I am a Full-Time student at a Community College here in Arizona. I am one of those book nerds that love homework and doing essays. Right now I am taking Child Development along with three other classes. In my Child Development classes we were told to do some research about babies. Upon doing some research, I was stunned about how much I didn’t know! So just for you all, I made up a list of 20 facts you didn’t know about babies!
1. When a baby is born it immediately looks for a human face and within 20 minutes, he/she will be mimicking the expressions they see.
2. A baby can be briefly submerged underwater with their mouth open and because of their high voice box, any water intake through their mouth goes directly into their stomach and not their lungs. Their reflex also stops them from breathing through their nose when put under water.
3. A mother’s heart beat beats at 90 decibels in the womb. Making the womb as loud as it would be if you were standing by a roaring sports car!
4. Brain waves have shown that the connections between a babies brain cells are not at all organized at a young age. This can cause a young baby to taste in color and smell in sound!
5. Studies show that a child can survive and function with only half of a brain, if there is a good side of the brain that can do the majority of the work.
6. At 6 months old, babies can hear the difference between 150 sounds that make up every language in the world. This prepares them to learn any language.
7. A baby can understand 3 times the amount of words thank they can say.
8. Babies can only see about 20cm in front of their face. That is about the distance the baby is from the mother when they are feeding.
9. Babies sleep so much during the first couple months because each experience is new and their brain is developing and trying to make connections based on the experiences.
10. By 6 months of age, babies need 1/3 the calories as an adult and that is when solid foods are introduced to their diet. Babies have a preference for sweet food because these foods give them energy and they have an aversion to bitter tasting food.
11. A newly mobile baby will crawl just about anywhere and is not impeded by caution. After a few weeks however, the baby will naturally become cautious of situations that seem or feel right to them and will avoid crawling in those areas.
12. Babies can hear very well when they are born, but their brains have a hard time processing the sounds together so the baby tends to hear echoes. Adults seem to know this instinctively and will speak slowly to babies and repeat things for the baby.
13. Babies communicate by crying and that each cry is unique to what the baby needs.
14. Babies enjoy toys with bold colors because their eyes respond well to high contrast.
15. With the first breath, a newborn’s bloodstream will reroute from the placenta to their lungs, closing a hole in their heart. This would require open heart surgery in an adult.
16. What does a baby make of the world? Scientists are discovering that babies might have double vision. Newborns cant put the world together through each eye until their eyes are stronger.
17. Babies grow really fast and reach half their body height by the age of 2.
18. They can scream and holler for what they want or need, but newborns can’t technically cry. Tears can’t actually be created or released until about three weeks in. However, in some cases, it isn’t unusual for babies to shed their first tears until four or five months.
19. If your newborn has a birthmark or other abnormality, this is actually normal. Around 80% of all babies are born with some form. The most common include stork bites and port wine stains.
20. Pound for pound, your baby is stronger than many animals. An oxen is the best example of compatible strength. Their strongest muscles? The legs.
Were you surprised by any of these facts? If so, which ones were most interesting to you?
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