An international study led by McMaster University in Hamilton Ont., has found that women with low-risk pregnancies who plan on home births have no increased risk of “perinatal or neonatal” infant death in comparison to women with low-risk pregnancies who choose hospital births.

The study, which is published in The Lancet’s EClinicalMedicine journal, examined the safety of place of birth by “reporting on the risk of death at the time of birth or within the first four weeks,” and found there were no “different risks” between a home birth and a hospital birth.

“Our research provides much needed information to policy makers, care providers and women and their families when planning for birth,” McMaster University obstetrics and gynecology professor and study lead, Eileen Hutton, said in a release.

Researchers used data from 21 studies published since 1990 comparing home and hospital births in New Zealand, Sweden, England, the Netherlands, Japan, Australia, Canada and the U.S.

The outcomes of approximately 500,000 intended home births were compared to similar numbers of hospital births across the eight countries, the release said.

"This research clearly demonstrates the risk is no different when the birth is intended to be at home or in hospital,” Hutton said.

The Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada has said that they support home births for women with low-risk pregnancies. Canada had 368,457 hospital births and 7,542 “non-hospital” births in 2017 according to Statistics Canada.