Turkey: Traditional medicine helps natural childbirth

By Duygu Yener

ANKARA (AA) - Turkish doctors started applying a traditional and complementary medicine method to help a baby in womb in breech position to rotate to the normal birth position.

Moxibustion, a Chinese method, stimulates baby in womb and ensures a healthy delivery, Dr. Belkiz Berna Kulah at Saglik Bilimleri University (SBU) in capital Ankara told Anadolu Agency.

"We mark the outer corner of the fifth toe nail and apply a scent-free, smokeless and needle-free moxa, a kind of incense, on the marked point to stimulate the baby to return to the birth position," Kulah said, adding that mother applies the procedure at home for another week.

"If there is no obstacle to normal birth, 33 to 35-week pregnant women can do this practice. It is a painless and easy to apply method," she said.

Chief physician Ozlem Moraloglu said they have been applying the method since 2017 with a 60% success rate.

"Our aim is to reduce the rate of cesarean section that has risen in Turkey and around the world," Moraloglu said, adding that SBU is currently the only facility to apply moxibustion method.

Esra Yilmaz, a mother who gave birth after applying the moxibustion method, said she had no pain during the application.

"Even if I had pain, it wouldn’t be as much as the caesarean section would do," she added.

Serap Tasdemir, another mother applying the same method, said she realized that her baby rotated to normal position following the week of moxibustion.

"With this method, I can avoid the cesarean section," Tasdemir said, stressing that her third baby rotated to a breech position even although she gave two normal births before.

"I would recommend it to all pregnant women, it is a painless method with no side effect," she added.

*Writing by Erdogan Cagatay Zontur