My seven year old daughter has been very curious about how the birthing process works. I found a good collection of educational videos online about mammalian pregnancies including humans, but none of them explain in a normal pregnancy how the placenta detaches.
Does it detach when the uterus contracts after the baby is delivered? Are hormones released? All of the above?
In: Biology
Your call on telling a 7-year old this.
After delivery, contractions continue. Without the fluid (and baby) to fill the womb and push back on the contractions they hurt less and shrink the womb more. The placenta isn’t shrinkable, or solid enough to resist the contractions (these muscles are strong). As a result, it is sheared off from the uterine wall and ultimately expelled/delivered.
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