We are excited today to share a guest post from Jennifer Margulis, PhD. An investigative journalist, activist for children and mother of four, she has gained increased recognition recently for her eye-opening new book, The Business of Baby. (The Business of Baby is now titled, Your Baby, Your Way.)
When Taylor Hengen Newman had her baby at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City four years ago she had just a few minutes with him, skin-to-skin, as she had requested, and then he was taken out of her arms to be examined by a pediatrician, weighed, have a PKU heel prick, and warm up in an incubator. The obstetrician instructed her to push harder to deliver the placenta.
Taylor and her husband then held their baby for about twenty minutes until he was whisked away by the hospital staff.
An hour went by.
Then two.
A nurse came in to say the baby had fluid in his lungs and was under observation but no doctor came to talk to the worried young couple about what, if anything, was wrong. To her knowledge, her son was not taken to the NICU. Though Taylor kept asking for her baby she did not see him again for almost five hours.
“I couldn’t find a nurse to bring me a glass of water, let alone a lactation consultant. And I had no idea where my baby was,” Taylor remembers. “I felt so disoriented. And when he was brought back to me, bathed and smelling different, I wasn’t even sure he was mine.”
When my baby girl, who was born at Crawford Long Hospital in Atlanta, Georgia, was taken out of my arms I felt like someone had cut off my arm. I ached for her in a primal way I had never felt before. Every cell in my body wanted my baby in my arms, on my chest, by my side. We had spent the past nine months inseparable. Not every mom bonds right away with their baby. I wasn’t even sure how I felt about the funny-looking creature with the skinny frog legs and sticky outy ears. But I needed her with me as urgently as I needed to breathe.
That was 14 years ago. It still hurts to think about the time we spent apart because of hospital protocol.
Although every hospital follows a different protocol, in most American hospitals it is standard procedure to separate the mom and the baby just minutes after birth, wash the baby with some kind of commercial soap, and take the newborn out of the room to a nursery for observation. American babies also routinely have their umbilical cords clamped just seconds after birth, are given antibiotic ointment for their eyes to protect against venereal disease, have a vitamin K shot in their thigh to avoid blood clotting disorders, and are given a hepatitis B vaccine. Though the numbers are declining, the majority of American baby boys are also circumcised within a day of being born.
Does a newborn baby really need so much medical intervention in the first few hours of her life?
Should a healthy newborn be separated from her mother, the way it is routinely done in many American hospitals?
The short answer to these two questions is no. A healthy newborn needs no medical intervention in the first few hours of life. And in the absence of a real medical emergency, the safest, healthiest, best place for a baby to be is in your arms.
Babies needs skin-to-skin: More than half a dozen studies show that the outcome for mother-baby bonding and an infant’s health is better when a mother and a baby are not separated. Dozens more nonhuman mammal studies show that early, uninterrupted contact stimulates oxytocin and other hormones, which enhance nurturing and protective feelings. Nils Bergman, M.D., who has conducted several studies on infant sleep and maternal-infant bonding, points out that animal researchers separate newborn mammals from their mothers to study the damage separation causes on the developing newborn brain. Early uninterrupted skin-to-skin contact has been shown to reduce crying, improve bonding, keep the baby warm, and facilitate breastfeeding.
It turns out that when Taylor wanted her infant in her arms was not just Taylor’s whim, it was nature’s way of insuring her baby’s survival. When Bergman was working as a mission doctor in a rural hospital in Zimbabwe, Bergman found that the survival rate of low-weight premature infants jumped from only 10 percent to 50 percent when mothers were instructed to carry them skin-to-skin in pouches on their fronts. Survival rates for bigger babies jumped to 90 percent. That experience changed Bergman’s understanding of what human infants needed after they were born. “I realized that I was seeing the real biology of Homo sapiens at work, and that what I had learned at medical school was a result of modern culture equipped with amazing technology, but no understanding of human biology,” Bergman told me when I interviewed him for my book.
Do babies need antibiotic eye ointment?: The practice of putting silver nitrate in a baby’s eyes, which became popular in the late 19th century as a way to stop babies from going blind due to infection from gonorrhea, was discontinued after silver nitrate was found to be highly irritating, cause chemical pinkeye, and even cause blindness with incorrect dosing. Using antibiotic ointment in the form of a cream or medicated eye drops is a hold-over from that practice: the idea being that it will protect a baby from chlamydia or gonorrhea or other contamination from the mother’s vagina.
The use of this ointment is recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics and mandated by law in many states. But if you have had proper prenatal care, you have been tested for any potentially contagious STDs. If you have had a C-section and your baby’s eyes have not come into contact with your vaginal canal, there is no proven way for your baby to contract an STD from you. As mentioned above, there is a growing body of evidence that shows that the vaginal and even fecal flora that your baby is exposed to during birth is crucial to the long-term health of his immune system.
The antibiotic ointment not only irritates a baby’s sensitive eyes, it also makes it harder for your nearsighted baby to see you in those crucial moments after birth when you and he are hormonally primed to gaze at each other and bond. In countries that have dramatically lower infant mortality rates and dramatically healthier babies in the first five years of life, including Norway, Sweden, and Great Britain, medicated eye drops are not routinely given to infants.
Babies don’t need the Hepatitis B vaccine: The CDC’s recommendation that every newborn in America get a Hepatitis B shot, regardless of whether his parents have Hepatitis B, is one of the most unfortunate medical mistakes of our time. Hepatitis B is a sexually transmitted disease. Heather Zwickey, Ph.D., a former vaccine developer who earned her doctorate in immunology and microbiology from the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, did a postdoc at Yale University, and is now Dean of Research and Graduate Studies at The National College of Natural Medicine, explains that a newborn’s immune system can’t mount an effective response to diseases or vaccines because it is protecting the baby’s brain, which would be damaged by a full-fledged immune reaction the way an adult would react to a virus or bacteria.
So newborns rely on their mother’s antibodies, which they get in breast milk, to give them the immune cells and proteins needed to combat infections. Until an infant’s brain is more developed probably between nine and twelve months old he will only have a mild, general immune response (the scientific name for this is a TH2 response), the sort we associate with allergies, but which doesn’t tailor any of the special white blood cells (called TH1 cells) to respond to a specific bacterium or virus.
A baby’s short-lived and immature immune response is the reason we give so many doses of vaccines in the first few months of life. Vaccines given before twelve months of age must be repeated at or after twelve months, according to Zwickey, because the immune system is not able to really learn anything from doses given before then. In nursing school, Michele Pereira’s instructors informed students that from an immunological standpoint it would be better to give vaccines to children when they are a bit older.
But since parents less reliably bring children over a year old to the pediatrician, the best way for public health officials to ensure high levels of vaccinated children is to vaccinate them as early as possible. Zwickey believes early vaccination makes sense from a public health perspective but is not immunologically optimal. It is only after about twelve months that the immune system is sufficiently mature to have a memory. That is, a baby can develop antibodies in response to a vaccine, and these antibodies will stay in the bloodstream without needing booster after booster.
Everyone who studies human immunology knows that the TH1 response doesn’t come up until the end of the first year of a human baby’s life, Zwickey told me matter- of-factly when I interviewed her.
The birth dose of the Hepatitis B vaccine is completely unnecessary for the vast majority of newborns born in the United States. Your baby is not going to be engaging in intravenous drug use or unsafe sex and the chance of getting Hep B from a tainted blood transfusion in America is very low. But the birth dose of the Hep B vaccine is potentially very damaging. The immune system can sometimes mistakenly identify the body’s own cells as foreign, causing the body to attack itself. When the body inappropriately attacks its own proteins, a child develops an autoimmune disorder.
There has been an exponential rise in autoimmune disorders among children since the 1950s. One study found that cases of type 1 diabetes among children under five increased fivefold between 1985 and 2004. Graves’ disease, once unheard of in children, is becoming common. Other autoimmune disorders on the rise in American children include asthma, allergies, Crohn’s disease, and atopic dermatitis. One 2008 epidemiological study found that infant immunization leads to a statistically significant increase in type 1 diabetes in children.
Babies should not be bathed: We know from research published in Cellular and Molecular Life Sciences that the white creamy substance infants are born with (vernix caseosa) contains powerful proteins that have both antibacterial and antifungal properties. These proteins, researchers have found, contribute to an infant’s healthy immune system by protecting the fetus and the newborn against infection.
As I’ve already mentioned, recent research has also found that as the baby journeys through the mother’s vaginal canal, he is inoculated with beneficial bacteria that will boost his immune system (babies born via C-section are colonized mostly by bacteria found in the hospital, a disturbing finding that scientists still aren’t sure how to interpret). What all this means is that when the nurses scrub your infant, they deprive him of the beneficial microorganisms and substances on his skin. The natural smell of a baby has further been found to stimulate the pleasure centers of the brain. Bathing a newborn interferes with bonding and with a human’s need to smell her baby. A baby bath can also chill an infant whose ability to regulate body temperature is still immature, according to Susan Markel, M.D., a Connecticut-based pediatrician who has been practicing for over 30 years.
And then there’s the soap itself. When the Safe Cosmetics Action Network tested a variety of brand name baby soaps five years ago they found that several contained 1,4-dioxane, a carcinogenic by-product that has been shown to cause cancerous tumors in over a dozen animal studies and has been banned in Europe. Consumers will not find the ingredient 1,4-dioxane listed on the bottle. Instead they will see “PEGs.” PEGs are made from polyethylene glycol, a petroleum-based compound that is often contaminated during the manufacturing process with 1,4-dioxine and ethylene oxide, another known carcinogen.
Johnson & Johnson’s Head-to-Toe Baby Wash, the soap used to wash newborns in most hospitals, contains PEG-80 and PEG-150 Distearate. Advertised as gentle enough even for newborns, dermatologist-tested, and #1 hospital recommended, Head-to-Toe Baby Wash also contains Quaternium-15, a chemical preservative that kills bacteria by releasing formaldehyde, another known carcinogen. Formaldehyde is the chemical used to embalm dead bodies to keep them from decaying. Johnson & Johnson changed their baby formula for the European market and parts of Asia virtually overnight. They also publicly committed to stop selling baby products with Quaternium-15 in the United States. But they haven’t.
When Taylor Hengen Newman became pregnant for the second time, she and her husband chose a home birth attended by midwives. By then her family had moved to Austin, Texas. The midwife handed the baby to Taylor right away. Taylor pushed out the placenta while her son cuddled on her chest. The midwife conducted the newborn exam so gently and quietly that it did not disrupt their bonding. Afterwards she rubbed Taylor’s feet with lavender oil. Otto was not given eye ointment or a Hepatitis B vaccine. He did not have a bath. They waited more than an hour to cut the cord, which they did just before Taylor got up to take a shower. This time they chose not to circumcise. Taylor’s doulas (she had two at the birth) brought her a smoothie and her husband a sandwich. Big brother Kaspar came in to see his new baby. The next day her midwife came back and gave Otto a Vitamin K shot since Taylor had been on blood thinners during the pregnancy.
It all completely clicked that this was just a completely different way of caring for people, delivering babies, Taylor says. I wish medical care of all kinds could emulate this model.
This article is adapted from The Business of Baby: What Doctors Don’t Tell You, What Corporations Try to Sell You, and How to Put Your Pregnancy, Childbirth, and Baby BEFORE Their Bottom Line. An extended discussion of after birth practices and relevant references for the article can be found in the book.
Jennifer Margulis, Ph.D., is an award-winning science writer, book author, and sought-after speaker. A Fulbright grantee, she has worked on a child survival campaign in West Africa, appeared live on prime-time TV in France to champion an end to child slavery, and taught postmodern literature to non-traditional students in inner city Atlanta. She is the co-author, with Paul Thomas, MD, of The Addiction Spectrum: A Compassionate, Holistic Approach to Recovery (HarperOne, 2018), as well as of the bestseller, The Vaccine-Friendly Plan (Ballantine, 2016). Her book, Your Baby, Your Way: Taking Charge of Your Pregnancy, Childbirth, and Parenting Decisions for a Happier, Healthier Family (Scribner, 2015), has been called a “must-read for new parents,” by midwife and author Ina May Gaskin. Dr. Margulis lives with her family in Southern Oregon. Sign up for her mailing list and learn more about her at www.JenniferMargulis.net.
Beautifully written.
But please know that vitamin k is an important shot for all babies. I wanted to avoid this intervention for my baby girl and thought I had informed myself on its need. I had an easy unmedicated birth, was a low risk mother, she was not being circumsized (obviously). I declined the vitamin k and two and a half weeks later my baby girl was in the pediatric ICU with newborn hemorrhagic disease. If a parent chooses to decline vitamin k, please at least be very familiar with the signs of NHD. She bled from her umbilical site, had small bruises, and then would not clot from her two week heel stick. We were fortunate to avoid a brain bleed. Her clotting time was over ten times greater than normal.
It is wrong to advise that vitamin k is only appropriate in special cases. It is a rare complication because most babies receive it, but is becoming more common as more parents decline it. We tried to avoid medical intervention, but got a stay in ICU, multiple blood draws, an iv, and couldn’t breastfeed for a due to risk of emergency surgery (brain surgery).
Thank you for your article! I agree with everything else you said!
Vitamin K is vital for all babies. The shot is not. 🙂
The mama can make sure she augments Vit K and probiotics (gut flora make Vit K in adult large intestines) to ensure that Baby gets plenty from her, or if mom is really worried, she can give an oral dose. The shot is extremely unnatural– both in its formulation and its administration (and its high dose). Vit K injections need not be given to every baby– and recognizing early warning signs is a great way to determine which babies do need it.
Sorry, no, but Vitamin K is not well-transmitted through breast milk. Hemorrhagic disease of the newborn can be deadly. The “early warning sign” could be a devastating brain bleed.
http://dig.pharm.uic.edu/faq/2011/dec/faq1.aspx
Also, I think it’s horrifying that a woman on blood thinners did a home birth. That is not a low risk situation, and someone on blood thinners should be risked out of home birth.
Vitamin K given to a newborn will not do anything to counteract any effects of blood thinners given to a mother- they work on different parts of the clotting cascade.
I teach people how to listen to the newborn baby, and I support women to share their story and to feel heard so she can reconnect with their baby after birth and to integrate what happened to each of them.
Protocols and people and their interventions are disruptive to the mother-baby connection along the continuum of labor and birth and first hours of life that are biologically meant for reconnecting outside the womb. (attachment). Most of what is done to the baby is medically not necessary – per the medical system’s own research but is done because of rituals and poor learning in medical and nursing school. At home births, even midwives can disrupt the mother-baby. Without the big interventions, we can see the disruption of the mother-baby by the personality, agenda, and emotions of the caregiver. The rough handling is not necessary when the placenta is allowed to complete it’s physiological process of supporting baby through transition. Hats disrupt the mother-baby bonding and are NOT necessary. Doing to the baby, telling her this and that .. removing the baby from the mother is physiologically devastating to the baby physiologically and emotionally, and yes, humans are resilent and we have great capabilities to overcome disruptions of this profound, critical development. Anything less than minimal touch, talk, and intervention is damaging.
With that said, when the caregiver and parents know who the human baby is .. how sentient and responsive, and is LEARNING from the experiences of labor, birth, and post birth…. the human baby brain is wiring up what happens. And, regardless of what happens and what the baby needs medically, the CAREGIVERS can be conscious of their impact on the baby.
I teach people how to be present with the newborn baby – how to listen to the baby’s communication. The newborn baby can understand and respond. So, AT BIRTH, a caregiver and mother, can work together, the mother leading, to provide whatever care the baby needs, in a way that honors the baby’s learning. The baby when told what is needed and why, and is in mother’s arms, and mother’s body – heart, breathing, eye contact, skin contact – regulating babies, SHE can know when baby is ready. This requires slowing down … way down .. to the baby’s pace. NOT THE DOCTOR’S or midwife’s pace.
This can be done, and is really a matter of being a humane human and treating a newborn baby as precious, as learning, and physiologically and emotionally has having the primary need of CONNECTION WITH MOTHER. Your goal of “baby is alive” has a parallel and equal goal: “maintain mama-baby connection”.
SO, this is about honoring the mother as knowing – in her body making that baby – what the baby needs. When a woman is seen and honored this way in relationship to her baby … SHE will be able to connect with her baby and know whether or not right this moment is the right moment to do anything to baby. From induction to Vit K shot. The shots and bathing and measuring are profoundly detrimental during the bonding time… first hours of life where things are happening that will never be there again. If it is life saving measure, the caregiver must still be the one to provide the care knowing the disruption they are also doing, and be willing to hold that in their heart, knowing it, honoring, and later repairing it … acknowledging and saying, I’m sorry. But even in an emergency, there is still time to take a breath and slow the pace of delivery of the intervention to allow the baby to respond and take it in. If you don’t, it is extremely damaging. A shot to the baby — of anything, needed or lifsaving or not — is painful, shocking, and separates their consciousness from their mother. She is vulnerable in that space and the not being able to protect her baby is both a guilt for her and a broken trust with her baby. It imprints many things, including a trust issue.
I would challenge you PrimaryCareDoc to consider the neuroscience around attachment, the fetal programming, and newborn research … and see that you are there to serve the preservation of the mama-baby connection. This is a core need in creating relationship and in creating peaceful world. If you are not doing that, you are doing the opposite.
http://www.theothersideoftheglass.com
I agree with you, although America and Canada are the only countries given it with a shot. My oldest 4 were born in Holland where K is given orally. The babies that were born in Canada have also had it orally. Same ampul, different way of giving it.
You can request an oral Vitamin K in the hospital, I did. They did not give me a problem.
I would like to add to what Monica said. Although some infants can be fine if they don’t receive a Vitamin K shot, others are at risk of brain bleeds, gastrointestinal bleeding, and even death. To say that it is simply a matter of recognizing early warning signs is horribly irresponsible. The clotting disorder that results can present as late as 2 months, and can be very hard for parents to detect.
The oral dose of Vitamin K would only be effective in these cases if it were given daily for a month, not in a single dose. Even if a mother supplements her diet with Vitamin K, this supplement does not travel through the breastmilk at the rate that the baby would need it to promote proper clotting.
I speak from personal experience. My daughter did not receive a shot of Vitamin K at birth. At 4 weeks old, she was hospitalized due to a blood clot next to her brain (subdural hematoma). She had to have brain surgery, suffered a major stroke on the left side of her brain, received numerous pokes for IVs and blood draws – substantially more interventions and medications than a dose of Vitamin K would have presented to her system.
The one “warning sign” she presented with was a bruise on her head, which even her pediatrician (at an appointment two days before she was admitted to the PICU) didn’t conclude was a result of a Vitamin K deficiency.
Many medical interventions can be avoided without major consequence. Vitamin K is not one of them.
17 years ago, my baby boy was born at home and did not receive a vitamin K shot. a 10 Lb baby, he had a pressure hematoma on his liver which did not clot. It bled into his abdomen until he went into cardiac arrest! We are very lucky and very blessed to still have him with us today, but the doctor who delivered him said the other babies with the same vit k blood clotting issues did not live. Vitamin K is ESSENTIAL!
Then why don’t babies in other countries get a vit k shot? We were offered a drink version here but it was completely optional. If the birth was smooth without intervention or trauma, Vit K is not needed.
Babies born in Australia are most definitely offered Vit K injections to prevent returning to the horrible and very real days of babies with HMD (haemorrhagic disease of the newborn).
I’m anti-circ. The bible reference for circumcision was for the Jewish ppls only. And, Jesus stated there was no need – unnecessary to circumcise boys/men. My view mostly falls into the area that there is absolutely No medical reason for the majority, to be circ’d. I refer to this unneeded procedure as mutilation.
Your comments about VitK are correct. Most ppl will not do proper research – take time to read evidence-based study results. I’m an RN in L&D and I’m fairly relaxed about birthing choices yet I do not understand how a mother chooses to think of herself & what she wants – some perceived ideal birth plan, etc. than to protect/prevent possible extreme disability or death to newborn, even up to 3-6 months of age! I’ve witnessed so many inconsistencies: birthing woman gets epidural but refuses Vit K & Tylenol for newborn bruised swollen head; And, parents choose no eye oint. or Vit K but they Want the baby boy circumcised. Here is a good read – worth the time and not pushy: https://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/separating-fact-from-fiction-in-the-not-so-normal-newborn-nursery-vitamin-k-shots/
This is wonderful. Thank you.
I’m hearing now that they’re finding that some bacterial colonization of the baby actually happens in utero. Or they’re finding other signs that this is true; I’m not sure they’ve found direct evidence yet. But I think picking up mom’s bacteria is probably still very important for the baby.
Great article and well researched. I’m from the uk and am baffled by many routine interventions here but even more astonished by the way things are done in the US. By the way I have two sons called Otto and Casper!
Very nice!
My wife and I chose not to vaccinate our baby boy and also opted out of of the vitamin k and eye drops. Every nurse and pediatrician in the hospital tried to make us feel like bad parents for it. The hospital refused to circumcise him without the vitamin k and said he would be at risk without it. I was torn and didn’t know what to do. I am a Christian and found my peace about it in the bible. In genesis 17, God tells Abraham that all newborn boys must be circumcised when they’re 8 days old. Why do you think this might be? Well after doing more research, it turns out that a new born baby’s body takes exactly 7 days to naturally (through nursing) receive the needed amount of vitamin k. How cool is that? Centuries before scientists or doctors even existed, God already knew how are bodies needed to function. Someone once told me, when a healthy baby is born (emphasis on the “healthy”) and you shoot it up with unneeded chemicals within minutes or hours from birth, you are basically telling God he didn’t quite do the job right. We had our son circumcised 2 weeks after birth. He’s 4 months old now and is happy And healthy.
(This is simply my point of view)
Religion isn’t a valid excuse for mutilating the genitals of a child. Not only does it violate human rights, but it also violates HIS freedom of religion. Children aren’t pieces of property.
Well, IMO, you having your son circumcised was basically telling God that He didn’t make him right and needed surgical correction.
My thought exactly Emma. Another contradicting bible believer. I don’t begrudge anyone their beliefs but when you contradict yourself in your own statements it’s hard to listen to you.
If god told Abraham to circumcise then how do you figure that a mother who has her child circumcised is telling God he didn’t do a good job????
I’m anti-circ. The bible reference for circumcision was for the Jewish ppls only. And, Jesus stated there was no need – unnecessary to circumcise boys/men. My view mostly falls into the area that there is absolutely No medical reason for the majority, to be circ’d. I refer to this unneeded procedure as mutilation.
Did you read the New Testament where Paul says baptism REPLACES circumcision for Christians?!?!
That’s not actually what it says, but I think it is unfair to turn this into either a religious debate or an attack on religious practices (there are natural medical views/research to support contradicting positions, btw). Let’s focus on info that is helpful in making medical decisions, not attacking others’ beliefs and choices (knowing they like you are trying to gather info and discern what is best for their child… let’s leave the circumcision debate for another place; that’s not what this article is about — it was referenced only in terms of what is given/not given in such circumstances). Take what he said as helpful or ignore it.
I am sorry, but there is no justification for cutting any healthy, working part off of any baby’s genitals. if it was a baby girl and you were moslem and wanting to perform a circumcision on her, you would have been arrested.
The correct word is Muslim. Make sure you know what and who you are talking about.
Actually, both Muslim and Moslem are correct transliterations of the Arabic word.
What Millar got wrong is that lots of Muslim cultures (like in Indonesia, in Iran, the Swahili in Kenya, etc.) do not have female circumcision! *Some* Muslim cultures do (like in Egypt, etc.), and some non-Mulsim cultures (like the Masai in Kenya, etc.) do too.
You do want to circumcise early though. The older they get the more infections they pick up. And uncircumcised males pick up a lot of infection. I worked in a nursing home and the males who were not circumcised we’re sick way more often than those who were. My child was actually circumcised 26 hours later. I refused the Hep b, vit k shot and eye ointment, but I gave him oral vitamin k, once a day for a week and now for 11 weeks twice a week. We are on week 7.
Oh, my goodness! Cutting healthy, erogenous tissue off the genitals of a minor for who you owe *protection* is so very cruel! The care facility that you work at should be shut down if they can’t wipe an intact penis! Do you also advocate the amputation of female genital tissue, so, decades later, lazy care providers have *slightly less* genitalia to wipe?!? Yikes.
Proper intact care is the easiest thing in the world! Do not retract – not even a little, not even for a dr. Only the boy himself ever should, and the average age for retract ability is 10 years, some earlier and some much later. Only clean what is seen. Simply wipe the outside from base to tip or rinse with clean water in the bath. That’s it. Easy peasy!
Don’t believe the myths and lies about the male foreskin – an intact penis is just normal, natural, and awesome!
“Do you also advocate the amputation of female genital tissue, so, decades later, lazy care providers have *slightly less* genitalia to wipe?!? Yikes.”
Don’t forget cleaning under fingernails (avoidable if the fingernails are totally removed), cleaning between toes (avoidable if the toes are amputated), etc…
Please folks, lets stick to facts!
Yes, God told Abraham to circumcize on the 8th day, (because doing it before the babies clotting factors were fully functioning would lead to dangerous hemorrhage)
Yes, in the new testament, St Paul seems to say , in several places, that since Christ was the perfect sacrifice, the OT imperfect sacrifices (like Circumcision) were not only unnecessary, but a denial that Jesus’ sacrifice was the perfect & only sacrifice we need to have faith in. Read the Bible, don’t rely on my interpretation.
Yes, all babies are born with low clotting factors. (so how can this be a mistake of nature? Surely there must be a reason we just haven’t figured out yet.)
Yes, late onset VKD has been increasing. But is more people refusing Vit K at birth really the reason? C/S rates are rising as are the prematurity rates. Are they all connected or just coincidence?
At the same time the typical SAD is out of control, with artificial additives, GMO’s, etc. Could that be the common denominator for all these other complications? Please do your research from reputable sources & stick to facts. Let’s just ignore the fearmongers on both sides of this discussion.
I really admire Jennifers thorough accurate research methods! She digs in dirt, nobody else wants to dig through, and gives you the shiny, clean results. The one thing Jennifer said that isn’t quite accurate is a newborn getting a PKU within moments of birth. They are done at least 24 hrs after birth, and more accurate if you wait until your milk is in. Most, if not all states do require this heel stick though, but right at birth.
Why on earth would ‘god’ create a creature to be butchered within days of birth??? I’m *NOT* sorry, but you have got to be kidding! Shooting it up with chemicals is telling god that he hasn’t done his job right, but needing to cut a boys foreskin isn’t. What is wrong with people!!!!!!!!!
YUCK YUCK YUCK! Those poor baby boys!
I’m sure glad I’m not brainwashed by some ridiculous book!
The only Christians not living in Moslem societies, who have concluded that circumcision is a holy act, are Americans. This conclusion is a very curious one, given what is written against circumcision in Acts and in the Letters of Paul.
Sooooo…. How long does the baby go unwashed??? I can get behind gentle all natural cleansers but sometimes there is blood and other substances. I’m just saying…
I had 2 home waterbirth… the vernix (the white stuff) is great for the baby’s skin. I just rubbed it in, my daughter got a bath at a week old and my son was nearing 6 weeks old before a proper bath. They don’t need it, look up the benefits of vernix and the health benefits of it. 🙂
I have had four csections at three different hospitals they were all different in terms of how much time I got to interact with my newborns as my first two needed nicu time. It was scary to have them taken from me like that and not fully know what was going on until later but i got over it. I realized the hospital staff is there to make sure your baby is getting a good start in life. Stop whining that they dared wash your baby and be thankful that they are alive. You will get plenty of time to snuggle and hold your baby, the staff is doing their best ti ensure that by doing the procedures they are doing.
……I wanted to reply to this comment but then I realized you are too closed minded to even begin to understand the medical importance of natural…..
What she was saying is that not every mother gets the some options (such as her c-section and nicu experience) I had the same experience. I had a c-section and my child had to be directly taken to nicu for 4 hours. Oh and my milk never can in so I had to bottled feed as well (oh my!) And guess what?…. We still bonded with our babies!!! My daughter bonded with me perfectly fine. She has always been the most loving, cuddly, physical touch child and “bonded” with me just like every other mother/child. Oh and she’s also the most healthy child ever! She’s 8 and she’s only had a mild cold twice and the 24-bug once. plus, she’s never had the flu shot 🙂 So point being… us “other” mothers are just as blessed and have heathy happy babies as well!
Sometimes, such things ARE necessary. But this does in no way excuse doing them when they are NOT necessary.
I think it’s different for every mother and baby. I found your ” guess what’s” rather rude. They handed me my first child for maybe a minute after he was born then immediately did his weight and measurements and then took him out of the room. I had requested no vit k shot but an oral dose that I had brought with me. I am sure my son had the shot anyway. As I was told the bottle was lost. I didn’t get my baby back for about an hour or so. My milk never came in or at least not much by 2.5 months my baby was on the bottle full time. We never bonded the way I wish we could have especially being my first baby I wanted so badly to have that bond with him. He is 22 months old and generally in good health.
Wow…every birth is different, why do women feel the need to “be rude and right?” Be grateful for healthy mothers and babies…however it happens. As someone who lost a relative when she gave birth…be grateful for the miracle of healthy mother and baby.
There’s a trend towards righteous indignation in the responses to the article and the comments following it. Seems in our society we have decided that our opinions need to be defended to the death…
I had 2 c sections after trying to go naturally. the first one I only got to touch and kiss my baby for a few seconds before she was weighed and checked – then dressed. my husband then stayed beside me and held her for 20 mins while I was stitched up. she never left my side for a second during my stay and was bathed only a week later, at home. no vit k, no newborn vcaccinations.
the second c sect, my sons cord was allowed to pulse for a minute before being cut, while he was laid out on my thighs, and they checked him – no suction, just checking apgars, then he was placed on my naked chest, where he stayed for 6 hours, before he was dressed. he latched on to my breast in the recovery room. again, he never left my side, I even showered with him in his bassinet on the floor of the bathroom. he did get vit k at birth because the doctor insisted and I was too weak to argue, but my midwife gave a quarter dose. I bonded so much better with him.
Thank-you!! I have been a nurse for 35 years in the NICU. We love to see babies born healthy and happy with their moms and dads. We are not the Devil! We see babies die all the time. Some are premature some are from other causes. Our goal is to deliver a healthy baby to you. Parents have LOTS of options in the hospital. You can have your birthing plan and your NICU nurse too (if things go wrong). All hospitals are allowing safe birthing experiences now for families. Please do not compromise your child’s permanent health by not having emergency help available. It takes too much time from home to hospital if your baby gets in trouble either before or after birth. I will leave out the sad details but just let me say a brain damaged baby is so very tragic to witness. Problem is you never know if the birth will go well or not, you can’t foresee or predict. Why would anyone put their child at risk just so they can have a Beautiful experience! I promise even in the hospital giving birth is a miracle.
I know this is a common situation, but there is hope! Both my daughters were born in a hospital and I couldn’t be happier with the protocols there. They have a policy of one hour skin to skin contact before any exams or weight checks are done, then the nurse does everything in the room while you watch. Cord clamping can be delayed if the parents request it. No shots or eye drops are given if you request them to be withheld. Babies are bathed when the parents are ready for them to be bathed (my girls were 24 hrs old before anyone suggested it might be time for a bath)in the room with you and with a soap you provide if you like yours better. Nobody takes your baby anywhere, and bonding and breast feeding are encouraged. Granted if you walk in with no requests you will have more of the standard things happen, but at least everyone gets to bond and maintain contact with their baby. They don’t even take babies to a nursery overnight unless you ask them too which is pretty progressive I think. All of this came after I had unmediated births where no one pressured me to have any interventions. I live near Seattle WA where many people opt for a more natural birth, so maybe as more people start pressuring hospitals they will start changing.
I had the same experience in a St. Louis hospital and was so pleased!! BUT it is one of the only hospitals around here that encourages all of this, as far as I know. Their nurses are even doula trained for natural support. Amazing!
I had my first baby with a 3-doctor obstetrical practice, and had all sorts of interventions – fetal heart monitoring, eye ointment, etc. etc. My appointments were about 15 minutes long. With my second son, I had a nurse-midwife in a birthing center attached to a hospital, but it could have been at home, as nice, personalized and caring as it was. My midwife was with me from the time I came in. She put the baby on my tummy as soon as he was born – my appointments with her were at least a half hour long, and she asked things that my ob never even considered, like “what do you eat” and having me keep a food chart for a week so she could see if I was getting enough protein. She encouraged questions, ensured I understood everything. There were no immediate interventions of any kind. And during the rest of my ne day stay, I was allowed to have the baby in my room as much as I wanted, to nurse on our schedule, not the hospitals. If I’d had a third son, I would not have even considered an OB. I’d have had a midwife again. The whole experience was so much more more mother and baby centered.
Please cite this:
“One 2008 epidemiological study found that infant immunization leads to a statistically significant increase in type 1 diabetes in children.”
I can just see yet more parents refusing immunizations now.
Thank you for sharing this blog. The topics contained herein are very important to hear & respond to again & again.
I was taken by the statement that “more than 1/2 dozen studies” document the significance of skin-to-skin care and non-separation of mother and baby. Indeed there are >2000 studies on the impact of skin-to-skin (kangaroo) care for preterm & fullterm infants. The psych literature supports the significant need for maternal touch starting with Harlow’s monkeys. The obtain an annotated bibliography of Kangaroo Care at http://www.kangaroocareusa.org/uploads/KCBIB2012_May.pdf. Dr. Susan Ludington created and maintains this database. Further infomation about kangaroo care & the kangaroo care certification course can be found at http://www.KangarooCareUSA.org. More information on Kangaroo Care & the habitat for newborns can be found at http://www.DrBarbCNM.com.
DrBarb
This is well written and you have every right to share your experience and your feelings about it. The beauty of birth is that no two births are the same, even for the same woman!
I have had a c-section, hospital birth, with the NICU experience. I have also had 3 homebirths. I continue to choose homebirths, with vitamin K given orally, because of the privacy and freedom I feel in it. I know a lot of people who have had successful, wonderful hospital birth experiences. I am happy for them. However, It is NOT for me! My biggest reason is because I like to feel in charge and to be only on my own clock. I like the freedom of a homebirth and the comfort of being in my own home, never having to leave it, for the first 2 weeks. This is me.
Rather than criticizing the author for her choice and her experience, speak only of your own. Just because crap hit your ceiling or just because your delivery it went as smooth as a baby’s bottom, doesn’t give you the right to be rude on here. The author was sharing her experiences and raising valid questions to ask about hospital practices that DO still happen in many places across the country. Perhaps not on everyone’s area, but it does happen. Don’t be offended cuz the author talks about a particular hospital’s bad practice.
Also, things are changing because of stories like the one written here. These stories cause women to speak out more, to request things of doctors, hospitals, nurses, and midwives. Those requests cause curiosity, which result in research, which turns into policy changes, which ends I better births for moms and babies.
Also, if you want to debate the circumcision issue and the lack of consent, perhaps you should also consider consent before killing a life inside the womb.
Tell your story and own it! Be proud of it if you are. Respect one another’s stories. Wrap with those who are troubled by their story and rejoice with those who love their story. Each person responds to their birth story differently and respect for them should be given. They are not you and will not respond to a birth the same way as you. Let us treat others how we would like them to treat us, even if they don’t.
I am sorry to those who don’t have peace with their birth story. I can relate. Being told to accept a healthy baby no matter the process it arrived by is disrespectful and unsympathetic. To those who love their hospital or homebirth story, I can relate. It is a wonderful thing to know you brought that baby into the world and the bond that happens is indescribable!
May your story be yours and respect be mutual.
I meant *weap with those who are not at peace with their delivery story
Additionally, it is now recommended care that newborns be placed skin-to-skin on mothers chest starting immediately after birth and staying there until after the completion of the first breastfeeding or at least 1 hour (this includes after c-birth). This practice is recommended by AAP (American Academy of Pediatrics), ACOG (American Congress of Obestricians & Gynecologists), AAFP (American Academy of Family Practice), ACNM (American College of Nurse-Midwives), AWHONN (Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nursing), CDC (Center for Disease Control and Prevention), USDHHS (US Department of Health & Human Services), and implied by the Joint Commission’s core measure of exclusive breast milk feeding while newborns are in the hospital.
Therefore, it is incombent on all facilities where birth is occuring to implement this skin-to-skin practice with breastfeeding. It is now the recognized routine care.
DrBarb
Thanks so much for all of the responses and different view points. As to how long until the baby should be washed, different couples make different decisions. Often the baby is wrapped in towels for warmth and to get off any “gunk”. Interestingly WHO recommends waiting 24 hours for the first bath-
http://www.who.int/pmnch/media/publications/aonsectionIII_4.pdf
“Ensure warmth by delaying the baby’s first bath to after the first 24 hours, practising skin-to-skin care, and
putting a hat on the baby”
And Best for Babes mentions the benefits of delaying bathing in helping initial breastfeeding.
https://www.bestforbabes.org/booby-traps-series-why-the-newborn-bath-should-wait
Hope that helps!
And thank you Monica for your comment, I am going to have the author, Dr Margulis, comment here for you to address your concern and change if necessary.
I notice you only made a passing reference to circumcision & never mentioned it again. There is NO reason to cut off a healthy part of the body of a minor who cannot consent. Why did you not mention that it’s barbaric & painful?
because it is simply not necessary to mention the obvious. Why must you criticize the author for not writing it the way you would have? We all know that it is an unfair procedure (which is why my son is all natural) and it has been such a beaten topic that she need not discuss further into it.
Jennifer Margulis has elsewhere taken a firm stand against routine infant circumcision. This despite her being of Jewish ancestry. Here she is discussing her other interesting objections with the American way of birth.
I agree with Rachel C. I have been a Labor/Delivery nurse in the same hospital for 12 years. Our practices change as the guidelines do. We strongly encourage skin-to-skin contact, and have recently prolonged the time before bathing our newborns in certain circumstances (i.e. Pre-term, small for gestation, unsuccessful attempt at breast feeding, etc). I agree with some natural and holistic points of view, but also agree and appreciate some of the medical and “interventionist” points of view. Please educate yourselves properly, on both sides of arguments, before determining your course. We have midwives that practice with us and they’re fantastic. I would never suggest an out-of-hospital birth, there are so many possible complications! But most (all?) hospitals will be open to your doula, midwives, and do their best to honor whatever birth plan you write. It’s important to remember that no labor is black and white, circumstances change. You must be open-minded when starting this journey!!
Thank you for your comments. Balance is Key! Dogma on any side is dangerous!
Aurora-
Dr Margulis’ book has an entire chapter dedicated to circumcision. Be sure to check it out. There is more information that you could imagine on the subject!
So wonderful to see so many people talking about having a great hospital experience. We encourage couples to research and choose a birth place that works best for them and that has wonderful birth professionals present. We would never discourage necessary procedures, and do encourage all to research both sides of these issues. Our classes do not provide medical advice.
It is important to note that just because some hospitals abide by mother or baby friendly practices, not all do. There is great regional variation. We love to hear that things are great in your area though!
Even though my baby had a perfectly healthy apgar score of 9, the staff did not let me hold him, until a good 20 minutes after he was born. They made me wait until I had finished expelling the placenta before they would give him to me. My baby was kept out of my line of sight through most of it. I was shocked as I had assumed that I would be able to hold him right away. He’s 17 years old now, but I still get sad and angry just thinking about it.
This practice is no longer the rule! My children are in their 20s and I had full control over my birthing experience in the hospital.
This article, while stating useful information, is a little misguided.. Many hospitals are now requiring skin to skin contact for the 1st 2 hours of life. And throughout my nursing school, it was stressed how important skin to skin time is. And NICU nurses practice kangaroo care. The medical community realizes many of your points and stresses them in their education.
Not giving a Vitamin K shot is horribly wreckless though. Someone else has already proven that point.
the vitamin k shot can be given the next day, and the dosage need not be as high as the one they give. a quarter dose is more than enough for a newborn. some parents opt for a quarter dose at birth and then another quarter dose on day three
.
I wish I’d known these things even my son was born 16 years ago. He developed type 1 diabetes at 4 years old and I always attributed it to him having the flu at 6 weeks old. Now I wonder if he was damned at birth. It’s likely that I’ll never know.
NO way the PKU was done at birth. You must wait until 24 hours after the first feeding for it to be accurate. Every hospital knows that.
I work in newborn nursery and NICU. I admit I get a little infuriated when hospitals are made out to be the big bad bullies. We are MORE THAN WILLING AND JUST FINE with doing/not doing ALL THE THINGS IN YOUR BIRTH PLAN. Letting the umbilical chord pulse until it is done, immediate skin to skin, no bath, or even a bath with your own special organic homemade whatever soap you want, no eye ointment, no circumcision, no vitamin K, no hep B, or yes vitamin K but no to hep B, no PKU (which is NOT done right after birth. The only immediate things are Vitamin K and eye ointment) You are given forms to sign, or not sign for all these things and they cannot be done until a signature is checked before hand. (except the bath, you have to be more vocal about not wanting that.)
We don’t enjoy when things go wrong with babies. We don’t intentionally keep them from mommies for hours. Skin to skin is amazing. We love it. But sometimes babies are beyond skin to skin. We LOVE when they breast feed before they get a bath, and full assessment! Colostrum is so good for babies.
Things don’t always go awesome. Babies don’t always breath well. Skin to skin can’t always fix it. I’m sorry, but that is the truth. We are more than happy to bring mothers with babies struggling into the nursery even in their beds so they can hold them. We put up curtains and portable walls so they can hold them skin to skin.
We are not in the business of ruining babies and moms lives. We love happy healthy babies and happy healthy mommies.
Not having the metabolic screen (PKU is a misnomer) is NOT an option, it tests for many illnesses that if not caught in time can result in death or severe mental and physical issues! Working in an NICU, and seeing some of these and knowing that they can be treated and the child have a chance at a normal life is important! A parent choosing not to have the metabolic screening is neglecting the welfare of their child out of selfishness, and they would also be the first to sue if a problem that could have been prevented. Erythromycin —not silver nitrate is used for the eyes, silver nitrate has long not been used, and isn’t really necessary. The hep B can also wait. The vitamin K is important, but can wait 24 hours as well.
The article clearly states that silver nitrate was originally used and has since been replaced by antibiotics.
And for your response to the previous poster: optional is not the same as recommended. You saying something is not optional and saying something *shouldn’t* be optional isn’t the same thing.
AWESOME! I love your comment! Sometimes these articles make the hospitals, dr.s, and nurses out to be the bad guys. If they could insure each and every delivery was 100% safe and healthy they would. Who wants a sick newborn? No one! Awesome again!
I second that!!
I come from a family of nurses. I, myself was an OB nurse for a time. We all circumcise our boys. My feeling is, have it done when they are young. I took care of a 6 year old who the parents finally decided to circumcise. Now that was just cruel. And at the end of life, what if he can’t take care of an uncircumcised penis? What if they are in a nursing home or group home and no one takes the time. My Mother says my father was not circumcised and had to have it done later in life. She recommends infant circumcision.
You could say all the same things about the hood of the clitoris…
I have been looking for years for a report from Europe or Japan, saying that the foreskin creates hygiene problems for the elderly. Still looking…
Many later circumcisions in America are unnecessary, or are caused by bad advice. America has a very poor understanding of the tip of the penis, the most sexual part of the male body.
Yes, I am really interested to see how valid these sources are. Where do all of these “facts” come from? This whole article sounds completely unscientific, making statements without hard facts to back them up. I would be very hesitant to believe this without doing further research of my own.
Articles like these should be informative. Instead they cause mothers to feel guilty about the choices they made during the birth, give them a platform to feel superior (in the comments), or if they haven’t had a child yet, make new moms so paranoid over “western medicine.” I’m tired of being made to feel guilty over my choice to trust my doctor and the nurses. My daughter is healthy and beautiful, they did a wonderful job!
YOU did a wonderful job! They shouldn’t get all the credit!
Amen!!!
I think quite a bit of the info in this article is great as a starting point for your research if you have not done so already. I also think hanging on to every single word someone says is irresponsible if you are uneducated on the subject, especially if their are no sources listed. Plus, some people here are being WAY too defensive. In the end, it’s your decision what you want to happen with your birth and your child. Yes, there are MANY hospitals who do listen to what the mother wants, but there are still MANY who do not, even when it’s a smooth birth experience due to hospital policies. I live in NY and their are many conflicting experiences and opinions. Personally, I am planning a home waterbirth, and I am comfortable with my decision. I have seen OBs through most of my pregnancy (due to my schedule), and they seemed to be EXTREMELY closed-minded, and uneducated in homebirth.
Meanwhile, there are other OBs who work in practices with CNMs who are more open-minded, as they are affiliated with in-hospital birth centers and more holistic approaches.
Discounting what some mothers experience/feel just because of what you personally would do/not do, doesn’t make them wrong. People need to stop judging, and start supporting. #moms4moms
What is your backup plan if the cord prolapses during delivery? Five minutes to brain damage. I have seen it with my own eyes. Yes it is your decision and your risk.
I think this article is not the norm and it’s sad that this is what expectant new moms are being exposed to. The hospitals are there to give the best possible care to you and your child. To think they want to just rip your baby away from you for hours and poke and prod is just not true. I had 2 c-sections and my kids were both with me after they were checked out by the ped nurses with my husband watching… In the same room as me ( this goes for vaginal deliveries as well) And then placed on my chest and only taken that night to have a PKU done which I consented and wanted because I want to know if my child has a rare blood condition so that I can be informed in case he does so that I can use the mazing resources and knowledge that is out there so I can properly treat it. I denied the hep b they asked my consent first they did not just give him any shots with out consulting me. and I declined and they were respectful of that. I think this article is misleading and sad. Hospitals are not a bunch of crazy doctors and nurses wanting to hurt you and your child. They only have your best interest and what they feel to their knowledge through their education and experience is the best treatment for you. They chose this profession to help people not to intentionally cause unnecessary harm. I’m grateful for the loving doctors and nurses who were so kind and gentle to me and my babies especially in emergency situations with My first born. I think this article is unfortunate.
I am amazingly grateful to have access to emergency healthcare in a country with stunning technology. That is not diminished by the fact that I want a birth with as few interruptions as possible. I can strive for a home birth while accepting that if medical intervention is necessary, then, of course I want that for my child.
Some people have great doctors and hospitals with traditional births, some have war stories. Believing the overall birth model is not beneficial is not the same thing as believing that doctors and nurses are out to get you. Their version of normal and harmless though may be vastly different than mine. I have the right to be an informed, protective parent and make my own choices.
Kudos to the team who helped and communicated with you. My sister had an ok birth, but discovered belatedly that one of their “opt out” procedures was performed anyway. How? They tried to bill them for it.
I appreciate your article, and I think it is coming from a place of good intention. However, as many women above have already mentioned, things don’t always go like you planned. When my son was born, he was taken to another hospital to get the emergency care he needed and I did not get to hold him for his first 3 days of life. It was the most difficult time of my life and during those 3 days, articles like this one echoed in me. I knew I ‘should be’ holding my baby, nursing my baby. I feared for our bonding. I felt guilty. The plan can change and your baby (and you!) will bond just as wonderfully.
So glad I’ve had 5 home births. This is some of the reasons I hated having my first one in the hospital!
Thanks for reading everyone. As mentioned in the guest post, full references for research done is found in the unabridged book. We appreciate all of your different perspectives and experiences.
There are many wonderful hospitals and care providers out there! Wonderful that so many of you found those that worked well for you.
Thanks for stopping by!
I was told in the hospital, during labor after being induced and told it was deemed necessary, there should be a law against mothers like me. Can you imagine the medical staff in charge of mine and my babies safety arguing with my wishes, I told my nurse and doctor if it came down to a C-section I would not want one for any reason what so ever. I was induced and knew the risk with dry births increases the chance of C-section, I also was against induction from the beginning, I agree with all natural and home birthing, My doctor was amazed I took a shower while in labor, he said he would not deliver in the bath room at hospital, sometimes even doctors are ignorant, they may know or have learned more but that doesn’t always MEAN THEY KNOW ALL OR WHATS IS BEST FOR MOTHER AND CHILD. I told him not to break my water. It rises the risk of C-section when induced. Thankfully I did have a blessed birth but it could have been a better experience, and they did take my son into the nursery for vaccines, I felt as if he was ripped from my arms, I wish I had done differently. I do regret even 5 years later now, not being with him in those few precious minutes they were stolen from me.
@ 2 weeks old I was told by the pedi to stop nursing or he would be obese because I nursed whenever he wanted, just saying it was in my best interest to go against all medical advice, we didn’t go back to the pedi a lot after that. By the way he’s still breast feeding guess what doctors and nurses have to say about that? I’ve practiced attached parenting in all aspects. I love my son! FYI Its all a newborn really needs their MOTHER 🙂
You were fortunate that your son didn’t need medical intervention. That is not always the case. The decision to go against all medical advice effectively narrows your own options. As doctors, we provide the best advice we can based on the extensive knowledge that we have acquired. Certainly, each individual makes their own choice. We understand though, that parental decisions can be emotionally-driven by the parent, and all we can do is offer you the opportunity to benefit from our skills and experience.
I believe this article to be incorrect. PKUs are NOT done til after 24hrs of age. The article mentions how the infant was taken immediately after birth for a PKU and shots and that is incorrect.
“The CDC’s recommendation that every newborn in America get a Hepatitis B shot, regardless of whether his parents have Hepatitis B, is one of the most unfortunate medical mistakes of our time. Hepatitis B is a sexually transmitted disease.”
If not for the CDC recommending a Hepatitis B vaccine in early childhood, how many kids wouldn’t be allowed to be immune to Hepatitis B until the last minute before their weddings?
Choose a Baby Friendly hospital!!! You can find out if yours is here:http://www.babyfriendlyusa.org
So, this leaves me asking questions.
When should I bathe my baby. What soap, if any, should I use then?
Greetings! This is my first visit to your blog! We are a group of volunteers and starting a new initiative in a community
in the same niche. Your blog provided us useful information to work on.
You have done a outstanding job!
For my four births, fortunately I knew I was paying them for a service. They were not permitted to touch me or baby at any time (no IV, no monitoring, no nothing), and as soon as I had them, I went home. IMMEDIATELY. Fortunately, I am in control and they have no say. It was wonderful knowing my children were not harmed by medical staff and recovering at home was amazing. Most women get in a hospital and immediately bow down to the doctors and nurses. They are paid servants, there to do what I want. Love it!
I m from India, West Bengal, kolkata.
I had a son 10 weeks back.
Was an emergency c-sec. They said my cervix never opened. I did not dilate more than 3 cm even after 24hours of labor. Mind u, labor was even induced.
I got my son for 5 seconds after birth. They did not eben allow me to kiss him. Was taken to nursery for the entire night. Came to me next morning after so much pleading and finally getting angry. He was already given Hep B and a BCG vaccine.
Here things happen as per protocol and we have no say.
This helps a lot to know just what to do and what not to do!! https://kidklass.com/
Lovely little
It was an interesting article but some of the claims are unsubstantiated by the evidence in the article itself. For example, it says that autoimmune disorders have increased a lotnsince the 1950s but doesnt show evidence that vaccinations are the cause. Many things have happened since the 1950s that may have increased those numbers – numbers that are unstated in the article.
The other issue is the instant bonding. Some studies show that newborns dont have the intellectual maturity to do heavy bonding for the first 3 or more months of life and that new parents often dont experiwnce significant bonding until 3-7 months into their babies lives. It seems excessive to push for aggreesive moments atter birth bonding for every new parent. Back in russia, mothers typically barely saw their newborn for the first week of life. There was no rampant child abandonment in the woods. Russian mums loved their kids too. Seems like some of these protocols dont hurt anything but not sure how necessary they are.
Stupid Americans please vaccinate your children. You’re risking their lives and run the risk of spreading diseases to those smart people who actually had their kids vaccinated but the vaccine didn’t work. You can ask for your baby not to be washed in hospitals. My baby was taken from me because he couldnt breathe after birth, and I was glad they took him, because I’d been in labour for 23hours and felt like I was about to die. I woke up 6hours later and went to visit him in icu.
At 2 weeks old I was told by the pedi to stop nursing or he would be obese because I nursed whenever he wanted, just saying it was in my best interest to go against all medical advice, we didn’t go back to the pedi a lot after that. By the way he’s still breast feeding guess what doctors and nurses have to say about that? I’ve practiced attached parenting in all aspects. I love my son! FYI Its all a newborn really needs their mother 🙂
Great article. It’s very interesting, I never knew that. I always read a lot of babies articles but this is really different from eerything I read. Thanks for showing this to us.
You actually make it seem so easy with your presentation but I find this matter to be really something that I think I would never understand. It seems too complex and very broad for me. I am looking forward for your next post, I will try to get the hang of it!|
The article was more so about bathing, right…and whisking newborn away. Not all hospital L&D or birth centers behave like the one described. As an RN in L&D for 20 years, the hospitals I’ve worked for in northernmost northern California practice immediate placement of newborn to mom’s chest – skin to skin/kangaroo. Bonding & breastfeeing come First! Nurses are able to assess, check vitals, give meds while baby is skin to skin with mom or dad. Bathing is delayed by 12-24 hours or not at all if parents choose. Procedures, screenings, heel pricks, etc. Can all be done in moms room & while in mom or dad’s arms.
This is wonderful! But it is not standard across the country. There is huge variation from state to state and one hospital to the next. I agree, norcal rocks!
So true! I live in Northern California as well and the hospitals are wonderful! It’s sad that they aren’t all that way. Hospitals vary so much from one region to the next, sometimes even different within the same city.
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