Welcome to “Health Rangers” written by Dr. Michael Dority. This captivating series is based on the fictitious characters Dr. Lee Palmer and Dr. Royal Bart. Each short post will reveal a new topic on the idea of Only You Can Protect Your Health. Practitioners can print and handout each post from the link at the bottom to give patients a quick bite of healthy information to take home with them.
When building a strong, stable house, you need quality materials and sound blueprints. Hello, this is Dr. Lee Palmer, DC. Though fetal development does not share much with homebuilding, it does follow an established blueprint from conception onward, and the new life growing in the womb must be constructed with strong and stable materials.
Let’s take a brief review of that new life. It is constructed under the guidance of Innate Intelligence, or the wisdom that is embedded in our nervous system. This is just amazing. The first organs to form are the brain and nervous system, and from that point onward the nervous system extends and controls its Innate wisdom to every cell and tissue in the growing baby.
Between 21 to 23 days after conception, the fetal heart begins to beat. The organs of the digestive system will form soon afterwards, facilitating umbilical nourishment from the mother to the new fetus. The digestive track is then formed, soon to be ready for mother’s milk.
In the gut the neurotransmitters serotonin and dopamine are produced. These two neurotransmitters are vital for fetal growth as they help regulate respiration, digestion, emotional and physical behavior, and nerve transmission. This is called the “gut-brain axis” (GBA), which is a form communication between the central and enteric nervous system—in other words, a link between the brain’s emotional/cognitive centers and the body’s peripheral intestinal functions. The GBA is monitored and regulated through the sympathetic (get going) and the parasympathetic (slow down) nerve functions.
These neurotransmitters are formed from amino acids such as tryptophan, tyrosine, and phenylalanine, which regulate communication between nerve cells, help build proteins to form healthy cells, and regulate gene expression and cell signaling. Crucially, the mother’s diet must supply these essential components. When she is pregnant, the mother’s placenta produces serotonin, essential for normal fetal brain development. The placenta also produces a hormone called human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) from a combination of 237 amino acids. This hormone thickens the uterine lining needed for implantation and ensures the nutritional supply to the growing fetus.
All of this shows why healthy food intake, not to mention the mother’s emotional health and well-being, is especially important during pregnancy and labor. The neurotransmitters serotonin and dopamine are key in promoting feelings of joy, calmness, and focus that give the mother strength throughout the birthing process.
All mothers to be have set before them the miracle of life. To choose wisely for the life of the baby, provide the complete protein and vitamin building blocks for fetal growth and development with Standard Process:
- Nutrimere and Protefood to ensure the proper supply of amino acids and proteins.
- Catalyn for essential prenatal vitamins.
Download this article here.
Main image from iStock/didesign021. Post image from Ellen O’Neill.
