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Michel Odent (born 1930) is a French obstetrician and childbirth specialist.
Michel Odent (born 1930) is a French obstetrician and childbirth specialist.
Education
Born in a French village in 1930, Odent studied medicine in Paris and was educated as a surgeon in the 1950s. He has been presented in Lancet as “one of the last real general surgeons”.Professional career
In charge of the surgical and maternity units of the Pithiviers hospital (France) from 1962 to 1985, Odent has developed a special interest in environmental factors influencing the birth process. He introduced the concepts of birthing rooms, birthing pools, and singing sessions for pregnant women. After his hospital career he was involved in home birth, founded in London the Primal Health Research Centre, and designed a database (primalhealthhresearch.com) to compile epidemiological studies exploring correlations between conditions during the natal “primal period” and subsequent child and mother health. Odent is Visiting Professor at Odessa National Medical University and Doctor Honoris Causa of Brasilia University.Publications
Odent is the author of the first articles about the initiation of breastfeeding during the hour following birth, the first article about the use of birthing pools during labour, and the first article applying the ''Gate control theory The gate control theory of pain asserts that non-painful input closes the nerve "gates" to painful input, which prevents pain sensation from traveling to the central nervous system. The gate control theory of pain describes how non-painful sensatio ...
'' of pain to obstetrics.
In a book published in 1986 (“Primal Health”) he provided evidence that homeostasis is established during the “primal period” (fetal life, birth and the months following birth): this is the phase of life when human basic adaptive systems are adjusting their “set point levels”. Odent is currently focusing on the possible evolution of Homo sapiens in relation to the modern ways to be born.
Odent is the author of 15 books published in 22 languages. In his books he is constantly referring to the concept of reduced neocortical activity as a key to rediscover the basic needs of labouring women and to make possible a real “ fetus ejection reflex”.Odent M. The fetus ejection reflex. Birth 1987;14(2):104-105.
His books include:
* ''Birth Reborn'' (1984, Pantheon, NY)
* ''Primal Health'' (1986. Century Hutchinson. London)
* ''Water and sexuality (1990, Penguin Books)
* ''The Farmer and the Obstetrician'' (Free Association Books
Free Association Books is a project started in London in the 1980s. Bob Young and colleagues began a search using psychoanalysis to understand the problems of liberation. Other people became involved in the movement such as Andrew Samuels and B ...
)
* ''The Caesarean'' (Free Association Books )
* ''The Scientification of Love'' (Free Association Books)
* ''The Functions of the Orgasms: The Highways to Transcendence'' (2009, Pinter & Martin Ltd.)
* ''Childbirth in the Age of Plastics'' (2011, Pinter & Martin Ltd.)
* ''Childbirth and the Future of Homo sapiens'' (2013, Pinter & Martin Ltd.), reissued as ''Childbirth and the Evolution of Homo sapiens'' in 2014
* ''Do we need Midwives?'' (2015, Pinter & Martin Ltd.)
* ''The Birth of Homo, the Marine Chimpanzee'' (2017, Pinter & Martin Ltd.)
*''The Future of Homo'' (2019, World Scientific Publishing Co. Ltd.)
See also
*Cesarean
Caesarean section, also known as C-section or caesarean delivery, is the Surgery, surgical procedure by which one or more babies are Childbirth, delivered through an incision in the mother's abdomen, often performed because vaginal delivery wou ...
* Childbirth
Childbirth, also known as labour and delivery, is the ending of pregnancy where one or more babies exits the internal environment of the mother via vaginal delivery or caesarean section. In 2019, there were about 140.11 million births globall ...
* Lactation
Lactation describes the secretion of milk from the mammary glands and the period of time that a mother lactates to feed her young. The process naturally occurs with all sexually mature female mammals, although it may predate mammals. The proces ...
* Midwifery
Midwifery is the health science and health profession that deals with pregnancy, childbirth, and the postpartum period (including care of the newborn), in addition to the sexual and reproductive health of women throughout their lives. In many cou ...
* Natural childbirth
Natural childbirth is childbirth without routine medical interventions, particularly anesthesia. Natural childbirth arose in opposition to the techno-medical model of childbirth that has recently gained popularity in industrialized societies. Natur ...
* Pain management during childbirth
Pain management during childbirth is the treatment or prevention of pain that a woman may experience during labor and delivery. The amount of pain a woman feels during labor depends partly on the size and position of her baby, the size of her p ...
* Water birth
Water birth is labor and sometimes delivery that occurs in water, usually a birthing pool. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists does not recommend birthing in water as the safety has not been determined. Proponents believe chi ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Odent, Michel French obstetricians Living people Natural childbirth advocates 1930 births