ABSTRACT
This chapter examines pregnancy and childbirth as biological, psychological, and cultural phenomena, comprised of an integration of physical, socio-cultural, and psycho-emotional variables. While focusing on physiologically normal pregnancy and birth as a part of the hominid life cycle, the chapter emphasizes how reproduction is culturally managed. It focuses on pregnancy, birth, lactation (breastfeeding), and the postpartum period as essentially physiologically normal processes. The chapter discusses pregnancy relative to fetal development, and the impact that health and lifestyle have on the overall experience.
