Best Of The Web

01.20.12 The online buzz for moms-to-be

• A new study says that a new definition of autism in the works may exclude many cases, including some children. Recently, other researchers emphasized that taking prenatal vitamins before and after conceiving cuts the autism risk in your baby.

• Comments abound after actress Elsa Pataky—who this week announced her first pregnancy—was photographed coming down a waterslide while on vacation with her husband. Our friends over at People magazine's Celebrity Babies blog are taking a poll: Would you waterslide while expecting? Our experts look at the short list of off-limits activities during pregnancy—better to be safe, right?

• Inspired by the birth of her children, actress Jessica Alba has launched The Honest Company, an eco-friendly line of family essential products via a monthly subscription service. Read our interview with Alba, who was our Fit Pregnancy cover model when she was expecting her first daughter.

• Researchers say that 1 out of 8 low-income parents waters down formula in order to keep an infant fed. In these hard economic times, kids may be priceless but they're certainly not cheap, according to federal figures.

• New product alert: Medela has launched its Calma breastmilk bottle in the U.S. It helps your baby transition when you alternate from breast to bottle. Head over to our Introduce a Bottle page for expert words on how and when to do it and avoid nipple confusion.

• A writer looks at the growing trend of day cares stretching their hours into nighttime to adapt to longer working days for parents. Head over to our Tender Loving Day Care page for the inside scoop on three common options.

• Facebook responds to complaints after more breastfeeding photos were recently yanked from profiles, adding more fuel to the ongoing debate between nursing moms and the social media company.

• Actress Jessica Caphsaw of Grey's Anatomy has announced that she is expecting her third baby. The actress graced the cover of FIt Pregnancy last year and shared her feelings with us on her responsibility to provide her children with a clean environment.

• A new study finds that babies are learning to talk from lip-reading, not just hearing sounds. Our experts say that babbling supports a baby's first efforts to communicate with sounds other than crying, so play games with him or her to encourage these learning experiences.

• Researches reveal that the risk for fetal alcohol syndrome is highest in the first trimester, re-emphasizing that abstinence from booze during those nine months is crucial.

Maria Vega is Fit Pregnancy magazine's copy editor.