We have chosen Tommy's the Baby Charity to be our charity for 2007.

I am really pleased and excited to be working closely with Tommy's and look forward to a long relationship with them.

Regards,

About Tommy’s

• Tommy's exists to save babies lives because right now in the UK 1 in 4 women loses a baby during pregnancy or birth.
• Every two minutes in the UK, a baby is lost - through miscarriage, stillbirth or because they are born prematurely.
• We fund research into and provide information on the causes and prevention of miscarriage, premature birth and stillbirth.
• By 2030 we want to halve the number of babies who die during pregnancy or birth.

Pregnancy information programme

Pregnancy can often be a time when families, mums-to-be in particular, can feel uncertain and in need of information and reassurance, so they can be sure that they are doing all they can to give their baby the best possible start in life.

We provide free pregnancy health information, comprising publications on a range of pregnancy and pre-pregnancy topics, including leaflets and our free books, Tommy’s guide to pre-pregnancy care and Tommy’s guide to being pregnant, which are sent to over 50,000 women each year.

Unlike any other charity, Tommy’s has a unique telephone line staffed by midwives, who can answer any pregnancy health questions. This line is a great resource for anyone needing pregnancy information between visits to their midwife, answering thousands of requests for information either via our telephone line on 0870 777 30 60 or our website www.tommys.org

Research Funding

Tommy’s also funds a national programme of medical research which aims to increase our understanding of why pregnancy complications (such as miscarriage, stillbirth and premature birth) occur, so that we can develop treatments and preventative measures that will help to prevent them in the future.

Some current projects include:

• Cervical stitch (CIRCLE) trial:
  A cervical stitch (or cerclage) is the name given to a procedure which is a precautionary measure and involves placing a stitch high up in the cervix with the aim of helping to keep the cervix closed.
  The stitch is usually removed in the antenatal clinic just before the baby is due, to allow the cervix to open and the baby to be born. Current medical practice is for consultant obstetricians to put a stitch in women who are at high risk of experiencing pre-term labour in this pregnancy, regardless of the reasons they have been identified as being at risk. However, this has never been proven to be successful or to improve the outcome for these women.
  Our research team believes that stitches are likely to be of most benefit to those women at risk for the specific reason that they have an "incompetent cervix", or cervix which is unable to remain closed throughout an entire pregnancy and will open prematurely when the weight of a baby pushes down on it. CIRCLE is a clinical trial (12 centres across the UK are currently taking part) aiming to examine whether this hypothesis holds true, and if a cervical stitch is of most benefit in preventing premature birth in women who have a short or shortening cervix, as seen on an ultrasound scan.
• Developmental programming research at London research centre
  The London research unit is examining the hypothesis (termed 'Developmental Programming') that nutritional imbalance when a baby is in the womb may 'programme' the baby to develop disease or health problems later in life. Interest and studies to date have focused on the effects that a poor diet during pregnancy may have on the baby and the programming of cardiovascular disease.
• Maternal high fat diet
  Work to date has shown that a high-fat diet consumed during pregnancy may dramatically increase the baby’s risk of future cardiovascular disease even if their diet from birth is balanced and healthy, i.e. in the womb they may be 'programmed' to develop cardiovascular problems later in life. These results have great implications for mums-to-be as the most common nutritional imbalance amongst mums-to-be in Western populations is an excessively high-fat diet. From this work the team is continuing on to investigate the effects of maternal obesity in pregnancy.
  The team is now moving towards identifying the specific roles of fats within the diet, and which fats cause specific effects. Current investigation covers palm oil (rich in saturated fatty acids), rapeseed oil (rich in monounsaturated and omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids), and corn oil (rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids).
  
• Teenage pregnancy project
  Tommy’s has been granted funding for a project which aims to help give pregnant teenagers the best possible chance for a healthy pregnancy and a healthy baby. Poor pregnancy outcome in teenagers is associated with the nutritional status of the mum before and during pregnancy. This project aims to find out which factors best predict nutrient deficiency in pregnant teenagers, and therefore identify those mums-to-be most at risk and help ensure they get the treatment they need to stay healthy.
  Based in Tommy’s research centres in London and Manchester, the project will involve over 500 teenagers who book in for antenatal care over two years, and each participant in the trial will be assessed twice during their pregnancy. At each assessment, questions will be asked to help assess how well their bodies are taking up nutrients. This will provide information about how available the vitamins and minerals (so essential for healthy growth and development) are to their babies. The assessments, which look at indicators like height and weight, diet, and the expectant mum’s own growth, will help to identify key factors that influence nutritional deficiency during teenage pregnancy. Findings will help ensure adequate and appropriate resources and treatments are allocated to those expectant mums who need it most.

You can visit Tommy's website at www.tommys.org

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