Having a tooth extracted is not an experience that anyone really enjoys, but the actual procedure is usually painless. In a simple extraction, the dentist administers a local anesthesia to numb the tooth and gums surrounding it, and then uses...
In traditional medicine, medicinal herbs have been used to strengthen the ligaments and muscles in the uterus. Midwives and herbalists may recommend these naturopathic supplements to treat pregnancy complications, certain types of infertility and...
Evening primrose is an alternative remedy used for a variety of purposes. One of the purposes for which it's often recommended by midwives and practitioners of alternative medicine is as a cervical ripening agent in late pregnancy. However,...
So-called "pregnancy" teas and herbs, including red raspberry leaves, are popular with proponents of alternative health care. These herbs supposedly increase your labor preparedness, while decreasing the likelihood and severity of some of the...
There are a variety of herbal products that midwives and alternative health care practitioners commonly recommend during pregnancy. Some of these herbs are meant to decrease discomforts related to pregnancy, while others supposedly help to prepare...
An epidural is a type of anesthesia. Epidurals block the nerve impulses from the lower spinal segments, resulting in decreased sensation in the lower half of the body, states the American Pregnancy Association. Epidurals provide pain relief but...
It's quite common to believe that "natural" means "safe" or "good," which is why many pregnant women feel more comfortable with herbal supplements and natural remedies than they do with pharmaceuticals during pregnancy. Unfortunately, however, the...
Babies can enter the world in one of several ways. Since babies don't have much say in the matter, the decision for which delivery option is best falls to his mother, or, more often, to his mother's medical practitioner. The type of delivery...
After nine months of pregnancy, the much-anticipated delivery of the baby arrives. A woman and her doctor choose the type of delivery, with things like beliefs about childbirth and the health of mother and baby taken into account. Many pregnant...
A few weeks before labor begins, a baby will move into the position he will be in for delivery. Mothers may typically feel this as their baby "drops" into their pelvis. The position of a baby during delivery affects the amount of time the mother...
Extractions of teeth tend to create anxiety in patients. Tooth removal is not always associated with an unhealthy tooth, nor is it a painful procedure. Once it has been determined that a tooth should be removed, there are dietary and behavioral...
While the ideal is a natural, uninterrupted birth, there are circumstances when intervention and anesthesia become necessary. Unfortunately these are not without side effects to both mother and baby. The adverse consequences increase in direct...
In most hospital deliveries, vitamin K is administered via injection shortly after birth as part of the standard regimen of newborn care. Some parents choose to opt out of this particular intervention for fear that the shot may do harm or because...
Epidurals are the most common type of anesthesia used during labor and delivery. They combine a local anesthetic with narcotics or opiates and are administered into the epidural space of your spinal cord. More than half of all pregnant women...
A tooth abscess is a pus-filled area where bacteria has entered the tooth pulp though a crack or cavity in the enamel and caused an infection. It is a sign that your tooth and jawbone are being destroyed, and it requires prompt treatment. It also...
If you've spent any time searching the Internet for natural labor induction techniques, you've likely run across evening primrose. Some midwives and practitioners of alternative medicine recommend taking evening primrose orally or applying it to...
There are a number of ways to deliver a baby. Understanding the different possibilities can help a woman prepare for anything. Women often create a birth plan, or written explanation of how they prefer to deliver the baby. While all those involved...
A tooth extraction is a dental procedure that involves removing a tooth from the bone socket. For a child, this can be a scary procedure since he does not know what to expect and will often worry that the procedure will hurt. By educating your...
