When you see your baby for the first time, you may be surprised by the cone-shaped head, hematomas, swollen eyelids … it is caused by the difficult path that the toddler has come into the world. What a newborn baby looks like is also due to the immaturity of its organism.
This path is much shorter whenchildis born via caesarean section. Taken from the abdomen, it does not experience the hardships of getting through the narrow birth canal.It looks like a newborn babyis also due to the immaturity of its organism. It takes days, sometimes weeks, for the moles, puffiness, pimples to disappear, and for parts of the body to change their proportions. The skin is thin, with a mesh of blood vessels visible - this is why it is usually red or pink in color. Justafter deliverythe skin of a full term baby is covered with fetal fluid, a greasy white secretion that isolates the baby's skin from the amniotic fluid during pregnancy and helps the baby squeeze through the birth canal during birth. Preterm babies have a high amount of fluid, but almost no newborn babies. Therefore, such little ones are usually born with dry, flaky skin. It does not require treatment - in order for the skin condition to return to normal, it is enough to lubricate these areas. Babies born more than two weeks after their due date may also have wrinkled hands and feet as a result of too little fluid.
Newborn skin
A few days after giving birth, your baby may develop acne-like spots. Mom's hormones, which are still circulating in the baby's body, are to blame. While it may take months for them to disappear, this is not cause for concern. However, the pimples must not be squeezed or scraped off, in order to avoid contamination of the skin. Some babies also have white spots that look like atheromas. It's nothing serious. These changes appear as a result of clogged sebaceous glands and disappear by themselves, or hematomas on the head may pause. They are the result of pressure - sometimes, under the influence of high pressure, which affects the baby's head during delivery, small blood vessels burst. Hematomas are not dangerous and are usually absorbed within a week of giving birth.
Newborn's head
Squeezing through the mother's pelvis during labor, the baby makes its way with its head. This is possible because the connection betweenthe bones of the skull are not yet fused together, thanks to which they are plastic and can change their position. When the birth canal is very narrow, the bones move closer together or overlap. As a result, after childbirth, the head is pointedly elongated, and the so-called forehead - soft, blue "cap". The head will return to its normal oval shape within a few days, although sometimes it may take up to two weeks. On the baby's head, you can feel the fontanelle - places that have not been covered by growing bones. They also make it possible to adjust the shape of the skull to the birth canal. The first is located in the parietal area (closer to the top of the head), the second in the occipital area (at the back of the head). By touching these places, you can feel or even notice pulsation. This is a completely normal phenomenon, the collapse or distinct bulging of the fontanell should be alarming. The first symptom may indicate dehydration of the baby, the second - too high intracranial pressure. In such cases, please contact your doctor immediately.
What is not worth worrying about in a newborn?
Newborn face
A newborn's mouth is nothing like the smiling baby from the advertisement. Sometimes the toddler looks like a boxer who has just had a hard fight in the ring. He often has bruises on his forehead and cheeks, a flattened nose. The bruises will disappear quickly and the nose will straighten out on its own and you should not force it straight. If you are concerned about your baby's appearance, remember that it is a temporary state and does not indicate the later shape or size of this body part.
Newborn's eyes
Almost all babies in our latitude are born with blue irises. Their color may change up to the age of 6 months. Immediately after delivery, the eyelids tend to be swollen and reddened, and the iris itself is not very clear. The tear ducts are still poorly developed, so a child may wake up with stuck eyelids. In this case, rinse them with physiological saline (movement from the temple towards the nose), and if after a few days the sticky, yellow discharge persists, consult a doctor to rule out an infection. Your newborn baby has very pronounced inner folds at the corners of his eyes, so you may get the impression that he is squinting. The fact is, your little one can actually squint - his eye movements are still uncoordinated, and even if you see your little one 'eyes wry', you don't need to worry about it. However, if your toddler still looks like this after a few months, you should consult an ophthalmologist.
Newborn hair
Children are usually born darkhair that rubs in the first few weeks and new hair grows in its place. The amount and length of toddlers' hair varies - while some have little, others can braid braids. Short and very delicate hairs (the so-called fetal hair) also cover almost the entire body of the baby. They disappear on their own within a few weeks.
Newborn hands
Newborns keep their hands clenched into fists - this is a symptom of normal muscle tone. In the first weeks after birth, disturbances in thermoregulation can be observed in the baby. Therefore, your toddler's hands (and feet) may be cool and have a blue-gray or bluish color. A newborn baby has very thin and delicate nails. It happens that children are born with long claws. However, it is worth waiting with the first manicure until you come home from the hospital. It is best to do it about a week after giving birth, and then put cotton feet or socks on the baby's hands so that the baby does not scratch its skin.
Nipples in newborns
Regardless of the sex of your baby, your nipples may be slightly swollen and red after birth, and clear or whitish fluid may leak out of them. This is because of the hormones that pass through the placenta to the fetus. They have the same effect on a baby as it does on his mother (they are responsible for lactation in mothers). These changes should be left untreated until they disappear. Under no circumstances should the breast glands be squeezed out. Only leakage from one nipple, accompanied by redness, swelling and increased temperature, should be of concern. In this case, contact your doctor immediately as these symptoms may indicate inflammation. It takes up to two weeks for the swelling caused by mom's hormones to disappear.
Newborn's belly
Toddler's belly should be slightly taut but not hard. Through the thin skin of a newborn, we can sometimes see the outline of the intestines. After the umbilical cord is cut, a plastic clasp is placed on the baby's navel and the drying stump of the navel must be carefully looked after before a characteristic scar is formed. The swelling and redness should be a concern, as various viruses and bacteria can enter the child's body through this wound. It may take up to several weeks for the belly button to heal.
Newborn's genitals
The labia in girls and the testicles in boys may be red and swollen. In addition, white or bloody discharge may ooze from the vagina (known as para-menstruation). The culprits are mom's hormones again, which are going crazy in the toddler's body right now. These symptoms only last a few days after the birth anddo not require any treatment.
Newborn's legs and feet
During the first few weeks of life, a newborn baby has curled legs. It is a completely natural position for him, as this is how the legs were positioned in mum's belly for several months. Don't worry, they will stretch out over time. Contact your doctor if you notice that your knees are at different levels - such irregularities could indicate a hip dislocation. As with the hands, the tiny feet may be blue. You can also notice that the baby doubles his toes and stretches them when touched (this is the so-called Babinski reflex).
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