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"When you have a baby, will you have an epidural? I can tell you, that with my first pregnancy, I felt so guilty about it--like pain relief was wimping out, or something. Ridiculous! Here&amp;#x27;s why you shouldn&amp;#x27;t feel bad epidurals, and the good news from researchers about the hidden health benefit of getting that shot ... According to a recent British study of 400 women, getting an epidural during labor means more than effective pain relief--it may also benefit your health in the long run. The researchers found that epidurals might protect certain muscles from childbirth-related trauma, cutting the risk of incontinence later in life. As you may know, many women suffer from incontinence (that would be trouble controlling bladder function) after childbirth. The condition can be isolating, embarrassing and depressing. I have to say, I love this news. Sure, it doesn&amp;#x27;t mean that having a &amp;quot;natural&amp;quot; birth is riskier, it&amp;#x27;s just nice knowing that if you&amp;#x27;re planing on having an epidural, you may be getting some built-in health benefits, too. Tell me your thoughts on epidurals vs. &amp;quot;natural&amp;quot; births? I&amp;#x27;m pregnant with my third baby--due in February--and I&amp;#x27;d love to discuss! P.S. I plan to get an epidural. More reading: *The ginger candy that works miracles on nausea ... *Pregnancy and fitness: Why I&amp;#x27;m going to run during this pregnancy--up until the very end! *New study: More women say they&amp;#x27;re not sure if they&amp;#x27;ll have kids--how about you? More Ways to Get Glamour Visit Shopglamour.com for cute stuff starting at just $10! Enter the latest Glamour sweepstakes! Follow us on Twitter Add us to your iGoogle homepage Photo: istock"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.glamour.com/health-fitness/blogs/vitamin-g/2010/09/pregnancy-news-dont-feel-guilt>