Did you know that many leading health researchers oppose ultrasound?

The high frequency sound waves of ultrasound are impossible for humans to detect.  The lack of sound makes it seem harmless to most, but is it really?

It is long known that sounds affect our body and reach our unborn children. From the recommendations to play soothing, classical music for memory and development, to ancient healing therapies that use chants and “singing bowls” to elicit emotion. Our bodies have an inherent response to music and sound. One reason is that the cells in our body are vibrating. Our bodies, our cells respond to vibrations, physicist and musicians know this and multiple studies back it up.

So, is it then wise to shoot high intensity sound waves into the developing fetus?

According to AIMS, the Alliance for the Improvement of Maternity services,

“Millions of women and their unborn children are being exposed to diagnostic ultrasound during pregnancy and childbirth without the women being advised prior to exposure that there has been no well-controlled scientific investigation carried out to study the delayed, long-term effects of ultrasound on human development.“

Further:

“Numerous studies have been carried out to evaluate the effectiveness of routine diagnostic ultrasound. None has shown the routine use of diagnostic ultrasound to improve maternal and infant outcome over that achieved when diagnostic ultrasound was used only when medically indicated.“

Some women, who have “high risk” pregnancies may undergo multiple ultrasounds during their pregnancy. There are also boutique, 4-D ultrasound facilities offering imaging without even so much as a medical professional present.  Scientists have found evidence to support the belief that all of those ultrasounds are leading to quantifiable cellular changes within developing infants. Further studies have shown a correlation between speech delay, brain damage, and abnormal development amongst infants who were frequently exposed to ultrasound.  There could even be a potential link between autism and the cellular changes resulting from the sound waves.

Unfortunately, ultrasound is just another example of how we have left behind evidence-based care in lieu of unfounded technology. Many individuals cling to ultrasounds as though they are a critical element of safety in childbearing. But what does the ultrasound tell us anyway? There are only a few rare cases where an ultrasound is remotely beneficial. Fetuses who have severe anomalies typically fall to miscarriage. A well-trained care provider can palpitate for position, number of fetuses, and even some abnormalities. Several options exist for detecting the baby’s heartbeat, including the completely safe pinard horn used by traditional midwives for generations.

Even those who believe in ultrasounds admit that they are faulty at best. Weight estimates as determined by ultrasounds can be off by two or more pounds, faulty diagnosis of genetic disorders via ultrasound are not unheard of, and gender prediction is far from guaranteed.

We have had two healthy children, and no ultrasounds.