Russian women switch to lotus births

The practice of "lotus births" has grown by 30 percent in Russia lately. When practicing lotus delivery, women leave the umbilical cord uncut after childbirth and wait for it to dry off naturally. It is believed that the child builds a connection with space and becomes less aggressive.

Lotus births can be found on the list of services provided by private clinics. Newborns are left connected to the placenta for the period of time that they "need.” This period of time can last from a few hours to 10 days.

The followers of the lotus birth practice believe that they thus do not disrupt the natural course of events. In classic childbirth, one allegedly programs an incorrect code of life into the baby, "where breathing is associated with aggression."

The lotus birth practice emerged in Bali in 1995. It gradually developed popularity and affected Russia as well. Russian pop star Sati Kazanova made the lotus birth procedure even more popular when she revealed that she gave a lotus birth to her first baby.

Moscow clinics offer lotus birth services for as much as 200,000 rubles (about $1,900).

Professor and Honored Doctor Yuri Serebryansky told SHOT Telegram channel that such a procedure was very dangerous for the baby. Even animals bite through the umbilical cord of their babies. Lotus birth may trigger purulent inflammation, and the baby will have to be operated on.

Details

Lotus birth (or umbilical cord nonseverance - UCNS) is the practice of leaving the umbilical cord uncut after childbirth so that the baby is left attached to the placenta until the cord naturally separates at the umbilicus. This usually occurs within 3–10 days after birth. The practice is performed mainly for spiritual purposes, including for the perceived spiritual connection between the placenta and the newborn. As of December 2008, no evidence exists to support any medical benefits for the baby. The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists has warned about the risks of infection as the decomposing placenta tissue becomes a nest for infectious bacteria such as Staphylococcus. In one such case a 20-hour old baby whose parents chose UCNS was brought to the hospital in an agonal state, was diagnosed with sepsis and required an antibiotic treatment for 6 weeks.