Expecting Better: Why the Conventional Pregnancy Wisdom Is Wrong–and What You Really Need to Know (The ParentData Series)

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.

From the Publisher

Add to Cart

Add to Cart

Add to Cart

Add to Cart

Customer Reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars 11,249

4.6 out of 5 stars 6,518

4.5 out of 5 stars 660

4.2 out of 5 stars 59

Price

$9.69$9.69 $11.54$11.54 $9.99$9.99 $14.09$14.09

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