The human being is naturally programmed to be born vaginally. When the baby decides to be born, a complex mechanism that triggers labor is set in motion. When delivery occurs by caesarean section before labor begins, this schedule is altered because something (or someone) external decides that the time has come to leave.
How does this influence the baby's immune system? According to research conducted by a team of experts from Denmark, Caesarean section before labor alters the baby's immune response. Circulating immune cells vary between babies born by natural birth and those born by caesarean section, and even more so if it is practiced before labor.
The baby's immune system at birth
We have talked in a very interesting article about the differences between vaginal birth and caesarean section at the immune level. In vaginal delivery, as it passes through the birth canal, the baby's intestine is colonized by the mother's bacteria that strengthen her own immune system and protect her from disease.
"Previous studies had shown that there are differences in microbial colonization patterns among neonates after a C-section versus a natural birth," the team notes. That would explain the relationship between caesarean section and the risk of developing diseases mediated by the immune system.
Natural labor reinforces the immunological maturation of the baby
Experts have found that practicing a caesarean section before the baby has decided to be born, that is, before labor begins on its own, is related to a distinctive change and associated with the gestational age of circulating immune cells in The newborns.
This suggests that natural labor would reinforce the immunological maturation of the baby. In addition, the way of birth also influences, since if after labor, the baby is born vaginally, it is exposed to the microbiota of the birth canal, or in other words it is "contaminated" by its mother, which reinforces even more their defenses.
In conclusion, and what would be more consistent is Caesarean section after starting labor, which on the other hand is what is recommended, that it is an emergency practice in case of some complication and not a scheduled interaction.
Via | Scientific American
Photo | iStockphoto
More information | Journal of Allergyand Clinical Immunology
