Castor oil as a natural alternative to labor induction: A retrospective descriptive study. Women and Birth. Gilad, R. Castor oil for induction of labor in post-date pregnancies: A randomized controlled trial.
Neri, I. Castor oil for induction of labour: a retrospective study. Patel, V. Lipid Insights. Castor oil: Drug information. Join now to personalize. Photo credit: iStock. What is castor oil? Can I take castor oil to induce labor? How much castor oil should I take? How long does it take for castor oil to work? Is drinking castor oil during pregnancy safe? Potential complications of using castor oil for labor.
Potential complications of using castor oil for labor Drinking castor oil to induce labor comes with several risks. Castor oil is a strong laxative and ingesting it can result in: Nausea Diarrhea Cramping Dehydration Low blood pressure Dizziness It's possible that taking castor oil to induce labor may also increase the risk that your baby will pass his first stool before he's born, which in rare cases can lead to birth complications.
However, one recent study found that there is a connection between taking castor oil and inducing labor. The study concluded that castor oil may induce labor within 24 hours if a woman is 40 weeks pregnant.
Researchers conducted the study using women in their 40th and 41st weeks of pregnancy, over a period of 5 years. A smaller study , this time from , found that Only 4. Evidence from this study suggests that castor oil may help induce labor. However, one study found no connection between taking castor oil and inducing labor. This study included over participants in week 40 or above of their pregnancy.
The study concluded that castor oil had no effect on the time of birth. It also did not seem to have any harmful effects. A study found that castor oil induction is more effective in women who have had babies previously. The researchers reported no adverse effects from their sample of 81 pregnant women. Another study looked back on women who had used castor oil while 40—41 weeks pregnant under the care of their doctor, and they found it to be effective in inducing labor within 24 hours for most of the women.
However, the mother may experience side effects from ingesting castor oil. Some potential side effects could include:. Women with sensitive stomachs or other gastrointestinal conditions should avoid taking castor oil. Also, those who have had a cesarean delivery in the past should never attempt castor oil ingestion while pregnant.
Learn why below. In most cases, the body will induce labor when it is ready to give birth. Castor oil for labor. Does it work? Should you induce? You have an infection in your uterus. You have high blood pressure , diabetes , or another condition that could put you or your baby at risk.
The takeaway. Whatever happens, try not to worry too much. Your baby will be here eventually! Share on Pinterest. Parenthood Pregnancy Pregnancy Health. How to Start Labor Contractions Naturally. Placenta Delivery: What to Expect. Read this next. Medically reviewed by Gerhard Whitworth, R. The authors had looked at all studies between and ,, so this was over a 10 year time span and they looked at studies in all languages. Ten of the 11 randomized control trials in the systematic review had the pregnant parents eat dates in whole form, and one trial used date syrup instead of whole dates.
That study that used date syrup did have an appropriate method of blinding. There was a placebo group that received a syrup made with sodium saccharin, which is an artificial sweetener. In three of the studies, people only ate date fruit for one day, and in eight of the studies, the participants were told to eat date fruits for anywhere from 10 to 28 days of pregnancy.
Rebecca Dekker: In the systematic review with the 11 randomized trials, the researchers found that people who are randomly assigned to eat dates had a shorter length of the early phase of labor, fewer cases of postpartum bleeding, fewer women needed to be induced or have augmentation, fewer of them had vacuum-assisted deliveries, there were fewer cases of ruptured membranes before admission, a higher Bishop score on admission to the hospital, so their cervix were more ripe, and fewer cases of prolonged first and second stages of labor.
In the meta analysis of the eight randomized control trials, where they were able to combine the data all in one and analyze it together, found that date fruit reduced the length of pregnancy in the studies where women started eating dates at 37 weeks of pregnancy or earlier, ate 70 grams a day or more of dates and ate date fruit for more than 20 days.
They also found that people who ate date fruit during pregnancy had increased cervical dilation on admission to the hospital and a shorter length of the first stage.
Rebecca Dekker: That systematic review is published in There were two other randomized control trials published in that also showed positive findings. These studies were not part of that systematic review, because they were published after the systematic review stopped collecting data in In the first one, published by Ahmed et al.
That was one group. The other group was told to eat seven dates and had IV fluids only. Then, there was a third group that was not given dates or water, just IV fluids. The researchers found a shorter first stage among the two groups that were assigned to eat dates during labor. There were no differences between the three groups and rates of spontaneous vaginal birth, epidurals, episiotomies, Cesareans, forceps, or vacuum.
Unfortunately, this study does not appear to be of high quality. We noticed several errors in the reporting of their results. Rebecca Dekker: The second study was published by Tavani et al. This study took place in Iran, and 80 first-time mothers with no pain medications were assigned at hospital admission in labor to either consume date syrup or water-only.
The date syrup was prepared by blending six dates in milliliters of water. The researchers found that pain scores were high in both groups, so these people were not able to have epidurals, but pain scores were significantly lower in the date syrup group at one hour, 90 minutes, two hours, and two and a half hours after consuming the date syrup.
There was no difference between the two groups 30 minutes after the intervention. Rebecca Dekker: If zero was no pain and 10 was the worst pain, the date group reported pain levels between 7.
But the mothers were not blinded to their group assignment, and that could have introduced the placebo effect. Also, pain scores were very high in both groups, regardless of which group they were assigned to. Those studies are interesting because they kind of give us some info about eating dates during labor.
Rebecca Dekker: What are some potential date fruit protocols? You should talk with your care provider before eating dates if you have any concerns about your blood sugar levels.
Researchers have found beneficial effects when people start eating date fruits by at least 36 to 37 weeks of pregnancy. The studies that found beneficial results, instructed people to eat 70 to a hundred grams of date fruits daily. This is the equivalent of three to four large medjool dates that are pitted or six to 10 smaller [inaudible ] dates that are also pitted.
Also, research suggests that date fruit might make a good snack in labor, that you can nibble on them and small amounts for energy. Rebecca Dekker: That concludes the research evidence that we have available on castor oil and eating date fruits for labor induction. Again, keep in mind that the research studies may not apply to higher risk people with additional medical or pregnancy complications. I hope you found this information helpful. Last year at Evidence Based Birth, we hosted focus groups and talked with nurses from across the US who told us that they wish they had a way to learn or refresh their comfort measure skills to use with birthing clients, so we created the Comfort Measures for Labor and Delivery Nurses Workshop.
This is a three hour in-person workshop with nursing contact hours. Don't miss an episode! Subscribe to our podcast: iTunes Stitcher On today's podcast, we're going to talk with Ihotu Ali, MPH, who is writing about research on the effects of racism on pregnancy and birth outcomes.
Subscribe to our podcast: iTunes Stitcher. Can castor oil increase the chances of you going into labor? When is it most effective? How many dates do you need to eat to reduce the length of pregnancy? Resources Castor Oil Azhari, S. Evaluation of the effect of castor oil on initiating labor in term pregnancy. Saudi Med J, 27 7 , Click here. DeMaria, A. Castor oil as a natural alternative to labor induction: A retrospective descriptive study.
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