Latest news with #Boddy
South Wales Argus
2 days ago
- South Wales Argus
Newport drug dealer caught after his gran called police
Ethan Boddy was carrying around £900 worth of heroin and crack cocaine when officers arrested him in Newport last Christmas, the city's crown court heard. His gran had called them because he was 'causing a disturbance' in her home where he had been living on the sofa for the past six months. The defendant, who was 19 at the time, had damaged a door at the property on Monday, December 30 last year. Daniel Jones, prosecuting, said police found an iPhone on Boddy with drug-related messages such as one promising his customers: 'Anything you need.' The defendant, now aged 20, of Swallow Way, Duffryn, Newport admitted possession with intent to supply heroin, possession with intent to supply crack cocaine, criminal damage and failing to surrender to court last month. For that offence, Boddy had been remanded in custody since last Friday when he was brought before Judge Celia Hughes after being arrested. His barrister Hilary Roberts said of that experience: 'He's devastated at being inside. Emotionally, he's in pieces.' He added: 'The defendant has entered guilty pleas, he has no previous convictions whatsoever and he was only 19 at the time. 'His cognitive development is described as being immature and he tells me he's ashamed of what he did. 'He says he wasn't coerced but there was some pressure. 'I would ask that he be given one final chance.' The unemployed Boddy had been smoking cannabis since the age of 12, the court heard, and had endured 'adverse childhood experiences'. Judge Hughes told the defendant: 'The police were called to your grandmother's home where you had been living on the sofa for six months. 'There was an argument and it's said that you threatened her. 'She had called the police because she'd had enough of your behaviour and you were arrested nearby.' The judge added: 'You were attracted by the money you could earn and you went into this with your eyes wide open.' She sent Boddy to a young offender institution for 21 months but suspended the sentence for two years. The defendant must carry out 150 hours of unpaid work and complete a 15-day rehabilitation activity requirement. Before he left the dock, Judge Hughes said to him: 'I hope we won't ever see you in court again.' Boddy replied: 'Thank you judge.'
Axios
09-05-2025
- Health
- Axios
The science behind the mom-baby bond
Emerging research shows that babies' DNA stays with their mothers decades after birth. Why it matters: We've shared stories about the deep, powerful bond between parents and their babies since the beginning of human history. New science tells us this connection could be rooted in biology. The big picture: Starting as early as six weeks into pregnancy, some fetal cells migrate to a mother's body, and could stay there for a lifetime. That's according to Amy Boddy, an associate professor at UC Santa Barbara who studies microchimerism — when "a small amount of genetically different cells or DNA is in someone's body," as she explains it. Zoom in: Those fetal cells work like stem cells that specialize in whatever tissue they land in, Boddy tells Axios. For example, fetal cells could become a mother's heart cells that help pump blood through her body. And some of the mother's cells transfer to the baby. The intrigue: Because of fetal microchimerism, researchers "have found grandmother cells in the cord blood of babies, suggesting this longer, deeper generational transfer," Boddy tells Axios. Even after miscarriage, fetal cells can remain. For women who experience pregnancy loss, "it's not just in their head that they're forever changed by that pregnancy," Boddy says. "Those cells may exist and influence their biology." Zoom out: Scientists still don't fully understand why fetal microchimerism occurs, but we do know that… Fetal cells could lead to both autoimmune benefits and concerns for the mother. And the presence of fetal cells in blood has made noninvasive prenatal genetic tests possible. Breastfeeding is another source of biological mother-baby connection. It's not just that a baby's suck spurs a mom's milk production — there's also "flow back into the nipple, as well," Boddy says. If a baby has an infection, a mother's body could respond by producing specialized immune cells in milk to fight it. And Boddy's research has found that nursing mothers have immune profiles different from those of non-breastfeeding people — though we don't yet know exactly how. Carly's thought bubble: Beyond science, I've also turned to cinema to articulate how enmeshed I feel with my nine-month-old. At my lowest, I joke about how being a breastfeeding mother is like giving my kid my life force and beauty, akin to the gory thriller "The Substance." But often I think about my connection with my son in terms of "E.T.": He's my big-eyed baby alien, and I'm the human Elliot who feels his pain and never wants him to leave.
