The First World War started in 1914 and would last more than four years as one of the
greatest watersheds of 20th century geo-political history. During this time the fertility rates of
European nations collapsed entirely, and for some countries the deficit of births equaled the number
of military casualties. While their husbands were deep in the trenches on the Western Front,
pregnant women were left behind to will away their morning sickness, face unmemorable pregnancies,
and survive on meals of broth and fruit. Welcome back to Nutty History! Today We’ll
be taking a look at the trials and tribulations of pregnancy during the Great War. Let’s get started!
More and more during this period women were saying goodbye to midwives and hello to the comfort of
hospital births. Training in obstetrics became an included area of study towards the end of the
19th and early 20th century and physicians were studying up to give midwives a run for
their money. Not to mention cleaner facilities and access to more medical equipment made home births
pale in comparison. Hospitalization was a bonus for the mothers, as well as for physicians seeking
the “business” of caring for pregnant women. That’s right. Physicians and hospitals recognized
that if a positive relationship was established with a pregnant woman, it could influence where
she sought care for herself and her family for a lifetime. Meaning: big dollar signs. From the
perspective of the hospital, a low-intervention natural childbirth was, and still is, not the
most financially profitable. I guess we can see where the business of babies got its start!
A common instruction for moms-to-be of the era was that in order to have a beautiful baby,
they must refrain from thinking of ugly thoughts. Furthermore, the superstition long prevailed that
if the mother did not get what her longing soul supremely desired, that the on-coming baby was
going to cry and cry until it was given what the mother wanted and never received! Seriously! One
mother gave her baby a huge mouthful of under-ripe bananas because, when pregnant, she had craved
and craved bananas and for some reason or another but she couldn’t get any. The soft,
smooth piece of banana slipped down the baby's throat, into the stomach and intestines, causing
intestinal obstruction and finally the end came. Another victim was registered to the fallacies of
fear and the superstitious belief in "cravings'' and "markings." Glad we’ve moved past that one!
Where diet was concerned for expectant mothers, the suggestions during the Great War weren’t
always so great themselves. They encouraged sweet treats like desserts, gelatin, ice cream,
and sponge cake, but no rich pastries that could cause indigestion and heartburn.
Essentially, choose this sugar and not that sugar. They also proposed that two meals and a
lunch of fruit or broth are better than three full meals. And those cravings you’re having ladies,
like that unripe banana? Forget them! Authors from The Mother and Child book, released in 1916,
suggest that they are excessive and the desire to nibble between meals is altogether troublesome!
Their solution? Ignore them and have yourself a meager glass of orangeade to curb the desire.
Because apparently all that in-between-meals snacking will leave you a sluggish,
constipated individual who needs to acquire self-control and learn self-mastery. Well,
excuse us. We’ll take our afternoon pastries somewhere else then, thank you.
They also warn that occasionally some cravings are unusual and freakish, for instance, eggshells,
leather, candles, and chalk. Of those, they say if such abnormal cravings come to you in the kitchen,
don your bonnet and go at once out of doors and take a walk. Every time we try this,
we always end up walking into a shop and leaving with a wheel of cheese. Go figure.
During WW1 women were not expected to lay around and wait for a baby to be born. It was encouraged
to get yourself out there for some moderate exercise and socialization! For example, women
of the era were encouraged to plant flowers, train vines, and spend as much time as possible taking
brisk walks through parks. Not that childbirth is a walk in the park, mind you. A daily sweat,
as well as the daily prayer, was assumed good for the well-being of the expectant mother. All forms
of light housework were even found commendable. Essentially, the idea was balance: women could
stay active if it meant they weren’t overexerting themselves and causing strain on the baby.
Aside from having to deal with all the wild changes in their bodies from pregnancy,
it was also suggested to women to take close care of their bosom.
It was said that the breasts were usually neglected during the months of pregnancy,
and as a result complications occurred after the baby came which caused no end of discomfort to the
mother. The key was to wash the breasts daily with liquid soap and cold water and rub increasingly
until all sensitivity had disappeared. What does this achieve? Toughening them to the extent
that no pain whatsoever is experienced by the mother when the babe begins to nurse, of course!
We have a feeling this might not have worked for everyone, or anyone for that matter.
Here it is. You just find out you’re pregnant and all of a sudden morning sickness leaves you
hugging the toilet! What do you do? The Mother and Child guide suggests that during the attack,
it is advisable not to attempt to brush the teeth, gargle, or even drink cold water. Right… I mean
we thought that was self-explanatory. But then, they suggest that while you are still lying down,
the maid of the house should bring to you a piece of dry, buttered toast,
a lettuce sandwich with a bit of lemon juice, or perhaps a cup of hot milk or malted milk. Also,
oftentimes a salted pretzel is the ultimate cure! Wait a second. Maids bringing us
refreshments and salted pretzels? Sign us up! Sometimes, during this period, morning sickness
didn’t garner much sympathy and was seen as something preventable by the mother herself.
One story implies a mother immediately stopped vomiting everything she ate when told by her
husband that the doctor said he would take her away from him to the hospital if she didn't stop.
Let’s just say avoiding labor pains has been an ever-present theme for women in childbirth since
ancient civilizations. During this time period there was one popular method for laboring mothers:
Twilight Sleep. A soothing name for what’s better known as a combination of morphine
and scopolamine, which not only relieved pain, but caused women to forget most of their
labor and birth. Unsurprisingly, Twilight Sleep was not without its complications.
Women who were heavily medicated had difficulty communicating and difficulty pushing,
so forceps and cesarean sections were often necessary to complete the birth. This puts both
mother and baby at higher risks. And, even after a successful delivery, babies who were born to
heavily medicated mothers were born sleepy, with a decreased drive to breathe, and often needed
resuscitation. Despite the drug’s amnesic effects, women under scopolamine still experienced intense
labor pains, screaming and thrashing so much during labor that they were placed in “crib beds”
to avoid accidents. Additionally, the measurements of morphine and scopolamine had to be precise,
as the risk of overdose was high. Thankfully, this method began to fall out of favor in the U.S.
after the death of Francis Carmody in 1915 who was a strong advocate for the drug.
Though it’s not clear that it directly caused her death, it made enough women fearful of it
that by 1917 it was rarely used altogether. Though the Twilight Sleep movement was brief,
the drug’s promise of a painless childbirth propelled women and their physicians to
increasingly seek drugs and other means to ensure that childbirth would be as painless as possible.
While we had a lot to thank the troops for during the war, an almost forgotten horror of WWI was the
rapid spread of dreaded Sexually Transmitted Infections like syphilis and gonorrhoea, aka
the clap. And therefore, the popularization of the condom was born. The protection provided by
condoms was well-known. German soldiers were even officially issued condoms to reduce infection,
and instructions for enlisted men, warnings and examinations ensured that they were used
more often than not. Great Britain and the United States weren’t so hasty, with moralists
at home fearing that easy access to condoms would promote extramarital sexual activity.
It wasn’t until 1917, after STIs had put approximately five per cent of all
British soldiers out of action for weeks at a time, that the distribution of condoms began.
Unlike modern condoms US military authorities distributed significantly thicker rubber models
that could be used not once, but several times! We thought the aim was not to spread disease…
All in all, U.S. forces lost nearly seven million workdays to these diseases and were
forced to discharge about 10,000 unwell soldiers. Well, there you have it. Which tips would you try
or avoid as a pregnant woman on her own during the Great War? Tell us in the comments below.
We hope you enjoyed this episode of Nutty History! Don’t forget to like and subscribe!