References
The information in this app draws from evidence-based research, professional practice guidelines, childbirth education resources, physiologic birth literature, and lactation education.
We list them here so you can read the originals for yourself. Beside is not medical care and does not replace your provider.
Childbirth Education & Labor Support
Classic guides to labor, birth, and how partners and doulas can help.
- Penny Simkin
- The Birth Partner
- Pregnancy, Childbirth, and the Newborn
- DONA International
Evidence-Based Maternity Care
Research summaries and the professional groups whose guidelines shape care.
- Evidence Based Birth®
- American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG)
- Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses (AWHONN)
- Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine (SMFM)
Physiologic Birth & Hormonal Physiology
How the body’s own hormones guide labor, birth, and the first hours after.
- Sarah Buckley, MD
- Gentle Birth, Gentle Mothering
- Hormonal Physiology of Childbearing
- sarahbuckley.com
Informed Decision-Making & Birth Advocacy
Help with weighing options and asking good questions.
- Henci Goer
- The Thinking Woman’s Guide to a Better Birth
- Optimal Care in Childbirth (with Amy Romano)
- Childbirth Connection
Fetal Positioning & Labor Progress
How baby’s position and your movement can affect labor.
- Spinning Babies®
- Body Ready Method®
Midwifery & Physiologic Birth
Midwifery organizations and their approach to care.
- American College of Nurse-Midwives (ACNM)
- Midwives Alliance of North America (MANA)
- mana.org is no longer online; MANA dissolved in 2024
- National Association of Certified Professional Midwives (NACPM)
VBAC & Cesarean Birth
Planning a birth after a cesarean, and cesarean birth itself.
- VBAC Facts®
- Research-based VBAC information and education
- vbacfacts.com
- Evidence Based Birth®
- American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG)
- National Partnership for Women & Families (Childbirth Connection)
Gestational Diabetes
Understanding and managing gestational diabetes, including food and nutrition.
- American Diabetes Association
- Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics
- American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG)
Hypertension & Preeclampsia
High blood pressure in pregnancy and the warning signs to know.
- Preeclampsia Foundation
- Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine (SMFM)
- American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG)
Breech Birth
What a breech position means and the options you may have.
- Spinning Babies®
- Breech Birth Network
- Evidence Based Birth®
Twins & Multiple Pregnancy
Care and planning when you are expecting more than one baby.
- American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG)
- Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine (SMFM)
Pregnancy After Loss
Support for pregnancy after a loss, and for grief.
- Stillbirthday®
- Pregnancy After Loss Support (PALS)
- Postpartum Support International (PSI)
- SHARE Pregnancy & Infant Loss Support
Newborn Care & Transition
Your baby’s first days and the care around them.
- American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP)
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
- World Health Organization (WHO)
- UNICEF
- Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI)
Breastfeeding & Lactation
Feeding support, from getting started to working through challenges.
- La Leche League International
- International Lactation Consultant Association (ILCA)
- Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine
- Breastfeeding USA
Newborn Screening & Preventive Care
The routine tests and preventive care offered to newborns.
- Baby’s First Test
- American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP)
- State Newborn Screening Programs
We review these sources as the guidance in the app is written and updated, and this list will grow along with it. If a link stops working or you know of a source we should look at, we would love to hear from you on the Contact page.