HealthPartners - Preparing for childbirth

YOUR NEW BABY

VERNIX

DRY SKIN

LANUGO

You may notice some very fine hair called lanugo covering your baby’s body. In the womb, lanugo helps regulate the baby’s temperature, holds in heat, and keeps the baby warm. Babies born early may have more of this fine hair on their body. It will start to disappear in a week or two.

Babies born after their due date may have dry, wrinkly skin. That’s because vernix starts to slough off around 38 weeks of pregnancy. Your baby’s dry skin will improve quickly after birth because the skin underneath is moist and healthy.

You may see a white, waxy coating called vernix on your baby’s skin. Vernix protected your baby’s skin from infection and wrinkles while the baby was floating in amniotic fluid in the womb. If your baby has vernix, you don’t need to wash it off. Their skin will absorb it soon after birth.

SWOLLEN BREASTS AND GENITALS

SLATE GRAY PATCHES

STORK BITES

A stork bite is a playful name for a birthmark. Birthmarks are areas of discolored skin on a baby’s body that may be present at birth or show up within a few months after birth. Over 80% of babies have a birthmark of some type. Some last for life, while others fade away. Birthmarks come in a wide range of shapes, sizes, and colors, and they can appear anywhere on the body. Most birthmarks are harmless and many go away on their own in the first few years of life. It’s important to have your baby’s health care provider look at all birthmarks. Sometimes medical treatment is necessary. You can always get a second opinion and learn about any other options for treatment.

Slate gray patches are flat birthmarks that are very common in dark-skinned babies of Native American, African, Asian, or Hispanic descent. They can be deep brown, slate gray, or blue-black. These spots may look like bruising but are completely different. Some marks may be small, while others may be up to 6 inches or more in diameter. They may appear on the baby’s shoulders, lower back, or buttocks area. Most will fade after the baby’s first year of life.

After birth, the breasts and genitals of both male and female newborns may look a little swollen. Their breasts may secrete a small amount of fluid. You may also find a small amount of blood-tinged discharge in your baby girl’s diaper. This is all normal. These issues are caused by the last of your pregnancy hormones remaining in the baby’s bloodstream. Within a few days after the birth, breast and genital swelling and fluid discharge should stop.

Chapter 7: Your New Baby

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