the lunar effect: labor, birth + The moon
There are old wives tales all around the world about how the moon cycles effect women’s bodies. Menstrual cycles are sometimes called a woman’s “moon cycle.” The relationship between woman and the moon date back far into history. There are 29.5 days in a lunar cycle, and 28-29 days in a woman’s hormone cycle. The first records of humans time keeping by calendar was according to the lunar cycle of 29-30 days. The moon is considered to have a feminine energy, and many cultures believe it to affect fertility and conception, as well as childbirth.
The Lunar Effect is an old wives tale that more women go into labor around a full moon. Despite not having a clear culture of origin, this story is well known around the globe. Midwives and delivery nurses often expect the delivery room to be full around a full moon, and many women will tell stories to each other of being in labor on the full moon.
Traditionally, babies who were born the day after the full moon were said to have good fortune and a successful life ahead of them.
The concept behind the Lunar Effect is that the moon has a gravitational pull on the Earth, on the ocean tides, on human bodies which are made of 80% water, and therefore, the moon also has a gravitational pull on the amniotic sac that the baby lives in for 40 weeks in the mother’s womb.
The Lunar Effect is so widely talked about that there have been scientific studies done on the phenomenon. In one study, done at a midwife hospital in Kyoto, Japan, studied the relation between the frequency of births and the gravitation of the moon. The study examined 1007 consecutive births from January, 1966 to December, 2000. The study says that all cases were spontaneous labor without the use of induction methods for delivery. The study found that, while the frequency of births did not correlate to the phase of the moon, there was a correlation between the frequency of births and the gravitational pull of the moon.
The study found that “the lunar gravitation of 31.5 N occurs when the distance from the earth to the moon is 394485 km. It was confirmed that the number of births increased significantly (P < 0.01) during periods of gravitation of less than 31.5 N, unrelated to Moon phases.”
Many other studies have been done on the subject that ruled out the correlation between birth and the moon phases, yet few studies examined the actual gravitational pull of the moon!
As science begins to study these old wives tales, many are found to have scientific explanations and truth behind them. Ancient stories and traditions surrounding birth, fertility, and conception, like the Lunar Effect, give us insight on how we can live in tune with our bodies in today’s world.
Sources:
Wake, Ryotaro, et al. “The Effect of the Gravitation of the Moon on Frequency of Births.” Environmental Health Insights, Libertas Academica, 23 Sept. 2010, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2956479/.
