Is The Midwives Brew REALLY the secret to kickstart labor?
This post may contain affiliate links that I may receive a commission from if you click & buy. In addition, the information on this site is NOT intended to be medical advice. See my full policy for more information.
Your due date has come and gone and you’re up googling ways to induce labor at home. You’ve stumbled upon this magical natural method known as the “Midwives Brew” & probably wondering…”does it work?” You’re in the right place. This article will cover all about the safety and success rate of this raved about induction concoction known a the Midwives Brew.
> PLEASE DO NOT TRY THIS WITHOUT TALKING WITH YOUR DOCTOR! <
I’ll repeat, no matter how exhausted and ready to have that baby you are, do NOT try this natural induction method without discussing it with your healthcare provider.
Now that we got that settled, let’s jump in!
(In the event you don’t have time to read the full article, simply use the table of contents below to jump around to any section you need)
Is the midwives brew safe to try?
The big question… is the midwives brew even safe to try???
After doing lots and lots of research, it seems as though the general consensus is relatively safe to try as long as you’ve had a normal pregnancy with no complications so far (but, this is why I encourage you to ask your doctor).
One thing to note is that the main ingredient castor oil is known to make some women pretty dehydrated due to causing nausea/vomiting and lots of GI upset.
So it’s important to always be mindful of this especially during this time in your pregnancy.
You always should play is safe for the sake of you and your baby’s health.
Speaking of playing it safe, have you taken your birth class yet? If you haven’t I wanted to share the birth class I took. It’s called Birth It Up & it’s taught by an experienced labor & delivery RN. If you love to save, you can use my code FITMOMMYSTRONG to save 10% off your online birth class purchase before it’s too late!
Common side effects of using the midwives brew that isn’t labor
In the event you try the midwives brew and it doesn’t work (which I hope isn’t the case), there’s a few side effects you should be aware of:
- Nausea & Vomiting
- Diarrhea
- Dehydration
- Fatigue or Dizziness
- Irregular contractions (to know what true labor contractions are like, read this article)
- Could pose danger risks to baby if not term or having other medical conditions.
Best ways to induce labor: Midwives Brew Recipe
Alright, now that we know a little bit about the Midwives Brew, lets take a look at the recipe!
The thing about the Midwives Brew is that it contains ingredients known to “induce labor”.
You’ve heard of castor oil right? Well, the additional ingredients give it some superpowers to bring on labor….supposedly.
Unfortunately, the studies to prove the efficacy of this method are pretty back and forth, so much that I was unable to find a definitive study to tell you if it’s actually effective.
The recipe below is based on the MOST COMMON recipes I found when researching. It’s important to know there is a few different recipes with different amounts of these ingredients below.
Midwives Brew Recipe:
- 1 cup of Lemon Verbena Tea
- 1 & 1/4 cups of Apricot Juice
- 2 tablespoons of Almond Butter
- 2 tablespoons of Castor Oil
Get all your ingredients >> RIGHT HERE ON AMAZON <<
HOW TO PREPARE:
- Brew your tea and make sure it’s nice and HOT.
- Then, put all the ingredients into a blender, and blend, blend, blend. You want a smooth consistency. When it comes to blending almond butter, using a strong blender like the magic bullet will do the trick!
- Once smoothly blended, pour, and drink warm! The warm temperature is supposed to help it move through your body in comparison to a cold liquid taking longer, however, you can drink it whichever way is easiest to stomach (and ONLY with the approval of your doctor…yes, I will keep repeating this).
When should I take the midwives brew?
According to Healthline, they suggest not consuming this drink “until at least full term (between 39 weeks and 40 weeks, 6 days)”.
But again, you definitely should not take those brew unless you have the approval and guidance from your medical doctor or midwife!
How effective is the midwives brew?
Some scientific research studies claim this common recipe is up to 85% effective!!!
Keep in mind, most of the scientific evidence found hasn’t been on the actual midwives brew, but the effectiveness of castor oil and other ingredients in the concoction itself.
However, according to the same article mentioned earlier on Healthline, women who are PAST their due dates that consume castor oil or the midwives brew have been shown to go into labor within 24 hours. So maybe it is actually that effective!
I mean there’s a reason this secret labor-inducing drink has been oh-so-popular in Germany before making its way to the states!
And when you think about how castor oil works, this makes sense.
You see, castor oil (as mentioned earlier in the post) is known to cause GI upset which then leads to nausea/vomiting/diarrhea, and that leads to being dehydrated.
When you become dehydrated, your body may start having contractions. HOWEVER, these contractions may not be the true contractions you need.
They may end up being painful irregular contractions that you suffered through just to try and induce labor.
Are there studies or statistics to show how effective the midwives brew is?
Unfortunately there are very minimal studies on the actual midwives brew concoction as a whole and how it affects on a pregnant woman.
There are, however, studies done on castor oil (which is the main ingredient in the midwives brew that’s supposed to bring on labor).
- This study done in 2000 states “Women who receive castor oil have an increased likelihood of initiation of labor within 24 hours compared to women who receive no treatment.”
- Another study from 2006 favors the same results, stating “The probability of labor initiation increases during the first 24 hours after using castor oil”.
- A different study done in 2009 shared different results, “Castor oil for induction of labor had no effect on time to birth”.
- Lastly, a 2012 study found castor oil to be effective and safe (specifically) in post-date (past due) pregnancies.
Is the midwives brew worth a shot?
I’ll be totally honest with you, I did not plan to try this little concoction with either of my pregnancies.
In fact, the only consumable product I elected to take (with my OB’s approval) was Red Raspberry Leaf Tea. This was to help prepare and strengthen my uterus for birth.
When it comes to consuming things that are wishy-washy or possibly not safe, I tend to stay away from it during my pregnancies.
I encourage you to research and talk with your doctor to see what’s best for you during your pregnancy & what methods to try to induce labor if you’ve surpassed baby’s eviction date!
Alternatives to this brew?
If you’re like me and not wanting to chance consuming the midwives brew, I don’t blame you!
Instead, here’s some other ways you can try to kickstart going into labor at home (with your doctor’s approval!):
- Bouncing on a yoga ball
- Doing a “figure-eight” on a yoga ball (see the video below for how-to’s)
- Deep side lunges
- Sitting in a deep squat
- Walking, lots of walking!
- Having sex
- Consuming spicy foods (remember, GI irritation -> dehydration -> contractions)
Remember, although there are plenty of natural induction techniques you can try time and time again — what’s most important is you deliver a healthy baby when they’re ready to arrive.
Wishing you an AMAZING birth mama!
Other LABOR & DELIVERY posts you’ll find helpful: