Moms Then and Now

New grandmother Diana says, "My friends and I often joke about how things have changed over the years and how did our children ever survive pregnancy and birth? We were given very few guidelines about foods during pregnancy, especially the first three months." As strange as it sounds to mothers today, little was understood 30 years ago concerning the physiological relationship between a mother and her growing fetus. Moderate smoking and drinking during pregnancy were commonplace.

"I have this hilarious and disturbing picture of my mother relaxing with a cigarette when she's about 8 months pregnant with me," describes 34-year-old Amy. "She's tapping ashes into a dish that's resting on her enormous belly."

My, my, how times have changed. Millennium moms not only shun tobacco and alcohol, they avoid soft cheeses, caffeine, aspirin, swordfish, sushi, even hair dye. On the other hand, while our moms ate and drank on the wild side, they tended to take it easy from a physical standpoint, for fear of harming the baby or causing a miscarriage. Now we know that the womb is one secure little cocoon, so moms-to-be are sweating it out on tennis courts, doing aerobics, running, and of course, practicing the uber-popular yoga.