This 'Baby Salad' Is Sending Women Into Labour

A delicious salad with a secret-recipe dressing has been credited with sending hundreds of women into labour over the past three decades.

Los Angeles restaurant Caitoti Pizza Cafe has made a name for itself with its ‘maternity salad’, which is famed for kickstarting labour.

Mum-to-be Tayla Burke decided to give the Californian eatery’s ‘Baby Salad’ a go to help get her labour underway.

“I’m trying this famous salad from an Italian restaurant in Studio City that’s apparently known for putting hundreds of women into labour naturally,” she said.

“The salad and the toppings are super simple but apparently it’s the secret dressing recipe that they won’t give out that does the trick. I tasted it, it tastes pretty good … I even licked the dressing clean.”

@tayla_burke Anyone else try this labor inducing salad?! #naturalinduction #inductionoflabor #pregnancyhacks #caiotipizza ♬ Roxanne – Instrumental – Califa Azul

Tayla then shared in the comments just a few hours later that her contractions started the next morning. The next video Tayla shared was the announcement of her baby’s birth.

And her story isn’t uncommon, with dozens of mums swearing by the tasty salad to get labour underway. “I had my son 48 hours after the salad,” wrote Jennifer Steinberg. “One week early!”

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While the salad’s main ingredients are simple enough: romaine lettuce, gorgonzola cheese, walnuts and watercress, the contents of the herb-balsamic dressing is a closely-guarded secret. Some have suggested there could be a splash of castor oil in the dressing, which has often been linked to kick-starting labour.

32 Comments

- - meedee said
  - 15 Aug 2024
    11:09 am
i would have loved this with my eldest who was 2 weeks overdue

- - Zmijka86 said
  - 09 May 2022
    7:55 am
Propable will not work for everyone.

- - mom461384 said
  - 02 Apr 2022
    11:41 pm
All mine were early!

- - BellaB said
  - 01 Apr 2022
    6:48 pm
My problem tended to be going too early. I was never overdue.

- - SAS185 said
  - 30 Mar 2022
    10:31 pm
I wonder if it does anything to people who arnt pregnant. ????‍♀️

- - mom101628 said
  - 30 Mar 2022
    3:53 pm
Do wish this salad was around in the old days – 6 weeks over my due date – in case I was wrong with my original dates. Poor baby came out very well cooked.

- - rovermum said
  - 30 Mar 2022
    12:02 pm
Ooh, what is the secret? We all want to know.

- - mom480417 said
  - 30 Mar 2022
    9:57 am
You must know all the ingredients especially when you trying to get your labour and if the your cervix has opened up. I did think I will have natural labour but my cervix didn’t open up and when we induced he could not come outside as there was not much area. This is kind of inducing in a natural way. Child can be at risk in certain situation. All the best whoever wants to try.

- - MummaJana said
  - 30 Mar 2022
    8:53 am
Hmm, I would be scared eating something I don’t know the ingredients for.

- - ~Loui~ said
  - 29 Mar 2022
    11:45 pm
So what’s the secret ingredient ? I’d probably want to know before eating it.

- - RachelKate93 said
  - 29 Mar 2022
    10:18 pm
I would hope that if it was castor oil they would be disclosing that as it can be dangerous to mum and baby ????????

- - Amanda Holland said
  - 29 Mar 2022
    8:49 pm
Interesting. I’ve never heard of this salad before, but would have tried it if I knew LOL

- - sars_angelchik said
  - 29 Mar 2022
    1:35 pm
Wow, that’s cool- I know when I was pregnant with my second I would have done anything (that was safe) to kickstart labour- he was over a week late.

- - tessie said
  - 29 Mar 2022
    11:17 am
This looks delicious. Wonder what happens if you eat this and you’re not pregnant? Maybe it’s just the placebo effect.

- - Bellasmummy said
  - 29 Mar 2022
    11:17 am
Definitely saving this for later!

- - mom111059 said
  - 29 Mar 2022
    9:52 am
Not sure about this being real. Wonder what is in the salad dressing. If baby was overdue then fair chance it was happening anyway.

- - Ellen said
  - 29 Mar 2022
    8:46 am
I think that people who want to induce labor should speak with a doctor about their concerns.

- - Jessica said
  - 28 Mar 2022
    10:51 pm
That sounds super dangerous if there is castor oil in the dressing!

- - Forgetful Mumma said
  - 28 Mar 2022
    10:51 pm
I would be highly suspicious of eating it if they won’t share the ingredients. But honestly, there’s nothing in the salad that brings on labour, it’s just a huge coincidence! If you actually read a medical journal on bringing on labour they will tell you that NOTHING brings on labour, except the drip they provide in hospital designed to induce you. Sex has a 50/50 chance of stopping labour.

One article even said that most of these old wives tales can cause foetal heart distress that can also result in the baby’s death.

- - mom481502 said
  - 28 Mar 2022
    10:37 pm
I tried the suggested things, walking, pineapple, dates, sex… and the day before i was booked in for a sweep, my labour started naturally. Id be keen to hear their secret ingredient