-cigs than for regular cigarettes</strong>. Again, this appears to depend on factors like the type of device and the e-liquid used.</li><li><strong>Swapping e-cigarettes for conventional cigarettes reduces users' exposure</strong> to many of the toxins and cancer-causing agents in regular cigarettes - conclusive evidence. There is also substantial evidence that completely switching to e-cigs from conventional cigarettes reduces short-term negative health outcomes in organs like the lungs and heart.</li><li>Studies in animals - but not yet in humans - suggest that <strong>long-term vaping could increase the risk of cancer</strong> - limited evidence.</li><li>While there is moderate evidence that <strong>teens who use e-cigarettes may see increased coughing wheezing, and worsened asthma symptoms</strong>, there is no available evidence on whether or not e-cigs cause respiratory disease.</li><li>There is no available evidence whether or not vaping affects pregnancy or fetal development.</li><li>Although there is conclusive evidence that e-cig use increases airborne concentrations of key pollutants and nicotine in indoor environments, <strong>second-hand exposure to nicotine and pollutants is lower from e-cigs</strong> than from regular cigarettes.</li><li>E-cigarettes can explode and cause serious injury - conclusive evidence.</li><li>Exposing oneself to e-liquids, either from drinking or touching them, can cause seizures, brain injury, and vomiting - conclusive evidence.</li></ul><p>Despite these conclusions, the big question of whether e-cigarettes have an overall positive or negative impact on public health remains unanswered.</p><p>"Given their relatively recent introduction, there has been little time for a scientific body of evidence to develop on the health effects of e-cigarettes," the authors write in their report. In other words, only time will tell.</p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/get-a-good-nights-rest-sleep-expert-fall-asleep-quicker-tips-health-science-2018-1">A sleep expert gives the best tips for falling asleep quicker</a></h3>        <div>                    </div>    </div>

11 key findings from one of the most comprehensive reports ever on the health effects of vaping

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Pregnant women are concerned and confused about what the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/category/wuhan-coronavirus">novel coronavirus</a> might mean for them, their births, and their future children, as <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/china-virus-everything-we-know-deadly-2019-ncov-wuhan-spread-2020-1">evidence and advice keeps changing</a>. </li><li>What is known, however, is mostly positive: Pregnant women don't seem particularly susceptible to the illness, don't appear to be able to pass the virus to their babies in utero or through breastmilk, and most infants with the condition tend to fare well. </li><li>But it is possible for infants to get COVID-19, and there are cases of babies born to moms with it who've had serious complications.  </li><li>Pregnant women should continue to practice social distancing, diligent hygiene, and seek social and professional support. </li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/?hprecirc-bullet">Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories</a>.</li></ul><p>A month ago, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/coronavirus-is-forcing-pregnant-women-to-rethink-birth-plans-2020-3">Jen Judson's worst-case scenario</a> was delivering her second child alone, since restrictions due to the novel coronavirus could prevent her mom from coming to town and her husband from being by her side. </p><p>Now, that scenario is a looming reality, and it's not the only troubling one that could play out.</p><p>Maybe she'll get COVID-19, the illness the virus causes. Maybe she'll be separated from her baby immediately after birth if so. Maybe there won't even be enough diapers and wipes on store shelves to care for her newborn. Maybe, by late April, when she's due, whatever prevailing medical advice she's been following now will no longer hold true. </p><p>"I'm feeling less in control, more worried, as new data comes in about infected infants and pregnant women, and more worried about the state of our world and country when the baby is born," Judson told Business Insider. </p><p>Lauren McCauley, who's due in early fall, has similar anxieties. "I feel like we don't know enough about this virus; however, what we do know seems to worsen daily," she told Business Insider. "One moment they are saying pregnant women should be OK, then a week later, the UK is recommending pregnant women stay home for three months." </p><p>But experts say most <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/coronavirus-case-children-infants-low-disease-expert-explain-why-2020-2">news so far is encouraging for pregnant women and their children</a>, and that hospitals are taking measures to protect women and their infants. Here's the information you should know. </p><h2></h2><h2>Pregnant women don't seem especially susceptible to the illness</h2><p>While pregnancy does weaken the immune system, it doesn't seem to make women susceptible to COVID-19 the way age or conditions like lung or heart disease does, Dr. Jane van Dis, an OB-GYN who serves as medical director at the telemedicine network <a href="https://www.mavenclinic.com/">Maven</a>, told Business Insider. </p><p>"While I think pregnant women should practice every degree of social distancing that they can because that is just smart, I don't think pregnant women should feel a sense of panic," she said. "We're just not seeing the data to show that the virus is attacking their immune system in the same way as someone, say, over the age of 70."</p><p>Even if pregnant women do get the illness, they tend to fare well. One <a href="https://www.who.int/docs/default-source/coronaviruse/who-china-joint-mission-on-covid-19-final-report.pdf">investigation</a> of 147 pregnant women in China who either had or were suspected to have COVID-19, for instance, found that only 8% had severe cases, and 1% had critical cases. </p><p>Still, because pregnant women are at greater risk of severe morbidity and mortality from other respiratory infections like the flu, they "should be considered an <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/health-conditions-that-increase-risk-of-severe-coronavirus-infection-2020-3">at-risk population for COVID-19</a>," according to the <a href="https://www.acog.org/clinical/clinical-guidance/practice-advisory/articles/2020/03/novel-coronavirus-2019">American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists</a>.</p><p>That means taking social distancing seriously (van Dis recommends pregnant women have someone else get their groceries, for instance), <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-prevent-wuhan-coronavirus-hygiene-hand-washing-2020-2">practicing excellent hygiene</a>, and avoiding anyone who seems sick. Even some prenatal visits may be able to be virtual, said van Dis, whose platform digitally connects women to providers including maternal-fetal medicine specialists, midwives, doulas, mental-health providers, lactation consultants and more. </p><p>Judson, for one, took her son out of daycare before it closed and is practicing complete social isolation other than doctor's appointments. "I'm just doing everything I can to avoid getting sick so I'm not infected when delivering," she said. </p><h2>Pregnant women with COVID-19 don't seem to pass it to their babies in utero, but infants can still get it after birth</h2><p>Despite increasing reports of babies babies <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/coronavirus-baby-test-positive-norfolk-third-uk-2020-3?r=US&amp;IR=T">testing positive for COVID-19, </a>there's still no medical evidence that pregnant women with COVID-19 can pass it on in utero. </p><p>In fact, research has suggested the contrary: A Lancet <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0140673620303603">study</a> of nine pregnant women in Wuhan who had COVID-19 found their babies tested negative. There was no evidence of the virus in breast milk, amniotic fluid, or cord blood, either. </p><p>And, a Monday case report in the journal <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fped.2020.00104/full">Frontiers in Pediatrics</a> that looked at four infants born to women in China who had COVID-19 found that the three who were tested didn't have the illness, and all were healthy other than rashes and a temporary breathing condition. </p><p>Of the 34 cases of babies born to women with COVID-19 that were discussed in a <a href="https://emergency.cdc.gov/coca/calls/2020/callinfo_031220.asp">CDC seminar</a> for medical professionals, none tested positive for the illness.</p><h2>Babies and infants can be infected, though it seems to happen after birth</h2><p>While babies and children seem to be less vulnerable to the virus than adults, they can aquire the infection, and in some cases, it can be serious. </p><p>In a <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/some-children-develop-severe-infections-from-coronavirus-2020-3?r=US&amp;IR=T">study out this week of 2,000 kids in China who were diagnosed with</a> COVID-19, researchers found that infants have the highest risk of developing severe or critical infections. Just over 10% of all infants in the study ended up in a severe condition, compared to 7% of kids aged one to five years old, 4% of six- to 10-year-olds, 4% of 11- to 15-year-olds, and 3% of older teenagers.</p><p>However, 90% of the children were either asymptomatic or had mild or moderate COVID-19 symptoms, like fever, fatigue, sore throat, cough, or shortness of breath. </p><h2>Delivering with COVID-19 can make other complications more likely, but babies can still be breastfed </h2><p>Like any respiratory illness, COVID-19 can make it more likely for pregnant women to have complications, namely preterm birth, according to the CDC.</p><p>Another <a href="http://tp.amegroups.com/article/view/35919/28274">study</a> in the journal Translational Pediatrics of 10 Chinese newborns whose moms have COVID-19 found six developed shortness of breath, two had fever, two had abnormal platelets and liver function tests, and one experienced vomiting. One went into septic shock and died, Dr. Jessica Madden, a pediatrician and neonatologist who serves as medical director of <a href="https://aeroflowbreastpumps.com/">Aeroflow Breastpumps</a>, <a href="https://www.novamaemd.com/single-post/2020/03/07/What-do-we-know-about-COVID-19-and-newborns">summarizes on her blog</a>. </p><p>But, like much of the research on the topic, the sample size was small and there's no way to know if those complications were caused by COVID-19 or other factors, or some combination. </p><p>Still, Madden wrote, pregnant women with COVID-19 should plan to give birth in a hospital, where they must follow CDC recommendations for managing them and their newborns to reduce the risk of transmission after birth. That may mean putting moms and their babies in separate isolation rooms, or keeping mom and newborn six feet apart, Madden said. </p><p>"Each hospital is following the CDC's guidelines based on their own local resources and hospital censuses," she said. </p><p>After delivery, the CDC still recommends pregnant women with COVID-19 breastfeed because there's no sign that the virus can pass through breastmilk. New moms with the virus should wear a mask, though, and naturally, wash their hands thoroughly beforehand. </p><p>"If a woman wants to take extra precaution, think about pumping milk and then having someone else feed the baby," van Dis said. </p><h2>Seek help and support</h2><p>It's true that there's a lot experts don't know about how the novel coronavirus affects pregnant women and their babies, and it's natural to feel anxious about the unknown.  </p><p>Manage the anxiety but set parameters around how much you read about or watch news about the issue, <a href="http://www.juliepike.com/">Julie Pike</a>, a clinical psychologist in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, who specializes in anxiety disorders, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-cope-with-coronavirus-covid-19-anxiety-psychologist-2020-2">previously told Insider</a>. </p><p>Too much exposure, especially from sketchy sources, can make consumers overestimate threat and underestimate their coping abilities, which is a <a href="https://www.insider.com/gisele-buendchen-adopted-healthy-lifestyle-overcome-anxiety-panic-attacks-2020-3">recipe for anxiety</a>. </p><p>It's also important to reach out to others - mental health professionals, friends, or ideally both - for social support during such an isolating time, with <a href="https://www.insider.com/online-mental-health-resources-for-coronavirus-related-anxiety-stress-2020-3">many different resources</a> available for virtual mental-health help. </p><p>"There are going to be a lot of emotions, some of which are sadness, grief and the unknown," van Dis said. "Just know that connecting with people who are there to support women is essential for mental health." </p><ul class="read-more-links"><li><strong>Read more:</strong></li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/coronavirus-anxiety-leading-people-to-online-therapy-2020-3">Online therapy is in high demand as coronavirus anxiety drives people to get help without leaving their homes</a></li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/why-telling-people-dont-panic-doesnt-work-what-to-do-2020-3">Telling people 'don't panic' over coronavirus doesn't work. Here's what you should say instead, according to social scientists.</a></li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-a-doctor-has-changed-her-routine-amid-coronavirus-outbreak-2020-3">How an ER doctor has changed her daily routine during the coronavirus outbreak: More wiping, less socializing</a></li></ul>

What pregnant women should know about the coronavirus

<ul class="summary-list"><li>In his first interview about the film, director <keyword id="10068689" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="jason-woliner">Jason Woliner</keyword> revealed behind-the-scenes secrets to filming "<keyword id="10080250" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="borat-2">Borat 2</keyword>."</li><li>He told Insider that from the very first script he read, the plan was to get Rudy Giuliani on film.</li><li>Woliner also spoke about how he tried to talk star and filmmaker <keyword id="59920" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Sacha-Baron-Cohen">Sacha Baron Cohen</keyword> out of making a "Borat" sequel the first time they met for fear it might tarnish the legacy of the original.</li><li>The director revealed secrets behind the making of the movie, like the website they created for conservatives Jim and Jerry to find that would lead Borat to Tutar at the gun rally.</li><li>He also said that after the CPAC event scene in which Vice President Mike Pence appeared behind a podium, which was shot with iPhones and DSLR cameras, the secret service looked through their footage to make sure they weren't a threat.</li><li>The Tom Hanks cameo was a one-day shoot that came after Baron Cohen emailed Hanks and asked him if he would be in the movie.</li></ul><p>We have heard from Sacha Baron Cohen, his amazing costar <a href="https://www.insider.com/who-is-maria-bakalova-star-of-borat-2-duped-rudy-giuliani-10">Maria Bakalova</a>, and even some of the <a href="https://www.insider.com/every-borat-2-character-ranked-2020-10">real-life subjects</a> like the <a href="https://www.insider.com/borat-2-babysitter-movie-gofundme-campaign-jeanise-jones-amazon-stream-2020-10">fan-favorite babysitter</a> and bubbly <a href="https://www.insider.com/borat-2-macy-chanel-interview-2020-10">Instagram influencer</a>, but we still not had heard from the director of "Borat Subsequent Moviefilm" - until now.</p><p>"I was sent this crazy encrypted link to an outline script," Jason Woliner told Insider in his first-ever interview about the hit film. "I opened it up and the name 'Borat' wasn't in it, but it took me about a page to realize he's probably not making a movie about a journalist from Guatemala named Sergio. I was like, holy s---, he's doing 'Borat 2.'"</p><p>Woliner, whose previous work includes Adult Swim's "Eagleheart" and Comedy Central's "Nathan for You," signed on as the director soon after reading that script and has been on a whirlwind ride ever since, watching the sequel become as big - perhaps even bigger - than its predecessor.</p><p>Woliner spoke to Insider about the making of the movie, which included dealing with the secret service, convincing Tom Hanks to make a cameo, and spending the entire production trying to get Rudy Giuliani on film.</p><div type="image" title="woliner_borat.JPG" height="1917" width="2557" msid="79685561" hostid="261"></div><h2>In his first meeting with Baron Cohen, Woliner tried to talk him out of making a 'Borat' sequel</h2><p><strong>So where does this journey start for you?</strong></p><p>I was the first person Sacha called about directing this. I went into the meeting with him and Anthony Hines, who is a writer that's been involved in everything Sasha has done, Monica Levinson the producer, and a few other people. I told him I loved the script, but I came on very strong. I basically said that "Borat" is the funniest movie ever made and that it's almost certainly a mistake to do a sequel.</p><p>I said in almost every version of this it's a disaster: most comedy sequels aren't good, the long-delayed sequels are extremely tough, and because of the nature of the movie, Borat is one of the most popular comedy characters of the last century so you have to find people who don't know who he is.</p><p><strong>So you gave them real talk right from the get-go. </strong></p><p>I don't know why I decided to do that. I just felt feisty that day, but I also gravitate towards projects that seem impossible. If something feels easy why spend two years of your life on it? </p><p><strong>How did everyone react to this, especially Sacha?</strong></p><p>Sacha of course was completely aware of all of it and agreed with everything I said. If I had to guess, I think he respected that I came in with eyes open that I knew what a daunting task it was. A couple of days later, I was invited to the writer's room for a week to see if I got along with Sacha and his writing team. It was the entire group of writers from the first movie and a few new ones. Two days in, I was offered the job and I never left.</p><div type="image" title="borat 2 amazon studios" height="768" width="1366" msid="79685564" hostid="261"></div><h2>The heartfelt scene between Jeanise the babysitter and Borat was not in the original script</h2><p><strong>Back then, was the whole story laid out in front of you or was it constantly evolving?</strong></p><p>A little of both. From the very beginning, Sacha had a vision for the kind of overall story and theme of the movie. He wanted to make a movie that got out before the election that throws into focus what America has become under [President Donald] Trump and could make a meaningful impact. But at the same time, [he] also [wanted to] tell a compelling father-daughter story with the new character of Tutar. He had all that from day one.</p><p>But the details came a thousand times a day. And then it changed in the biggest way when COVID came into the picture. We had to decide, do we stop or push on? But that thought didn't last long because we wanted this out before the election. And also, my big thing was if we do a movie about 2020 and not have the pandemic, it would be like setting a movie in the fall of 2001 and not mentioning 9/11.</p><p><strong>When COVID-19 hit the country and you halted production, did you have enough then to make a movie if you wanted to?</strong></p><p>We did not have a full movie when the lockdown began. We started shooting last fall and...we shot in [chronological] order. That's partially for performance reasons. It's great for the actors to track the emotion of the story. But also through the general structure and big ideas, the outline of the movie...always changed from shooting something.</p><p><strong>How so? </strong></p><p>It wasn't in the original plan to go back to Jeanise the babysitter at the end of the movie. But after shooting her that first time and falling in love with her, one of the writers had the idea of having Borat go back to her. Then that became the scene where he realizes he loves Tutar. </p><p>We always knew Borat and Tutar would be separated and he would have to stop her from giving herself up to Rudy. </p><p><strong>It just became a question of how that happens?</strong></p><p>Exactly. So the idea came up with the babysitter. And it was important for me in this movie to not just be revealing negative qualities of real people. I remember very early on saying that the big difference to today and 2006 when the first "Borat" came out is watching someone revealing they are racist is not shocking and compelling as it was back then. I felt what would be more surprising is revealing people's positive qualities and patience. So that's what we hoped with Jeanise and she went way beyond. But that was also the case with Jim and Jerry, the lockdown guys. They aren't bad guys, they are just fed bad information.</p><div type="image" title="Jim and Jerry Borat 2 Amazon Studios" height="768" width="1366" msid="79685565" hostid="261"></div><h2>Woliner promises Jim and Jerry were not in on the joke</h2><p><strong>I'm glad you brought up Jim and Jerry because my theory, and I feel I'm not the only one, is because you are shooting them during the pandemic, they had to have been in on the joke. Just in terms of safety and putting Sacha in that situation where he's with people for multiple days, they had to have known. Right?</strong></p><p>We had ways to make sure the people didn't know who Borat or Sacha was. It's this long process that's very delicate, but by the time they are on camera, we are certain they don't know. Jim and Jerry knew they were being filmed and we took the proper safety precautions - they were tested for COVID. But I can swear to you they were not in on it.</p><p>They believed he was a real guy. And once they were living in the house, we pretty much put in robo-cams that are used in "Big Brother"-type shows because we wanted them to just live with him and relax. We just wanted them to be real.</p><div type="image" title="Woliner_by_CONSTANTIN AELENEI.JPG" height="1388" width="1851" msid="79685567" hostid="261"></div><p><strong>Where were you?</strong></p><p>I was living in the house, too. I was in a different bedroom. I slept there. And I would sneak into Sacha's room at night with a writer or two and we would figure out what to do the next day. But for a lot of it, Sacha was on his own with these guys.</p><p>But there were certain storylines we had to hit. We knew we wanted them to find Tutar on the computer. So that was the kind of thing where we set up a website and engineered it so when they searched for her they would find that site with her video. So they felt they really found her. For that, I was standing just a few feet away, and to watch that moment play out it was like watching a movie in real life. They really cared about Borat and wanted to help him.</p><p>The only thing you don't see on camera is Jim and Jerry came to me and asked permission to take him to the rally so he could find his daughter. I was like, "Yeah, we can leave the house and do that." Though in reality, we had already been planning to get them to the rally and infiltrating that. </p><p><strong>Have you heard from Jim and Jerry since? <br /></strong></p><p>No, I have not. And I haven't seen that anyone has been able to track them down yet. </p><div type="image" title="rudy giuliani" height="635" width="846" msid="79685568" hostid="261"></div><h2>Rudy Giuliani was the movie's main mark from the beginning</h2><p><strong>Was going after Giuliani ever on your guys' minds before the pandemic?</strong></p><p>Here's the craziest thing: Giuliani was the name from day one. [<em>Laughs</em>.] Rudy was the name in the first version I read and what we didn't anticipate was the timing of everything. Rudy became very prominent again just before our movie came out.</p><p><strong>You're taking about the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/new-york-post-hunter-joe-biden-giuliani-red-flags-disinformation-2020-10">Hunter Biden communicating with Ukraine officials</a> story.</strong></p><p>Yeah. For the year and a half we were making this, he wasn't at the level of prominence he is now. But suddenly just before this came out, he was trying to make a big splash and a few days later <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2020/oct/21/rudy-giuliani-faces-questions-after-compromising-scene-in-new-borat-film">The Guardian came out</a> with the piece on his scene in the movie and that just blew up. And from my vantage point, it discredited anything he was trying to do. </p><h2><div type="image" title="Borat 2 Amazon Studios" height="632" width="1200" msid="79685569" hostid="261"></div></h2><h2><keyword id="10159589" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="Maria-Bakalova">Maria Bakalova</keyword> did mock interviews to prepare for her scene with Giuliani</h2><p><strong>When you do the actual interview with Giuliani, is Maria wearing an ear piece? Did you do mock interviews with her beforehand? How did you get her prepared?</strong></p><p>We did mock interviews and a lot of rehearsing because you don't know how these things are going to go. So instead of a script, we had a document that had every single scenario we could think up that could happen. "If this happens, you can do this." And we just rehearsed with her a lot of different scenarios the day of. But once she was in there, Maria was on her own. </p><p><strong>You only rehearsed the day of the interview?</strong></p><p>Yeah. Once we were back up and running during COVID, the pace was fast. We went to Washington to do the lockdown, then to the rally, and then a few other things before doing Rudy. We didn't have a lot of time between things.</p><p>In the room, we <a href="https://www.insider.com/borat-2-sacha-baron-cohen-rudy-giuliani-scene-2020-10">built a cubby for Sacha</a> to be in and I was in a nearby room watching and texting with him and figuring out when he should come out and save her. We had a million ideas of how it could go and when he laid down on the bed my jaw hit the floor.</p><div type="image" title="Melania Borat 2 Amazon Studios" height="671" width="1111" msid="79685573" hostid="261"></div><h2>There's more of the Melania Trump animated movie we haven't seen</h2><p><strong>How did the animation bit come about?</strong></p><p>It was an idea that came through the course of shooting. One of the writers came up with an idea that Tutar would have a Disney knock-off Melania story that she would watch as a way of showing her character's hopes and dreams. This company Titmouse did it. They did it all while we were filming the movie and they would send us rough versions and we would give notes.</p><p>There's actually more of that animation. Ultimately only two short clips made it, but there is some more. We've talked about releasing it. </p><div type="image" title="Tom Hanks Borat 2 Amazon Studios" height="768" width="1366" msid="79685578" hostid="261"></div><h2>Sacha Baron Cohen emailed Tom Hanks to be in the movie</h2><p><strong>How did you get Tom Hanks?</strong></p><p>[<em>Laughs</em>.] Once we came up with the idea that Borat would be COVID patient zero, someone had the joke that we see him stop in Sydney and he coughs on Tom Hanks. Sacha knows him and just sent him an email and we just crossed our fingers that he would be up for it. He said, "Sure." That was a scene we wanted to be very clear that was scripted and we weren't actually ambushing the most beloved man in America. And actually, I'm in that scene. I'm the guy trying to get the selfie and Borat interrupts.</p><div type="image" title="Mike Pence Borat 2 Amazon Studios" height="768" width="1024" msid="79685585" hostid="261"></div><h2>Woliner and his crew had to attend five hours of the Conservative Political Action Conference so as not to draw attention, but the secret service still caught them</h2><p><strong>What was the hardest bit to pull off? </strong></p><p>The logistics of CPAC was intense. We had to put 12 camera operators in the audience and I had to plan out the [shooting] angles without ever being in the room beforehand. We were the first in line, that's how CPAC is done, you just line up. We lined up at 5 a.m., we didn't have media credentials, we were just attendees. All we had were iPhones and little DSLR 5D cameras. </p><p>So I had to place all these camera operators in the room in a way so we can get the angles on Pence and angles on where Sacha is going to reveal himself. And then cameras on reaction shots of people. But I had to do that not looking suspicious to the security and secret service. If I'm running around looking like a director I would be caught out. To an outsider, it looks like we're pulling off a heist, but in reality, we're not doing anything illegal.</p><p>We set it up and then we had to wait five hours. I had to listen to five hours of Republican speeches drumming up hysteria about socialism.</p><p><strong>And keeping tabs on Sacha who is <a href="https://www.insider.com/borat-2-craziest-things-filming-sacha-baron-cohen-2020-10">in the bathroom</a> this whole time, right?</strong></p><p>Yeah. We're texting the whole time. I'm on a thread with him and with all the camera operators, and the crew. Sacha comes in wearing a fat suit and a bullet proof vest in case the secret service thinks he's trying to kill the vice president. And he's got his Trump facial prosthetic which takes hours to put on. If the authorities asked him to take off the mask he couldn't just pull it off.</p><div type="image" title="&quot;Borat 2&quot;" height="1304" width="1738" msid="79685591" hostid="261"></div><p><strong>This isn't like something out of "Mission: Impossible." </strong></p><p>He physically couldn't. It's much easier for Tom Cruise to take those heads off than it does in real life. [<em>Laughs</em>.] So because of that we also snuck into CPAC an Oscar-winning prosthetic makeup artist just in case Sacha was apprehended and demanded the face come off she would have the tools to do it.</p><p>There's so much tension but I was also so bored because I had to listen for hours of the crowd being warned about how Bernie Sanders is going to socialize medicine. And I had to get up and cheer when everyone else did because if I didn't I would draw attention to myself. It was a crazy mix of terror and boredom. Then that night the secret service tracked us down to make sure we weren't a real threat [to the vice president].</p><p><strong>When did you know that you pulled it off and "Borat 2" may actually live up to the original movie?</strong></p><p>It was along the way. I remember feeling it was working in my gut after stuff like the debutante ball and the doctor in the crisis pregnancy center. When we had Borat and Tutar together it felt really funny and something we hadn't seen before. The great thing with working with Sacha is he never phoned it in, he was determined to make it as good as it could be and he was definitely aware of the legacy of the first movie. </p><p>And when we ultimately had to show it through streaming instead of theaters, this felt so necessary just because how dark things had gotten in the world. If you could do a piece of <keyword id="4578" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="entertainment">entertainment</keyword> that could make tens of millions of people laugh at the same time, even if you're stuck in your home, it felt like the closest thing to me of what the first movie felt like. We were somehow all experiencing this thing together. </p><p><em>This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.</em></p>

The director of 'Borat 2' on dodging the secret service, the Tom Hanks cameo, and why Rudy Giuliani was the mark from day 1 of shooting

The $37 billion supplement industry is barely regulated - and could be dangerous to your health

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Anna Carlson</span></p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>My wife Anna knew what she had to do.</p><p>She grabbed the EpiPen. She raised it like a knife. Then she jammed it - hard - into the meat of our baby's thigh.</p><p>She held it there for 10 long seconds. Our baby screamed and screamed.</p><p>It was a good sound.</p><p>It was the sound of a life being saved.</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Anna Carlson</span></p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>About fifteen minutes before all the screaming, my wife, and Arthur, who is my baby, had been in the playroom in the basement of our apartment building. </p><p>Anna noticed that Arthur was suddenly having a particularly bad rash. Arthur has eczema, and it's given him persistent rashes almost since he was born.</p><p>But the rash Arthur had in the playroom that afternoon was worse than normal. </p><p>Anna decided she should take a closer look. She and Arthur headed upstairs.</p><p><span>In our apartment, Anna took off Arthur's onesie. Hives were suddenly blooming all over his little body.</span></p><p><span>In that moment, Anna realized she might have to use an EpiPen on Arthur.</span></p><p><span>An EpiPen is a drug-delivering needle. It looks like an extra-fat permanent marker. </span><span>It's full of epinephrine, which is basically adrenaline. </span><span>Parents of kids with food allergies have to carry them around in case their kid eats something that's starting to kill them. </span>Because of a suspected allergic reaction to oats, a doctor gave us a one a couple months before. EpiPens are not pleasant to use. You have to jam them - hard - into the kid's leg, using a psycho stabbing motion.</p><p><span>Anna knew that the EpiPen would be painful and jarring for Arthur, so she had a moment of doubt. </span></p><p><span>Then she got over it. </span></p><p><span>She stabbed Arthur with the EpiPen and called 911.</span></p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Nicholas Carlson</span></p><p class="caption">Arthur wearing a backwards cap like a cool guy.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>When the paramedic came running down the hall minutes later, he shouted to Anna: "Is he still breathing?"</p><p>He was, because Anna had done the right thing and given him the EpiPen.</p><p>She saved his life.</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Arthur with the lady who saved his life.</span></p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>I was in a meeting at work when I got the call. I rushed to the hospital.</p><p>When I got there, heaving and sweaty, a paramedic saw me and said: "You must be the father. Your wife did great. She saved your baby's life."</p><p>While we were checking in, Arthur started to swell up with hives again.</p><p>The ER doctors strapped him to hospital bed and gave him more epinephrine. They also gave him anti-histamines and steroids. All 20 pounds of him writhed with itchiness, pain, and adrenaline. </p><p>They kept us for observation for another five or six hours.</p><p>I sat there and wondered: Why is this happening? Why is Arthur's body trying to kill him? What mistake of evolution led to this? </p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Nicholas Carlson</span></p><p class="caption">Arthur and I that time we saw something crazy</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p> I asked a doctor, and he told me the answer to my questions is basically … worms.</p><p>Worms from thousands of years ago, to be exact. </p><p>Humans used to accidentally eat worms that would, once ingested, start to eat the bodies that ate them. </p><p>Through the process of evolution, humans developed a defense system against these worms and other parasites.</p><p>The doctor I spoke to, allergy expert David Stukus of Nationwide Children's hospital in Cincinatti, explained to me how this system worked.</p><p>Whenever a parasite ended up inside a human's body, a blood protein inside of that body called Immunoglobulin E (IGE) sent out an alarm to the rest of the body.</p><p>Weaponized cells called <span>mast cells responded to the alarm by releasing a chemical called histamine.</span></p><p><span>Histamine has different effects on different parts of the body.</span><span> All of them are in service of one mission: expelling the enemy from the body. So in the stomach, histamine causes diarrhea<span> and vomiting. In the nose, it causes sneezing. Histamine makes skin itchy so the human will scrape the parasite away. Histamine makes the airway swell so that they will cough.</span></span></p><p><span><span>The defense system worked, and over the last many thousands of years, it became standard issue for all new human bodies.</span></span></p><p><span><span>At some point along the way, however, this defense system grew defective in some humans - like my kid. </span></span></p><p><span><span>Instead of attacking parasites and other actually dangerous foreign elements, defective systems in some humans would start attacking mild-mannered items like eggs or cashews or ragweed.</span></span></p><p><span><span>Sometimes, these defective defense systems attack these foreign elements so viciously that something really bad happens. Too much histamine gets released in the lungs and they swell shut. Too much histamine gets dumped into the blood stream and it swells too thickly, slowing down the delivery of oxygen to the brain. </span></span></p><p><span><span>Sometimes, the defense system actually kills the bodies they are trying to protect.</span></span></p><p><span><span>That's what was happening to Arthur. </span></span></p><p><span><span>Under doctor's orders, Anna was giving Arthur new foods to try. So earlier that day, she'd fed him part of a granola bar. It had cashew in it. Arthur's defense system mistook that cashew for a parasite and attacked.  </span></span><span><span>It attacked so hard he would have died if Anna hadn't stabbed him with a needle full of adrenaline.</span></span></p><p><span><span><a href="https://www.foodallergy.org/facts-and-stats">This kind of malfunction is happening more and more lately</a>. A study by the CDC says the number of children with food allergies increased 50% between 1997 and 2011. Now, about 15 million Americans have faulty defense systems. About 150 people die per year from allergic reactions.</span></span></p><p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Why has this started to happen?</span></p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Nicholas Carlson</span></p><p class="caption">Arthur enjoys a snack.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p><span><span>Dr. Stukus doesn't know.</span></span></p><p><span><span>No one knows.</span></span></p><p><span><span>There are theories, however.</span></span></p><p><span><span>One is called the Hygiene Hypothesis. Over the past thousand years - and the past few decades in particular - humans have developed ways to keep parasites and other dangerous organisms and viruses from ever entering their bodies in the first place. We have soap.</span></span></p><p><span><span>Maybe, goes the theory, we use soap too much.  Our defense systems aren't getting exposed to small amounts of dangerous materials and learning a) what the bad stuff actually looks like and b) what to do about it.</span></span></p><p>One reason people believe the Hygiene Hypothesis is that kids who grow up on farms don't get nearly as many food allergies.</p><p>But it's just a theory. There are others. One is that doctors treated allergies wrong by telling parents to keep their kids from eating things they are allergic to at all, when in fact some exposure tends to help rather than hurt.</p><p>Another: allergy problems are genetic, and, over the past thousands of years, more people are surviving them long enough to meet other people with allergies and have kids, thus creating an exponential boom in kids who can't stomach a peanut.</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Nicholas Carlson</span></p><p class="caption">Arthur hard at work.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>Whatever the reason my kid almost died from eating a cashew earlier this year,  there are a couple important messages Dr. Stukus would like me to relay.</p><p>They are:</p><p><strong>There are a few myths worth knocking down.  </strong>One is that mom's should avoid certain foods during pregnancy or while breast feeding. Another is that giving moms and kids vitamin D will cure all allergies. Yet another is that pro-biotics are a cure-all. </p><p><strong>Parents should not get an EpiPen to carry around just in case.</strong> "<span>Definitively no. Parents should not be afraid to feed their children at all. Food allergies only affect 5% to 8% of all kids. That's just a general population. If you take someone who doesn't have an allergic family history, or any history of eczema as a baby, you really should have little to no concern at all that they are going to develop food allergies."</span></p><p><strong>In fact, most parents should not bother having their kids tested for allergies at all. </strong>"If we use too much testing, there is a high rate of false positive results and we would over-diagnose people. Over-diagnosing will keep kids away from foods and then actually cause them to be allergic to those foods. "</p><p><strong>If your kid has eczema, then maybe you should consider a test.</strong> "<span>If your child has moderate to severe and persistent eczema, meaning that you need to use daily skin care in addition to topical steroids and other anti-inflammatory medicines for weeks on end, then you should discuss it with your doctor."</span></p><p><strong>Parents should not be afraid to feed their kids. "</strong>Do not avoid giving these foods, especially for kids in high risk families. We want to introduce allergenic foods: milk, egg, wheat, soy, peanuts, tree nuts, and sea food before the first birthday because that's what we feel will give them the best chance to prevent developing the allergy. "</p>     <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/inside-this-giant-glacier-2016-5">Alaska is home to a cave inside of a giant glacier</a></h3>        <div>            <div>        <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="93MmVwMzE6SLutevcoG4lfMvsxypx_WT" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div>        </div>        </div>            </div>

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