A recent study of over 17,000 midwife led births found that "low-risk women, planned home births result in low rates of interventions without an increase in adverse (harmful) outcomes for mothers and babies" "At every step of the way, midwives are providing excellent care." "Of particular note is a cesarean rate of 5.2%, a remarkably low rate when compared to the U.S. national average of 31% for full-term pregnancies." (Southern NV hospitals have a C-section rate of 35-48%.)

Benefits of Home Birth

~a more positive empowering and bonding experience for the mother ~lower rates of infection for both mother and baby ~less unnecessary medical intervention ~a more one-on-one relationship with the care provider ~higher rates of breastfeeding success

Lower rates of interventions

Home birth mothers had much lower rates of interventions in labor. While some interventions are necessary for the safety and health of the mother or baby, many are overused, are lacking scientific evidence of benefit, and even carry their own risks. Cautious and judicious use of intervention results in healthier outcomes and easier recovery, and this is an area in which midwives excel. Women who planned a home birth had fewer episiotomies, pitocin for labor augmentation, and epidurals.

Born Healthy: 1% require transports

Most importantly, their babies were born healthy and safe. Ninety-seven percent of babies were carried to full-term, they weighed an average of eight pounds at birth, and nearly 98% were being breastfed at the six-week postpartum visit with their midwife. Only 1% of babies required transfer to the hospital after birth, most for non-urgent conditions. Babies born to low-risk mothers had no higher risk of death in labor or the first few weeks of life than those in comparable studies.

Among low-risk births, outcomes were essentially comparable between planned home births assisted by midwives or physicians, and hospital births. The slight differences in outcome were not in hospitals’ favor, either: babies born in hospitals were slightly more likely to require resuscitation, oxygen therapy or hospitalization after birth.

Possible Emergencies

“There’s no denying it. Some emergencies can be deadly in the absence of immediate hospital care. Cord prolapse is one of these. Abruptio placenta may be another. But these complications are very unlikely to happen. Best estimates are that cord prolapse and abruptio placenta each occurs in about 1 in 10,000 home births.

C-Sect Potentially lead to Disorders

Tamas Horvath, chairman of the Department of Comparative Medicine at Yale University School of Medicine, has discovered that “a key protein related to brain development in newborns is activated during natural childbirth, but impaired in Caesarean section births.” (Crib note: Impaired is the key word in that sentence.)