Giving birth can be a deeply primal experience. For today’s modern woman, however, pregnancy and birth are a medically-managed health condition. This medical management of pregnancy and birth plays a pivotal role in the current health crisis and threatens the health of future generations. Medical interventions interrupt the normal hormonal process of birth. This alteration is linked to epigenetic changes that may impact growth and development, and a child’s risk for disease. Using relevant research, I present how diet and well-being, as well as non-medical birth, provides babies and mothers with a hormonal and genetic blueprint for optimal health.

1. Results
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Introduction
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Methods & Materials
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Conclusions
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Acknowledgements
References
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Primal Pregnancy, Primal Birth:
Building a Foundation of Optimal Health for Future Generations
Kristi Beguin, BS. Primal Ground
Introduction:What is Going on?
Modern-day birth is not that of our ancestors.
Of the 4 million births in 2010, 98.8% occurred
in hospitals, and 32.8% were Cesarean
delivery1. A whopping 94% of US births
experience one or more medical intervention2.
Epigenetic research suggests that intra-
uterine conditions affect the health of babies
and the potential for disease in adulthood3.
The maternal-fetal endocrine exchange affects
the epigenetic expression that takes place
during the prenatal and perinatal period4.
Medical management of labor can cause
maternal stress and may disrupt the hormones
of both mother and baby.
By comparing typical (medically managed) to
physiological (non-medical) labors and births,
and the hormonal process involved with each,
we will look more closely at how the hormones
of labor function, and how modern-day
medical management of birth may contribute
to the health crises we see today.
• 94% of all 2008 births had 1 or more medical
intervention2.
• 33% of all births in the United States result in C-
Section1. In 2010, C-Section was the #1 most-
common operating room procedure3.
• 6 of the top-10 hospital procedures are labor
and delivery-related5.
• 0.72% of women chose homebirth during
20096.
Women who receive continuous non-medical
emotional and physical care from a doula and/or
person(s) she loves are:
 More likely to have a spontaneous
vaginal birth;
 Less likely to use pain medication;
 More likely to have shorter labors; and
 More likely to be satisfied with their birth
experience7.
Where do we go from here?
The majority of babies born in the US appear to
be beginning life on a different biological
footing than the one we evolved from.
Epigenetic, epidemiological, clinical,
physiological, and molecular evidence suggests
that the origins of obesity and metabolic
dysfunction can be traced to intrauterine life13.
An evolution-designed hormonal symphony
enables a woman to transcend the birthing
process when birth is allowed to unfold without
interruption or unnecessary intervention, thus
transforming her on every level as she enters
motherhood.
The medical management of birth is ripe with
interruption, which can stress a laboring
mother, alter physiological and hormonal
processes, and could affect the neurological
and biological health of baby.
Education about physiological birth, optimal
foods for pregnancy, physical and emotional
wellness techniques, labor support, place of
birth, and perinatal support provides parents
with effective tools to help their babies begin
life on a biologically sound footing.
Acknowledgements
References
PHOTO CREDITS: Jorge Silva/Reuters;Wendy Ponte, Mothering,
Sept-Oct 2008; Homebirth Australia, homebirthaustralia.org; Jessica
Morell; Rebecca Cocina.
A very specialThankYou toTherese Hak-Kuhn ofToLabor, theTen
Moons Collective of Los Alamos, NM, Karen Brown, Kelly Parker,
Rebecca Cocina, and my wonderful, supportive family: Scott, Nena,
and Signe Beguin.
Typical Labor and Delivery
Medically Managed
Physiological Labor and Delivery
Non-medical
PRIMAL PREGNANCY, PRIMAL BIRTH:
Building a Foundation of Optimal Health for Future Generations
Kristi C. Beguin, B.S. Primal Ground, www.primalground.com
The Cascade of Medical Interventions:
1. Induction of labor:
Labor induction requires the need for other medical interventions (IV drip,
continuous EFM, agents to “ripen” the cervix, reduced movement, and no
solid food; and may include amniotomy and internal EFM).
2. Electronic Fetal Monitoring (EFM):
Clinical trials have shown that EFM is associated with an increase in C-
Sections. Abnormal fetal heart rate patterns are poor predictors of fetal
well-being. EFM strips are inconsistently interpreted, even among experts8.
3. Use of Pitocin to induce labor or to “speed things along”:
Synthetic oxytocin, Pitocin, does not cross the blood-brain barrier, and
blocks a woman’s body from producing oxytocin and other hormones.The
Pitocin-induced contractions are often more painful, frequent, and strong,
and can cause deoxygenation and distress to the baby, and increases stress
hormones (cortisol, adrenaline and noradrenaline) in the mother, which
increases the need for pain-relieving medication9.
4. Epidural for pain relief, a narcotic cocktail to “take the edge off”:
Epidural drugs decrease nearly every hormone of labor including oxytocin,
prostaglandin F2Alpha, beta endorphins, adrenaline, and noradrenaline.
Epidural drugs pass through the placenta. Potential side effects for baby
include, need for resuscitation, and fetal heart rate changes10.The final
surge of hormones responsible for the “fetal ejection reflex” may be
decreased or blocked10.
5. Use of forceps or vacuum extractor:
Risk of physical/neurological damage to baby; postpartum hemorrhage,
damaged vaginal/perineal tissues to the mother; often requires an
episiotomy.
6. Cesarean Section:
C-Section increases risk of maternal mortality by 5x; Increases future risk of
placental problems, infertility, ectopic pregnancy; Mother and baby are
more likely to be separated after birth, leading to potential breastfeeding
and bonding problems. Baby is not inoculated with vaginal bacteria, some
of the first to colonize baby’s skin and gastrointestinal tract12.
The Physiological Hormonal Cascade:
1. Hormonal interaction between baby and mother trigger early labor:
Oxytocin levels in baby may initiate contractions in mother9. Parents
contact caregivers, and “do life”-- they eat, drink, walk, cook, and hang
out, until contractions seem more purposeful.
2. Contractions work to efface and dilate the cervix; oxytocin and
prostaglandin F2Alpha are produced:
Oxytocin and prostaglandin F2 alpha release is stimulated by the pressure
of baby’s body on the cervix, and support contractions9. If the mother is
supported physically and emotionally, she is more likely to experience
less stress, enabling the physiological process to unfold unhindered.
3. As labor continues, powerful contractions initiate the release of
Beta endorphins and catecholamines (CAs: e.g., adrenaline and
noradrenalin):
Beta-endorphins are opioid compounds associated with the altered state
of consciousness a woman experiences during labor, enabling her to
transcend pain and do the work of delivering her baby. CAs work to give
the mother energy to push the baby out, and provide a feeling of
alertness at the moment of birth9.
4. At the moment of birth, oxytocin and CAs mediate the “fetal
ejection reflex”:
The physiological surge of all the hormones assist the body in expelling
the baby at the moment of birth.
5.The immediate postpartum period:
During the first moments after birth, mother and baby experience skin-
to-skin and eye-to-eye contact that bathes mother’s and baby’s
endocrine systems in a hormonal cocktail facilitating bonding and well-
being. This hormonal response stimulates the birth of the placenta,
contraction of the uterus, and production of prolactin, which brings in
mother’s milk.Through vaginal birth and the initial moments of
breastfeeding, baby’s gut and skin are inoculated with their first
bacteria, which go on to become important immune system
modulators12.
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2008. Health Care Cost and Utilization Project, Statistical Brief #113. Agency for
Healthcare Research and Quality. May 2011.
3. Ian C. G.Weaver, et al. Epigenetic Programming by Maternal Behavior, Nature
Neuroscience,Vol 7, No 8, August 2004. Nature PublishingGroup.
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Obesity, and Metabolic Function:The Role of Intrauterine Stress and Stress
Biology. Journal of Nutrition and Metabolism,Volume 2012.
5. Anne Pfuntner, et al. Most Frequent Procedures Performed in U.S. Hospitals, 2010.
Health Care Cost and Utilization Project, Statistical Brief #149. Agency for
Healthcare Research and Quality. February 2013.
6. M.F. MacDorman,T.J. Matthews, and E. Declercq. Home Births in the United
States, 1990 – 2009. NCHF Data Brief No. 84 , National Center for Health
Statistics. January 2012.
7. C. Sakala and P. Corry. Evidence-Based Maternity Care:What it is andWhat it Can
Achieve. Childbirth Connections and the Millbank Memorial Fund. 2008
8. C.B. Martin. Electronic Fetal Monitoring: A Brief Summary of its development,
problems, and prospects. European Journal of Obstetrics,Gynecology, and
Reproductive Biology. 1998 Jun; 78(2):133-40.
9. Sarah Buckley. Ecstatic Birth,The Hormonal Blueprint of Labor, Mothering
Magazine, March-April 2002.
10. Sarah Buckley. The Hidden Risk of Epidurals, Mothering, Nov-Dec 2005.
11. Wendy Ponte. Cesarean Birth in a Culture of Fear, Mothering, Sept-Oct 2008.
12. Michael Pollan. Some of My Best Friends are Germs,The NewYorkTimes
Magazine, May 15, 2013.
13. P.D. Gluckman and MA Hanson. Living with the past: evolution, development, and
patterns of disease, Science, vol. 305, no. 5691, 2004.
Modern Birth Facts