While every pregnancy comes with a due date, predicting the actual date when your labor will begin can be difficult. If you’re not scheduled for a C-section, you can remain pregnant for days or, more rarely, weeks, past your projected due date, with no clue as to when your labor will actually begin.
Is it possible to induce labor? Your OB/GYN can use medication to induce labor. But can you safely use any non-medication-based, natural tricks to induce labor and get your delivery started at last?
In this blog, expert OB/GYN Dr. Leonardo A. Longoria separates the natural induction myths from the facts. Dr. Longoria provides comprehensive, evidence-based pregnancy care to new and existing patients at Longoria OBGYN in El Paso, Texas.
Fact: Not only will these approaches not help bring on childbirth, but it’s not safe to take essential oils or castor oil internally. You shouldn’t try this one at home! In fact, you should talk to your OB/GYN about any supplements you want to try, including those you hope will naturally induce.
Fact: You might crave spicy foods during your pregnancy, but eating your meals extra-hot isn’t likely to naturally induce labor. And, if you’re not used to spice, high levels can produce stomach irritation and digestive upset, increasing your late-pregnancy discomfort. Consider this myth busted, as well.
Fact: While black cohosh can cause contractions, they can be too strong and become unsafe for your and your baby’s health and well-being. While it’s difficult to be patient in the last months of pregnancy, safety is the most important consideration as you approach the long-awaited moment of your baby’s first breath.
Fact: Actually, there is. Although most of the common folk-wisdom ways to naturally induce labor don’t work, the one approach to natural induction that does show promise in studies is nipple stimulation.
Nipple stimulation releases the hormone oxytocin, which can induce contractions and labor. Stimulating your nipples for 15 minutes, three times daily, for a few days may help bring on your birth.
Dr. Longoria may also be able to help bring on labor with a membrane-sweeping procedure that releases prostaglandins. This can trigger labor within the following 48 hours.
That said, no approach to naturally inducing labor is guaranteed to work 100 percent of the time. Your baby will come when the moment is right, and not a minute before.
Always ask Dr. Longoria before trying any natural induction approaches, and make sure to stay safe and secure as you finish your pregnancy and welcome your new arrival.
To consult with Dr. Longoria, schedule an appointment at Longoria OBGYN by calling our office or booking online.
