07/05/2021
This is a very long post, but a very interesting read.
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By the time your baby is born, each of his senses has already been awakened – although they are not yet working optimally. Your baby's senses are gradually awakened - one after the other - during pregnancy, enabling the fetus to establish contact with the outside world. Learn about how your baby's senses develop before birth!
TOUCH
The sense of touch is the very first to develop: first around the mouth during the 7th week of pregnancy, then in the palms of the hands, the soles of the feet and around the whole face towards the end of the 3rd month… and then the whole body in the 20th week. Towards the 14th week, the baby's hands are also able to clutch things – albeit very clumsily. Your baby starts experimenting with his new perceptions by brushing his face and his body, playing with his umbilical chord, sucking his thumb or through the gentle palpitations of the uterine wall.
TASTE
Three months into your pregnancy, your baby's mouth already has taste buds which he can use to experiment with a whole range of different flavours. These come through the amniotic fluid: he sucks and swallows almost continuously, and so is able to taste the various foodstuffs that you yourself eat. After 4 months, he is able to distinguish between sweet, salty, sour and bitter flavours. Babies suck almost incessantly in the womb – which explains why so many newborn babies have an intense need to suck as soon as they are born.
SMELL
Smell is closely linked to taste. Your baby will have his first experience of smell in the 7th month of pregnancy – also transmitted by the amniotic fluid: they are able to "smell" what you eat, as well as your own scent – and this will provide them with tremendous reassurance after birth.
HEARING
Hearing is the most developed of all five senses in the womb. Starting in the 7th month of pregnancy, your baby is not just able to detect sounds both inside and outside the womb – he can also react to what he hears.
Everything sounds muffled to him. But he is still able to develop a preference for low-frequency noises, such as the beat of your heart, the voice of his father, the sound of waves breaking on a beach… or even the sound of distant church bells. When you place your hand on your tummy, you'll be able to feel full, calm movements – evidence of your baby's well-being. High-frequency or sudden noises, however – like an alarm, a door slamming, a frying pan falling on the floor or a motorcycle accelerating can stress your baby: his movements will then be fast, jerky and uncoordinated.
SIGHT
However, of all the senses, sight is the most imperfect at birth: for the first few weeks, your baby is able to distinguish clearly between light and dark, but objects more than around 20 cm away are blurred; babies have no depth awareness and cannot distinguish colours. They don't like bright lights and their field of vision is very narrow. So that your baby can see you properly, place yourself right in front of him and very close to his face! His vision will improve very quickly over the next few months. The rate of improvement will then slow down until he is 4 years old – by which time it will have reached its optimum acuity.
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