DPA

San Francisco, Dec 12: An American reality TV star has given birth to her 19th child following an emergency C-section, it was announced.

Michelle Duggar, star of 18 Kids and Counting, The Learning Channel's (TLC) cable TV show, gave birth to Josie Brooklyn Thursday night at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, the channel said Friday in a statement.

Duggar's baby was not due until March, but she was airlifted to hospital because her gall bladder problems were causing contractions.

TLC said that "Michelle is resting comfortably" while Josie Brooklyn stays at the neonatal intensive care unit.

The new baby arrived just two months after Jim Bob and Michelle became grandparents for the first time.

The couple are devout Baptists who have been married for over 25 years. Though they initially practiced birth control they later came to believe that they should allow God to decide how many children they would have.

All their children's names begin with the letter J.