Cesarean delivery - childbirth through an incision in the mother's lower abdomen - is now the most common major surgical procedure performed in the United States. No one argues over the fact that it can be a life-saving procedure when the baby or mother is at risk. But for almost three decades in this nation, cesarean deliveries have increased, without substantially better outcomes for babies or mothers. Experts warn that up to 50 percent of the more than 1 million C-sections performed here each year are unnecessary. And that is where Nicette Jukelevics, a certified childbirth educator, researcher and writer, steps in with this book. Jukelevics aims to give women the insights they need to make an informed decision about whether natural or C-section birth is best for them and their babies. She explains when C-sections are necessary, and when they are not needed. She also addresses the overuse and misuse of medical procedures that can complicate labor and lead to C-sections, as well as reasons doctors may support or suggest C-sections, including outdated medical information, fear of liability, and economic advantages measured in doctors' time. This work also examines midwifery practices shown to safely reduce cesarean deliveries, but ignored or resisted by hospitals. Understanding the Dangers of Cesarean Birth will interest not only expectant and future parents, but also to students and scholars of women's health, nursing, and public health.

Cesarean Section is the first book to chronicle this history. In exploring the creation of the complex social, cultural, economic, and medical factors leading to the surgery’s increase, Jacqueline H. Wolf describes obstetricians’ reliance on assorted medical technologies that weakened the skills they had traditionally employed to foster vaginal birth. She also reflects on an unsettling malpractice climate—prompted in part by a raft of dubious diagnoses—that helped to legitimize "defensive medicine," and a health care system that ensured cesarean birth would be more lucrative than vaginal birth. In exaggerating the risks of vaginal birth, doctors and patients alike came to view cesareans as normal and, increasingly, as essential. Sweeping change in women’s lives beginning in the 1970s cemented this markedly different approach to childbirth.

Trusted physicians reassure mothers and mothers-to-be: It's okay to say yes. One in four babies born in the United States and Europe comes into the world via Cesarean section. Yet this procedure has been described by critics as an unnecessary and potentially dangerous medical intervention. Consequently, expectant mothers often fear this option, and women who have had C-sections can feel a sense of failure. In Cesarean Section: Understanding and Celebrating Your Baby's Birth, Drs. Michele Moore and Caroline de Costa emphasize the joy of delivering a healthy baby, however that is best achieved. They explain why Cesarean births are sometimes preferable to vaginal delivery for both mother and baby, and they help women understand the issues behind the decision to perform the procedure. From anesthesia, surgery, and recovery through at-home care of mother and child, the authors offer reassurance and practical information for all mothers and mothers-to-be. They also discuss the latest findings on postpartum depression and planning for future births, including the possibility of vaginal birth after a Cesarean section. For every woman who has a planned—or unplanned—Cesarean section, this book provides the information they need to alleviate their fears and come to value this delivery option. "Because up to a quarter of all births are Cesarean births, prenatal preparation should include information about Cesarean sections for every woman. And that is why we have written this guide. . . . We believe strongly that it is time to speak out and say that Cesarean section is a normal birth method and that women who have a Cesarean section should not be made to feel that they have failed. . . . We hope you find the information in this book useful and helpful in thinking about C-section, whether you have already had a Cesarean and want to understand the experience better, you wish to plan for another C-section birth, or you are expecting a baby and want to be informed about all the possibilities ahead, including this other normal way of bringing a baby into the world."—from the Introduction

Trusted physicians reassure mothers and mothers-to-be: It's okay to say yes. One in four babies born in the United States and Europe comes into the world via Cesarean section. Yet this procedure has been described by critics as an unnecessary and potentially dangerous medical intervention. Consequently, expectant mothers often fear this option, and women who have had C-sections can feel a sense of failure. In Cesarean Section: Understanding and Celebrating Your Baby's Birth, Drs. Michele Moore and Caroline de Costa emphasize the joy of delivering a healthy baby, however that is best achieved. They explain why Cesarean births are sometimes preferable to vaginal delivery for both mother and baby, and they help women understand the issues behind the decision to perform the procedure. From anesthesia, surgery, and recovery through at-home care of mother and child, the authors offer reassurance and practical information for all mothers and mothers-to-be. They also discuss the latest findings on postpartum depression and planning for future births, including the possibility of vaginal birth after a Cesarean section. For every woman who has a planned—or unplanned—Cesarean section, this book provides the information they need to alleviate their fears and come to value this delivery option. "Because up to a quarter of all births are Cesarean births, prenatal preparation should include information about Cesarean sections for every woman. And that is why we have written this guide. . . . We believe strongly that it is time to speak out and say that Cesarean section is a normal birth method and that women who have a Cesarean section should not be made to feel that they have failed. . . . We hope you find the information in this book useful and helpful in thinking about C-section, whether you have already had a Cesarean and want to understand the experience better, you wish to plan for another C-section birth, or you are expecting a baby and want to be informed about all the possibilities ahead, including this other normal way of bringing a baby into the world."—from the Introduction

The delivery of high quality and equitable care for both mothers and newborns is complex and requires efforts across many sectors. The United States spends more on childbirth than any other country in the world, yet outcomes are worse than other high-resource countries, and even worse for Black and Native American women. There are a variety of factors that influence childbirth, including social determinants such as income, educational levels, access to care, financing, transportation, structural racism and geographic variability in birth settings. It is important to reevaluate the United States' approach to maternal and newborn care through the lens of these factors across multiple disciplines. Birth Settings in America: Outcomes, Quality, Access, and Choice reviews and evaluates maternal and newborn care in the United States, the epidemiology of social and clinical risks in pregnancy and childbirth, birth settings research, and access to and choice of birth settings.