Veggies boost for pregnant women

LONDON - Pregnant women are to be offered a £120 ($350) "fruit and veg" grant to improve the nutrition of unborn babies. By 2009, pregnant women will receive the one-off payment at seven months, along with nutritional advice.

The grant is intended to raise birth weights in poor areas, but the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats complained that it would be a waste of taxpayers' money and help should be targeted at those in need.

One in 12 English and Welsh babies is born underweight, sometimes because their growth has been retarded by a lack of nutrients.

- Independent