Your baby has just undergone one of the most difficult battles he or she may face in a long time to come. Being born is not easy, and it may even be traumatic. In any case, it is always wonderful to meet him or her.
What Does A New Born Baby Look Like?
Most parents will want to examin their new baby from head to foot. What does he/she look like? Does he/she have 10 fingers and toes? What color hair? etc.
If your baby is of average size he / she will weigh between 7 or 8 pounds and be between 18 and 22 inches in length.
Most new born babies look a 'little out of shape', especially those born through the natural method. This usually happens as your baby's bone which make up his / her skull are loose to allow the head to change shape when they pass through the birth canal. His / her head will also make up about 25% of the total body size at this stage. However, your baby's head will return to it's normal shape in just a few days.
The eyes may also be a little puffy or even blood shot, the nose may be a little skew, he / she may even have a few bruises on the face.
As with the shape of your baby's head, this is all due to the birthing experience, and everything should return to it's normal position in a few days.
Many parents are often supprosed by the color of their baby's hair at birth. The birth hair color is usually temporary, as his permanent hair will only begin to grow in the next few days, although some babies dont even get their permanent hair until closer to 1 year old.
Most babies are born with a think white waxy coating called vernix. Vernix protects your baby while he/she is stll in the uterus. Once your baby is cleaned up you may be able to see all the veins through his skin, which at this stage is still thin.
It may seem incredible, but soon after birth a baby can recognize it's mothers voice, and even her scent! Before your baby is even born he / she is already sensitive to light, sound and temperature.
Ounce outside the womb his /her senses will develop quickly, but lets take a closer look at what the sense are this early on:
Taste
Your baby is born with a desire for sweet things. His / her taste for bitter, salty and sour will only develop later, although he/she can distinguish the difference at this stage
Hearing
Your baby's hearing is not yet fully developed at birth. In fact parts if the ear are immune so that you baby cant hear a range of sounds. Low frequency sounds, such as the human voice can be heard at birth, and in fact studies have shown that baby's actually prefer the sound of the human voice to any other sound at birth.
Smell
Researchers believe that your baby's sense of smell is well developed at birth. Within hours of being born a breast feeding baby will nose his mothers nipple to find food!
Touch
Your baby is sensitive to touch right from birth and it doesn't take him/her long to become accustomed to your touch. Your touch will sooth and stimulate him/her right from birth.
Sight
Your baby's eyes are quite developed at birth and capable of seeing things. However, the brain isn't fully developed enough, so he/she will not see as well as an adult. New born babys can only really see objects about 8-12 inches away. He/She can distinguish light from dark and will prefer black and white objects initially. He/She wont even be able to focus his/her eyes on the same object yet.
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Your baby has just undergone one of the most difficult battles he or she may face in a long time to come. Being born is not easy, and it may even be traumatic. In any case, it is always wonderful to meet him or her.
