Status: 04/07/2023 3:27 p.m
In the case of a birth by caesarean section, the child hardly comes into contact with important bacteria from the mother’s vaginal and intestinal secretions. According to a study, this deficit can be compensated for – by breastfeeding and cuddling.
Which microbes, i.e. bacteria, viruses or fungi, we come into contact with at the beginning of our life can have a major impact on our health and our immune system. Caesarean children do not come into direct contact with bacteria from the mother’s vaginal or intestinal secretions at birth – this was the case in some studies been suspected to be the reason for the slightly increased risk of illnesses such as asthma, allergies or obesity.
A Dutch research team has now shown that caesarean babies also receive beneficial bacteria from their mother. The study was published in the journal “Cell Host & Microbe“. The scientists examined 120 mother-child pairs in the first 30 days. They regularly took swabs from various parts of the body, for example in the nasopharynx, on the skin, in the stool and from the breast milk. The data indicate that the Colonization with important bacteria does not only take place through vaginal and intestinal secretions.
Almost 60 percent of the microbiome from the mother
The researchers led by Debby Bogaert were able to show that on average almost 60 percent of the entire baby microbiome comes from the mother – regardless of whether the child was born by caesarean section or vaginal birth.
“This is surprising, because it was previously assumed that it was so important that there was contact with the birth canal, with the vagina, that the transmission took place primarily,” says Wolfgang Henrich, Director of the Department of Obstetrics at the Charité in Berlin. He is happy about this study because it might make women a little afraid of a caesarean section, which, Henrich emphasizes, usually has a reason.
Major source of microbes: breast milk
If there is no vaginal contact, other sources of microbes, such as skin, saliva and breast milk, can offset the initially negative effect of caesarean section on the infant microbiome, the researchers say. The initial deficit in caesarean babies was therefore compensated for by colonization in the days after birth – mainly through breast milk. That is why breastfeeding is particularly important for caesarean children.
differences in settlement
The microbial flora in the type of bacteria differed: in those children who were delivered vaginally, it originated more from the mother’s vaginal and intestinal tract, in contrast, in the caesarean children it came more from breast milk.
The study cannot answer what role the composition of the microbiome plays and whether it is important which bacteria colonize the child first, neonatologist Christoph Härtel, director of the children’s clinic at the University Hospital of Würzburg, clarifies in a written statement: “Breastfeeding can affect the intestinal colonization almost one-to-one and it reduces the risk of asthma. However, we do not know whether different pioneer bacteria play the decisive role as ‘first seed’. Long-term studies are required for this, which then also have an impact on other components, such as For example, examine the immune system or metabolism.”
Microbiome is a complex ecosystem
The microbiome is a complex ecosystem and much remains unexplored. They are far from fully explaining the microbial diversity and composition in infants, say the researchers. To what extent, for example, fathers, siblings, other family members and the environment influence the baby’s microbiome – this must also be clarified in further studies.
Obstetrician Henrich doubts that the maternal microbiome is always automatically the best: “Because the mothers are not all healthy and maybe not all have a healthy microbiome. I’m not just thinking about pathogens such as coli bacteria or streptococci, but also from bacteria that have already contributed to diabetes or other mental illnesses in the mothers themselves.”
Vaginal seeding: “bacterial shower” for newborns
In order to compensate for a possible deficit in the microbiome in children who have had a caesarean section, the method of “vaginal seeding” has been used in recent years studies examined and discussed. The mother’s vaginal secretion is removed with a cloth and rubbed into the mouth and nose of the caesarean section baby. This should give the child the necessary microorganisms afterwards. An actual study suggests that the method has no significant impact, however.
According to the Dutch study, the method could be obsolete anyway. She is also not harmless, according to Henrich. Unwanted bacteria could also be transmitted during vaginal seeding.