Each week, receive free
tips on how to experience your best health as you age.
Your e-mail address is kept private and you can unsubscribe anytime.
Ultrasound Can Affect Fetal Brain Development
By Dr. Ben Kim on August 08, 2006
A new study out of the Yale University School of Medicine indicates that exposure to ultrasound waves during routine ultrasound scanning can affect fetal brain development.
Lead researcher Pasko Rakic encourages pregnant women to avoid unnecessary ultrasound scans until more research is done.
According to Rakic, although the specific effects of ultrasound waves on human brain development are not fully understood, the following health conditions are thought to be caused by misplacement of brain cells during embryonic development:
- Mental retardation
- Developmental dyslexia
- Childhood epilepsy
- Schizophrenia
- Autism spectrum disorders
Misplacement of brain cells during embryonic development is what this most recent study found to happen in pregnant mice that were exposed to ultrasound waves.
Clearly, there are numerous differences between fetal development in humans and mice, differences that make the risk of detrimental effects caused by ultrasound scanning less likely in humans.
Still, in understanding the physiological effects that ultrasound waves are intended to have on live tissue, it seems prudent to avoid them whenever possible.
To learn more about the potential health risks of ultrasound scanning during pregnancy, view the following article:
Is Ultrasound Scanning During Pregnancy Worth the Risks?.
Please rate this article:
Improve Your Health With Our Free E-mail Newsletter
Join thousands of people from all over the world who receive our natural health newsletter.
- Always free. You can unsubscribe anytime.
- No spam. We respect and protect your privacy at all times.
- Valuable information that you can use to improve the quality of your health and life.
Reviews
Just a note to let you know how much I appreciate your newsletter. As a fellow health care provider (optometrist) and medical researcher, I find your distillation of the literature into lay terms to be accurate and very understandable. I really enjoyed your contribution regarding macular degeneration. Keep up the good work. - Kristine Erickson, OD, PhD, FAAO
I get a lot of e-mailed newsletters and yours is the only one I read thoroughly from top to bottom. Your advice is enlightening, educational, easy to follow and it works! Thank you so much for all that you offer. - Lisa Abramovic
Thanks for your excellent health newsletter. I look forward to it every week. Thanks for providing the best online health resource I have found. - Moorea Maguire, M.A.
I thank you and your staff for such a great website. I am former National Level Bodybuilder so I know a thing or two about health and fitness. Your site is very valuable and I do my best to pass it on to friends and people I train. It is also a helpful resource in my career as a human service provider working with clients who need to recover from substance abuse. I believe a major part of recovery is getting your body and mind feeling healthy and strong. Thank you again! Great Website! - Michael Christopher, MSW
Anonymous said... Thanks
Anonymous said...
Thanks so much, Dr. Kim for your very helpful email. I will be recommending you to others. I wanted to say that I have always been wary of things like ultrasounds during pregnancy, but I do want to share that my boys' lives were saved by a routine 18 week ultrasound. They were diagnosed with Twin to Twin Transfusion Syndrome which would have certainly been fatal for one or both if we had not had the ultrasound and a quick-acting perinatologist who sent us to Dr. Quintero in Florida for a laser surgery which corrected the condition. We now have 2 exceptionally intelligent, healthy & vibrant 4 year old boys. I am completly in support of caution when it comes to technology and things we don't know that could hurt us and our babies....but in this case I would probably not have my babies if I had not opted for the routine ultrasound. Thanks for your insights. I hope this is helpful to someone.
Monday, August 14, 2006 3:01:40 PM