Lotus birth (or umbilical nonseverance) is the practice of leaving the umbilical cord uncut after childbirth so that the baby is left attached to the placenta until the cord naturally separates at the umbilicus, usually 3-10 days after birth.
No studies have been done on lotus births and therefore no evidence exists to support any medical benefits for the baby. The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists has warned about the risks of infection of this leaving the placenta attached. The practice is performed mainly for spiritual purposes, including for the perceived spiritual connection between placenta and newborn.
Video Lotus birth
History
Although recently arisen as an alternative birth phenomenon in the West, super-delayed (1+ hours post-birth) umbilical severance is common in home births, and umbilical nonseverance has been recorded in a number of cultures including that of the Balinese and of some aboriginal peoples such as the !Kung.
Early American pioneers, in written diaries and letters, reported practicing nonseverance of the umbilicus as a preventative measure to protect the infant from an open wound infection.
Modern practice
In the 1980s, yoga practitioners brought the idea to the United States and Australia, with the "lotus birth moniker, creating a link between the preciousness of the placenta and the high esteem in which the lotus is held in the Hindu and Buddhist faiths". Yoga master and midwife Jeannine Parvati Baker being the main advocate for the practice in the United States.
The practice spread to Australia by a midwife, Shivam Rachana, founder of the International College of Spiritual Midwifery and author of the book Lotus Birth.
In the full lotus birth clinical protocol, the umbilical cord which is attached to the baby's navel and placenta, is not clamped nor cut, and the baby is immediately placed on the mother's belly/chest (depending on the length of the cord) or kept in close proximity to the mother in cases when medically necessary procedures such as resuscitation may be needed. In lotus birth, after the placenta is born vaginally (often with the maternal informed choice for passive management of third stage allowing for natural detachment of the placenta within appropriate time allowed for it, with no hormonal injections such as oxytocin) or via cesarean section (the most common operating room procedure in the U.S.).
Following birth, the placenta is simply put in a bowl or quickly wrapped in absorbent towelling and placed near the mother-baby caregivers step back to allow for undisturbed maternal-child bonding to occur as the primary event for an hour or more. It is only after this initial intense bonding period that the placenta is managed by rinsing, drying, applying preservatives, and positioning it in a way that allows for plentiful air circulation and proximity to the baby. After several days, the cord dries and detaches from the baby's belly, generally 3-10 days postpartum.
Maps Lotus birth
Spiritual
Relation to nature
Significantly delayed cord cutting as well as nonseverance is found in birth anthropology along with the universality of reverence for the cord & placenta (as found in the Tree of Life beliefs of tribal cultures around the world and reported to the world by scholar & professor Joseph Campbell).
Primatologist Jane Goodall, who was the first person to conduct long-term studies of chimpanzees in the wild, reported that they did not chew or cut their offspring's cords, instead leaving the umbilicus intact, like many other monkeys. Though other mammals may sever their offspring's cords, they only do so after initial maternal sensory reception, unwinding of the cord, massage/cleaning (through touch), and initiation of nursing phase which has been observed to involve at least one hour, if left undisturbed.
Energy
Proponents of lotus births view the baby and the placenta as one on a cellular level, as they are from the same source egg and sperm conceptus. They also assert that the newborn and the placenta as existing within the same quantum field and thus influencing various expressions of quantum mechanics that influence health involving transfers of energy & cellular information continuing to take place gradually from the tissue of the placenta to the baby during the drying process.
Medicine
Lotus births are an extremely rare practice in hospitals. Lotus birth is a routine practice found in the culture of present-day Bali, a recently established practice in Australian hospitals (including for cases of prematurity and cesarean) and is occasionally practiced in clinical birth centers and home births worldwide.
Risks
The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) has stated, "If left for a period of time after the birth, there is a risk of infection in the placenta which can consequently spread to the baby. The placenta is particularly prone to infection as it contains blood. At the post-delivery stage, it has no circulation and is essentially dead tissue," and the RCOG strongly recommends that any baby that undergoes lotus birthing be monitored closely for infection.
References
Further reading
- Buckley MD., Sarah. Gentle Birth, Gentle Mothering, Australia, 2006
- Davies RN, Leap RN, McDonald. Examination of the Newborn & Neonatal Health: A Multidimensional Approach, Elsevier Health Sciences, 2008. ISBN 0-443-10339-9
- Lim CPM, Robin. After the Baby's Birth: A Complete Guide for Postpartum Women, Ten Speed Press, U.S. 2001
- Parvati Baker, Jeannine. Prenatal Yoga & Natural Childbirth, North Atlantic Books, U.S., 2001
- Trevathan, Wenda. Human Birth: An Evolutionary Perspective, Univ. of New Mexico Press, 2011
- World Health Organization (WHO). Care in normal birth: A practical guide, report of a technical working group, Geneva, Switzerland, 1997
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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