Go forth and multiply

Britain is experiencing a dramatic slump in fertility. Sperm counts are falling; IVF clinics have queues round the block; and our chances of conceiving are being wrecked by drink, cigarettes and junk food. But all is not lost. Ian Sample weighs up the latest scientific evidence on how to get in shape for parenthood.

Is it all right to sunbathe when you’re pregnant?

Laura Barton: Sunbathing is foolish for anyone. For pregnant women, who have a higher body temperature, it is perhaps a smidgen more foolish: the sun will increase the core temperature of the mother, which will in turn increase the temperature of the foetus.

Just one more push!

Fifty years ago this week, a young mother called Prunella Briance placed an ad in the Times calling for help to set up a 'natural childbirth association'. The National Childbirth Trust was born, and has been campaigning to empower women in the delivery room ever since. Joanna Moorhead interviews six women to see how far we've come.

Autistic couple bound to each other – and their art

Gilles Tréhin spends his days working on a project he loves, in the flat he shares with Catherine, his girlfriend. Nothing unusual there - except that both Gilles and Catherine are autistic. By Charlotte Moore