There are a lot of blood vessels in a pregnant woman's abdomen, the babyвЂ™s heart beating being just one. They are sending ultrasound waves into your body that reflects off moving blood vessels and SIMULATE a sound. They are not amplifying the sound of your babyвЂ™s heartbeat. The most important message we try to get across to pregnant women is that home dopplers are not microphones. The best indicator of fetal wellbeing is always the babyвЂ™s movements and this is what we should be focusing on вЂ“ not these cheap imitations of medical equipment. This could lead to life-threatening delays in seeking medical assistance. The most significant risk of using a home doppler is that mums may be falsely reassured when they hear a heartbeat, when actually their baby could be in distress.

The general sale of these devices to women implies they are safe and suitable. They are intended for medical professionals. But that was before I was aware of the risks they pose.ДЄ really important point is that even the manufacturers do not recommend them for mums. I completely understand the appeal of home dopplers, if they had been around when I was pregnant I probably would have bought one. Mums-to-be who use them are often against it and think I am being a killjoy. Midwives, doctors, healthcare professionals, and maybe most significantly, many bereaved mothers are in favour of the ban. Opinion on this tends to be quite polarised. The aim was to regulate/ban of the sale of home dopplersВ on the consumer market. In 2017В we launched an awareness campaign which ran alongside a petition. While progress is being made, there is one obstacle that just keeps getting bigger. Written by Kicks Count CEO, Elizabeth Hutton:ДЄt Kicks Count we have been working for many years to try to reduce the UKвЂ™s stillbirth and neonatal death rate, which is the 3rd worst in the developed world. I'm worried about my baby's movements Donate

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