How to Avoid a C-Section

In a March 2010 report by Amnesty International, the United States was ranked 41 in the world for maternal mortality. This means that mothers in the US have a higher risk of dying due to pregnancy and birth related causes than mothers in 40 other countries. Many of the deaths are related to the high number of C-Sections performed in the United States. Many of these C-sections are necessary, however studies show that the majority of these surgeries are unnecessary and with a little preparation and education C-sections can almost always be avoided.

C-sections are major abdominal surgeries that carry the same risks as other surgeries. These risks include infection, permanent scarring and problems with future fertility. Babies who are born by c-section have a higher risk of breathing problems, difficulty breastfeeding, and low apgar scores.

Choose the Right Doctor
When interviewing obstetricians or midwives, be sure to ask what percentage of their first time mothers deliver via c-sections. Ideally, c-sections should only be performed on about 10% of mothers.

Hire a Doula
According to DONA International, clinical studies show that having a doula present at birth greatly reduces the risk for all medical interventions, including c-sections. Doulas are trained to be advocates for the laboring mother and provide natural pain relief methods so that epidurals, which increase the chance of needing a c-section, can be avoided.

Avoid Induction
The International Cesarean Awareness Network (ICAN) warns that inducing labor doubles a mother's need to have a c-section. The reasons for this are complex but seem to stem from the fact that if a baby is not ready to be born and a cervix is not ready for birth, induction is ineffective and leaves a woman with a labor that is not progressing, thus the need for a cesarean section.

Avoid Pain Relief Medication during labor
Using pain relief such as epidurals or other anesthesia increases the risk for complications for both mother and baby. When these complications arise, a c-section may be necessary.

Take Measures to Stay Low Risk
Healthy mothers and babies are less likely to need a c-section. Stay healthy by eating a well balanced diet. Many natural chilbirth advocates recommend following the pregnancy diet created by Dr. Brewer. This information can be found at www.blueribbonbaby.org.

Question your doctor
If your doctor tells you that your baby is too big to birth vaginally, or that labor is stalled, ask if there are ways to be sure that a c-section is absolutely necessary. In late pregnancy, an ultrasound is not a reliable way to estimate the weight of an unborn baby and should not be used in determining whether or not a baby needs to be born by c-section. In the case of a stalled labor, there are natural measures that can be taken to get labor going again. Even if labor is stalled for hours, there is no harm in waiting for labor to begin again on it's own.

http://www.dona.org/mothers/why_use_a_doula.php
http://www.ican-online.org/pregnancy/induction-labor
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1481670/
http://www.childbirth.org/section/risks.html