Growing Facts Podcast

Alyson and Shalaka wrap up season 1 with some updates, including Shalaka’s Ph.D and pregnancy, and Alyson’s twins! They also talk about extending grace in difficult periods such as the first trimester or when you have newborns… and a lot of talk about poops and farts. They’re taking a break from recording after season 1, but they’ll be back for a season 2 in the near future!

www.growingfactspodcast.com
Email: [email protected]
IG: growing_facts_podcast
Facebook: Growing Facts Podcast
Tiktok: growingfactspodcast

Prenatal research from Shalaka’s lab and the DREAM BIG consortium:
Dreambigresearch.com
Prenatal Stress and Child Development book (2021):
https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-030-60159-1

Logo design by Dale Byrns
Initial podcast consultation provided by Zoé Gagnon-Paquin
https://www.linkedin.com/in/zoe-g-p/
Sound production consultation by Fox Valley Audio

Photo by Janko Ferlič
https://unsplash.com/@itfeelslikefilm
Music by lemonmusicstudio
https://pixabay.com/users/lemonmusicstudio-14942887/?tab=audio

Shalaka and Alyson talk about the debilitating nature of first trimester symptoms - fatigue, nausea, “pregnancy brain”, and nipples. They talk about Alyson’s twins and passing the prematurity mark,  planning inductions, and preparing pets for babies.

www.growingfactspodcast.com
Email: [email protected]
IG: growing_facts_podcast
Facebook: Growing Facts Podcast
Tiktok: growingfactspodcast

Prenatal research from Shalaka’s lab and the DREAM BIG consortium:
Dreambigresearch.com
Prenatal Stress and Child Development book (2021):
https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-030-60159-1

Logo design by Dale Byrns
Initial podcast consultation provided by Zoé Gagnon-Paquin
https://www.linkedin.com/in/zoe-g-p/
Sound production consultation by Fox Valley Audio

Photo by Janko Ferlič
https://unsplash.com/@itfeelslikefilm
Music by lemonmusicstudio
https://pixabay.com/users/lemonmusicstudio-14942887/?tab=audio

Content warning: miscarriage

Shalaka and Alyson talk about planning what is in your power vs letting go of what isn’t, when it comes to all things pregnancy: fearing miscarriage in early pregnancy, preparing for birth, and choosing a health care provider.

www.growingfactspodcast.com
Email: [email protected]
IG: growing_facts_podcast
Facebook: Growing Facts Podcast
Tiktok: growingfactspodcast

Prenatal research from Shalaka’s lab and the DREAM BIG consortium:
Dreambigresearch.com
Prenatal Stress and Child Development book (2021):
https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-030-60159-1

Logo design by Dale Byrns
Initial podcast consultation provided by Zoé Gagnon-Paquin
https://www.linkedin.com/in/zoe-g-p/
Sound production consultation by Fox Valley Audio

Photo by Janko Ferlič
https://unsplash.com/@itfeelslikefilm
Music by lemonmusicstudio
https://pixabay.com/users/lemonmusicstudio-14942887/?tab=audio

Shalaka will be interviewing Dr. Carolina de Weerth, and we’ll be aiming to answer the question: what does gut microbiota have to do with physical and mental health? We talk about the relationship between microbiota and different health outcomes, the link between the microbiota of the mother and child both prenatally and postnatally, and some possible avenues for future intervention.

In the post-interview discussion (37:20), Alyson and Shalaka discuss the implications of this research for possible intervention, symbiosis, and a holistic approach to health.

Links
Lab web page: https://dpblab.org/ 
Twitter: @WeerthDe 

Citations
Ou, Y., Belzer, C., Smidt, H., de Weerth, C. (2022). Development of the gut microbiota in healthy children in the first ten years of life: associations with internalizing and externalizing behavior. Gut Microbes, 14(1):2038853. 

Hermes, G., Eckermann, H., Vos, W.M., de Weerth, C. (2020). Does entry to center-based childcare affect gut microbial colonization in young infants? Scientific Reports, 10(1):10235. 

De Weerth, C. (2017) Do Bacteria Shape our Development? Crosstalk between Intestinal Microbiota and HPA Axis. Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews, 83:458-471.

www.growingfactspodcast.com
Email: [email protected]
IG: growing_facts_podcast
Facebook: Growing Facts Podcast
Tiktok: growingfactspodcast

Prenatal research from Shalaka’s lab and the DREAM BIG consortium:
Dreambigresearch.com
Prenatal Stress and Child Development book (2021):
https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-030-60159-1

Logo design by Dale Byrns
Initial podcast consultation provided by Zoé Gagnon-Paquin
https://www.linkedin.com/in/zoe-g-p/
Sound production consultation by Fox Valley Audio

Photo by Janko Ferlič
https://unsplash.com/@itfeelslikefilm
Music by lemonmusicstudio
https://pixabay.com/users/lemonmusicstudio-14942887/?tab=audio

Shalaka and Alyson talk about Shalaka’s frozen embryo transfer, updates on the Alyson's twins, and prenatal classes. They also talk about navigating new parenthood when you and your partner have different ideas about how it’s done, and the perspective of the other partner who is not carrying the baby.

www.growingfactspodcast.com
Email: [email protected]
IG: growing_facts_podcast
Facebook: Growing Facts Podcast
Tiktok: growingfactspodcast

Prenatal research from Shalaka’s lab and the DREAM BIG consortium:
Dreambigresearch.com
Prenatal Stress and Child Development book (2021):
https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-030-60159-1

Logo design by Dale Byrns
Initial podcast consultation provided by Zoé Gagnon-Paquin
https://www.linkedin.com/in/zoe-g-p/
Sound production consultation by Fox Valley Audio

Photo by Janko Ferlič
https://unsplash.com/@itfeelslikefilm
Music by lemonmusicstudio
https://pixabay.com/users/lemonmusicstudio-14942887/?tab=audio

Shalaka will be interviewing Dr. Sarah Hartman as the second part of a two-part episode. We’ll be aiming to answer the question: Can exposure to prenatal factors program greater sensitivity to environment after birth? We recap what differential susceptibility is, discuss markers like temperament or physiological stress response, and how exposure to prenatal stress might lead to such individuals.

In the post-interview discussion (40:25), Alyson and Shalaka discuss the importance of diversity among humans, how this research can bring comfort and hope to parents of sensitive children or pregnant people experiencing prenatal stress, and the importance of the other parent.

Citations
Hartman S, Freeman SM, Bales KL, Belsky J. Prenatal Stress as a Risk-and an Opportunity-Factor. Psychol Sci. 2018 Apr;29(4):572-580. doi: 10.1177/0956797617739983. Epub 2018 Feb 7. PMID: 29412055; PMCID: PMC6350146.

Hartman S, Belsky J. Prenatal programming of postnatal plasticity revisited-And extended. Dev Psychopathol. 2018 Aug;30(3):825-842. doi: 10.1017/S0954579418000548. PMID: 30068425.

www.growingfactspodcast.com
Email: [email protected]
IG: growing_facts_podcast
Facebook: Growing Facts Podcast
Tiktok: growingfactspodcast

Prenatal research from Shalaka’s lab and the DREAM BIG consortium:
Dreambigresearch.com
Prenatal Stress and Child Development book (2021):
https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-030-60159-1

Logo design by Dale Byrns
Initial podcast consultation provided by Zoé Gagnon-Paquin
https://www.linkedin.com/in/zoe-g-p/
Sound production consultation by Fox Valley Audio

Photo by Janko Ferlič
https://unsplash.com/@itfeelslikefilm
Music by lemonmusicstudio
https://pixabay.com/users/lemonmusicstudio-14942887/?tab=audio

Shalaka and Alyson talk about updates on Shalaka’s IVF (such as: what is an endometrial lining?) and Alyson’s twins, the test for gestational diabetes, and prepping for newborns.

www.growingfactspodcast.com
Email: [email protected]
IG: growing_facts_podcast
Facebook: Growing Facts Podcast
Tiktok: growingfactspodcast

Prenatal research from Shalaka’s lab and the DREAM BIG consortium:
Dreambigresearch.com
Prenatal Stress and Child Development book (2021):
https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-030-60159-1

Logo design by Dale Byrns
Initial podcast consultation provided by Zoé Gagnon-Paquin
https://www.linkedin.com/in/zoe-g-p/
Sound production consultation by Fox Valley Audio
Photo by Janko Ferlič
https://unsplash.com/@itfeelslikefilm
Music by lemonmusicstudio
https://pixabay.com/users/lemonmusicstudio-14942887/?tab=audio

For today’s episode, Shalaka will be interviewing Dr. Jay Belsky as part of a two-part episode. Today we’ll be aiming to answer the question: Are some people more sensitive to their environment than others? We talk about how genes should always be looked at in environmental contexts, and how we tend to look at outcomes as a binary “good” vs “bad”, and some of the pitfalls of developmental psychology as a field.

Links
https://humandevelopment.ucdavis.edu/people/jay-belsky

Citations
Belsky, J. & Pluess, M. (2009). Beyond Diathesis-Stress: Differential Susceptibility to Environmental Influences. Psychological Bulletin, 135, 885-908. 

Belsky, J., & Pluess, M. (2013). Beyond Risk, Resilience and Dysregulation: Phenotypic Plasticity and Human Development. Development and Psychopathology, 25, 1243-1261. 

Belsky, J., Zhang, X., & Sayler, K. (2022). Differential Susceptibility 2.0: Are the same children affected by different experiences and exposures Development and Psychopathology, 34, 1025-1033. 

Sayler, K., Zhang, X., Steinberg, L., & Belsky, J. (2022). Parenting, Peers and Psychosocial Adjustment: Are the Same—or Different—Children Affected by Each? Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 51, 443-457.


www.growingfactspodcast.com
Email: [email protected]
IG: growing_facts_podcast
Facebook: Growing Facts Podcast
Tiktok: growingfactspodcast

Prenatal research from Shalaka’s lab and the DREAM BIG consortium:
Dreambigresearch.com
Prenatal Stress and Child Development book (2021):
https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-030-60159-1

Logo design by Dale Byrns
Initial podcast consultation provided by Zoé Gagnon-Paquin
https://www.linkedin.com/in/zoe-g-p/
Sound production consultation by Fox Valley Audio

Photo by Janko Ferlič
https://unsplash.com/@itfeelslikefilm
Music by lemonmusicstudio
https://pixabay.com/users/lemonmusicstudio-14942887/?tab=audio

Shalaka and Alyson talk about the financial/emotional/social cost of IVF, and the role of societal views of reproduction in how we view the right to reproduce and the right to abortion. They also talk about the appropriation of babies by non-parents and the at times transactional nature of “help”, and the best way to pitch in with newborns.

www.growingfactspodcast.com
Email: [email protected]
IG: growing_facts_podcast
Facebook: Growing Facts Podcast
Tiktok: growingfactspodcast

Prenatal research from Shalaka’s lab and the DREAM BIG consortium:
Dreambigresearch.com
Prenatal Stress and Child Development book (2021):
https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-030-60159-1

Logo design by Dale Byrns
Initial podcast consultation provided by Zoé Gagnon-Paquin
https://www.linkedin.com/in/zoe-g-p/
Sound production consultation by Fox Valley Audio

Photo by Janko Ferlič
https://unsplash.com/@itfeelslikefilm
Music by lemonmusicstudio
https://pixabay.com/users/lemonmusicstudio-14942887/?tab=audio

Content warning: miscarriage

For today’s episode, Shalaka will be interviewing Dr. Margie Davenport. We’ll be aiming to answer the question: Is exercise safe during pregnancy? We discuss the strong benefits of engaging in exercise unless contraindicated, and  the myths and assumptions associated with exercise in pregnancy.

In the post-interview discussion (33:30), Alyson and Shalaka discuss the importance of movement, exceptional cases such as bed rest, and playing the blame game with exercise and miscarriage.

Links
instagram: @exerciseandpregnancy
Website:   www.exerciseandpregnancy.ca
Facebook:  Program for Pregnancy and Postpartum Health Facebook Page
Twitter:   @ExercisePreg
YouTube: www.youtube.com/channel/UCtvzYizIALcs5-RzfHrf5UA

Citations
1. Prenatal exercise for the prevention of gestational diabetes mellitus and hypertensive disorders of pregnancy: a systematic review and meta-analysis (Davenport et al., 2018):
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30337463/
2. No. 367-2019 Canadian Guideline for Physical Activity throughout Pregnancy (Mottola et al., 2018):
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30297272/
3. Infographic: Prenatal physical activity: baby steps for better health (Davenport et al., 2020):
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31377724/
4. Why can't I exercise during pregnancy? Time to revisit medical "absolute" and "relative" contraindications: systematic review of evidence of harm and a call to action (Meah, Davies, & Davenport, 2020):
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32513676/

www.growingfactspodcast.com
Email: [email protected]
IG: growing_facts_podcast
Facebook: Growing Facts Podcast
Tiktok: growingfactspodcast

Prenatal research from Shalaka’s lab and the DREAM BIG consortium:
Dreambigresearch.com
Prenatal Stress and Child Development book (2021):
https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-030-60159-1

Logo design by Dale Byrns
Initial podcast consultation provided by Zoé Gagnon-Paquin
https://www.linkedin.com/in/zoe-g-p/
Sound production consultation by Fox Valley Audio

Photo by Janko Ferlič
https://unsplash.com/@itfeelslikefilm
Music by lemonmusicstudio
https://pixabay.com/users/lemonmusicstudio-14942887/?tab=audio