You are 22 weeks pregnant, really starting to show and the baby is beginning to flutter around like a good thing. It’s been a couple weeks since you have seen the baby (2nd Ultrasound) and you want to see him/her again. Now! What do you do? Some people have been able to satisfy their cravings for more baby by visiting private 3D/4D clinics. These places have been popping up all over and they are causing some controversy.
There has always been some question whether or not too many ultrasounds are good for the baby. An ultrasound involves transmitting high frequency sound waves through the uterus. These bounce off the baby and the returning echoes are translated by a computer into an image on a screen that reveals the baby’s position and movements.
While there is no current proof that too many ultrasounds will cause problems later on some small-scale studies show that pre-term labor was increased in women who were given weekly ultrasounds.
Not only is it a possible hazard to the baby, private ultrasounds are expensive. To have a peek at the baby for 20 minutes you will pay 135.00 cad, 30 mins 150.00. Gender determination 125.00, to have it all put on a dvd 25.00. There are some packages that have some extras thrown in like pictures, a heartrate monitoring and discounts for 2nd visits but they start around 200.00.
I loved seeing our baby on the screen when we had our ultrasounds. I just could never bring myself to spend that kind of money knowing that we needed so many things for him when he arrived. While it’s very exciting to see your baby inside your belly, ultrasounds we designed to help monitor the growth and development of your child. They were never meant to be used as entertainment. There is still a lot about the technology that is not known.
