Birth balls and peanut balls

Two pieces of equipment are often discussed together in childbirth classes: the birthing ball, used for sitting, leaning and movement, and the peanut ball, placed between the legs to support positioning, often when the mother is lying down. Published research treats them as having different goals. Reviews describe birthing balls mainly in relation to labor pain and peanut balls mainly in relation to length of labor.

Meta-analyses of randomized trials examine birthing ball exercises for labor pain and for cesarean rates, and a randomized trial studied a physical therapy program that used peanut ball positions in the first stage of labor, measuring maternal and neonatal outcomes. Broader integrative reviews, an expert review of pharmacologic and nonpharmacologic pain relief, and a Bayesian analysis of different strategies place these tools among many other comfort options.

Common parent questions include whether a ball can shorten labor, whether it eases pain, and how it fits with an epidural or limited mobility. The research on these questions continues, and the studies vary in design and setting.

An educator may want slides to keep the two tools distinct and to say what each has been studied for, instead of treating them as interchangeable. The papers listed below are the ones the Hub tracks on this topic.