Expecting Better: Why the Conventional Pregnancy Wisdom Is Wrong--And What You Really Need to Know

Emily Oster

Book cover for Expecting Better: Why the Conventional Pregnancy Wisdom Is Wrong--And What You Really Need to Know
Book cover for Expecting Better: Why the Conventional Pregnancy Wisdom Is Wrong--And What You Really Need to Know

Expecting Better: Why the Conventional Pregnancy Wisdom Is Wrong--And What You Really Need to Know

Expecting Better: Why the Conventional Pregnancy Wisdom Is Wrong--And What You Really Need to Know

Emily Oster

  • Become a member to save 50% off your first order and then 30% on all future orders. Simply add any book to cart and you’ll see an option to become a member
  • 100% of this book's profits go to our community of authors.
Get 50% off your first order, and then 30% off everything
Member Book Price
$18.00$9.00
Monthly Membership
First month free, renews at $5.00
$0.00

Log in to access your Membership or Book Club price

  • Allstora Membership will renew at $5/month, cancel any time
View full details

Description

"Emily Oster is the non-judgmental girlfriend holding our hand and guiding us through pregnancy and motherhood. She has done the work to get us the hard facts in a soft, understandable way." --Amy Schumer

*Fully Revised and Updated for 2021*

What to Expect When You're Expecting meets Freakonomics an award-winning economist and author of Cribsheet and The Family Firm disproves standard recommendations about pregnancy to empower women while they're expecting.

Pregnancy--unquestionably one of the most pro­found, meaningful experiences of adulthood--can reduce otherwise intelligent women to, well, babies. Pregnant women are told to avoid cold cuts, sushi, alcohol, and coffee without ever being told why these are forbidden. Rules for prenatal testing are similarly unexplained. Moms-to-be desperately want a resource that empowers them to make their own right choices.

When award-winning economist Emily Oster was a mom-to-be herself, she evaluated the data behind the accepted rules of pregnancy, and discovered that most are often misguided and some are just flat-out wrong. Debunking myths and explaining everything from the real effects of caffeine to the surprising dangers of gardening, Expecting Better is the book for every pregnant woman who wants to enjoy a healthy and relaxed pregnancy--and the occasional glass of wine.

About the Author

Emily Oster is a professor of economics at Brown University and the author of Expecting Better, Cribsheet, and The Family Firm. She writes the newsletter ParentData and her work has been featured in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, The Atlantic, and Bloomberg. She has two children.

Critical Reviews

"A revelation for curious mothers-to-be whose doctors fail to lay out the pros and cons of that morning latte, let alone discuss real science. And it makes for valuable homework before those harried ob-gyn appointments, even for lucky patients whose doctors are able to talk about the rationale behind their advice." --New York Times

"A book . . . that pregnant women won't want to miss." --Parents Magazine

"Emily Oster is the non-judgmental girlfriend holding our hand and guiding us through pregnancy and motherhood. She has done the work to get us the hard facts in a soft, understandable way." --Amy Schumer

"Oster's advice cuts through the emotion, myth, fear of malpractice litigation and looks at the numbers. A mother herself, Oster's interest isn't just curiosity, it's the same thing that motivates every new mom . . . and Oster's ability to break down the data into informed analysis is a refreshing break from the hysterical hearsay that often dominates the conversation." --Babyzone

"Gives moms-to-be a big helping of peace of mind!" --Harvey Karp M.D., bestselling author of The Happiest Baby on the Block

"It took someone as smart as Emily Oster to make it all this simple. She cuts through the thicket of anxiety and received wisdom, and gives us the facts. Expecting Better is both enlightening and calming. It almost makes me want to get pregnant." --Pamela Druckerman, New York Times bestselling author of Bringing Up Bébé

Publishing Information

Publisher: Penguin Books
Pub date: 2014-06-24
Length: 368 pages

The Allstora Membership

Membership Perks:

  • Save 30% on all online store purchases
  • Exclusive access to author's content
  • You pay less, but authors still earn double

Membership Terms:

First Month: $0.00
Monthly price: $5.00
  • To access membership discount simply log in and add to cart, discount applied automatically.
  • One month free trial, cancel anytime. Membership renews on the 15th of each month.