Edelmann/Science Photo Library
Nicola Fairgrieve, midwife
Milton Keynes, UK
Humans aren’t the only animals to cut the umbilical cord – cats and dogs bite through them when their offspring are born. However, midwives do delay cord clamping and cutting if the infant is well to allow as much as possible of the blood supply from the placenta to reach them.
Some parents choose not to cut the cord and have a “lotus birth”, where the placenta is placed in a bag with herbs and salt to help preserve it. It is then carried around with the baby until the cord dries and detaches naturally,…
