Around 70 percent of the women in labor at the clinic use them. The look of relief on Lyneya Shaw's face as she settles into a tub at the clinic is convincing. Moroni asks, as she watches the girl tense with a contraction. Within minutes she is asleep, her first rest of the day. Physical therapists say the warm water of a whirlpool bath helps by reducing the weight of the fetus on the woman's back and pelvic floor, lowering blood pressure, and reducing tension.
Hospitals use bleach to disinfect tubs after each patient.
American obstetricians are less enthusiastic about births taking place in the tub. But at the Cleveland Clinic, three babies have been born in tubs. Inc. All rights reserved.