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10 Strange Facts About Your Newborn Baby Nobody Tells You
Discover 10 surprising facts about newborns, from growing a moustache in the womb to crying without tears. Learn what pregnancy books don't tell you.
About: 10 Strange Facts About Your Newborn Baby Nobody Tells You
Everyone tells new parents to expect the unexpected, but there are certain facts about your little bundle of joy that will truly surprise you. Did you know that a newborn baby cannot taste salt? Here is a list of bizarre and fascinating facts about newborns that no doctor or pregnancy book will tell you.
- Your baby has a moustache in the womb: Regardless of your baby's sex, the fine hair known as "lanugo" that surrounds the entire fetus is first formed at the 4-month mark of pregnancy and starts as a moustache that covers up the entire fetus.
- Newborns prefer the mother's voice: Studies suggest that because of 9 months spent in the womb, newborn infants are more familiar with their mother's voice and can recognise it as soon as they are born. They prefer higher-pitched voices to lower ones.
- Female newborns can menstruate: A little blood in the diaper of your newborn can be scary but is normal up until a week after birth. High estrogen exposure in the womb followed by a rapid decrease after delivery can cause pseudo-menstruation in female babies.
- Newborns cry with an accent: Because of their sensitive and sharp hearing, babies pick up on their mother's accent very early on. You may hear differences in the way babies from different regions cry.
- Newborns cannot taste salt: Your little one can taste sweet, sour, and bitter flavours but cannot taste salt until they are 4 months of age.
- Newborns have more taste buds than adults: Babies have three times the number of taste buds that adults have. These taste buds appear all over the mouth including the roof and sides, and develop during the third trimester of pregnancy.
- Newborns show evolutionary reflexes: A newborn baby shows several reflexes from birth. When startled, they fling their arms to the side, open their palms, bring their knees in, and close their arms back. This "moro reflex" is a survival instinct to help them cling to their mothers.
- Babies are born without kneecaps: A newborn's knees are made of cartilage that has not yet ossified into bone. Newborns also have 300 bones compared to the 206 bones adults have. The soft cartilage absorbs friction and impact as babies learn to crawl.
- Newborns cannot shed tears: While babies can howl and cry loudly, they do not shed actual tears because their tear ducts and glands have not matured yet. Actual tear-crying begins between 3 to 12 weeks of age.
- Newborn babies can lactate: High levels of estrogen present during birth cause newborns to develop breast buds that can leak milk. This happens to both boys and girls and is not uncommon. Old European folk stories called this "witches' milk."
| Newborn Fact | Details | Age/Timeline |
| Lanugo (body hair) | Starts as a moustache covering the entire fetus | Appears at 4 months of pregnancy |
| Voice recognition | Recognises mother's voice; prefers higher-pitched voices | From birth |
| Pseudo-menstruation | Female babies may show slight bleeding due to estrogen drop | Up to 1 week after birth |
| Salt taste ability | Cannot taste salt despite having 3x more taste buds than adults | Develops at 4 months old |
| Taste buds | Present on roof and sides of mouth; developed in third trimester | Third trimester of pregnancy |
| Moro reflex | Arms fling out, palms open, knees pull in - survival instinct | From birth |
| Kneecaps | Made of cartilage, not ossified bone; 300 bones total vs 206 in adults | Ossify over time |
| Tears | Cannot shed tears; tear ducts not yet mature | Tear-crying starts at 3-12 weeks |
| Lactation | Breast buds may leak milk due to maternal estrogen; affects both sexes | Around birth |
Kimberly-Clark India makes no warranties or representations regarding the completeness or accuracy of the information. This information should be used only as a guide and should not be relied upon as a substitute for professional medical or other health professional advice.
FAQs on Strange Facts About Your Newborn That The Books Do not Tell You
Newborns cannot shed tears because their tear ducts and glands have not formed properly and matured yet. While babies can howl and cry loudly, actual tear-crying does not begin until between 3 to 12 weeks of age.
No, newborn babies cannot taste salt until they are 4 months of age. However, they can taste sweet, sour, and bitter flavours. Interestingly, newborns have three times the number of taste buds that adults have, appearing all over the mouth including the roof and sides.
The moro reflex is an evolutionary survival instinct seen from birth. When a newborn is startled or scared, they immediately fling their arms to the side, open their palms, bring their knees in, and close their arms back. This reflex may help babies cling to their mothers when they feel they are falling.
Yes, newborns do not have proper kneecaps. Their knees are made of cartilage that has not yet ossified into bone. Newborns also have 300 bones compared to 206 in adults. The soft cartilage absorbs more friction and impact as babies learn to crawl.
Female newborns can experience pseudo-menstruation, which is normal up to one week after birth. It occurs because the baby was exposed to high levels of estrogen in the womb, and the rapid decrease after delivery causes a period-like phenomenon. This is not a cause for concern.
Lanugo is the fine hair that covers the entire body of a fetus in the womb. It first forms at the 4-month mark of pregnancy, starting as a moustache that gradually covers the entire body. Regardless of the baby's sex, all babies develop this hair in the womb.
Yes, studies show that newborn infants are more familiar with their mother's voice due to 9 months spent in the womb and can recognise it immediately at birth. They prefer higher-pitched voices to lower ones, which explains why babies respond when adults make their voices squeaky.
Yes, newborn babies can lactate. High levels of estrogen present during birth cause them to develop breast buds that can leak milk from time to time. This happens to both boys and girls and is a normal phenomenon, historically called "witches' milk" in European folklore.
