North Carolina will no longer shackle inmates during childbirth, but many states still do

North Carolina has ended the practice of shackling of women prisoners while they are giving birth. The US state joins only 18 others that regulate the practice, according to civil rights groups. State Prisons Director Kenneth Lassiter announced this week that restraints must be removed once an inmate is in labour unless she is a threat […]

Way more black women die during childbirth — and hospitals that serve black women have huge maternal mortality rates

Thomson Reuters A ProPublica study revealed shocking patterns in rates of maternal mortality and complications from childbirth across several US states, including New York. Hospitals that treat predominantly African-American mothers have much higher rates of mortality and complications than those who don’t. Geography often dictates access to care. Solutions for this disparity exist, and work […]

17 Facts About Childbirth Throughout History That'll Make You Gasp And Cringe

“During the first stages, pressure is made with the fingers on the terminal filaments of the sympathetic nerves in and around the clitoris,” Louis A. Spaeth wrote in Coming Motherhood in 1907. “The index and middle fingers are placed, one on each side of this organ, and firm, moderately hard pressure is made against the […]

Childbirth pain: Could giving birth be soothed by THIS surprisingly simple task?

GETTY Giving birth can be eased by the power of a man’s touch Birthing pains can be reduced if the father-to-be holds his partner’s hand during delivery, according to new research. And if he feels the pain with her, the effect is even more pronounced – the more empathetic the man, the stronger the sense […]

Judge rips lawyers in IP rift over viral Facebook childbirth video

(credit: WSPA.com) A year ago, the US Supreme Court announced guidance to lower courts in determining whether the prevailing party in a copyright lawsuit should be awarded attorney fees. Under US law, the losing side of a copyright suit can be ordered to pay the legal costs to the winners—no matter which side originally brought […]