Kristen V. Brown
@kristenvbrown.bsky.social
Health + science journalist. Writing a book about the science and history of fertility | fan of sparkles | say hi: [email protected]
A review of reviews found there is not enough evidence to link Tylenol to autism in pregnancy.
The assumption is always that women should avoid a drug just *in case* of adverse outcomes. We have got to stop treating pregnant people as vessels for the unborn.
www.bmj.com/content/391/...
The assumption is always that women should avoid a drug just *in case* of adverse outcomes. We have got to stop treating pregnant people as vessels for the unborn.
www.bmj.com/content/391/...
Maternal paracetamol (acetaminophen) use during pregnancy and risk of autism spectrum disorder and attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder in offspring: umbrella review of systematic reviews
Objective To assess the quality, biases, and validity of evidence on maternal paracetamol (acetaminophen) use during pregnancy and the risk of autism spectrum disorder (referred to as autism) and atte...
www.bmj.com
November 11, 2025 at 5:20 PM
A review of reviews found there is not enough evidence to link Tylenol to autism in pregnancy.
The assumption is always that women should avoid a drug just *in case* of adverse outcomes. We have got to stop treating pregnant people as vessels for the unborn.
www.bmj.com/content/391/...
The assumption is always that women should avoid a drug just *in case* of adverse outcomes. We have got to stop treating pregnant people as vessels for the unborn.
www.bmj.com/content/391/...
Reposted by Kristen V. Brown
Allan Brooks, the corporate recruiter from Canada I wrote about in August who went into a 3-week-long delusional spiral with ChatGPT, sued OpenAI Thursday, alongside six other plaintiffs. They blame ChatGPT for their mental breakdowns and for four suicides. www.nytimes.com/2025/11/06/t...
Lawsuits Blame ChatGPT for Suicides and Harmful Delusions
www.nytimes.com
November 7, 2025 at 5:21 AM
Allan Brooks, the corporate recruiter from Canada I wrote about in August who went into a 3-week-long delusional spiral with ChatGPT, sued OpenAI Thursday, alongside six other plaintiffs. They blame ChatGPT for their mental breakdowns and for four suicides. www.nytimes.com/2025/11/06/t...
Michigan is trying to legislate against “fraud” in IVF with the argument that IVF is unregulated. I always think people throw that word around too much with fertility - there are ramifications for fraud in any branch of medicine. IVF included. michiganadvance.com/2025/11/05/m...
michiganadvance.com
November 6, 2025 at 6:33 PM
Michigan is trying to legislate against “fraud” in IVF with the argument that IVF is unregulated. I always think people throw that word around too much with fertility - there are ramifications for fraud in any branch of medicine. IVF included. michiganadvance.com/2025/11/05/m...
Female doctors are making decisions about where to work based on egg-freezing policies.
It's a misnomer that most women choose to freeze because of work, but anecdotally, when I DO hear that reason from people, they are often doctors.
www.medpagetoday.com/meetingcover...
It's a misnomer that most women choose to freeze because of work, but anecdotally, when I DO hear that reason from people, they are often doctors.
www.medpagetoday.com/meetingcover...
Egg Freezing Benefits Are a Key Job Consideration for Female Docs
Researcher says fertility coverage is no longer a 'nice-to-have' but rather a necessity
www.medpagetoday.com
October 30, 2025 at 7:50 PM
Female doctors are making decisions about where to work based on egg-freezing policies.
It's a misnomer that most women choose to freeze because of work, but anecdotally, when I DO hear that reason from people, they are often doctors.
www.medpagetoday.com/meetingcover...
It's a misnomer that most women choose to freeze because of work, but anecdotally, when I DO hear that reason from people, they are often doctors.
www.medpagetoday.com/meetingcover...
Remember when NYC would shame you if you didn’t move your car for street-sweeping? www.nytimes.com/2012/01/19/n...
Forgot to Move Car? City Council Votes to End a Sticker of Shame (Published 2012)
www.nytimes.com
October 28, 2025 at 4:51 PM
Remember when NYC would shame you if you didn’t move your car for street-sweeping? www.nytimes.com/2012/01/19/n...
I always find it instructive to look at how naysayers talked about new technologies in the past. One of my favorite past critics of IVF is Leon Kass, who was basically convinced it would somehow lead to incest and adultery and the end of our "humanness"
www.nationalaffairs.com/storage/app/...
www.nationalaffairs.com/storage/app/...
www.nationalaffairs.com
October 28, 2025 at 3:55 PM
I always find it instructive to look at how naysayers talked about new technologies in the past. One of my favorite past critics of IVF is Leon Kass, who was basically convinced it would somehow lead to incest and adultery and the end of our "humanness"
www.nationalaffairs.com/storage/app/...
www.nationalaffairs.com/storage/app/...
There are more and more companies out there offering new ways to "control" the health of your future kid.
I'm not sure there is any amount of pre-implantation testing that can give future parents the level of control they really desire. Genetics is just not that good!
www.axios.com/2025/10/21/a...
I'm not sure there is any amount of pre-implantation testing that can give future parents the level of control they really desire. Genetics is just not that good!
www.axios.com/2025/10/21/a...
Yes, AI can predict your embryo's risk of cancer
"Genomics is one of the greatest preventative medicine tools," Nucleus' founder told Axios.
www.axios.com
October 24, 2025 at 6:39 PM
There are more and more companies out there offering new ways to "control" the health of your future kid.
I'm not sure there is any amount of pre-implantation testing that can give future parents the level of control they really desire. Genetics is just not that good!
www.axios.com/2025/10/21/a...
I'm not sure there is any amount of pre-implantation testing that can give future parents the level of control they really desire. Genetics is just not that good!
www.axios.com/2025/10/21/a...
Wow to some of the comments are the first IVF baby was born. "Something frogs do in a dirty stream"!
October 23, 2025 at 5:09 PM
Wow to some of the comments are the first IVF baby was born. "Something frogs do in a dirty stream"!
Had no idea the second IVF baby in the world was born in India (but contested). Usually early IVF success is just talked about in terms of US, UK and Austrailia. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC...
The Indian IVF saga: a contested history
The politics of conception in India can be traced back to the birth of the world’s first test-tube baby in 1978. This article focuses on an incident where scientists and clinicians were involved in a heated contest over ascription of intellectual ...
pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
October 23, 2025 at 4:23 PM
Had no idea the second IVF baby in the world was born in India (but contested). Usually early IVF success is just talked about in terms of US, UK and Austrailia. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC...
I'm not sure there's any tweak that can actually make IVF "gentle" but this is some good marketing
www.sdbj.com/healthcare-2...
www.sdbj.com/healthcare-2...
Ivy Looks to Disrupt Fertility with Gentle IVF
SAN DIEGO – On Sept. 26, San Diego-based Ivy Fertility announced the launch of Gentle IVF, an IVF protocol designed to lessen the emotional, physical and fina
www.sdbj.com
October 22, 2025 at 3:13 PM
I'm not sure there's any tweak that can actually make IVF "gentle" but this is some good marketing
www.sdbj.com/healthcare-2...
www.sdbj.com/healthcare-2...
The contentious public hearing is one of my favorite genres of news stories.
October 21, 2025 at 2:46 PM
The contentious public hearing is one of my favorite genres of news stories.
It's absolutely bonkers that this book is still in print.
I promise you, douching with vinegar is definitely not a good way to guarantee a girl. It IS a good way to mess up your vaginal microbiome, though!
I promise you, douching with vinegar is definitely not a good way to guarantee a girl. It IS a good way to mess up your vaginal microbiome, though!
October 20, 2025 at 6:26 PM
It's absolutely bonkers that this book is still in print.
I promise you, douching with vinegar is definitely not a good way to guarantee a girl. It IS a good way to mess up your vaginal microbiome, though!
I promise you, douching with vinegar is definitely not a good way to guarantee a girl. It IS a good way to mess up your vaginal microbiome, though!
I have more that one friend right now convinced they have "mold toxicity." The influence of the black mold truthers is real unherd.com/2025/10/meet...
Meet the black mould truthers
unherd.com
October 20, 2025 at 1:28 PM
I have more that one friend right now convinced they have "mold toxicity." The influence of the black mold truthers is real unherd.com/2025/10/meet...
LaGuardia down to a single taxi runway today thanks to the shutdown. At 9:30 am flights are already backed up
October 11, 2025 at 1:34 PM
LaGuardia down to a single taxi runway today thanks to the shutdown. At 9:30 am flights are already backed up
Reposted by Kristen V. Brown
A surprising upside to Taylor Swift's very mid new album:
Galvanizing thousands of extremely online Swifties to campaign against the use of generative AI for creative work.
Galvanizing thousands of extremely online Swifties to campaign against the use of generative AI for creative work.
Fans Call on Taylor Swift to ‘Do Better’ After Accusations of Using AI for Promo Videos
A scavenger hunt campaign to promote Taylor Swift’s new album The Life of a Showgirl resulted in a viral #SwiftiesAgainstAI campaign.
www.wired.com
October 8, 2025 at 9:03 PM
A surprising upside to Taylor Swift's very mid new album:
Galvanizing thousands of extremely online Swifties to campaign against the use of generative AI for creative work.
Galvanizing thousands of extremely online Swifties to campaign against the use of generative AI for creative work.
This is why AI poses a threat to the medical profession. Not that it can offer anything a doctor can't (at least not right now)! www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...
October 2, 2025 at 8:34 PM
This is why AI poses a threat to the medical profession. Not that it can offer anything a doctor can't (at least not right now)! www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...
Bought the iPhone air in gold, was convinced they accidentally sent me a white phone and convinced them to send me a new one ... it turns out that the gold phone really is just .... white? very confused!
October 2, 2025 at 7:18 PM
Bought the iPhone air in gold, was convinced they accidentally sent me a white phone and convinced them to send me a new one ... it turns out that the gold phone really is just .... white? very confused!
Reposted by Kristen V. Brown
Not every day a skin cell is turned into viable egg!
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
September 30, 2025 at 6:16 PM
Not every day a skin cell is turned into viable egg!
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Reposted by Kristen V. Brown
Many thanks to @kristenvbrown.bsky.social for speaking to our community about "Communicating Science to the Masses" an important and relevant topic!
September 29, 2025 at 9:39 PM
Many thanks to @kristenvbrown.bsky.social for speaking to our community about "Communicating Science to the Masses" an important and relevant topic!
Apparently the pioneers of IVF had a ghostwriter write their memoir … and he embellished quite a bit. The book came out at a time IVF faced international scrutiny, and really leaned into the narrative of scientists on a quest to end suffering www.cam.ac.uk/stories/ivf-...
Famous IVF memoir had hidden ghostwriter who spun breakthrough into emotional quest, archives reveal
Research uncovers how a poet-physician turned the innovation in assisted reproduction into a moving story and amplified the women involved.
www.cam.ac.uk
September 24, 2025 at 1:44 PM
Apparently the pioneers of IVF had a ghostwriter write their memoir … and he embellished quite a bit. The book came out at a time IVF faced international scrutiny, and really leaned into the narrative of scientists on a quest to end suffering www.cam.ac.uk/stories/ivf-...
On an AA plane bound for Chicago, grounded for over an hour at LaGuardia. Stewardess tells me all flights are grounded due to a computer issue. Didn’t this happen to AA just a few months ago?
September 24, 2025 at 1:34 PM
On an AA plane bound for Chicago, grounded for over an hour at LaGuardia. Stewardess tells me all flights are grounded due to a computer issue. Didn’t this happen to AA just a few months ago?
Extremely relieved to find that I am still a Pisces, which is way too big a part of my personal identity
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
Your Zodiac Sign Is 2,000 Years Out of Date
Over millennia, our view of the stars has shifted, because of Earth’s wobble. It may be time to rethink your sign.
www.nytimes.com
September 8, 2025 at 1:23 PM
Extremely relieved to find that I am still a Pisces, which is way too big a part of my personal identity
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
My family went to the dentist in Mexico growing up, and honestly that was the best dentist I ever had
www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...
www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...
Mexico’s Molar City Could Transform My Smile. Did I Want It To?
More than a thousand dentists have set up shop in Los Algodones. Their patients are mostly Americans who can’t afford the U.S.’s dental care.
www.newyorker.com
July 29, 2025 at 2:21 PM
My family went to the dentist in Mexico growing up, and honestly that was the best dentist I ever had
www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...
www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...
Reposted by Kristen V. Brown
I recall the story of Dr. Thomas C. Rainbow, who in mid 1984 wrote an article for Isaac Asimov's magazine about how the current generation could live forever due to medical advancements expected in the next 20 years.
The December issue contained his obituary.
The December issue contained his obituary.
July 23, 2025 at 3:15 PM
I recall the story of Dr. Thomas C. Rainbow, who in mid 1984 wrote an article for Isaac Asimov's magazine about how the current generation could live forever due to medical advancements expected in the next 20 years.
The December issue contained his obituary.
The December issue contained his obituary.
"All of us are in a time and place where we will be immortal."
If immortality means reincarnation as AI, count me out!
@katie-drummond.bsky.social presses the (still mortal!) Bryan Johnson on his plans to live forever
www.wired.com/story/big-in...
If immortality means reincarnation as AI, count me out!
@katie-drummond.bsky.social presses the (still mortal!) Bryan Johnson on his plans to live forever
www.wired.com/story/big-in...
Bryan Johnson Is Going to Die
Millions of dollars in treatments, supplements, and scans. Immortality through AI. Bryan Johnson’s longevity script has everything—except an ending.
www.wired.com
July 23, 2025 at 3:08 PM
"All of us are in a time and place where we will be immortal."
If immortality means reincarnation as AI, count me out!
@katie-drummond.bsky.social presses the (still mortal!) Bryan Johnson on his plans to live forever
www.wired.com/story/big-in...
If immortality means reincarnation as AI, count me out!
@katie-drummond.bsky.social presses the (still mortal!) Bryan Johnson on his plans to live forever
www.wired.com/story/big-in...