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The umbilical cord or placenta plays an important role as a source of life for the fetus in the mother's womb. Having an umbilical cord will allow the fetus to get nutrition and oxygen from the mother, to support its growth and development.
The umbilical cord also provides antibodies to the baby before birth, providing immunity for the first 3 months after birth.
Immediately after birth, the mother's umbilical cord will be cut, but there will still be around 2-3 cm remaining which forms the baby's navel. This cut does not cause pain because the umbilical cord has no nerves.
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Cutting the baby's umbilical cord
Delaying cutting the umbilical cord means the doctor does not immediately clamp and cut your umbilical cord. Instead, they allow extra time for the blood in the umbilical cord and placenta to flow to the baby. By delaying cutting the umbilical cord for a few minutes, more blood will flow from the umbilical cord and placenta to the baby.
It turns out that there are several benefits to delaying cutting the umbilical cord, especially for babies. Here are some of them:
1. Reduces the risk of anemia
For full-term babies, delaying umbilical cord clamping will increase the baby's blood volume and iron stores. “Because iron is difficult to transfer into breast milk, this additional iron will help prevent anemia.”
Anemia is a condition characterized by low red blood cell volume. An increase in the number of red blood cells can lead to better development as the baby grows.
2. The benefits are even greater for premature babies
Babies born prematurely are at risk of serious health problems, and the addition of healthy blood from the umbilical cord can help lower that risk.
According to Healthline, delaying clamping and cutting the umbilical cord in premature babies has been shown to reduce the need for blood transfusions and reduce the risk of necrotizing enterocolitis (a severe complication involving the intestines of premature babies) and intraventricular hemorrhage (bleeding in the baby's brain). which can cause lifelong neurological problems).
3. Supports baby's neurological development
Research shows that delaying cutting the umbilical cord at birth may be associated with better neurological development in the baby, as well as improved motor movements and social abilities compared to the umbilical cord being cut immediately after birth.
4. Improve the functioning of the baby's immune system
Delaying cutting the umbilical cord is known to help increase the flow of immune cells from the pregnant mother to the baby. This will strengthen the baby's immune system, so that he is not easily attacked by disease, especially infectious diseases.
Delayed clamping and cutting of the umbilical cord can also be done during caesarean section or vaginal delivery. Because clamping and cutting the umbilical cord can be done after the placenta is expelled from your uterus, there is no additional risk for you or your baby to delay clamping and cutting the umbilical cord after a cesarean birth.
Because the operating room is often quite cold, special care needs to be taken to ensure the baby stays warm.
The risks associated with delayed clamping and cutting of the umbilical cord for pregnant women and healthy babies are very small. The main risk of delaying clamping and cutting the umbilical cord is an increase in blood volume which can cause jaundice. Because all of the babies were monitored for jaundice, this was a complication we were able to detect.
Treatment for jaundice involves placing the baby under a lamp which helps break down excess bilirubin in the blood.
When to avoid delaying clamping and cutting the umbilical cord?
There are several reasons why delayed cord clamping should be avoided. For example, in pregnant women with twins, due to limited research, pregnant women with an abnormal placenta, pregnant women experiencing heavy bleeding, or babies born requiring immediate medical care such as the baby not breathing or other problems, delaying clamping and cutting the umbilical cord is not recommended. .
In this case, the doctor will immediately clamp and cut the umbilical cord to focus on the health and safety of the pregnant mother and baby.
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