{"id":26,"date":"2010-10-16T23:12:17","date_gmt":"2010-10-16T23:12:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/medicinetomoveyou\/2010\/10\/vaginal-deliveries-decrease-allergy-risks.html"},"modified":"2010-10-16T23:12:17","modified_gmt":"2010-10-16T23:12:17","slug":"vaginal-deliveries-decrease-allergy-risks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/medicinetomoveyou\/2010\/10\/vaginal-deliveries-decrease-allergy-risks.html","title":{"rendered":"Vaginal Deliveries Decrease Allergy Risks"},"content":{"rendered":"

As you may have read in an earlier post, I recently attended
\nSIMPLE, a conference for Integrative Medical Professionals held by the
\nUniversity of New Mexico.  <\/span>There, I
\namassed a smorgasbord of integrative health education which I will be spurting
\nout as I fast as I can find the time to put it into words.  <\/span>Sometimes, the topics will be heavy and
\nrequire more background information, and sometimes the facts will be short and
\nsweet.  <\/span>Either way, you will learn
\nsomething you can apply to your own health care or, at the least, juicy enough
\nto intrigue your friends at your next social gathering.<\/p>\n

The moans, screams, and sometimes profanities of a pregnant
\nwoman are vividly known to anyone who has been in the delivery room of a vaginal birth
\nwithout epidural anesthesia.  <\/span>Why, I
\nasked myself, during those hours of my labor and delivery did the baby have to
\ncome out of there?  <\/span>Couldn’t it have been
\ndesigned a little smarter and easier? 
\n<\/span>Well, it apparently was designed very intelligently, but a woman’s pain
\nwas not considered in the negotiations, I guess!<\/p>\n

Did you know that a newborn’s developing immune system
\nrelies on certain bacteria from the environment getting into the body during
\nthe birthing process to become strong and balanced?  <\/span>When a baby is born through the vaginal
\ncanal, there are certain friendly bacteria that live in the vagina that get into
\nand take residence in (inoculate) the baby’s digestive system at that
\ntime.  <\/span>Historically after delivery, a
\nwoman then would begin immediately breastfeeding, and another set of friendly
\nbacteria from the breast skin area would further inoculate the baby’s digestive
\nsystem.  <\/span>As you may know, a human’s
\nimmune system hangs out predominantly in the digestive tract.  <\/span>In fact, 70% of your body’s defense system
\nlives there.  <\/span>A critical part of your
\ndefense strategy is the friendly bacteria (probiotics) living along the lining
\nof your intestines.  <\/span>So putting it all
\ntogether, a newborn’s delivery is the critical time where this amazing and
\ningenious first inoculation must occur. 
\n<\/span>What a baby gets at the time of delivery is the most he will ever have
\nin his lifetime (barring probiotic supplementation in the future).  <\/span><\/p>\n

What happens then if your baby was born via cesarean section
\n(c-section)?  <\/span>During the preparation for
\nthe surgery, the mother’s abdomen is sterilized (removing all skin bacteria)
\nand the baby is not inoculated by the friendly vaginal bacteria.  <\/span>Afterwards, the baby is usually required to
\nbe examined and eventually makes it back to mother for a trial of
\nbreastfeeding.  <\/span>What if mother became a
\nlittle too sedated from the epidural or pain meds that might have been given
\nprior to surgery?  <\/span>She might not feel as
\nresilient after c-section to face her next order of business-
\nbreastfeeding.  <\/span>She might get frustrated with
\nher inabilities and decide to start bottle-feeding.  <\/span>Obviously, the nurse will only provide a
\nclean, as close to sterile, bottle as possible to the newborn.  <\/span>Perhaps, the mother gave a few breastfeeding
\nattempts (prior to the bottle being given) and a little probiotic gift was
\ntransferred to her child but likely not as much as if she continued
\nbreastfeeding as the primary source of feeding. 
\n<\/span>Another additional twist- what if she was Group B strep positive and received
\nthe routine antibiotics prior to delivery? 
\n<\/span>These would travel to the unborn child and potentially disrupt his
\nability to lay down the proper probiotic protection he needed later in
\nlife.  <\/span>So, what does all this mean?  <\/span>Here are a few tips to connect the dots for
\nyou.<\/p>\n