Certain medical associations have estimated that Italy has more caesarean births than the European average. This factor can lead to an increase in allergies and a reduction in the body’s bacterial defence system, which is located particularly in the intestinal tract. In fact, an individual’s bacterial and immune reserves are to some extent transmitted from mother to baby during a natural birth. The increase in caesarean deliveries is associated with a rise in allergic diseases and greater vulnerability to conditions such as diabetes, Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis.

1. Can the Commission indicate any studies and analyses about the frequency of caesarean deliveries in other Member States (with particular reference to the reasons underlying the different frequencies recorded among European countries)?

2. Can it indicate any studies concerning the consequences arising from the two different kinds of delivery?