Despite all the scare stories in the papers, most women have a perfectly normal pregnancy and birth, without the need for emergency operations or caesareans.

BBC: NEWS | Health | What happens during pregnancy?

This latest research at Swansea University's College of Engineering follows an initial study into the effects that a normal pregnancy has on women's cardiovascular function.

BBC: Pregnant women

This is what I consider a normal pregnancy.

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Weight gain of 25 to 35 pounds is normal in pregnancy and not associated with an increase in risk for either premenopausal or postmenopausal breast cancer, the study found.

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Ms. Glauber's pregnancy appeared to be a normal one, said her husband's cousin, Ms. Gluck, 45.

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They will be enrolled during early pregnancy and asked to eat either enriched or normal soup three times a week.

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Dr Jean-Pierre Lin, consultant paediatric neurologist at Evelina Children's Hospital in London, says that in children the commonest cause is damage to the foetal brain during pregnancy which means that the brain does not develop in a normal way.

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Diabetes diagnosed during pregnancy, known as gestational diabetes, is influenced by hormonal changes and normal weight gain and usually goes away after the baby is born.

CNN: STORY HIGHLIGHTS

Their theory is that this variety of receptor might help, in normal circumstances, to keep control over the brain's response to huge hormonal changes during and immediately after pregnancy.

BBC: Chemical clue to baby blues found