14 DAY TRIAL // A recent study conducted by experts at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia found that babies born through Cesarean sections are almost three times more likely to experience death at birth than those born naturally. The exhaustive investigation of 5,7 million births showed that C sections are way more dangerous for new-born children's lives than previously thought.
"We are witnessing a growing number of Caesareans without a reported medical indication. This increase may inadvertently be putting a larger population of newborn babies at risk," reported the researching team.
This could be rather shocking for the increasing number of women who resort to Cesarean sections today, even if there is no need for it because they could as well give birth to their babies the natural way. Nearly ? of UK pregnant women nowadays choose to bring their babies into the world through Cesarean sections.
The findings of the study should be alarming for the British population and put an end to the extensively raising number of women who prefer scheduling their births than waiting for the moment of natural delivery to occur. However, the scientists involved in the study state that the ones who should be worried about the outcomes of Cesarean sections are not pregnant women, but clinicians and policy-makers.
"The point of this article is not to alarm anyone. Women considering an elective Cesarean obviously should consult with their doctor, and this would be one piece of information that hopefully they could discuss. These findings should be of concern for clinicians and policy-makers, who are observing the rapid growth in the number of primary Cesareans to mothers without a medical indication."
The main reason why babies should be delivered naturally when there is the possibility for it is because those born through C - sections are at a greater risk for respiratory distress and disorders. On the other hand, natural births promote healthy lung function in new-born infants by releasing hormones crucial for an appropriate breathing. Also, the compression of babies which occurs during labor removes the fluid from babies' lungs and prepares them to breathe air.
"One of the advantages of labor is that it stresses the baby and helps to empty their lungs, meaning they can breath more easily than those born after a Caesarean section," pointed out Dr. Burnett Lunan, consultant obstetrician and gynecologist from Glasgow.