Overview
Physiologic birth is the natural process of childbirth that unfolds through the body's own innate mechanisms, with little or no routine medical intervention. It describes labor and delivery that begin spontaneously, progress under the influence of the mother's and infant's normal physiology, and culminate in a vaginal birth, supported rather than directed by external interventions. The concept emphasizes the coordinated hormonal, muscular, and neurological processes that drive labor, the role of maternal positioning and movement, and the importance of allowing these processes to proceed when mother and baby are healthy. Advocates of physiologic birth aim to provide a safe and positive experience by minimizing unnecessary interventions while remaining prepared to intervene when medically indicated. Understanding physiologic birth draws on the physiology of pregnancy, labor, and the postpartum period, including the regulation of uterine contractions, the hormonal cascade surrounding delivery, and the adaptations that prepare both mother and newborn for birth and the transition to extrauterine life. The study of human physiology provides the foundation for understanding these processes and how they support healthy childbirth. This page gathers peer-reviewed, open-access research relevant to the topic.
Research published in this journal
1 peer-reviewed article, ranked by relevance. Each links to its DOI.
How this research is being cited
The 1 article above has been cited 20 times in the scholarly literature. Citation data via OpenAlex and Crossref, updated Jun 2026.
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2026 · Frontiers in Immunology
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Xinglong Zhu et al. · 2025 · ACS Nano
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2025 · Neuroscience Bulletin
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2025 · ACS Nano
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Yuxiang Du · 2024 · Journal of Cellular and Molecular Medicine
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Yaqin Zhao et al. · 2024 · Biomedicine & pharmacotherapy = Biomedecine & pharmacotherapie
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Laura Prieto-López et al. · 2024 · Frontiers in Medicine
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2024 · Neuroscience Bulletin
A sample of recent works citing this journal's research on Physiologic Birth, linking to each citing work.