3 ms·

I think the primary disadvantage suffered by c-section births is related to not having the cranium compressed on passage through the birth canal. The cranium ha

I think the primary disadvantage suffered by c-section births is related to not having the cranium compressed on passage through the birth canal. The cranium has 8 bones. In an infant these are separate and somewhat mobile, eventually fusing as the body fully matures. Passing through the birth canal compresses the head and body to prepare it for the first breath. Midwives had a body of knowledge related to childbirth that was lost in the medicalization of childbirth. They didn’t always have good results, but the doctors could have contributed to improve midwives’ practice, rather than do the takeover/exterminate routine. Modern midwives are mostly subsumed into the medical hierarchy, and many of the techniques passed from Midwife to midwife were lost. Julius Caesar was an early c-section birth. IIRC, his mother did not survive. Just because modern doctors can extract a baby without killing the mother doesn’t mean this should be a common occurrence. With that said, Weston A. Price DDS had some observations about well-nourished female children growing up to have hips big enough to facilitate easier childbirths... some women may need c-sections because they have small hips, for various reasons...

tekkk 6y ago
Julius Caesar's mother lived so he was most likely not delivered via c-section. https://www.etymonline.com/word/caesarian https://www.etymonline.com/word/caesarian
rimliu 6y ago
I think the number of newborn deaths in midwives dominated times compared to the "medicalized" times speak for themselves.
- im3w1l 6y ago
  Yeah given the huge improvements we have seen, I think there is a big burden of proof on those who prefer the old ways.
- watwut 6y ago
  At the time, when births first moved to hospitals, they had more newborn deaths. Mostly because hospitals at the time did not knew about hygiene yet and doctors would do births after treating other patients or doing autopsies without washing hands. It is also true that some midwifes approaches are being rediscovered, like for example giving a fuck about mothers comfort or not yelling at her. Not that all midwifes always did, but still.
- codingdave 6y ago
  True, but the modern statistics may not be what you think they are: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2742137/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2742137/
  - deleted 6y ago
    [deleted]
rsynnott 6y ago
> Julius Caesar was an early c-section birth. IIRC, his mother did not survive. This is a myth. Julius Caesar's mother _did_ survive, which would be almost unheard of at the time for a c section. Some contemporaries thought that an ancestor of his was born by c-section, but there's no real evidence for this.

tekkk 6y ago

Julius Caesar's mother lived so he was most likely not delivered via c-section. https://www.etymonline.com/word/caesarian https://www.etymonline.com/word/caesarian

rimliu 6y ago

I think the number of newborn deaths in midwives dominated times compared to the "medicalized" times speak for themselves.

im3w1l 6y ago
Yeah given the huge improvements we have seen, I think there is a big burden of proof on those who prefer the old ways.
watwut 6y ago
At the time, when births first moved to hospitals, they had more newborn deaths. Mostly because hospitals at the time did not knew about hygiene yet and doctors would do births after treating other patients or doing autopsies without washing hands. It is also true that some midwifes approaches are being rediscovered, like for example giving a fuck about mothers comfort or not yelling at her. Not that all midwifes always did, but still.
codingdave 6y ago
True, but the modern statistics may not be what you think they are: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2742137/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2742137/
- deleted 6y ago
  [deleted]

rsynnott 6y ago

> Julius Caesar was an early c-section birth. IIRC, his mother did not survive. This is a myth. Julius Caesar's mother _did_ survive, which would be almost unheard of at the time for a c section. Some contemporaries thought that an ancestor of his was born by c-section, but there's no real evidence for this.