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Pottery And Pregnancy


dom

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Hi all,

 

I just found out I am pregnant. It is too early to make it an official announcement (please no congratulations, there are still a few weeks to go until we can safely start celebrating). I am quite superstitious, and I thought I would turn to this forum as a 'safe' place, instead of telling my ceramics teacher in person for now. I know some of you will understand.

 

Are there any products I should avoid using in the coming months while in the studio?

I am a hobby potter, I work at the studio about 8 hrs on Saturdays as well as a few hours here and there on evenings during the week.

 

I like to work with Black Mountain, which I read contains manganese that can be toxic, and I love to get my hands in the clay buckets as well as working with oxides.

(Some of the glazes we use are Shino, Malcolm Davis Shino, Chun glazes, Celadons, Oribe, Temmoku, Eggshell, Majolica etc…) Any specific ingredient I should be looking for in glazes and rule them out?

 

The kilns (gas reduction) are often firing while we are working. We work in a large outdoor shed that is open on one end, and has lot of space between the walls and the roofing. It is not an enclosed space. Could fumes be an issue? 

 

I don't throw, I mostly work standing up, so I don't feel too concerned about posture at the wheel or that kind of thing. Although any tips would be welcome.

 

I will absolutely change the way I work if I need to.

 

I am probably being over cautious, but I thought it would be prudent to ask.

 

I was not able to find any information online that was easy for me to comprehend, so I was wondering if there were some women on the board with this experience who could give me pragmatic tips.

 

Thanks,

 

Domitille

 

 

 

 

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Guest JBaymore

My recs..................

 

Take the MSDS-s and any other technical references on ALL of the materials that you use with you and talk to your OB-GYN person about what you do, where you work, and how you work. 

 

Get a copy of the book "Artist Beware" by Dr. Michael McCann also and read it.

 

Everything I have ever read or been told by specialists is that it is something that needs to be VERY carefully considered.

 

Asking for what constitutes medical advice from a bunch of non-medical people, no matter how well meaning, is probably not the "definitive resource" for such an important subject.

 

While I teach about this ceramic toxicology stuff at the college level.... I straight out tell the students (and it is printed in  handouts) that they should talk to a physician....often an occupational health specialist. ....  for "the real deal".

 

My $0.02 worth.

 

best,

 

.......................john

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Hi John,

 

Thank you for your sound advice and the book recommendation.

 

Be assured that I don't see this thread as a place where I would get definitive medical advice, but rather a place where people with practical experience could give me pointers about what I need to discuss with a doctor. 

My physician admittedly doesn't know about risks associated with pottery, as for my OBGYN, she doesn't want to hear about me until at least 6-8 weeks from now… Hence my turning to this forum to start my research.

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We had a similar thread a month or two ago which offered some good suggestions. John's suggestion on the MSDS is a good one.

 

I'm recently pregnant as well (just past first trimester) and just in the process of getting my studio back up and running. 

 

I work mainly with porcelain and stoneware and don't plan on taking any extra precautions with throwing/trimming, but YMMV if you work with a clay body you know contains something toxic. 

 

On glazes, some chemicals I just don't have in my studio at all due to the toxicity. For the rest, I'll be using a respirator and gloves when working with any raw chemicals and gloves when glazing. I think this is probably best practice anyway, but I know many who don't do it... You'll need to go through the glaze components in the glazes you're using and check for anything that may be of special concern.

 

I would probably be most worried about fumes while firing. Can you adjust your schedule so that you're not there when the kilns are firing? 

 

FWIW, depending on what chemicals your studio mates  are using, I'm honestly not sure I'd work in a community studio while pregnant. I spent many, many years working in a lab and feel comfortable with my ability to handle most chemicals safely. If something is used in my studio, I know what it is and how it was handled. After seeing how safe chemical handling is approached at some of our local community studios, it gives me pause.

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Thanks tb001,

 

I'll dig up that thread, I somehow missed it earlier.

 

You raise a very good point about the community studio… Some people bring their own supplies, so there is no way of knowing exactly what is being handled there.

I would consider taking a break from pottery for the time being. Or I could work in my garage with just clay for a few months and take everything to be fired and glazed at the end of the year. 

 

My first step will be collecting MSDS then, and discussing them with a specialist.

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Until you get all of your research done I would wear some disposable latex gloves when working with the Black Mountain, oxides or glazes.  You should be wearing gloves already working with the oxides and glazes.  I once took off my gloves because I couldn't get the oxide in a certain area of a sculpture, I thought they were in the way.  About a hour later I had a neurological reaction to it,  my mouth went numb, the copper carbonate had leached into my system so be careful.   Denice

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DigitalFire.com has a whole section of their website devoted to the hazards of different materials used for ceramics. You could look up each of the materials you come in contact with to find out whether it's potentially toxic and get an idea of what the risks are. DigitalFire also has a page specifically about pregnancy and ceramics which can be found here: http://digitalfire.com/4sight/hazards/ceramic_hazard_pregnancy_365.html. Hope this info is useful for you.

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DigitalFire.com has a whole section of their website devoted to the hazards of different materials used for ceramics. You could look up each of the materials you come in contact with to find out whether it's potentially toxic and get an idea of what the risks are. DigitalFire also has a page specifically about pregnancy and ceramics which can be found here: http://digitalfire.com/4sight/hazards/ceramic_hazard_pregnancy_365.html. Hope this info is useful for you.

Thanks for posting--this is very helpful!

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I did stumble upon that page on DigitalFire but was having trouble understanding it, or how I should practically apply that information to my work. 

 

I am surprised to learn I should routinely be using gloves when handling glazes and oxides! Nobody at the studio does it, nor do the instructors recommend it...

 

I see on other message boards that some teachers do not let pregnant students in their studio, while others let them do almost everything…  :wacko:

 

Thank you for your answers and links. Keep them coming!

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Guest JBaymore

Our college's policy is to do exactly what I mentioned........ see you own medical pros.  All we say is that working in the studio is generally not recommended for pregnant women, but that the decision needs to be done between the person and their care givers.

 

best,

 

.......................john

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As someone who did pot whilst pregnant:

The important stuff has been said about chemicals and fumes.

Be very very aware that you can injure your SI joint (the connection between hips and spine) doing something you would normally do without any problem. You may not even be aware you've done something initially. Ask me how I know this :$.

Lifting and twisting (separately) need to be done with a lot of caution, and should not be done together at all, even for small weights. Packing a full box of clay isn't a good plan; try and do it half a box at a time, and lift with your legs, even now.

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