A woman in Alabama is pregnant with twins, with one baby growing in each of her two uteruses. This condition is extremely rare, with a 1 in 50 million chance of a woman experiencing a double pregnancy of this type. At 32 years old, Kelsey Hatcher says she’s very blessed to be carrying her twins successfully. She’s known about the double uterus since she was 17 years old, but never expected to have a double pregnancy because of how rare these are. Hatcher is a fitness coach, and has three children already. A few minor complications with this pregnancy sent her to her OB, where she found out tha ..read more

It appears that the Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW) in Taiwan may be planning to make surrogacy legal in that country. It’s not clear whether the amendment they intend to make would actually pass all the scrutiny needed to become law, but either way it would solve the hotly debated matter. Surrogacy has been the subject of scrutiny in Taiwan for more than 20 years, and has been seen during that entire time as an extremely controversial issue. Any amendment made by the MOHW would need to make its way through the legislative process, but the first step is to get the process underway. The D ..read more

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has changed and updated its fertility laws, which now allow for legal surrogacy, as well as IVF, for unmarried, non-Muslim couples. This is being seen as a commitment to tolerance and inclusivity, as these practices were previously against the law. There are still caveats and restrictions to the options couples have, but they can begin to move forward with creating a family in ways that were previously closed to them. Laws surrounding egg freezing and IVF have both been relaxed, and non-Muslim couples can now look into family planning that includes these options ..read more

Starting in 2024, employees in California will have the opportunity to take reproductive loss leave if they experience a stillbirth, miscarriage, failed adoption, failed IVF cycle, or failed surrogacy. In the past, these kinds of losses weren’t covered. The leave beginning in January is unpaid, but an employee can take up to five days of leave within three months after the qualifying loss event. Additionally, the employee doesn’t have to take all five days together, and they can take more than one reproductive loss leave during the year. They’re limited to a total of 20 days of this leave per ..read more

As Kate Shelley approached 40, she decided it was time to start her family. Since she didn’t have a partner, she chose IVF. She had always promised herself that she would do that if she didn’t have children by her 40th birthday. The closer that day got, the more she considered the process. Shelley says she knew she would feel like she missed out on something very important if she didn’t have a child of her own, and not having a partner in her life wasn’t going to stop her from making that dream come true. Choosing IVF worked out well for Shelley, but it wasn’t the first option she considered ..read more

A recent study is showing that there’s truth to the statement that pregnancy causes changes in the brain. A study done on mice indicated that hormone shifts during pregnancy affected the circuits of the brain that are involved in parenting. The study also showed that female mice are not born with a mothering instinct, and aren’t really interested in babies or taking care of them until they mate. Female mice that haven’t yet mated don’t show interest in pups that belong to other female mice, or they display only low-level instincts. Once they become pregnant, though, the hormones that come alon ..read more

Actress Kerry Washington was preparing to be part of a TV show that looks into people’s lineage, helping them determine their ancestry and understand more about where they came from. But, as she talked to her parents about getting DNA samples from them, she noticed they started to look for ways to avoid it. They were evasive, and seemed like they wanted her to refuse to participate in the show. Little did Washington know at the time, they felt that way because they had used a sperm donor to have her, and had kept it a secret. It’s likely they would have never told her, but eventually they had ..read more

The Apple Watch Series 8 and Apple Watch Ultra have skin temperature sensors, which will also be available on upcoming, new versions of the watch. These sensors detect the temperature of your skin every five seconds during the overnight hours, and Apple states this can be used to track fertility. Because ovulation typically correlates with some specific changes, including a rise in body temperature, tracking skin temperature can provide valuable information on the days when you may be most fertile. Because the Apple Watch also has a built-in tracking app for your menstrual cycle, using that da ..read more

The idea of an artificial womb may sound like complete science fiction, but it’s actually a reality that the FDA is talking about allowing for babies born very prematurely. These babies, which are often called “neonates” by scientists, have lower chances of survival and higher chances of health problems as they grow, because they didn’t remain in the womb long enough to fully develop properly. The artificial womb technology the FDA is considering has already been used on fetal pigs and preterm lambs with significant success, and researchers believe the logical next step is to use it on humans ..read more

Olympic figure skater Tara Lipinski and her husband, Todd Kapostasy, have been trying to have a family for the past five years. Her infertility journey has been a difficult one, and she’s just now opening up about it for the very first time. Mentally and emotionally, Lipinski just couldn’t bring herself to talk about what the couple was going through, but she’s gotten to a place where she feels it’s time to disclose the struggles and issues that have been part of their lives for so long. She discusses being overwhelmed with the decisions and treatment surrounding infertility, and working on ma ..read more