Too Many Cesarean Sections: What You Need to Know

We are facing what continues to be a global cesarean section crisis. The overuse of cesarean sections, especially in the United States, is not new, but it has continued to become more prevalent here and globally over the past 30 years. Joining me this week is obstetrician/gynecologist and world leader in women's reproductive rights, Marleen Temmerman, MD. Listen in as we talk about the dual problem of both the overuse and under-access of cesarean sections for women around the world, and the impact of both of these on women’s health and safety. I know you'll be as moved and inspired as I am hearing Dr. Temmerman's story and important research findings.  

Aviva and Marleen discuss:  

• The why's behind the overuse and increase of cesareans  
• Misconceptions about cesarean sections, natural births, and breeches   
• The importance and role of midwives and why every birthing person needs one   
• The various impacts and long-term effects of cesareans on babies  
• Tools available to reduce the number of cesarean sections  
• The ways women can advocate for themselves during childbirth and prevent unnecessary cesareans   

Dr. Marleen Temmerman has served as a senator in the Belgian parliament, as the director of the World Health Organization's Department of Reproductive Health and Research, and as the founding director of Ghent University's International Centre of Reproductive Health. After retiring from the WHO, she moved to Kenya, where she is now with the Aga Khan University in Nairobi and is Director of their Centre of Excellence in Women and Child Health. Most recently, she has played a pivotal role in bringing attention to the overuse and under-access of cesarean sections to the obstetrics world internationally as senior author of a series of focus articles published in The Lancet, one of the world's oldest and most respected medical journals. " 

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