Chapter 19: Advanced skills for pregnancy and birth
Plant medicines
Many traditional midwives and healers use plant
medicines to start or strengthen labor. There may be
plants in your area that work well. Some plant
medicines do not work very well but are not
harmful. Others can be dangerous.
Watch the effects of plant medicines carefully.
Ask other healers about the useful and harmful
effects of plant medicines in your community.
Do not use a plant medicine that may be dangerous.
All plant medicines have these problems:
• It is difficult to control the dose. The same plant grown in
different areas or in different soil, or picked in different seasons,
will have different strengths.
• Any medicine given by mouth during labor may be difficult for
the body to use. The stomach does not work well during labor.
Each plant may have its own risks.
Some common risks among plants that
strengthen labor are:
• high blood pressure
• contractions that are too strong
• allergic reactions
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A Book for Midwives (2010)