Is 'Old-Fashioned' Birthing on Its Way Out in Mexico? Lauren Villagran - The Christian Science Monitor
go to original April 11, 2013

MEXICO CITY -  The sight of a pregnant woman in labor has become increasingly rare in Mexican hospitals, which now have the highest rate of Caesarean procedures in Latin America. Nearly one in two women give birth by C-section in Mexico today in public and private hospitals; in private hospitals alone, the rate is 70 percent.

Caesarean rates in Mexico far surpass World Health Organization (WHO) recommendations for a target rate between 10 and 15 percent and are beginning to draw scrutiny.

“It’s been high for awhile but it’s climbed to alarming levels,” says Glenda Furszyfer, a doula, or birth assistant, in Mexico City.

The factors driving the rising rates of C-sections are numerous, ranging from Mexican consumers’ increasing economic power to lopsided insurance payouts that favor surgery, as well as doctors and patients who prefer the convenience of scheduling birth.

Read the rest at The Christian Science Monitor

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