Gynecologist warns: Home births are increasing despite babies dying

Home births are becoming more common in Finland, and gynecologist Paula Turtiainen wants greater attention paid to risks that social media overlooks.

On Instagram, home birth can appear idyllic: a familiar setting, no unnecessary interventions and a process that unfolds naturally without medication. The article says social media presents breathing as sufficient and suggests that pushing may not even be necessary.

Turtiainen says a “freebirth community” creates fear that hospitals induce labor unnecessarily. Her warning challenges the reassuring image often presented online, especially as the article’s headline points to reports of babies dying.

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The freebirth community creates fear that labor is started unnecessarily in hospitals.