1.

Head
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The head of a newborn is often oblong, as the bones soften to allow for passage through the birth canal. The head is also larger than the rest of the body, making the baby look unbalanced. The head rounds out eventually, and the body grows to match the size of the head. The newborn also has soft spots on the top and back of her head where the skull has not completely fused. These spots disappear at some point before 18 months.

Eyes
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Of course, newborns cry -- but without tears. The child's tear ducts do not form until a few weeks after birth. His eyes may also appear crossed because the eye muscles are very weak at birth. Wait a few weeks for the baby to strengthen his eye muscles before becoming concerned. Pressure during birth may also cause puffy or swollen eyelids, which usually disappear during the hospital stay. Sponsored Links Arcade Controls Worlds Favorite Source for Advanced Controls and Interfaces www.ultimarc.com

Skin
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The skin of an infant may be covered with any of the following normal conditions: milia, lanugo or vernix. Milia are small whiteheads on the surface of the skin where the pores are blocked. Lanugo is a layer of downy hair covering the newborn's body. Vernix is a white cottage cheese-like covering that protects the skin in the womb. All these conditions disappear after a few weeks, and vernix is cleaned off immediately after birth. The newborn's skin is thin and dry, and peeling is normal. Dry skin on the scalp is yellowish in color and can be easily treated at home.

Breasts and Genitals

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It is not uncommon for a newborn's breasts and genitals to be swollen, regardless of gender. The swelling is due to the mother's hormones and disappears soon after birth. Females may have a white or pinkish discharge, which is the result of the baby's body absorbing the mother's hormones. This discharge also disappears soon after delivery.

Arms, Legs and Abdomen

The abdomen is sometimes swollen and rounded in a newborn. This is normal and subsides in the first few weeks. The arms and legs are curled, and the hands are balled up in a fist. Newborns have come into a world of free movement from a very cramped space, so they don't understand their new ability to stretch out. In fact, it frightens a newborn to have her limbs stretched to full length. A baby begins to experiment with outstretched limbs around 3 months of age.

Read more: Normal Physical Characteristics of Newborns | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/info_8391648_normal-physical-characteristicsnewborns.html#ixzz257uyfZi5

Physical characteristics

A newborn, 1 hour after birth

A newborn's shoulders and hips are wide, the abdomen protrudes slightly, and the arms and legs are relatively long with respect to the rest of their body. In first world nations, the average birth weight of a full-term newborn is approximately 3.4 kg.(7 lbs), and is typically in the range of 2.74.6 kg (5.510 pounds). The average total body length is 35.650.8 cm (1420 inches), although premature newborns may be much smaller. The Apgar score is a measure of a newborn's transition from the uterus during the first minutes after birth.
Head

A newborn's head is very large in proportion to the body, and the cranium is enormous relative to his or her face. While the adult human skull is about 1/8 of the total body length, the newborn's is about 1/4. Normal head circumference for a full-term infant is 33 36 cm at birth.[3] At birth, many regions of the newborn's skull have not yet been converted to bone, leaving "soft spots" known as fontanels. The two largest are the diamond-shaped anterior fontanel, located at the top front portion of the head, and the smaller triangular-shaped posterior fontanel, which lies at the

back of the head. Later in the child's life, these bones will fuse together in a natural process. A protein called noggin is responsible for the delay in an infant's skull fusion.[4]

A newborn baby with umbilical cord ready to be clamped

During labour and birth, the infant's skull changes shape to fit through the birth canal, sometimes causing the child to be born with a misshapen or elongated head. It will usually return to normal on its own within a few days or weeks. Special exercises sometimes advised by physicians may assist the process.
Hair

Some newborns have a fine, downy body hair called lanugo. It may be particularly noticeable on the back, shoulders, forehead, ears and face of premature infants. Lanugo disappears within a few weeks. Infants may be born with full heads of hair; others, particularly white infants, may have very fine hair or may even be bald. Amongst fair-skinned parents, this fine hair may be blonde, even if the parents are not. The scalp may also be temporarily bruised or swollen, especially in hairless newborns, and the area around the eyes may be puffy.
Skin

Immediately after birth, a newborn's skin is often grayish to dusky blue in color. As soon as the newborn begins to breathe, usually within a minute or two, the skin's color reaches its normal

tone. Newborns are wet, covered in streaks of blood, and coated with a white substance known as vernix caseosa, which is hypothesised to act as an antibacterial barrier. The newborn may also have Mongolian spots, various other birthmarks, or peeling skin, particularly on the wrists, hands, ankles, and feet.
Genitals

A newborn's genitals are enlarged and reddened, with male infants having an unusually large scrotum. The breasts may also be enlarged, even in male infants. This is caused by naturally occurring maternal hormones and is a temporary condition. Females (and even males) may actually discharge milk from their nipples (sometimes called witch's milk), and/or a bloody or milky-like substance from the vagina. In either case, this is considered normal and will disappear with time. It can be surprising for many new parents.
Umbilical cord

The umbilical cord of a newborn is bluish-white in color. After birth, the umbilical cord is normally cut, leaving a 12 inch stub. The umbilical stub will dry out, shrivel, darken, and spontaneously fall off within about 3 weeks. Occasionally, hospitals may apply triple dye to the umbilical stub to prevent infection, which may temporarily color the stub and surrounding skin purple. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infant
http://www.chw.org/display/PPF/DocID/23348/Nav/1/router.asp

Infants and the Benefits of Touch

Studies have shown that infants who have been the recipients of positive touch experience more benefits as they develop emotionally and socially. Experiments have done with infants up to four months of age using both positive touch (stroking or cuddling) and negative touch (poking, pinching or tickling). The infants who received the positive touch cried less often and also vocalized and smiled more than the infants who were touched negatively. Infants who were the recipients of negative touching have been linked with emotional and behavioural problems later in life. A lower amount of physical violence in adults has been discovered in cultures with greater levels of positive physical touching. [9]

^ Fields, Tiffany, Infants Need for Touch, Human Development, 2002, 45, 100-103

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At Fabella hospital, moms are human incubators

BY PATRICIA DENISE CHIU, GMA NEWS August 30, 2012 11:53am 449 26 2 491 Ward four of the Dr. Jose Fabella Memorial Hospital in Manila is as crowded as they come, with two, sometimes three pairs of mothers and infants to a bed. The airy hall with high ceilings is home to some 300 mothers who have just given birth. But not all births are equal. Pag may tag na ganyan na iba sa min, alam mong sa kabila sila dadalhin, said 21-year-old Maricel Vega Pique, a new mother confined at the normal delivery ward. Kabila here refers to Fabellas Kangaroo Mother Care section, three rows at the rightmost side of the ward where premature and underweight babies are strapped to their mothers for at least 18 hours a day.

Human incubator sila, kumbaga, nurse supervisor Cherry Anne Roque told GMA News Online earlier this month. Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC) is a caring method to help premature and low-birth-weight newborns until they are able to survive without intensive care. The technique is mostly used in developing countries, said the Bless Tetada Kangaroo Mother Care Foundation website. It allows a higher chance of survival for the infant through the use of skin-to-skin contact and increased interaction with the mother and father. KMC in the Philippines was initially adopted at the neonatal care unit at Fabella in 1999, during the directorship of Dr. Ricardo Gonzales. I sent Dr. Socorro Mendoza to train in the Kangaroo Mother Care in Bogota, Colombia, Gonzales said. The Bless Tetada Kangaroo Mother Care Foundation, Philippines, Inc. was established in 2008. The Foundation's goal is to develop, monitor, and accredit KMC centers and also encourage continued application of KMC as a standard practice in neonatal care.

To date, the KMC program at Fabella has helped not only in maintaining a higher survival rate of infants but also in propagating sustained breastfeeding among mothers. Mas malakas talaga ang daloy ng gatas pag naka-Kangaroo, Gonzales said. Lack of facilities Recognizing the lack in available facilities, Gonzales pioneered the technique, believing that the best caretaker for a premature infant is its mother. Nakita ko nun, mga tatlong baby sa isang incubator [sa Neonatal Care Unit]. Sabi ko, ipagaakyat niyo na yan sa mga nanay, Gonzales said. Along with the staff, Gonzales designed a stretchable tube top that allows a mother to cradle her baby between her breasts, while sharing body heat with him. Nurse Roque admits that the technique is necessary for a government hospital like Fabella. Wala naman kasi kaming mga high tech na incubators dito, she said. KMC allows hospitals lacking in equipment and resources like Fabella to send patients home faster, while also minimizing the family's expenses, according to the Bless Tetada KMC Foundation. But Gonzales stressed that the newborns and their mothers have to stay within the care of Fabella until they reach a certain threshold of weight. Basta dapat sunod-sunod yung pagbigat bago sila i-discharge, he said. In the KMC ward, there is no ideal weight to be reached. The continued weight gain of underweight and premature infants is closely monitored, however. Nineteen-year-old Rhea Bantosila says the method is highly effective. She has just given birth to underweight twins and has been nursing them in the KMC ward for more than a month. Effective po talaga. Nakita ko yung paglaki nila. Itong si Justin 1.4 (kilos) nung lumabas. Ngayon 1.8 na, she said. The twins have had return trips to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, but periodically get brought up to Bantosila when they are stable. Nung una po nahirapan ako, kasi dalawa sila. Kaya kailangan akong tulungan nung mga nurses na ipasok sila sa tube. Pero ngayon madali na. Maginaw lang minsan, she said. Donning the tube means leaving her back exposed to the elements, something the former office secretary is willing to endure for her babies. Nagkukumot na lang ako, she added. Bantosila says the technique also helps her get to know her babies bettershe can strap the twins to her chest while she talks with other mothers in the ward to pass the time.

At 19, Bantosila said she was surprised when she first got pregnant. Sabi po kasi namin ng papa nila, pag 25 na ko tsaka kami magbe-baby, she said. Ewan kung anong nangyari kung bakit ang aga. Pero sobrang thankful pa rin ako kasi siyempre blessings sila, she added. Teenage moms, underweight babies Gonzales explained that the trend of young mothers, especially in the KMC ward, is nothing newor surprising. Sa KMC ward, mga bata talaga yung mga nanay. Kasi yung mga nanganganak ng premature at underweight, mga teenage mothers na di pa developed ang mga matres, he said. Kasi yung normal na babae na dapat kaya nung uterus yung nine months na pagbubuntis, di kinakaya pag teenager pa lang, he explained. Roque lamented the fact that the median age of mothers in Fabella has been steadily going down. Pabata talaga ng pabata yung mga nanay, she said. Kahit dito sa Fabella, na meron kaming counseling tungkol sa family planning, mahirap pa rin eh. In Fabella, Roque explained, mothers who go in for their prenatal checkup also go through counseling sessions on family planning. If a couple should decide to avail of artificial family planning methods, the hospital provides them with pills or condoms, for a minimal charge of P40 per visit. Counseling services for natural family planning are also available. Despite the educational campaigns, there are still mothers who are unresponsive to these seminars. Minsan pag ayaw talaga, wala kaming magagawa. Right naman nila yun eh, Roque said. She noted, however, that those who regularly went to Fabella for checkups prior to giving birth have been more receptive to the seminars, as compared to those rushed to the hospital immediately before delivery. Gonzales likewise bemoaned the lack of a national reproductive health law. Kung meron lang reproductive health law, mas gagaan ang working environment naming mga child care practitioners, he said. An RH law would mean better education of mothers, which could lower the incidence of unplanned teen pregnancies in the country, he added. 'Up to God' For her part, Bantosila does not see anything wrong with her pregnancyor the fact that she got pregnant early. Ngayon naman po, mga mature na yung kasing edad ko eh, she said, explaining that she was in a better position than her own sister, who, at 18, has had two children herself. At least natapos ko yung vocational course ko bago ako nagbuntis, she said.

Despite the fact that she and the 21-year-old father of her children did not plan this first pregnancy that has resulted in twins, Bantosila, who was rushed to Fabella from a provincial hospital in Cavite following complications of her pregnancy, is adamant that she will not be using any artificial family planning method, and is distrustful of their safety. Hindi ko po kasi alam yan. At di ba maraming parang side effects sa family planning? she said. Yung condom po na gawa sa mga factory, baka madumi yun, tapos ipapasok sa kin, she says warily. Baka mag-calendar na lang kami. When asked if she wants any more children, she said,Sana wag kaagad kasi mahirap ngayon ang buhay, tapos kambal pa yung unang anak ko. Pero bahala na po kay God." Despite some setbacks, Gonzales maintains that education can only do good. If there is information and education, mas mainam kasi mababawasan ang mga teenage mothers natin sa ward, Gonzales said. KG/YA, GMA News
http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/271850/news/specialreports/at-fabella-hospital-moms-arehuman-incubators