Children born healthy develop normally if they are properly raised and well cared for.
In order to properly care for newborns at home, parents need at least basic knowledge about the characteristics of their body. Usually, young parents, especially those raising their first child, have many questions.
Why feed your baby so often? Why should he sleep on a hard bed without a pillow? Should I boil a used pacifier every time or can I just rinse it with water? What to do if your baby often cries at night? And so on and so forth.
First of all, you should know that all recommendations parents receive from pediatricians, neurologists, and hygienists are given taking into account the anatomical and physiological characteristics of the baby. These recommendations are developed on a strictly scientific basis and are aimed at creating the most favorable conditions for the growth and development of the child.
At the moment of birth, the environment of the child’s existence changes dramatically.
In the womb, he received nutrition from the mother's body through the placenta (baby place) and the umbilical cord. He had no pulmonary respiration, his digestive organs and urinary system did not function. From the first moments of independent existence, the baby’s body undergoes dramatic restructuring.
The first breath, the first cry of a newborn signal the activation of many previously “dormant” organs and systems. But it will still be a long time before they operate at full capacity. Adaptation of newborns occurs slowly, gradually. Hence the characteristic features in the structure and functioning of the baby’s body.
The skin of a newborn is delicate and thin.
Beneath it there is a well-defined subcutaneous fat layer at the time of birth. A feature of the skin at this age is increased vulnerability. This explains the tendency of newborns and infants to diaper rash and abrasions. The lower layers of the skin are penetrated by a large number of capillaries - very small blood vessels. This is why a baby blushes so easily when crying or overheating.
The body's thermoregulation is still imperfect; the child's body temperature can quickly change under the influence of external conditions.
These changes immediately affect the condition of the skin. When overcooled, they turn pale, become covered with small pimples, and sometimes acquire a bluish tint. With severe overheating, evaporation quickly appears in the form of tiny droplets. You should know that young children experience overheating worse than hypothermia. Through the pores of the skin, skin respiration occurs, which is more intense than in older children. This is why skin care is so important during infancy.
The musculo-ligamentous apparatus of a newborn is poorly developed. Therefore, for several months after birth, the child reflexively strives to maintain the intrauterine position, draws his legs to his stomach, and bends his head to his chest. The baby's motor abilities are limited, the flexor and extensor muscles are almost constantly tense, the limbs are bent. Weak neck muscles cannot yet hold the neck in an upright position.
The skeleton is fully formed at the time of birth.
But the bone tissue is still loose, which is why the bones are relatively soft and pliable. Some bones are replaced by cartilage, which hardens with age and turns into bone tissue. The skull of a newborn consists of separate lobes that do not have rigid connections among themselves. This structure of the skull ensures that its volume decreases as it passes through the birth canal: the lobes of the skull shift and overlap one another. Some time after birth, the cranial lobes diverge again. Under the skin on the crown and in the frontoparietal part of the newborn’s skull are soft depressions not protected by bones. These are the large and small fontanelles. The small fontanelle closes as a result of further growth of the skull bones when the child reaches the age of 7-8 months, the large fontanel closes by 1 year or 1 year 3 months.
The circulatory system works with a much greater load than in adults.
The normal heart rate in newborns is 120 - 140 beats per minute; with tension, screaming, it quickly increases to 160 - 180 and even 200! The heart of infants is relatively larger than that of adults; by the age of one year its mass doubles. Blood circulates at a much higher speed.
The respiratory organs also have a number of characteristic features.
The nasal passages and larynx of an infant are relatively short and narrow. They are lined with a delicate, loose mucous membrane rich in blood vessels. The nasopharyngeal mucosa is very sensitive to the effects of cold and heat. It swells quickly, which can result in swelling that makes it difficult for the child to breathe. The larynx passes into the trachea, which at the level of the P1 thoracic vertebra is divided into two main bronchi leading to the right and left lung.
Breathing in infants is shallow, shallow, uneven and, compared to adults, rapid - 40 - 60 times per minute (in adults the norm is 18 - 20 times), since the need for oxygen is very high.
The gastrointestinal tract of newborns and infants has very significant features.
Their oral cavity is small, its mucous membrane is delicate, thin, extremely sensitive, and easily infected. On the outer side of the mucous membrane of the lips, small swellings are clearly visible, the so-called sucking ridges, which allow the child to grasp and suck the breast well.
A baby has no teeth at birth. Teething begins at 6-7 months.
It is generally accepted that this is a very painful process, accompanied by inflammation of the gums and a rise in body temperature. However, in cases where the child is cared for correctly, in compliance with all hygienic rules, no pathological phenomena occur. For prevention, it is recommended that after feeding, lubricate the baby’s gums with a cotton swab moistened with a light pink solution of potassium permanganate. You need to monitor the cleanliness of your baby’s hands, toys, and dishes even more carefully. And then teething will be painless.
Salivation in a newborn is rather weak, but by 4 - 5 months it increases noticeably. You need to carefully blot any saliva that gets on your child's face, which helps prevent skin irritation.
The esophagus in infancy is quite short. The stomach is located almost vertically and is approximately the size of a child's fist. The obturator valve connecting the esophagus to the stomach is not yet sufficiently developed, so the baby often regurgitates (return of food from the stomach into the oral cavity).
The muscle layers of the stomach and intestines are not fully formed.
The small intestine is relatively long. The intestinal walls are permeable to toxins. This is why an infant is very sensitive to the slightest disturbance in the feeding regime.
Bowel movements normally occur 2-3 times a day. The stool is light, yellowish-brown, and has a fairly soft consistency. By about a year, stool occurs once, less often - twice a day. If your child has constipation or diarrhea, be sure to show them to a pediatrician.
The kidneys, ureters, and bladder of the newborn are well developed. During the first 3-4 days after birth, urination is slow. The amount of urine is small. The baby urinates only 5-6 times a day. Urine is clear and odorless.
Then the number of urinations reaches 20 - 25 times a day, since the volume of the bladder is small and frequent emptying is required. As the child grows older, the amount of urine excreted once increases and the number of urination decreases, reaching 14 - 16 times a day by the age of one year.
In children of the first year of life, urination occurs reflexively as the bladder fills. But already from 2 - 3 months you should try to develop a conditioned reflex in the child. For this purpose, the infant is periodically - before and after feeding, during active wakefulness - held over a basin or potty. From 5 - 6 months they are planted in a potty. This should not be done at night, as the habit of waking up at night can remain for many years.
If you notice frequent urination in your baby, consult a doctor, as this may be a sign of inflammatory diseases of the urinary system.
The external genitalia of both boys and girls are well formed at the time of birth. You should know that their mucous membranes are very sensitive to infection, and hygienic care for them must be extremely careful.
Nervous system. All actions of a newborn are the result of unconditioned reflexes: sucking, swallowing, blinking, grasping, protective and others. The brain is relatively large, but its cells are not sufficiently developed. A newborn can distinguish bright light, but does not yet know how to see individual objects. Hearing is also reduced, the reaction occurs only to sharp, loud sounds. Gustatory, olfactory, tactile (tactile) receptors work well.
Why do newborns and infants cry so often? What to do in such cases?
Crying at this age is a reaction to unfavorable external stimuli: pain, hunger, cold, wet diaper, etc. The baby wants to get rid of the inconvenience and attracts attention in the only way available to him - by screaming. Therefore, the adult’s task is first of all to find out and eliminate the cause of the child’s anxiety.
See if he is dry, if he lies comfortably, if his hands are warm. Or maybe feeding time is approaching? Is your tummy bloated? Is your baby thirsty? In a word, calmly figure out what’s going on.
A big mistake is made by parents who, at the slightest whimper, take the child in their arms and begin to shake and rock. This may help in the short term because the child is then distracted by new sensations. But then he starts crying again, even louder and more persistently, because the reason for his crying has not been eliminated.
Some parents, complaining about the baby’s frequent crying, believe that this is inevitable - “he was born that way.” Everything seems to be in order - healthy, well-fed, well-groomed, but he cries for hours. In this case, pay attention to the moral climate in the family. If there is no peace at home, there are frequent quarrels, conversations in “raised tones”, parents are nervous, irritated, the baby is not indifferent to this. He sensitively captures the mood of the people around him.
The child’s nervous system responds not only to physical, but also to psycho-emotional stimuli.
Therefore, only in a calm, friendly family atmosphere can you raise a healthy, cheerful child. A properly organized daily routine is of decisive importance in nursing a baby. Unfortunately, not all parents understand that the daily routine is their ally in this extremely responsible and difficult task. There are still opponents to any, even reasonable, routine of life. If the baby is sleeping, let him sleep! Doesn't ask for food, that means. not hungry, etc. The main principle of supporters of this position is no violence, complete freedom of action.
We should not forget, however, that all life on Earth in its development is subject to strictly defined rhythms. The change of day and night, seasons, ocean tides, flowering, fruiting, withering and rest of plants... Examples can be multiplied indefinitely. Man is the same part of living nature; he is also physiologically characterized by certain biorhythms.
But the newborn’s body is still so fragile, the central system is so imperfect, that at first it is necessary to help him enter a certain rhythm. Regularly repeated actions are remembered by brain cells, forming a so-called dynamic stereotype. Then the transition from one type of activity to another occurs as if automatically.
Thus, strict adherence to the daily routine is not violence, but a great help to the baby.
Usually, newborns literally get used to the routine within 3-4 days, wake up when it is time to feed, they develop a good appetite, they fall asleep on time, and remain calmly awake. Parents have more free time, and there are fewer reasons to be irritated, but this is also very important for maintaining health, especially mental health, of both the child and the parents.
Based on materials from the publication “Physical Education for the Whole Family”, 1988.
Early neonatal period. - Late neonatal period. - Full-term newborn. - Assessment of the newborn's condition
Human extrauterine life begins from the moment the umbilical cord is ligated. The child enters the neonatal period. From the moment of birth, the cessation of placental blood circulation, the lungs begin to function. A child's first cry is his first breath. The breathing rate of a newborn is 40-60 per minute, shallow breathing; frequency and depth can change very quickly. During the neonatal period, the child’s body adapts to extrauterine existence. This period lasts 4 weeks. In the neonatal period, two subperiods are distinguished: early neonatal (from birth to the 7th day of life) and late neonatal (from the 8th to the 28th days of life). At this time, the pulmonary circulation begins to function (the ductus arteriosus and the foramen ovale, the pathways of intrauterine hemodynamics, close), and the reverse development of the umbilical cord vessels begins. The child switches to enteral nutrition. Urine begins to form and be released. All systems of the child’s body are in a state of unstable equilibrium; adaptation to extrauterine existence is easily disrupted, which can affect the general condition of the child and even lead to his death. Therefore, qualified observation of the child during this period and the creation of special conditions for his better adaptability to environmental conditions are necessary.
A full-term newborn is considered a child born at term (at 38-40 weeks of pregnancy) and functionally mature. The body weight of a full-term newborn ranges from 2500 to 5000 g, averaging 3000-3500 g; the length ranges from 45 to 57 cm. A mature newborn has a well-developed subcutaneous fat layer, elastic, pink skin with a delicate downy covering on the shoulders and back. The hair on the head can be up to 2 cm long. The ears are elastic, the nails are dense, protruding beyond the edges of the fingers. The umbilical ring is located midway between the pubis and the xiphoid process. In boys, the testicles are lowered into the scrotum; in girls, the labia majora cover the labia minora. The baby's cry is loud, muscle tone and movements are of sufficient strength, and the sucking reflex is well expressed.
To assess the condition of the newborn, the Apgar scale is used (Table 2.1). The assessment is made within 1 minute after the birth of the child and consists of the sum of digital indicators of five signs: heartbeat, breathing, muscle tone, reflex excitability, skin color. If the newborn is in good condition, the Apgar score is 8-10 points, with a score of 6-7 points the condition is assessed as satisfactory, below 6 - severe.
Table 2.1. Apgar score
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5 minutes after birth, the newborn’s condition is reassessed.
More on the topic Newborn period:
- Regular P waves with a sinus node shape and normal sinus node frequency. Predominantly AV dissociation: 1:1 conduction with negative P waves in leads II, III and aVF after QRS complexes, separate capture complexes is also possible (see above). Clinical picture and therapy. The constant nature of tachycardia can lead to the development of circulatory decompensation, the danger of which is especially high during the neonatal period and in the postoperative period. In newborns, note
In accordance with age periodization, the neonatal period lasts 1.5-2 months. Characteristic features of the newborn period are:
Little distinction between sleep and wakefulness, predominance of inhibition over excitation, spontaneous motor activity (non-targeted, impulsive, jerky)
The sense organs are sufficiently formed to function
A certain set of reflexes (protective, orienting - visual, auditory concentration; atavistic - grasping, sucking, supporting)
The child identifies an adult as a necessary intermediary in contact with the environment and as a source of satisfaction of needs
In the first two weeks of life, the only obvious expression of emotion is a reaction of displeasure to discomfort or forced awakening. Signals of displeasure emitted by a child attract the attention of caring adults, who help the child get rid of unpleasant sensations. It is not possible to note positive emotional reactions in the early period of the newborn, since satisfaction of needs leads to the child calming down and falling asleep.
A healthy newborn has different types of sensitivity - tactile, temperature, pain, taste (the ability to distinguish sweet from bitter, sour, salty). Although sensitivity in a newborn is lower than in older children, it increases noticeably during the first weeks of life.
When an adult appears, the child develops an emotional-motor reaction, the so-called revitalization complex. It is expressed by violent movements of the arms and legs. The child focuses his gaze and smiles at the adult. The appearance of the revitalization complex is considered the beginning of infancy.
The revitalization complex includes:
Freezing and prolonged concentration - long gaze at an adult
A smile expressing the joyful emotions of a child
Motor revitalization
Vocalizations – screams, hooting, humming.
The newborn crisis was first identified and described by L.S. Vygotsky. Features of the newborn crisis:
Transition from prenatal to postnatal development: the type of life and type of development of the child changes, the laws of its development change (an objective need for mental reflection and orienting activity arises);
Restructuring of physiological mechanisms of respiration, nutrition, excretion, thermoregulation;
The impact on the child’s nervous system of a huge number of stimuli in conditions of insufficient maturity of the central nervous system, especially the cerebral cortex. The avalanche of stimuli that hits the child after birth (“information shock”) leads to accelerated maturation of the central nervous system and is reflected in the predominance of sleep in the child’s behavior (sleep as a defensive response);
Limited repertoire of the child’s innate unconditioned reflexes; (see table “Unconditioned reflexes of a newborn”)
Loss of maternal immunity and extreme vulnerability to external factors.
The neonatal crisis is detected at moments of developmental involution, for example, in weight loss in the first two weeks, compared to the moment of birth, due to the immaturity of the eating behavior system. The physiological criterion for the end of the crisis is the beginning of weight gain.
The social development situation (SDS) of the newborn period is characterized by a contradiction between the complete helplessness of the child and his dependence on a close adult, on the one hand, and the absence of ready-made forms of communication, cooperation and means of such communication, on the other.
All the child’s needs are met through an adult. The psychological meaning of the crisis is that one cannot survive without an adult, but there is no need for communication and no means of communication yet. The main task of development is to develop the child’s need for communication and appropriate means.
The resolution of the newborn crisis occurs by the end of the second month of life and is associated with the formation of a milestone neoplasm - the revitalization complex, the appearance of which indicates the end of the newborn period and the entry into the period of infancy.
The term “neonatal period” or “newborn period” refers to the stage from the moment the child takes his first breath until the age of 28 days. This duration is due to the characteristics of the child during this period of life and certain requirements for caring for him.
Duration of the period
The term “neonatal” is made up of the Latin words “neo” (new) and “natus” (birth). Thus, “neonatal” literally translates to “newborn.” The determining factor for identifying just such a period was the characteristics of the child during the newborn period.
This period of time is divided into early and late. Early includes seven days from birth, late - from the 8th to the 28th day of the baby’s life. Sometimes the duration of the period is increased to six weeks, based on the fact that this is how long a woman is considered to have given birth, and accordingly, her child can be considered a newborn.
The physiology of the neonatal period is assessed by a neonatologist (pediatrician, obstetrician) at the time of birth using the Apgar score and is subsequently monitored throughout the entire period.
Characteristics of the newborn
The baby's condition is characterized by five parameters of the Apgar scale. Each parameter can be scored from 0 to two points.
- Skin color. 0 – generalized cyanosis or pallor; 1 – natural (pink) color of the body and bluishness of the limbs; 2 – natural skin color of the child.
- Pulse. 0 - absent; 1 – number of beats less than 100 per minute; 2 – contraction frequency more than 100 per minute.
- Reaction to stimuli (reflex). 0 – absent; 1 – weakly expressed (minor movements, grimaces); 2 – the child screams loudly, sneezes, coughs, and moves actively.
- Muscle activity. 0 – body motionless, limbs hanging; 1 – mobility is weak, limbs are bent; 2 – active movement, limbs bent.
- Respiratory activity. 0 – breathing is not tracked; 1 – yes, but the cry is weak, hypoventilation of the lungs; 2 – distinct breathing, loud cry.
Characteristics of the newborn's condition using the Apgar scale are carried out from the first to the fifth minute of life. If the scores are low (less than five), the assessment is carried out again at a later date. It is believed that a score of 3 or less means the baby’s critical condition, more than 7 is normal, and from 4 to 6 requires observation.
In addition to the Apgar score, the infant's height and weight are recorded in the medical record and reported to parents.
The initial stage of life of premature babies
Not only the Apgar system, but also the Ballard scale helps to assess the condition of a child born prematurely. It is named after Jeanne Ballard, who proposed it in 1979. The assessment is carried out on the first day. The neuromuscular and physical maturity of the child is recorded. According to the gestational stages, the age limit for the infant is determined from 26 to 44 weeks, taking into account the effect on neuromuscular maturation of drug administration during childbirth.
Caring for a newborn baby
The complete helplessness of a baby in the early period of life requires special attention from both pediatricians (neonatologists) and parents.
Immediately after birth the following procedures are carried out:
- cutting the umbilical cord;
- suction of mucus from the nasal passages with a special device;
- examination by a doctor (Apgar score, Ballard score for premature babies);
- showing the baby to the mother and putting it to the breast (laying it on the stomach).
Modern obstetric practice involves immediate skin-to-skin contact between mother and baby. If delivery is performed by caesarean section or during the process there is a need for another type of surgical intervention and the woman in labor is not conscious, this point is skipped or the object of contact (father, other relative) is replaced.
Next, the baby is treated and dressed, he is laid out on a heated table for two hours, while medical supervision is carried out on him and the woman in labor (to prevent a postpartum crisis). If a newborn needs resuscitation procedures, he is transferred to a special department.
The baby gets used to life
The neonatal period is the time when the baby learns to exist outside the mother's womb. The most important changes in the baby’s body in the first minutes of life:
- cessation of blood circulation through the umbilical cord;
- closing the opening between the atria, the umbilical, botallo and arancius ducts, which were responsible for communicating with the circulatory system of the mother and child;
- independent breathing and blood circulation develop.
In the following hours (days), the blood formula and temperature are determined. In the very first days, “chest stool” forms, and the so-called “newborn jaundice” goes away.
During the early neonatal period, the baby may lose weight. A decrease of 5–10 percent at the time of discharge from the hospital relative to the time of birth is considered normal. In premature and underweight babies, the loss can be up to 18%. Usually the minimum weight becomes on the third to fifth day from birth. Normal weight restoration occurs within 8–14 days. Weight gain during the newborn period is 400–900 g for a girl and 400–1200 g for a boy (WHO data).
The increase is taken into account not in relation to the weight at the time of birth, but in relation to the minimum weight of the child! If weight loss continues after the fifth day of life, this is a reason to monitor the baby and, if necessary, supplementary feeding.
Feeding and care
Modern pediatricians give preference to breastfeeding from birth to three years or even more, allowing mixed or artificial nutrition for obvious indications. Indications may include:
- slow weight gain or loss;
- lack of breast milk from the nurse for physiological reasons;
- mother taking medications that are incompatible with breastfeeding;
- separation of the mother and baby for medical reasons.
The child’s physiological activity - urination, bowel movements - must correspond to age standards. The same applies to physical activity. The child sleeps for most of the initial period of his life. Sleep duration is up to 20–22 hours a day.
In general, caring for a baby consists of mandatory daily toileting - washing, cleaning the ear and nasal passages, treating the umbilical wound, groin area, folds - and providing him with a comfortable temperature, light and sound conditions. Tight swaddling is not recommended; the temperature in the nursery should be no more than 22–24 degrees Celsius and no less than 16 degrees. Clothing follows the rule “dress like yourself, plus one more layer.”
Newborn crisis and attachment phenomenon
Birth is a moment of great physical and psychological crisis. The transition from intrauterine to extrauterine life, a complete change in the environment, the severance of continuous contact with the mother - all this is considered the first and most significant trauma of a person. However, the presence of unconditioned innate reflexes (sucking, breathing, protective and orientation) helps to cope with the physical side of the problem.
The psychological component of the newborn crisis is overcome with the help of mutual affection. A child’s dependence on an adult (mother, father, other loved one) is directly related to the adult’s sense of responsibility for the child, which is not always realized.
Lyudmila Petranovskaya's attachment theory can be briefly formulated as follows. A child needs care, an adult needs to take care of him. Caring for a completely dependent child, sooner or later the parent makes him an independent person. At the same time, attachment can be stronger than love and forms a reflexive response of an adult for his entire life, regardless of the relationships that have developed during the process of growing up.
Basic skills by the end of the neonatal period
The development of a baby in the first month of life comes down mainly to the maturation of the internal systems of the body and the formation of a conscious reaction to the world around us.
Subject to normal development at the end of the newborn period, the baby can:
- suck until satiated;
- fixate your gaze on bright or shiny objects;
- move limbs and head;
- react to the mother's voice/appearance.
The baby learns to attract attention by screaming, when laid on his stomach he tries to raise his head, and reacts to touch with reflexes: grasping, sucking, searching, swimming, walking reflex. There are also reflexes of Mohr (spreading the arms and legs when hearing sharp sounds), Babinsky (reaction of the foot by turning and spreading the toes when pressing the edge of the foot) and Babkin (turning the head and opening the mouth when pressing the palm). By the end of the newborn period, most of these reflexes disappear.
End of the neonatal period
The most important four weeks in a child’s life are over. Now you can breathe easier - the baby is already relatively adapted to the new world. Now it is no longer the newborn, but the infant who requires attentive care, care and nutrition, and most importantly, the sincere love of the parents.
So 9 months have passed in anticipation of a miracle, a time when the expectant mother not only anticipates the happiness of the upcoming meeting with her baby, but is also filled with anxieties and fears about childbirth.
When the baby is born, it will seem that everything is already behind you, but in fact, immediately after birth, your child probably begins the most important period of his life - the newborn period.
Duration of the neonatal period
The neonatal period lasts until the end (conditionally 28 days). And it begins with the baby’s first breath. In addition, it is customary to distinguish the early and late neonatal periods. The early neonatal period lasts the first 7 days of life, and the late period, respectively, lasts the next three weeks.
The essence and main characteristics of the newborn period
The neonatal period is a period of time when the baby is physically separated from the mother, but the physiological connection is very strong.
The characteristics of the newborn period of a baby have a number of features:
Incomplete maturity of the systems and organs of a newborn baby;
Significant immaturity of the central nervous system;
Changes of a functional, biochemical and morphological nature;
Functional mobility of water metabolism;
The body of a newborn baby is highly susceptible to external factors (even minor changes can lead to serious disorders, and physiological processes develop into pathological ones).
The newborn period is characterized by the fact that the baby sleeps almost constantly. Being surrounded by affection, care, and meeting the needs for food, drink and sleep by adults helps the baby survive.
This period is also an adaptation period to new unfamiliar living conditions:
Gradually, the baby begins to sleep less and stay awake more;
The visual and auditory systems develop;
The first conditioned reflexes develop (for example, if a baby lies on his mother’s lap, he knows that he needs to open his mouth and turn his head).
Description of the baby in the neonatal period
The description of a newborn baby has a number of main features:
1) differences in body proportions can be observed in comparison with an adult. A child's head is much larger in proportion to the body (in a full-term baby, the head weight is about 25% of the entire body, in a premature baby - up to 30-35%, while in an adult - about 12%). This feature is due to the fact that the development of the brain during the neonatal period is ahead of other organs and systems.
2) The head circumference of full-term babies is about 32-35 cm.
3) The shape of the head can be different, and it depends on the birth process. When born by Caesarean section, the baby's head is round. The passage of a child through the natural birth canal involves mobility of the skull bones, so the baby’s head can be flattened, elongated, or asymmetrical.
4) On top of the baby’s skull there is a soft crown (from 1 to 3 cm) - the place of the head where there is no cranial bone.
Newborn's face and hair
1) The eyes of newborn babies are usually closed on the first day of life, so it is difficult to see them.
2) The baby’s nose is tiny, and the nasal passages are narrow, the mucous membrane in the nose is delicate, and therefore requires special care.
3) The lacrimal glands are not yet fully developed, so during the newborn period the baby cries, but no tears are produced.
4) Most children are born with dark hair, which most often wears off and permanent hair appears. There are children who are born completely bald.
5) Baby's skin is very delicate and sensitive. The stratum corneum is thin. The skin color in the first minutes after birth is pale with a bluish tint, while a little later the skin becomes pink and even reddish.
Can a newborn baby see?
There is an opinion that after birth the baby’s hearing and vision are not fully developed, so the child cannot see or hear anything. Only after some time does the baby begin to recognize silhouettes and hear voices and sounds. Whether this is true or not, we need to figure it out. Let's find out when the child begins to see.
How and what do newborn babies see?
It has been scientifically proven that a newborn child is able to see, because this function of the human body is innate and is formed in the womb. Another question is how well the visual organ is developed. Immediately after the child begins to see, all objects and people around him seem blurry. This is easily explained, because this is how vision gradually adapts to a new living environment and is rebuilt.
We can say for sure that a child after birth can distinguish between light and dark well. He squints strongly if a bright light source is directed at him, and opens his eyes slightly in darkness and semi-darkness. This is also easy to explain, because even an adult finds it difficult to get used to bright light after being in darkness. A child in the womb is in semi-darkness, and is born, as a rule, in the birthing room, where there is bright light and lamps.
Although there are also cases when the baby can spend the first minutes after birth with his eyes wide open, and it seems that he is watching everything that is happening around and does not take his eyes off his mother.
For about 2 weeks after birth, the baby can stop looking at an object for only 3-4 seconds.
Physiological conditions of the neonatal period
Features of the newborn period are so-called physiological conditions that every young mother should know about in order to prevent pathologies and diseases.
1) Skin erythema (on the hands and feet it looks reddish with a bluish tint due to vasodilation, due to a decrease in temperature from 37 degrees in the womb to 20-24 and a change in water to air habitat). During this physiological process, the baby’s body temperature, appetite and general condition remain unchanged. After 3-4 days, the skin begins to peel off in areas of redness. This process does not require treatment or special care.
2) Vascular reactions during the neonatal period. Most often, this physiological process manifests itself in:
Uneven redness of the skin, when one part of the body acquires a reddish tint, while the other, on the contrary, is pale and even bluish due to sleeping or lying on one side;
Marbled, bluish manifestations on the skin occur due to the immaturity of the vascular system.
Such processes usually resolve within a few days after birth, but require medical supervision.
3) manifests itself due to the immaturity of liver function and the inability to neutralize the increased amount of bilirubin in the blood. Physiological jaundice usually accompanies newborns in the first days of their life and disappears a week after birth. require closer attention, because this process is delayed and lasts about 1.5 months. If the yellowness remains, you will need to contact a specialist.
4) Often small white pimples can be found on the nose, forehead or cheeks of newborn babies; they should not be touched. In a few weeks everything will go away on its own.
5) Acne. By the end of the first month of a child's life, small pimples with a white tint may appear on the face. This process does not require treatment and goes away after the hormones in the baby’s body are balanced - after 2-3 months. Maintaining hygiene and applying a thin layer of Bepanten once every 3 days is the only thing that is allowed to be done in this case.
Newborn diseases
Diseases of the newborn period can be divided into several types:
1) Congenital diseases are diseases that develop in the fetus in the womb as a result of exposure to negative environmental factors. Such diseases include:
Congenital hepatitis in newborns occurs if the mother had it during or before pregnancy;
Toxoplasmosis, which is transmitted from cats;
Cytomegalovirus infection;
Listeriosis (a newborn can be infected with this disease during pregnancy, childbirth or in the children's department);
Congenital malaria;
Tuberculosis;
Syphilis.
2) Congenital malformations of organs and systems:
Heart, lung and gastrointestinal defects;
Congenital hip dislocation;
Congenital clubfoot;
Congenital torticollis.
3) Labor injuries:
Skeletal damage;
Hypoxic birth injury.
Children do not become infected with infectious diseases such as measles and rubella during the neonatal period, since the mother passes on antibodies to them through breast milk during pregnancy and after childbirth.
Newborn baby crisis
The neonatal crisis is the very process of giving birth to a baby, its passage through the mother’s birth canal.
According to psychologists, for a child the birth process is a very difficult and turning point.
There are several main reasons for this crisis in newborns:
Physiological. As a result of birth, the child is physically separated from his mother, which is a huge stress for him.
The baby finds himself in unfamiliar living conditions, where everything is different from what it was in the womb (habitat, air, temperature, light, change of nutrition system).
Psychological reasons. After the birth and physical separation of the baby from the mother, the child is overcome by a feeling of anxiety and helplessness.
Immediately after birth, the baby survives thanks to its innate abilities (respiratory, sucking, indicative, protective and grasping).
Newborn weight gain chart
| Age, month | Weight, g | Height, cm | Head circumference, cm |
| After birth | 3100-3400 | 50-51 | 33-37 |
| 1 | 3700-4100 | 54-55 | 35-39 |
| 2 | 4500-4900 | 57-59 | 37-41 |
| 3 | 5200-5600 | 60-62 | 39-43 |
| 4 | 5900-6300 | 62-65 | 40-44 |
| 5 | 6500-6800 | 64-68 | 41-45 |
| 6 | 7100-7400 | 66-70 | 42-46 |
| 7 | 7600-8100 | 68-72 | 43-46 |
| 8 | 8100-8500 | 69-74 | 43-47 |
| 9 | 8600-9000 | 70-75 | 44-47 |
| 10 | 9100-9500 | 71-76 | 44-48 |
| 11 | 9500-10000 | 72-78 | 44-48 |
| 12 | 10000-10800 | 74-80 | 45-49 |
The Newborn (Weight and Height) Chart includes estimated monthly average height and weight gains for infants.
