A Castor Oil Induction

Studies have shown that IF YOUR BODY is ready a castor oil induction is effective. But that is a big "if." On the other hand if your body is not ready you will suffer from some very unpleasant side effects:

These can result in dehydration which - needless to say - is not a good thing. Again we want to emphasize that any induction - natural or not - must be performed for a good cause and not for the convenience of the mom or the birth attendant! Dehydration is very serious and could results in having to make a trip to the hospital.

How Does a Castor Oil Induction Work?

Castor oil is very thick vegetable oil which is obtained from the castor seed. Castor oil stimulates - or rather irritates - your bowels in pretty much the same way an enema would. When your bowels are irritated and contract to empty, they in turn stimulate your uterus to contract - within 2 to 6 hours - IF it is ready to do so. Many women have learned that this method - if it does not work - means a very annoying night sitting on the toilet.

So, is castor oil induction an effective method to induce labor? According to a study publish in January of 2000 in Alternative Therapies it is. The study reported that 57.7% of the moms given a castor oil cocktail began labor within a few hours compared to only 4.3% of the mothers who were not given a castor oil cocktail to drink.

So What is a Castor Oil Cocktail?

The recipe is 2 oz - 2 tablespoons - mixed with about 4 to 6 ounces of juice, tea, or whatever else suits your fancy to get this very thick oil down. Another tip is that since most mammals labor at night - and yes that includes humans - taking castor oil in the evening may work better.

There are variations of this recipe. We found out that putting it in a smoothie worked very well. However, the only universal agreement is that any castor oil cocktails must be chugged not sipped! Castor oil even though it is odorless - and supposedly tasteless - is quite thick and gross feeling. The chugging method seems to be the only way to get it all down!

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