Question about childbirth and skeletal hip width

[FitFossil]

Is it true when a woman gives birth, that her hips expand to allow the baby to pass through? Then after the birth, does hip width go back to what it was before, or does it stay wider? (I'm asking only about the skeletal structure of the hips, not bodyfat, etc.)

Just wondering because some women seem to have wider pelvic bone structure (more hourglass-shaped), whereas I have narrow boy hips. I didn't know if it's because they've had children and I haven't. And no, I'm not considering it either - that wouldn't be a very good reason to have a baby, unless it looked like this

 

[2Shy]

awwwwwwwwwwwwww Pembi!

Yes, the hips spread. I've always had wide hips, even without a kid. There's a lady at my Y who has 4 kids and is pretty much straight up and down. 'Course, she could be a stepmom. Anyway, I believe they eventually go back to the original size. Maybe if you've had lots of kids, they stay a bit wider?

I do know that your feet get bigger!

 

[newgirl-chargeback]

Love the dog...what a sweet face!

Well the female body during pregnancy releases a chemical or homrone called relaxen (sp?). Which is why many women have their feet grow as well (mine did from 8 to 9) that does not return to normal after delivery (I am 10 years post partum!) Relaxen also allows the pelvic area to expand (this is what I was told by my doc).

Now, I am pear shaped and could not give birth to my son who had the world's biggest head! However, my sister, narrow little thing that she is (almost androgenous figure type...narrow 4 inches shorter, smaller boned etc) was able to give birth NATURALLY to three babies all 10 or more pounds (my son was almost 9 lbs but his head was huge!).

So not sure if the actual look on the outside is as telling as the area inside.

 

[Daisy_Girl]

There is an actual ligament that holds the 2 pelvic bones together. The relaxin makes that ligament (and all other ligaments and tendons) relax to allow the baby to move through the birth canal - so the pelvic bones separate easier. That ligament usually never goes back to it's normal size (very short, narrow and tight). That is probably why women that give birth appear to have their hips spread.

Relaxin is also why pregnant women need to be very careful when stretching during pregnancy. They shouldn't be doing any extreme stretching.

 

[fawnmarie]

The ladies are right - relaxin affects the ligaments that connect the pelvic bones in the back - and one of the main structural differences between men and women is this ligament.

Narrow hips don't always indicate they won't spread far enough even as wide hips indicate they will. When pregnant, I was deemed "big enough", but was unable to deliver my two normally at all (once C-section, one forcep delivery (they waited too long to do a c-section)).

My hips aren't any bigger now than they were before I had children (and I DID have the second one "naturally" - forced as it was). My hips are pretty much the same size at the same bf% as they were before I had children.

So it doesn't mean that hips will or will not go back to their normal size. The relaxin productions shuts down during the months after pregnancy and I suppose it depends on what one is doing when production stops. I know it isn't immediate, because I got pregnant four months after my first one, and ended up putting my back out something fierce over it, and my doctor blamed it on not having time for relaxin levels to normalize between pregnancies.

Relaxin is also produced cyclically during the menstrual cycle at much lower levels, starting about 5 days after ovulation and peaking about a week before menstruation, then dropping.

I tend to get agonizing lower back spasms a couple of days before my periods (not associated with menstrual cramps). Many years ago (before I knew I had FMS), my physical therapist told me that the premenstrual drop in relaxin was causing that pelvic ligament to "seize up" and the spasms were twisting the whole pelvic structure out of alignment.

People with FMS are theorized to be sadly deficient in relaxin - which may be why I couldn't deliver those babies without all the machinery (it didn't help that they were both 9-pounders, either). However I have seen "normal" women pop back to their previous narrow hips, and seen some develop very wide hips after a couple of pregnancies. Relaxin levels during pregnancy are about 10 times higher than those associated with your menstrual cycle.

And if you think about it - it may be not just having children, but the cyclic loosening and stretching of this ligament over years and years, may be what causes the "middle aged spread".

BTW - this is why "juniors" clothes (designed for teenagers and younger women) are proportioned with a smaller waist to hip ratio than "misses" sizes. The waist size in comparable sizes (say a 4/6 misses and a 5/7 juniors) will be the same - but the hips in the misses size will be more generous.

Don't mind me - I'm babbling.


Fawn

 

[sermon_of_crockery]

Fascinating info. I wonder if relaxin is why women tend to be more limber than men.

I wonder if scientists can synthesize or extract relaxin. It could be instrumental in PT to regain ROM after an injury.

 

[sermon_of_mockery]

Fascinating info. I wonder if relaxin is why women tend to be more limber than men.

I wonder if scientists can synthesize or extract relaxin. It could be instrumental in PT to regain ROM after an injury.

hahaaaa your fucking classic.

 

[BronzedGoddess]

I have narrow hips and carrying babies has not changed the size. The relaxin(sp) does not kick in until around the 28th week.

 

[spatts]

Another thought regarding delivery. Biomechanics would dictate that if you're on your back, incline or not, and push against something with your feet, your PELVIC BONES WILL MOVE CLOSER TOGETHER, thus reducing the space for the poor beast trying to escape. Yet, everytime I see a woman giving birth, her feet are in stirrups and she's pressing against them. I opted for pushing without the counter pressure. I have nothing to compare it to, but it's one of many factors that could've made my experience easier.

 

[Latamier]

I dont know why I'm reading this, maybe cause it is a medical based question, who knows. Unfortunately the pelvis does not always return to normal, and you can develope what is called a pubic diastasis. This is rare however, but causes a lot of pain and some women can not even walk afterwards. This can be treated simply with traction for a few days, or in a worse case scenario, you may have to make a small incision over the symphisis pubis and reduce it with a bone reduction forcept and then apply a plate and screws to it to hold the pelvis together. although rare, we had 2 women as patients last year with this problem. One was treated with traction, the other with surgery.

 

[BronzedGoddess]

I dont know why I'm reading this, maybe cause it is a medical based question, who knows. Unfortunately the pelvis does not always return to normal, and you can develope what is called a pubic diastasis. This is rare however, but causes a lot of pain and some women can not even walk afterwards. This can be treated simply with traction for a few days, or in a worse case scenario, you may have to make a small incision over the symphisis pubis and reduce it with a bone reduction forcept and then apply a plate and screws to it to hold the pelvis together. although rare, we had 2 women as patients last year with this problem. One was treated with traction, the other with surgery.

What a great thing to read when you are 7 months pregnant j/k ...............thanks for the info.

 

[Latamier]

What a great thing to read when you are 7 months pregnant j/k ...............thanks for the info.

Sorry if you got spooked on this. I just thought it was interesting when we had 2 patients with this same problem. Orthopaedics can sometimes get boring. I like it when we get a good trauma accident, or something else of special interest. Good luck on your delivery. I hope all goes smoothly for you and your husband.

 

[fawnmarie]

I wonder if scientists can synthesize or extract relaxin. It could be instrumental in PT to regain ROM after an injury.

In response to the fact that a lot of women with fibromyalgia seem to go into remission during pregnancy, some doctors have been treating it (FMS) with porcine relaxin, sold under the trade name of "Vitalaxin". Apparently, in testing it was found to be stronger and more effective than even added human relaxin. (No, I don't want to know where they got it from.)

Unfortunately, it's extremely expensive, especially as a maintenance medication. If you're interested, you can find a source for it on the internet by searching for "vitalaxin". It's completely legal and completely OTC. Just expensive.

Fawn

 

[sermon_of_mockery]

hi bg

 

[sermon_of_crockery]

hahaaaa your fucking classic.

Dude relax. 1) I was being serious. 2) You don't know me. 3) Read your PM.