How were babies born when there were no hospitals?

Answer 1

In most parts of the world today, including Europe, the majority of babies are not born in hospitals and never have been. They are born at home. Often a midwife - a female expert on childbirth - will stay with the mother and ensure that the birth goes smoothly.

Actually, it is more dangerous to have a baby in a hospital than at home with a midwife. Statistics show that babies are more likely to die or suffer health problems if delivered in a hospital. Doctors are trained to deal with medical emergencies, but most doctors have never seen a natural childbirth. Childbirth is rarely a medical emergency - it's a normal, healthy event.

Hospitals encourage women to take drugs or undergo Caesarean sections in order to get the baby out faster. The drugs disturb a woman's ability to labor normally, and Caesarean sections are dangerous for both mother and child.

Having a baby in the hospital also puts the baby at great risk because of the powerful strains of antibiotic-resistant germs that develop in hospitals; the ordinary germs in your home are far less dangerous.

The media has filled our culture with unrealistic portrayals of childbirth - images of panting, screaming women in labor on their backs in bed. In a natural childbirth, a woman might squat, stay on all fours, or even walk around. The only reason women lay on beds is so that it's more convenient for the doctor - it's much healthier to squat because it makes 30% more room for the baby to come out.

If you're curious, see a recent movie called "The Business of Being Born." It includes a history of childbirth and features six live births, one in a hospital and five at home.