A revised edition of a childbirth classic, Sheila Kitzinger's

PRESS EMBARGO UNTIL 0001, THURSDAY 1st MAY 2003 A revised edition of a childbirth classic, Sheila Kitzinger's New Pregnancy & Childbirth ­ Choices & Challenges published today, challenges the assumption that high-tech hospitals provide the best possible care for mothers and babies. A career woman expects to have the confidence to make informed decisions about her body, her baby and her birth. But the choices available may be more apparent than real - and all too often things are taken out of her hands. She needs New Pregnancy & Childbirth ­ Choices & Challenges more than ever before. The original edition, published in 1980, empowered many women to question the growing medicalisation of birth. This new edition offers invaluable advice to a new generation of mothers who are being channelled into "safe" medical options just because of their age, because they have already faced medicalised conception due to fertility problems, or simply because they live at a time when surgery is presented as a trouble-free solution, whether it is the delivery of a baby or a face-lift at forty. THE FACTS ­ HOSPITAL vs. HOME BIRTH · Women who have experienced both hospital and home births are much more likely to prefer birth at home. · Statistics show that home birth is safe for the majority of women - yet under 3% actually manage to get a home birth. · In the Netherlands one third of births are at home. Births there are among the safest in the world. SO WHY DON'T MORE UK MOTHERS-TO-BE OPT FOR A HOME BIRTH? · An NCT report published in 2001, Home Birth in the United Kingdom, reveals that mums often miss out on the benefits of home birth because their GPs persuade them that it isn't a good idea. · For the survey the NCT questioned 167 heads of midwifery across the country, and found that about 90% believed home birth to be as safe as hospital birth for low-risk women. TOO POSH TO PUSH? · More and more women are now placed in the "high risk" category. Women used to be considered high risk at 40. Now many 30 year olds are told that they are high risk just because of their age. · New Pregnancy & Childbirth ­ Choices & Challenges also addresses the assumption that a Caesarean delivery is safer for "high risk" women. · Some obstetricians prefer to do a Caesarean for larger babies. Sheila says there is no evidence for this practice. Women can have safe and happy births with big babies if they have good midwife care. And she discusses the benefits of one-to-one midwifery and how to get it. A Caesarean is a major surgical operation, with a recovery time of six weeks. Think what that's like when you're caring for a new baby! Three times as many women are infertile after a Caesarean as those who have a spontaneous vaginal birth and six times as many suffer emotional trauma. And because a Caesarean causes a scar in the uterus it makes later births more dangerous. Sheila also debunks the idea that there are thousands of "too posh to push" mothers-to-be who believe a Caesarean guarantees a nice, tight vagina and a well-toned pelvic floor. Before and after childbirth, a healthy pelvic floor is the result of exercise and mobility. Sheila shows how a woman can keep these muscles vigorous. Today New Pregnancy & Childbirth ­ Choices & Challenges remains more relevant to modern women than ever, offering guidance on a range of common obstetric procedures and tests, including induction, epidurals and episiotomy, and offering sound advice that no mother-to-be can afford to be without. THE NEW PREGNANCY & CHILDBIRTH ­ Choices and Challenges is published today (Dorling Kindersley, £20.00) Sheila Kitzinger is available for interview For further information please contact Serena Stent tel: 020 7010 3553, or by email, serena.stent@dk.com ------------------------------------------------------------ This information was brought to you by Waymaker http://www.waymaker.net The following files are available for download: http://www.waymaker.net/bitonline/2003/04/29/20030429BIT01120/wkr0001.doc http://www.waymaker.net/bitonline/2003/04/29/20030429BIT01120/wkr0002.pdf