Black Cohosh To Induce Labor

Using black cohosh to induce labor may or may not work for each individual woman. Black cohosh is otherwise known as snakeroot, and has been used for thousands of years to try and induce labor in women that have gone past their full term in pregnancy.

If you are trying to induce labor you should wait until you are at the full 40 weeks of pregnancy, and then speak to your midwife or health care provider first.

The black cohosh dosage for labor varies widely with what form of the herb you are using. Dosages should really come from a fully qualified herbal practitioner or your midwife if she is comfortable with you using herbs. If too much black cohosh is consumed this can be harmful to both mother and baby, and it should never be used before the 37th week of pregnancy.

Black cohosh dosage to induce labor

The dosgae for using black cohosh as a labor inducing herb is normally along the lines of 5 drops mixed with either tea or water, twice a day. After a week, if you don't notice any changes to your cervix you can increase the dosage to 10 drops.

Black cohosh capsules are normally consumed at the rate of 3 a day, morning, lunchtime and evening (this is for a 500mg tablet) For a speedier way to use black cohosh to induce labor, you could try using 15 drops of tincture under the tongue every hour.

As with any herb if you experience and unusual or unwanted side effects then stop use immediately.

Some herbalists will advise using black cohosh along with blue cohosh, as the blue will help to co-ordinate contractions and make them more effective.

Warning about using black cohosh to induce labor

Because black cohosh hasn't been properly researched by doctors, its effectiveness cannot be guaranteed, but there have been severe side effects reported for some women, especially if not used properly. Prolonged bleeding and post-partum haemorrhage have been connected at times with the use of black cohosh.

There have also been reports of black and blue cohosh used together causing neurological problems with the baby.

Therefore before embarking upon any regime using herbs, do talk to your doctor or midwife first and seek their medical advice.

Alternative methods to black cohosh to induce labor

Maternity acupressure is deemed safe to use for inducing labor as you are not putting any herbs or medication into your body. Acupressure has been successfully used for thousands of years by women worldwide to help induce labor, strengthen contractions and ease the pain of labor, read more about maternity acupressure here.

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