You can see how much society values women's health by the magnitude of the crisis in maternity care.

Meet Leah Hazard, a practising midwife, activist, award-winning author, and mother of 2 daughters. Her book Womb: The Inside Story of Where We All Began is a vital investigation of the body’s most miraculous and misunderstood organ. From smart tampons to womb transplants, trans healthcare to reproductive justice, she explores how the uterus affects us all as individuals and as a society. In this episode, we unpack why the health of mothers, midwives, and maternity systems tells us everything about the health of society at large.

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Follow Leah:

Website - leahhazard.co.uk

Womb: The Inside Story of Where We All Began - amazon.co.uk/Womb-Inside-Story-Gripping-Statesman/dp/0349015805

Bluesky - bsky.app/profile/leahhazard.bsky.social

Instagram - instagram.com/leahhazard

Substack - leahhazard.substack.com

(00:00) Intro

(01:10) The role of midwives in society

(11:40) The difference between a midwife and a doula

(13:00) What happens during labour

(17:45) Uterus as a muscle

(22:00) Birth Plans vs. Birth Preferences

(26:30) Artificial wombs

(35:40) Organoid placentas and endometrium

(38:00) The uterine microbiome

(43:40) Lessons about life, nature and the universe

(45:10) Leah’s Next Book: Birth Wars

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