One of My Wacky Thoughts...Sense of Smell...

[kazlin]

Sometimes I get these thoughts in my head about why things happen etc. I find pregnancy exciting but also interesting.

I've been thinking about this recently...

Most pregnant women seem to develop a much more heightened sense of smell, this I find really strange and wondered if there is a reason behind it that may date back thousands of years.

Do you think that when we had to survive to live, years and years ago (when we were more animal than human) our sense of smell heightened so that we were able to recognise danger more quickly to protect our offspring?

Animals have a very strong sense of smell and it seems strange that during pregnancy we too develop this sense much more.

My sense of smell has heightened loads since becoming pregnant.

 

[Kimbo]

Do you think that when we had to survive to live, years and years ago (when we were more animal than human) our sense of smell heightened so that we were able to recognise danger more quickly to protect our offspring?

apparently thats true..
plus the extra hairy belly etc is to keep us warmer, plus stronger nails to fight off!

 

[annem]

i've been wondering why women get induced. The baby used to arrive when it was ready so why must we force the babies out by 42weeks now? (not that i'm complaining as 9months is a long time!!)

 

[Kimbo]

i've been wondering why women get induced. The baby used to arrive when it was ready so why must we force the babies out by 42weeks now? (not that i'm complaining as 9months is a long time!!)

i agree... baby knows when its ready... but what would happen if you wasn't induced??
how long can the baby stay inside for?

 

[missac]

i think we get induced beacause the placenta breaks down towards the end and the longer the baby is in the less nutrients they are getting, I guess the babies that didn't make an appearance in the olden days just didn't survive, just like the old breast milk scenario - I thought that everyone should be able to bf as the babies of the olden days didn't have the option of formula it wasn't until my mw told me that if the parents couldn't afford a wet nurse then these babies didn't survive either!

Now. how depressing is my post!!!!

 

[annem]

i don't know. Can't imagine them staying that long?! just imagine the size of us if they stayed in us for 2 years like baby elephants do

 

[annem]

i think we get induced beacause the placenta breaks down towards the end and the longer the baby is in the less nutrients they are getting, I guess the babies that didn't make an appearance in the olden days just didn't survive, just like the old breast milk scenario - I thought that everyone should be able to bf as the babies of the olden days didn't have the option of formula it wasn't until my mw told me that if the parents couldn't afford a wet nurse then these babies didn't survive either!

Now. how depressing is my post!!!!

how sad

 

[Squiglet]

A womans immune system lowers during pregnancy, so the heightened sense of smell was there to help us identify safe foods as well as danger. Also bonding too... the smell helps a woman bond with a baby.

Breast feeding was natures contraceptive... we are the only mammals that give birth to young who are completely helpless at birth, i.e. can't walk... so we have to carry them, thus making the breast much more accessible encouraging constant breast feeding and the prevention of ovulation.

We know its not a 100% fool proof method (what method is? ) but at the time what it did was give a woman approximately 18 months between kids. It's a well known fact that if you have babies less than 18 months apart they can be born smaller.... although this is not a problem nowadays, back in our hunter gatherer days, this would have been detrimental to the survival of the baby.

As for breast feeding back then, the baby would be passed around the tribe to be breast fed too, so if you couldn't feed your child, there would have been someone else who could have helped.

As for the induction bit... I've always wondered that too... but then infant mortality rates would have been quite high back then.. it goes to Darwins theory of evolution, on the strongest survive. It's why Neanderthals died out... I suppose one way to look at is that women would have been under great deal of stress which we know can cause spontaneous onset of labour, which women in Western societies today don't need to worry about... Such as food issues, or predator attacks...

 

[Kimbo]

A womans immune system lowers during pregnancy, so the heightened sense of smell was there to help us identify safe foods as well as danger. Also bonding too... the smell helps a woman bond with a baby.

Breast feeding was natures contraceptive... we are the only mammals that give birth to young who are completely helpless at birth, i.e. can't walk... so we have to carry them, thus making the breast much more accessible encouraging constant breast feeding and the prevention of ovulation.

We know its not a 100% fool proof method (what method is? ) but at the time what it did was give a woman approximately 18 months between kids. It's a well known fact that if you have babies less than 18 months apart they can be born smaller.... although this is not a problem nowadays, back in our hunter gatherer days, this would have been detrimental to the survival of the baby.

As for breast feeding back then, the baby would be passed around the tribe to be breast fed too, so if you couldn't feed your child, there would have been someone else who could have helped.

As for the induction bit... I've always wondered that too... but then infant mortality rates would have been quite high back then.. it goes to Darwins theory of evolution, on the strongest survive. It's why Neanderthals died out... I suppose one way to look at is that women would have been under great deal of stress which we know can cause spontaneous onset of labour, which women in Western societies today don't need to worry about... Such as food issues, or predator attacks...

honestly.... you deserve an award

 

[Squiglet]

A womans immune system lowers during pregnancy, so the heightened sense of smell was there to help us identify safe foods as well as danger. Also bonding too... the smell helps a woman bond with a baby.

Breast feeding was natures contraceptive... we are the only mammals that give birth to young who are completely helpless at birth, i.e. can't walk... so we have to carry them, thus making the breast much more accessible encouraging constant breast feeding and the prevention of ovulation.

We know its not a 100% fool proof method (what method is? ) but at the time what it did was give a woman approximately 18 months between kids. It's a well known fact that if you have babies less than 18 months apart they can be born smaller.... although this is not a problem nowadays, back in our hunter gatherer days, this would have been detrimental to the survival of the baby.

As for breast feeding back then, the baby would be passed around the tribe to be breast fed too, so if you couldn't feed your child, there would have been someone else who could have helped.

As for the induction bit... I've always wondered that too... but then infant mortality rates would have been quite high back then.. it goes to Darwins theory of evolution, on the strongest survive. It's why Neanderthals died out... I suppose one way to look at is that women would have been under great deal of stress which we know can cause spontaneous onset of labour, which women in Western societies today don't need to worry about... Such as food issues, or predator attacks...

honestly.... you deserve an award

What... the award for sad, lonely, looser who reads too much pointless cr*p...

 

[glitzyglamgirl]

Interesting question Kaz!

I think your definitely on to something, theres many things about pregnancy that just dont have any use in these modern times but were essential back then. This will make you laugh.....until I discovered that all embryos are female until the male chromosones kick and change the embryo to male if it is going to be male, and this is why they have nipples....well i thought men had nipples so they could take part in bonding with the baby and be a walking dummy. Men as walking dummies, how ridiculous

But yeah, I think the heightened sense of smell is a survival tool for sure.

The other thing that gets me is cravings. I understand they are because the baby needs something you are not producing enough of ie calcium or proteins, but then that gets translated into "must have cheese and icecream now!!!" or some other random wierd combination, well.....how do we know what foods to crave, when we have no idea what ingredient we are lacking in? Boggles me that one

Edit: forgot to mention re: neantherdols dying out....new research suggests they didnt die out, but we interbreeded until eventually our genetic make up overtook theirs and it "appears" as if they died out. So we're all inbreds