Human Birth: An Evolutionary Perspective

by Trevathan,Wenda R.

• ISBN13: 9781412815024
• ISBN10: 1412815029
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Nonspecific Binding
• Copyright: 2011-06-15
• Publisher: Routledge

Summary

The story of human evolution has been told hundreds of times, each time with a focus that seems most informative of the teller. No matter how it is told the primary characters are rarely mothers and infants. Darwin argued survival, but today we know that reproduction is what evolution is all about. Centering on this, Trevathan focuses on birth, which gives the study of human evolution a crucial new dimension. Unique among mammals, humans are bipedal. The evolution of bipedalism required fundamental changes in the pelvis and resulted in a narrow birth canal. Humans are also large-brained animals, which means that birth is much more challenging for our species than for most other animals. The result of this mismatch of large head and narrow pelvis is that women are highly dependent on assistance at birth and their babies are born in an unusually undeveloped state when the brain is still small. Human Birth discusses how the birth process has evolved and ways in which human birth differs from birth in all other mammals. Human Birth is also concerned with mother-infant interaction immediately after birth. While working as a midwife trainee, Trevathan carefully documented the births of more than one hundred women and recorded maternal and infant behaviors during the first hour after birth. She suggests ways in which the interactions served not only to enhance mother-infant bonding, but also to ensure survival in the evolutionary past. With clarity and compelling logic Trevathan argues that modern birth practices often fail to meet evolved needs of women and infants and suggests changes that could lead to better birth experiences. This paperback edition includes a new introduction by the author.

Author Biography

Wenda R. Trevathan is Regents Professor of anthropology at New Mexico State University. Her research focuses on childbirth, maternal behavior, sexuality, and menopause. In addition, she has written extensively on evolutionary medicine and is the author of Ancient Bodies, Modern Lives: How Evolution Has Shaped Women's Health.

Table of Contents

Introduction to the Paperback Edition	p. vii
Acknowledgments	p. xiii
Introduction	p. xv
Evolutionary Perspectives on Human Birth and Bonding: The Background
Sex	p. 1
Viviparity	p. 4
The Hemochorial Placenta	p. 5
Gestation Length	p. 15
Bipedalism and Parturition	p. 17
Lactation	p. 29
Intensification of Parental Care	p. 32
Summary	p. 33
Issues Relating to the Current Study: The Birth Center, Midwives Mothers, and Methods
Anthropological Interest in Birth and Bonding	p. 35
The Setting: EI Paso and The Birth Center	p. 40
Midwives	p. 45
The Mothers	p. 46
Methodology	p. 51
Ontogenetic and Proximate Factors Influencing Maternal Behavior at Birth and Immediately Postpartum	p. 54
Summary	p. 62
The Process of Parturition
Physiology and Biochemistry of Labor and Delivery in Human Beings	p. 65
Behaviors Associated with Parturition	p. 71
Comparisons of Births in Human and Nonhuman Primates	p. 88
Summary	p. 117
The Newborn Infant
The Neonatal Brain	p. 124
Infant State	p. 127
Neonatal Behavior	p. 129
Variation in Neonatal Behavior	p. 137
Exterogestation	p. 143
Summary	p. 145
Mother-Infant Interaction Immediately After Birth
Tactile Interaction	p. 149
Left-Lateral Preference	p. 158
Visual Communication	p. 166
Auditory Communication	p. 169
Entrainment	p. 176
Nursing	p. 177
Odor	p. 182
Ethograms of Maternal Behavior Immediately after Birth	p. 183
Summary	p. 189
Mother-Infant Bonding At Birth
Mother-Infant Bonding in Nonhuman Mammals	p. 193
Bonding in Human Mothers and Infants	p. 202
An Evolutionary Perspective on the First Hour after Birth	p. 212
An Evolutionary Perspective on Human Birth and Bonding: Conclusions
Readjustments in Birth and the Mother-Infant Bond Throughout Human Evolution	p. 221
Birth and Bonding in a Wider Context	p. 235
Translation of Spanish Dialogues	p. 241
Bibliography	p. 243
Index	p. 261
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