10 Newborn Worries (Not to Fret About)

By Denise Schipani
March 28, 2010
There are plenty of things to pay attention to after your baby is born. Here are some things you don't need to put on that list.
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Touching the Soft Spots on Baby's Head

Credit: iStockphoto

Despite cautions to the contrary, you shouldn?t be stressed if you happen to have touched these areas of Baby?s head. When you touch your baby's soft spots, known as the fontanels, you're not touching his brain. So what are you touching? A thick, very protective membrane. The soft spots exist so your baby can safely negotiate the narrow birth canal. Since his skull is flexible, your little one's downy head has already survived a pretty rough ride with no harm done.

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Seeing Baby's Pulse in His Fontanels

Credit: BananaStock/ Jupiter

What you're seeing are the normal workings of your baby's circulatory system. Because the fontanels cover areas of the skull that have not yet fused together, they're soft, making veins and arteries visible.

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Blood in Your Newborn Girl's Diaper

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During pregnancy, a surge in maternal estrogen levels can stimulate a female fetus's uterus. Within the first week of life, it's not uncommon for baby girls to have a mini period in which the uterus sheds a little blood.

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A Small Hollow in Baby's Chest

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Relax -- this isn't a heart problem. According to experts, the breastbone is made up of three parts. The indentation you see is likely the bottom piece, angling backward. As your baby grows, her chest and belly muscles will pull it straight. Even before then, layers of baby fat will cover up this very normal bit of newborn anatomy.

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Soft, Squishy Poops After Every Feeding

Credit: Chris Callis

Breastfed babies may poop after each feeding because breast milk is so quickly digested. (Formula-fed babies may have less-frequent bowel movements.) As for as the squishy issue is concerned, most newborn poops are soft simply because babies are on an all-liquid diet.

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Constant Hiccuping

Credit: Fancy Photography/Veer

Experts aren't sure why young babies hiccup so much; some say it's due to a miscommunication between the brain and the diaphragm, the abdominal muscle that controls breathing. Regardless of their cause, hiccups are a harmless part of babyhood.

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Crying

Newborns have an immature nervous system and startle easily, which are just two reasons why they shed so many tears. And crying is Baby's only way of communicating his needs. Simply put, he's wired to cry a lot, so though he may look pained, he's not harming himself.

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A Pimply Facial Rash

Credit: Kathryn Gamble

Thanks to maternal hormones still circulating in their body, many newborns have acne, which usually occurs between 2 weeks and 2 months of age. It's harmless and just requires gentle cleaning, not Clearasil.

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Swollen Breasts on a Newborn Girl...or Boy!

Credit: Kaysh Shinn

Those same hormones that cause baby girls to have a mini period can also swell the breasts of babies of both genders. Surprising? Yes. Temporary? Absolutely. Worrisome? Not at all.

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Sneezing All the Time

Credit: Kathryn Gamble

Babies have tiny noses! Just a small bit of mucus will make them sneeze. And because your newborn has just emerged from his watery home in your uterus, he's likely to have at least a little congestion, which may cause quite a few sneezes. Unless his sneezing is accompanied by thick, yellow mucus, which indicates a cold, all that sneezing is just a phase he'll outgrow.

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