A 19-year-old woman has been reported dead after she allegedly ate the umbilical cord of a newborn baby hoping that it would help her get pregnant. The incident happened in the Guntur district of Andhra Pradesh, India on Friday, Dec. 17.
The teen, whose identity has been withheld by the authorities, reportedly got married to a man named Ravi, who also hails from her village, some three years ago.
The girl has reportedly been trying to get pregnant in the last two years, even resorting to using various local medicines to help her conceive, but to no avail. Recently, however, she was allegedly advised that the consumption of a human umbilical cord could help her get pregnant sooner.
The teen reportedly decided to try it out, acquiring the umbilical cord of a newborn baby from an unknown source and consuming it on Thursday night, Dec. 16, the New Indian Express reported.
The woman fell ill soon after eating the umbilical cord. She was subsequently rushed to a private hospital but was later declared dead while undergoing treatment at the facility. Following this, her body was sent to Narasaraopet Government Hospital for an autopsy. The authorities are awaiting the results of the postmortem examination. The police said that her cause of death can only be confirmed after they receive the reports.
Meanwhile, Dr. Kavitha, a gynecologist at the Government General Hospital (GGH), warned that the consumption of a human umbilical cord in order to get pregnant is not grounded on scientific studies. She continued that unsafe practices like this continue to be prevalent due to a lack of awareness and the pervasiveness of superstitious beliefs.
In a similar but unrelated incident, a baby was born dead in Tamil Nadu, India over the weekend after the child's parents reportedly attempted to deliver the infant on their own at home while watching YouTube birthing tutorials instead of heading to a health facility.
On Dec. 18, when the young wife L Gomathi, 28, started experiencing labor pains, her husband R Loganathan, 34, decided to watch YouTube videos about home births instead of taking her to a hospital. He also enlisted the help of his sister, Geetha, to deliver the baby, Latin Times reported.
The ordeal left Gomathi drained after hemorrhaging profusely. After delivering a stillborn male child following a lot of struggle, the woman was rushed by Loganathan to a nearby primary health center. Health officials at the facility subsequently referred them to the Vellore Hospital for more adequate treatment. Gomathi was admitted to the hospital in critical condition and the stillborn's body was sent to the Government Medical College Hospital in Vellore for an autopsy.
V Manimaran, the Deputy Director of Health in Ranipet, said that they have registered a complaint against the couple as their irresponsible actions led to the child’s tragic death.
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