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Fully revised and updated for 2025, from the bestselling author of Cribsheet, The Family Firm, and The Unexpected
“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
The award-winning economist named one of TIME Magazine’s 100 most influential people 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. Parents-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.
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4.6 out of 5 stars 11,271
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4.5 out of 5 stars 660
4.2 out of 5 stars 60
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Discover all of Emily Oster’s Books
What to Expect When You’re Expecting meets Freakonomics: an award-winning economist disproves standard recommendations about pregnancy to empower women while they’re expecting. A data-driven guide to better, more relaxed parenting, from birth to preschool, covering topics including feeding, sleep, and potty training. Oster offers a classic business school framework for data-driven parents to think more deliberately about the key issues of the elementary years: school, health, extracurricular activities, and more. A guide to navigating a second pregnancy when the first did not go as planned—with Dr. Nathan Fox, maternal fetal medicine specialist.
Publisher : Penguin Publishing Group
Publication date : June 24, 2014
Edition : 1st
Language : English
Print length : 385 pages
ISBN-10 : 0143125702
ISBN-13 : 978-0143125709
Item Weight : 10.9 ounces
Dimensions : 5.5 x 0.87 x 8.44 inches
Book 1 of 4 : The ParentData
Customers say
Customers find the book thoroughly researched and well-presented, helping them make informed decisions about their pregnancies. They appreciate its readability, with one customer noting it reads like a literature review for pregnancy, and its fun tone that makes it an entertaining read. The book helps quell unnecessary fears and anxieties, with one customer mentioning it helped them feel more confident about pregnancy risks. While the content receives mixed feedback, with some finding the chapters informative and others saying it’s too basic, customers disagree on the book’s approach to pregnancy risks, particularly regarding alcohol consumption during pregnancy.