Article: In fact, some new parents decide to leave the umbilical cord and placenta attached to their baby's navel until it falls off naturally. Keeping the umbilical cord on until it falls off naturally can be cumbersome, though. Most parents have the cord cut shortly after birth; they don't feel comfortable with the idea of carrying the placenta with their baby until the umbilical cord separates. If you plan to bank your baby's cord blood, the cord will need to be cut. Since the umbilical contains no nerves (like hair, for instance), neither the mother nor the baby will feel the cut. This is a common practice, as immediate clamping allows the baby, especially if they are high risk or premature, to be evaluated right after they are born. Recently, there has been a shift to delayed clamping, where the umbilical cord is not clamped until at least 1 to 3 minutes after birth. Many physicians feel that delayed clamping is a more natural process, and provides better circulatory support during the baby's transition out of the womb. At birth, a significant amount of the baby's blood is still in the placenta and umbilical cord. Delayed clamping allows the baby's circulatory system to recover of much more blood, often as much as of the baby's total blood volume. Similar to the procedure in immediate clamping, the newborn should be held slightly below the level of the mother to enable some of that blood to return to the baby. In full term infants, babies with delayed clamping had less anemia and iron deficiency during the first 3 to 6 months. However, in some cases, phototherapy for neonatal jaundice was required. Premature infants whose clamping is delayed have a 50% lower chance of an intraventricular hemorrhage, or bleeding into the fluid cavities in their brain. Keep in mind that skin-to-skin contact between mother and baby should not be postponed with delayed clamping. Be clear about your expectations for clamping your baby's umbilical cord with your doctor before giving birth.

What is a summary?
Be aware that clamping and cutting the umbilical cord are not necessary. Expect your doctor to perform "immediate" clamping within the first moments of your baby's life. Keep in mind your doctor may do "delayed" clamping. Understand the benefits of delayed clamping. Talk to your doctor about which type of clamping you would prefer.