No other mammal gives birth to an infant with a head that takes up as much of the pelvic outlet.

Human childbirth pushes the our design limits as mammals.

Fistulas, hemorrhage, nerve compression injuries and stress urinary incontinence are the result.

Fistulas, hemorrhage, nerve compression and urinary incontinences are actually usually related and associated with some sort of manipulation (Vacuum extraction, forceps, to many med's, etc.) of the mother and baby during labor.

These tend to happen where intervention is unskillful or when there is a need for intervention that is unaddressed. The fallacy here is that there is no intervention in home birth. This is not the case.

For North American women choosing home birth, there is always hospital availability -- most midwives will not recommend a home birth without it.

I prefer the term "unmedicated birth" to "natural birth", myself. And yes, giving birth pushes your limits, but so does running a marathon.

What's natural about giving birth in the supine position, which is exactly what you must do if you have an epidural? Doctors freely admit that this position is for their benefit, theeir maximal viewing, not the health or comfort of mother or child. What's natural about an episiotomy, which makes every birth into a surgery--thankfully, these are used less frequently now , but only as the previous generation of doctors have passed away. There's a long history of the birth of the clinic, and it's pretty unsavory. Midwives have a lot going for them.