Fertile Bonds

"Provides rich new ethnographic material on a little-known population, the Bedouin of the Bekaa Valley in Lebanon. It positions such marginal populations in the broader theoretical context of modernization and health and demographic transitions."--Allan G. Hill, Harvard University With an average of over nine children per family, older cohorts of Bedouin in the Bekaa Valley of Lebanon have one of the highest fertility rates in the world. Many married couples in this pastoral community are close relatives--a socially advantageous practice that reflects the deep value Bedouins place on kinship. To outsiders, such family norms can seem disturbing, even premodern. They attract assumptions of Arab "backwardness," poverty, and sexism. Remarkably, Fertile Bonds flips these stereotypes. Anthropological demographer Suzanne Joseph shows that in this particular group, prolific birth rates coincide with moderate death rates and high levels of nutrition. Despite broader class differences between Bedouins and peasants, members of Bekaa Bedouin society rely heavily on kinship ties, sharing, and reciprocity and experience a high degree of social and demographic equality. This story, unfamiliar to many, is one that is fading as traditional nomadic livelihoods give way to encapsulation within the state. With the help of this surprising, nuanced study--one of the first of its kind in the Middle East--knowledge of such marginalized pastoral groups will not vanish with the disappearance of their way of life. Joseph’s book expands our understanding of peoples far removed from consolidated government control and provides a broad analytical lens through which to examine demographic divides across the globe. .

In this powerful book, Elizabeth Bartholet attempts to make sense of the worlds of adoption and fertility treatment by combining a moving personal narrative with compelling policy analysis. Family Bonds is conveniently available at a time when more children than ever are waiting to be adopted and when infertility treatment is becoming an increasingly popular, sophisticated, and expensive technology.

Fertility, Pregnancy, and Wellness is designed to bridge science and a more holistic approach to health and wellness, in particular, dealing with female-male fertility and the gestational process. Couples seeking to solve fertility issues for different reasons, whether failed assisted reproductive techniques or the emotional impact they entail, economic or moral reasons, are demanding more natural ways of improving fertility. This book explores the shift in paradigm from just using medications which, in the reproductive field, can be very expensive and not accessible to the entire population, to using lifestyle modifications and emotional support as adjunctive medicine therapies. This must-have reference brings together the current knowledge – highlighting the gaps – and delivers an important resource for various specialists and practitioners. Offers insights from scientific and holistic methods, providing the available scientific evidence for (or against) different holistic approaches, aimed at improving fertility, health and wellness Bridges the more ‘peripheral’, yet critical and multidisciplinary, considearations in fertility, infertility, pregnancy and wellness Includes clear, concise and meaningful summary conclusion sections within each chapter

Despite recent advances in our understanding of the genetic basis of human behavior, little of this work has penetrated into formal demography. Very few demographers worry about how biological processes might affect voluntary behavior choices that have demographic consequences even though behavioral geneticists have documented genetics effects on variables such as parenting and divorce. Offspring: Human Fertility Behavior in Demographic Perspective brings together leading researchers from a wide variety of disciplines to review the state of research in this emerging field and to identify promising research directions for the future.

In the 1920s, a tremendous land boom gripped Florida, and waves of people descended upon the Sunshine State. Between just 1923and 1925 an estimated 300,000 people came to permanently settle in the state, and over a dozen new counties were created in this single decade. Fueled by postwar prosperity, tourists and new residents poured money into the state's economy and dramatically increased the demand for land, homes, hotels, industry, recreation, commerce, and services. At the height of the boom, when many believed that the bubble had to burst, there came news that a new resort city was under development on the Gulf Coast below Sarasota, and all eyes turned to Venice. Over the decades since its creation, Venice, with its balmy climate, unlimited boating and fishing, and pristine mainland beach, has grown to be a Mecca for thousands of tourists, snowbirds, and retirees. Carved out of a tropical wilderness by America's oldest and wealthiest union, the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers, Venice was made into a Gulf Coast oasis with Spanish-style architecture, beautiful landscaping, and a friendly network of tree-lined streets and boulevards. Visual documentation of this early era has captured a city in its infancy and a valuable piece of Venice's heritage.

Interest in lipid metabolism and polyunsaturated fatty acids in relation to sperm production has increased during the last decade. The motivation for the research described in this book originates from the discovery that sperm lipids contain extremely high proportions of long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids, thus establishing a link between lipid biochemistry and male fertility. Moreover, the fact that polyunsaturated fatty acids must, in some form, be supplied in the diet suggests a relationship between fertility and nutrition and raises the possibility of improving male fertility by dietary means. This book gives the reader an up-to-date view of several aspects of male fertility in relation to lipid and fatty acid metabolism. Researchers in the domain of male fertility, fatty acid metabolism, and antioxidants; medical personnel involved in the treatment of male infertility; fat technologists; students in nutrition, dietetics, biochemistry, pharmacy, and medicine; and everybody interested in the field will find this book useful.