What we don’t know about vaginal seeding

Move over, placenta eating — there’s a new player on the newborn scene, and its name is vaginal seeding. In case this practice hasn’t crossed your radar yet, it’s a practice involving transferring bacteria from a mother’s vagina to a newborn who was delivered by C-section. Before you stop reading because you think that sounds gross, remember that the majority of babies pass through the vagina on their way into the world. (It’s also how they got there, if you know what I mean.)
We are all teeming with bacteria. There are hundreds of trillions of them living on your skin, in your gut, and–yes–in your vagina (if you have one). Collectively, these microbes are called your “bacterial flora,” and each person’s flora is unique (who knows, maybe some day we’ll use them like fingerprints). These microscopic creatures outnumber your own cells, and while there’s currently a tremendous amount of research into this topic, we are only beginning to understand how they interact with our bodies.
One thing we do know is that certain diseases (primarily autoimmune and allergic diseases) are associated with specific patterns of bacterial flora. This has to do with how the bacteria living inside your gut interact with your immune system–essentially training it to tolerate or attack certain things. Researchers are currently working on how modifying the gut flora may help to prevent or cure a variety of diseases, and it’s a field that looks pretty promising (althou...

Source: Kevin, M.D. - Medical Weblog - June 16, 2016 Category: Journals (General) Authors: Chad Hayes, MD Tags: Conditions OB/GYN Source Type: blogs