‘Ugly baby’ biggest childbirth concern for 1 in 10 mums

Oct. 12, 2010 - PRLog -- A new study by www.BabyChild.org.uk, the UK’s leading baby product review website, has unveiled the largest concerns of expectant mothers about childbirth. Excluding medical complications, the study asked mothers-to-be to label their largest concern about the impending birth of their child; with one in ten, 9%, claiming that ‘having an ugly baby’ was their biggest fear.

The study was conducted by http://www.BabyChild.org.uk in order to discover more about the concerns that pregnant women have when it comes to giving birth. 1,211 mothers-to-be subsequently took part in the study, and were asked to state what their greatest concern about childbirth was; excluding the worry of any medical or health complications.

Respondents to the study were asked to choose, from a list of possible answers, what they felt their greatest concern about childbirth was. The top five results were as follows:

1)      Pain of labour- 36%
2)      Involuntary bowel movements whilst giving birth- 24%
3)      Finding your baby 'ugly'- 9%
4)      Length of labour- 7%
5)      Effects on genitalia- 4%

Respondents to the study were subsequently asked to explain why their chosen answer was their greatest concern about childbirth.

Over three quarters, 77%, of the women who chose ‘involuntary bowel movements’ as their greatest fear explained that it was because they feared the ‘embarrassment’ of this happening to them.  One in ten, 9%, explained that they would not want their birthing partner to see it happen, for fear of them feeling uncomfortable.

Of those who chose ‘finding your baby ugly’ as their greatest childbirth concern; over half, 32%, explained that they were scared of their baby inheriting family traits they deemed to be ugly. In contrast, one in five, 21%, explained that they feared ‘not loving their child;’ should they find the baby unattractive.

Furthermore, just over half, 52%, of those who chose the ‘pain of labour’ as their greatest childbirth concern explained that they were carrying their first child, and subsequently did not know what to expect from labour.

Jill Tovey, co-founder of http://www.BabyChild.org.uk, commented on the study’s findings:

“We wanted to take a light-hearted look into the things that really concern expectant mothers about childbirth; leaving the obvious worries of any medical complications aside. It wasn’t surprising to see that one in ten women who took part were most concerned about what their baby will look like, as although a mother’s love is inevitably unconditional, it can be difficult to learn that your baby has inherited the ‘family nose’ that you were hoping would get lost in the genes!”

She continued:

“When it comes to childbirth concerns, it’s important for mothers-to-be to remember that although the process of labour, and all its unattractive side-effects, can be daunting; all most mothers care about when labour starts is getting through it. All being well, once you see your baby for the first time, most of those worries go out the window; taking all the embarrassing side-effects of labour with them.”

ENDS

LINK: http://www.Babychild.org.uk

For more information please contact Emma Kent of 10 Yetis Public Relations Agency on emmak@10yetis.co.uk.  

Editors Notes
Babychild.org.uk looks for real reviews from real parents
The shop features over 1,000 products, which have been rated and reviewed by real parents. This number is constantly growing everyday.