13 Trivia About Newborns
When you are a mother for the first time, a woman faces a universe of new experiences, which she learns to appreciate along the way.
If you are already a mother and have several children, you can attest that each one develops and behaves in a completely different way. Next, we’ll show you some fun facts about newborns.
You will also find in this article the truth about some of the most popular myths about child development. When you’ve finished reading, you’ll be even more fascinated by the existence of your babies.
Enchanting Fun Facts About Newborns
1.- Cartilage formation
From birth, babies have cartilage that will later become the kneecaps on their little knees. This cartilage, so important for the proper functioning of the locomotor system, will fully develop up to 6 months.
2.- High contrast images
Newborns can only focus their vision on objects located 20 to 30 centimeters from the face. The images they can see best are black and white and high contrast. Colors are not yet apprehended by eye cells.
3.- Birth weight
Male babies generally weigh more at birth than female babies. The average weight of boys varies between 2.5 and 4.3 kg, while that of girls varies between 2.4 and 4.2 kg.
4.- Number of bones
When babies are born, their skeletal system has not fully developed. At birth they have 300 bones, over time these bones will fuse and form more complex structures. The number will go down to 206, which is the amount of bone pieces in an adult organism.
5.- Taste
A baby has more than 10,000 taste buds, a much larger number than adults. Usually these extra papillae disappear over time.
6.- Sleep routines
In total, a newborn sleeps 15 to 17 hours a day, but sleep periods are very short. Each baby’s nap lasts 2 to 4 hours during the first few weeks of life until his sleep habits begin to self-regulate.
7.- Heart rate
Another curiosity about newborns is that their heart rate is accelerated. The baby’s heart beats 130 to 160 times a minute. It’s almost double the beat of a normal adult.
8.- Hearing
Babies are born with highly developed hearing. They can immediately identify where a sound is coming from after hearing it. This ability is active in your brain from the first 10 minutes of life.
9.- Simultaneous actions
Unlike adults, babies can perform two actions simultaneously while feeding. These actions are breathing and swallowing. It is important to emphasize that they can only do this for approximately 7 months.
10.- Hair
The hair that a baby has when it is born is not definitive, either in structure or form. During the first few weeks, hair will fall out and will be replaced over the first year of life. Hair color, shape and thickness can change.
11.- Reflexes
Reflexes are the body’s automatic responses to external stimuli, a strong characteristic in newborns. A baby is born with approximately 70 primitive reflexes that will disappear when he grows up.
12.- Exploration of the world
Children explore the environment through touch. Their little bodies’ most sensitive receptors are in their mouths. That’s why the little ones usually put things in their mouths.
13.- Eye color
All babies are born with blue eyes. This is because the pigment that gives your eyes color, known as melanin, has not yet developed. A child’s definitive eye color will appear at 6 months of age.
The above topics are just some of the fun facts about newborns. Make the most of this first stage of your children’s growth and don’t miss any details.
