Birth And Breastfeeding: Rediscovering The Needs Of Women During Pregnancy And Childbirth

Michel Odent

2003

French obstetrician Michel Odent draws on decades of experience to explore how modern maternity practices interfere with women’s innate physiological processes during birth and breastfeeding. He explains how medicalised environments, stress, and lack of privacy can inhibit oxytocin — the hormone responsible for labour, bonding, and milk ejection — and argues for a return to instinctive, uninterrupted birthing and breastfeeding experiences. Odent’s writing is grounded in his research on primal health and his clinical innovations supporting undisturbed birth.

Why It’s Included This book offers a powerful framework for understanding how birth and breastfeeding are hormonally intertwined. It supports many of the core principles of physiological parenting and provides scientific backing for practices like skin-to-skin contact, rooming-in, and undisturbed postpartum time. For those advocating for gentle, evidence-informed care, it’s a foundational text that affirms the biological needs of mother and baby.

Who It’s For
Ideal for midwives, doulas, breastfeeding supporters, and birth educators, this book is also valuable for expectant parents seeking a broader perspective on birth and early mothering. Those interested in physiological birth, evolutionary perspectives on parenting, or the intersection of birth and society will find it especially meaningful.

“Michel Odent was writing about childbirth when I was having my babies in the 1980s. He continues to have a powerful voice in the field and is still relevant aged 94 as I write in 2025.

Michel was among the first to write about newborns initiating breastfeeding in that precious first hour after birth (1977) and the use of birthing pools during labour (1983). He’s also credited with coining the term “hormone of love” to describe the powerful role of oxytocin.”

— Yvette O'Dowd

Further Reading

• Reclaiming Childbirth – Rachel Reed

• The Birth Space – Gabrielle Nancarrow

• Why Home Birth Matters – Natalie Meddings

• Why Caesarean Recovery Matters – Beverley Turner & Leigh East

• The Fourth Trimester – Susan Brink