The Senses That Develop Before Birth

During the 40 weeks that a baby spends growing in the womb, his senses begin to develop. Babies are not only busy developing physical adaptations to function after birth, they also sense the world around them from an early gestational age.

This amazing development of the senses forms the basis of the baby’s early attachment to the mother. The uterus is undoubtedly the best environment for the development of the fetus.

The development of the senses during pregnancy greatly affects the development of the brain. So, in this article we will see what senses develop earlier in the fetus. Also, some data will surprise you.

Touch, one of the senses that develop before birth

Touch is the first sense that is formed. Its development begins around 8 weeks of gestation. The sense of touch begins with the development of sensory receptors on the face, primarily on the lips and nose.

Over the next few months, tactile receptors begin to develop in other parts of the body. For example: the palms of the hands and the soles of the feet at 12 weeks and the abdomen at 17 weeks.

By the twelfth week, the fetus may experience tactile sensations throughout its body. There is the exception of the top of her head, which remains numb until birth.

However, brain scans suggest that fetuses do not experience pain until after 30 weeks. At this point, the somatosensory neural pathways finish developing. By the middle of the third trimester, the baby can enjoy a wide range of sensations including heat, cold or pressure.

The senses of taste and smell

Taste and smell are closely related senses. Taste is actually 90% related to smell. Certain flavors, such as vanilla, carrot, garlic, anise or peppermint, have been shown to transfer into amniotic fluid.

Taste

A fetus’ taste buds begin to appear at 8 weeks. By the 13 to 15 week stage, fetuses already have taste buds similar to those of adults. Whatever the mother eats while the baby is in the womb will permeate the amniotic fluid that the baby consumes.

The smell

As discussed earlier, the sense of smell goes hand in hand with taste. At birth, a baby can only identify its mother by smell, especially by the smell of breast milk.

If immediately after birth, the baby is placed on its mother, it will only crawl on her chest, guided by the smell of colostrum, until it reaches the nipple. This is called “chest drag”.

Hearing

The auditory system is fully developed at 20 weeks gestation. After 23 weeks, a fetus may respond to loud noises. The baby can also identify the voices of family members that he or she heard in the womb.

Babies with normal hearing also panic in response to loud sounds. Newborns also seem to prefer a higher-pitched voice, like their mother’s, to a lower voice, like their father’s.

A 2014 study of premature newborns found that playing a recording of a baby’s mother’s voice while sucking on a pacifier was enough to improve the development of oral feeding skills and shorten their stay. to the hospital. An astonishing fact.

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Although darkness reigns in the womb, human skin allows some light to pass through. Researchers found that fetuses were about twice as likely to follow the movement of dot patterns that resembled a human face. The same pattern and preference has been shown in babies after birth.

This suggests that the preference for human faces may be innate and not simply the result of experiences that occur after birth. In addition, it clearly shows that the fetus actively reacts to the outside world long before it enters it.

Vision in the newborn

A newborn baby is very short-sighted. Newborns do not see colors like adults. In the case of forms, they do not distinguish them until they are six months old.

The eyes of newborns are also sensitive to bright lights. They close their eyes rather than look at the light. By the age of one month, a newborn can see colors, but often prefers to look at objects in black and white.

At around seven months old, a baby has developed hand-eye coordination and depth perception to be able to reach toys outside of their immediate area. Her focus will improve over the next two to three years as her eyes mature and can see more clearly.

The development of the senses after birth

Evidence of early sensory development in utero opens up the possibility of stimulating the baby during pregnancy. This is done by modifying factors such as maternal food intake or the selection of background music.

However, much of a baby’s sensory development is completed after birth. Thus, the sensory stimulation with the most important effects is that which takes place after birth, with cognitive development.

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