Biggest baby born with a normal delivery

Biggest baby born with a normal delivery at Mercy Medical Center

Asher Stewardson came into the world on Jan. 26 weighing 13 pounds, 13 ounces. He measured 23 1/2 inches.






He is believed to be the biggest baby ever born at Mercy Medical Center without a surgical delivery and follows on the heels of his 15-month-old brother, Judah, who weighed 12 pounds, 1 ounce at birth. Asher is healthy and did not have gestational diabetes.

The biggest baby on record in Iowa since 1980 weighed 14 pounds, 13 ounces. Only one-tenth of one percent of all newborns weigh more than 11 pounds at birth, according to information provided by Mercy.

Asher’s mom, Kendall, made it through six hours of labor pain without an epidural. Having Asher as naturally as possible was extremely important to her and her husband, Joshua, who live in Des Moines.

“We wanted to avoid a C-section because that would have not been good for me or the baby,” Kendall said. “We didn’t want to forfeit the best possible outcome.”