Five key findings from our investigation into the Free Birth Society

"All agreed the information FBS provided pregnant women included content that was medically illiterate, misleading or dangerous. Examples include the false claim that there is zero risk of infection when cutting an umbilical cord, incorrect guidance on how to resolve a rare but potentially fatal condition called shoulder dystocia, and advocacy of a passive approach to newborn resuscitation that posed a high risk to babies of long-term neurological damage or death."

"We identified 48 cases of late-term stillbirths or neonatal deaths or other forms of serious harm involving mothers or birth attendants who appear to be linked to FBS, for example having enrolled in its courses or appeared on its podcasts. Most of the cases of harm relate to mothers in the US and Canada, but they include births in Switzerland, France, South Africa, Thailand, India, Australia, the UK and Israel."

"When free births go wrong, it is impossible to say whether the outcome would have been different with medical support. But in 18 of the cases, all of which involved in-depth interviews with the mothers, we found evidence suggesting FBS played a significant role in the mother or birth attendant's decision-making, leading to potentially avoidable tragedies. They include the case of Gabrielle Lopez, a first-time mother from Pennsylvania."

For healthy, low-risk mothers, freebirthing risk is generally low, but population-level evidence links labour without professional support to higher maternal and neonatal risk. Medical reviewers found FBS content to be medically illiterate, misleading or dangerous, including false claims about umbilical cord infection risk, incorrect shoulder dystocia management, and passive newborn resuscitation advice that risks long-term neurological damage. Investigators identified 48 cases of late-term stillbirths, neonatal deaths, or serious harm connected to people linked to FBS across multiple countries. In 18 in-depth interviews, evidence suggested FBS significantly influenced decision-making leading to potentially avoidable tragedies.

Read at www.theguardian.com