NEWBORN SKIN facts & surprises
Looking after your baby’s first line of defence – the skin – is important for your child’s health and wellness for years to come. After all, the skin is the largest organ in the body and can do all sorts of weird and wonderful things. Take a look…
THEY’RE THIN-SKINNED
Don’t let those chubby cheeks fool you – a baby’s skin is 20 to 30 percent thinner than an adult’s. Yet it’s got a tough job to do in a newborn’s first months of life: warding off infection, regulating temperature and keeping baby hydrated.
BABY SKINS FEEL LOVE
The delicacy of a newborn’s skin is both an asset and a curse. A baby is covered from head to toe with touch receptors and a baby uses these to learn about this strange new world they find themselves in. Importantly, these touch receptors facilitate bonding, because every time you kiss, caress, nuzzle or massage your baby’s skin, you stimulate the production of oxytocin – the “love hormone”. On the flip side, this same delicacy means babies are more susceptible to being too hot or too cold, they can be easily burnt by hot substances and can get sunburnt quicker than an Icelander landing in Africa for the first time.
THEIR SKIN MAKES YOU DO MAGIC
If your baby is too hot or cold during skin-to-skin contact, your body temperature will naturally rise or fall accordingly to help regulate your baby’s body temperature.
BLACK NEWBORNS CAN LOOK WHITE
A baby’s skin tone can take up to six months to show its “true colours”, since melanin (the pigment that helps skin absorb sunlight) and a baby’s circulatory system take time to fully develop. And nearly all babies have a reddish purple complexion for the first few days of life – regardless of ethnicity.
BIRTH ‘GUNK’ HEALS
Newborns emerge from the womb covered in a greasy, cheese-like substance called vernix, which protects their skin while in the mother’s womb. Despite its unsavoury appearance, vernix serves an important function and should not be washed off for the first 24 hours after birth, according to the World
Health Organisation. Leaving it on (or even rubbing it into) a baby’s skin is believed to boost the immune system and promote wound healing, because it’s antibacterial, and full of proteins and amino acids.
HEALTHY SKIN = A HEALTHIER BABY
“Skin health is often overlooked, as it is seen as non-life threatening and thus tends to be shrugged off. Healthy skin is critical to the development of healthier babies because they will be less vulnerable to infection and free from the discomfort and inhibitions of skin problems,” paediatric dermatologist Dr Carol Hlela explains.
BABY SKIN IS THE SOFTEST EVER
As in, this is the softest your child’s skin will ever be, no matter how many lotions and potions they pour on themselves in adulthood. That’s because a baby’s skin is protected from sun and any other damage and friction in the womb. As soon as they leave the womb, that skin needs to start toughening up and gets harder and harder by the year.
YOU’LL KNOW YOUR BABY’S SKIN ANYWHERE
Mothers are able to pick out their baby while blindfolded simply by stroking the skin on the back of their hands. That’s right, one of your many mom superpowers is that you learn to “read” the texture of your baby’s skin. This sensory memory can kick in from just one hour after birth.