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The best products for labour for your hospital birth bag 2025
Gone are the days when women were expected to give birth with nothing but a stick to bite down on. When packing your hospital bag or preparing for a home birth there are some products that can help you during labour. These will cool you down, relax you, reduce pain or just charge up your phone. Here are the best you can buy.
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This list has been narrowed down to the very best with thorough research and the following considered:
Consumer reviews
Best-seller lists
Recommendations from industry experts
Award-winning products
Personal experience and the products loved by other parents.
The list is updated annually. It was last updated on 28 November 2024.
If you buy through a link, I may earn a small affiliate commission. 5% of profits are donated to UK Baby Banks to help parents in need of essentials.
Cooling items for labour
Childbirth is often depicted in TV and film by someone with a cold flannel on their forehead. And it’s true that it can be a hot and sweaty business, especially as hospital wards are often very warm. So a sponge or flannel is a good idea, especially as they can be used for a wash afterwards. Some also like to take a water spray or a small battery-operated fan.
Handheld fans
VersionTech mini fan is a bestseller. It can be handheld or freestanding and has a USB rechargeable battery.
Products to help deal with pain in labour
tens machines
TENS machines are a form of drug-free pain relief. It is a small battery-powered machine with four pads that stick to the skin of the lower back.
Everything you need to know about TENS machines and the best ones to buy or rent
Massage oils in Labour
Massage may relax you and can also trigger the release of endorphins, which lift your mood and bring some pain relief. You could ask your birth partner to massage your shoulder and back while you lean over a birth ball or the edge of the bed. A good massage oil to use is sweet almond, grapeseed, jojoba or wheatgerm oil.
You can also add essential oils, which some believe have many benefits. Use 20 drops of essential per 100ml of massage oil.
Tisserand Sweet Almond oil is ideal for massage. It is 100% natural, has been ethically harvested and is vegan and cruelty-free.
Essential oils in labour
The use of essential oils (also called aromatherapy) is a holistic treatment sometimes used during labour. Advocates say that they can reduce pain, stress, anxiety and nausea as well as energise and encourage the labour to progress. If you are having a hospital birth, the smell also may transport your senses away from the clinical environment.
Some birth centres have staff trained in aromatherapy and will provide their own oils so check beforehand if you are interested.
Who can use essential oils?
Anyone who has had a normal pregnancy and is 37-42 weeks pregnant. If you have any medical conditions, check with your midwife first.
How are essential oils used?
They can be put on a tissue or damp flannel, mixed with massage oil (see above) or used with an electric vapouriser. They should not be added to the water of a birthing pool.
Which essential oils are best for labour?
Many different oils have been recommended for labour. After researching this, I found that these are the ones mostly commonly mentioned, in order of popularity.
Lavender - the most popular one, which is recommended by pretty much everyone. Suggested for pain relief, stress and anxiety. Don’t use if your labour is not progressing and do not use alongside an epidural.
Peppermint - also extremely popular. Refreshing and may help with nausea.
Clary sage - may encourage a slow labour along. Do not use at the same time as gas and air, pethidine, an epidural or the hormonal induction drip. It’s best used with a specialist as it’s thought to be quite powerful and do not use before your due date.
Jasmine - soothing. May help get things going if the labour is progressing slowly. Do not use before 37 weeks.
A citrus oil like mandarin, lemon or lime - refreshing and reviving so may be good for energy levels.
Frankincense - relaxation.
Chamomile - reducing stress and anxiety.
Rose - reducing pain and stress
Geranium - for stress and anxiety
Bergamont - calming and pain-reducing
Ylang Ylang - relaxation
Up to four oils can be combined. A popular combination is clary sage and lavender.
Which are the best brands of essential oils to buy?
They are not all equal. Some use cheap synthetic fragrances. You can also buy aroma or fragrance oils that are highly diluted essential oils. For the best results look for a 100% natural essential oil.
Tisserand Aromatherapy make excellent high-quality oils that are ethically harvested and are vegan and cruelty-free.
Wheat bags and hot water bottles
Applying a hot water bottle or wheat bag to areas that are aching or painful can help during labour and can be particularly good for lower back pain.
A wheat bag is great as it moulds to your shape but they are better suited to home birth or for the early stages of labour at home as it needs to be heated in a microwave and many hospitals will not have the facilities to allow you to do this. Check first if you want to take one with you.
The Amazing Health wheat bag is made in the UK and filled with wheat from Norfolk.
It also might not be possible to fill up a hot water bottle in hospital. Once again, check beforehand. You could bring a thermos of boiled water and use it to fill up the bottle. Or you could get an electric hot water bottle.
The Vivo electric hot water bottle charges in 8-12 minutes and stays hot for up to six hours. The power lead is removable once the bottle is charged.
Other items useful in labour
Electric candles
Maternity wards are brightly lit, which might not feel like the nicest environment for giving birth. The gentle glow from some electric candles may make you feel more calm and relaxed. During the day, you should be able to close the curtains or blinds to darken the room.
These best-selling Homemory LED Tea Lights have over 100 hours of power and the batteries can be replaced.
Mobile phone power bank
You don’t want to run out of phone battery before you’ve had a chance to take at least one million photos of your newborn and send them to everyone you know. But there may not be a convenient place to plug in your phone charger at the hospital. That’s when power banks are super useful. Charge it up before you go and then you will hopefully have enough power to last your stay.
The Anker PowerCore 20100 is from America’s leading charging brand. It’s compatible with most USB-charged devices and can charge an iPhone 8 almost seven times, a Galaxy S8 five times and an iPad mini twice.
Birth affirmation cards
Birth affirmation cards are small cards with statements to encourage you into a positive mindset for childbirth.
They are most effective if you read them daily in the run-up to your due date as during this time you can programme yourself to feel confident and empowered about the birth. The cards can then be placed around the room where you’ll be giving birth as a reminder of what you are capable of.
These may be especially useful if you are feeling nervous or have any negative associations with childbirth.
There are free sets on the internet that you can print out or you can buy packs of cards like KGH birth affirmation cards. KGH are known for their hypnobirthing courses and books and these compact cards are ideal for a hospital bag. There are 30, each with a different positive affirmation.
