What effect does different methods of delivery have on a newborns stress response?
The most stressful thing that happens to any baby is being born, compared to anything else that goes on. We’re very concerned about the experience of the mother during pregnancy and her pain and a lot’s done for the mother but very little attention is paid to the baby. But we now know from looking at cortisol levels in the umbilical cord immediately after birth that birth is very distressful for the baby and different types of delivery induce different levels of stress. We’ve found that babies born by elective cesarean had the lowest response. Those born by normal vaginal birth had an intermediate response. And those born by assisted delivery, such as with forceps or suction, had the biggest response. We then looked at eight-week-old babies who’d been born by these different methods and looked at their stress responses to a vaccination by measuring saliva cortisol. This showed that, at least for the first eight weeks, delivery method affects the behavior, the stress response of the bab
