4 Facts About Your Baby’s Breathing
Parents often worry about their baby’s breathing, especially when their newborn is only a few days or months old. When parents notice the movements of their baby’s chest, they often think that they are irritated or that something is wrong with their lungs.
However, there are certain features that characterize the respiratory system of babies, which are still small and not yet working optimally. It will stay that way until they are two months old.
Let’s look at interesting facts so that you know everything about this topic. This allows you to distinguish between real problems and a naturally occurring condition in newborns.
Facts about your baby’s breathing
Babies take about 40 to 60 breaths per minute. This is related to the movement of their chest. This is because it has little adipose tissue, so that the accelerated breathing can be seen even more clearly.
To give you a better idea, a baby breathes 60 times per minute, an adult only 20 times. That’s not all, a baby’s breathing is also characterized by rhythmic changes. Sometimes they are irregular and nasal. Babies can even snore, sigh and make certain sounds.
For these reasons, you should know the following facts, so pay close attention:
1. Irregular Breathing in Babies
Newborn babies breathe with unstable rhythmic dynamics. One minute they can take a quick deep breath, but after a few minutes they have slow, short breaths again.
Because newborns cry regularly, it also affects the way they breathe. A baby’s breathing slows down again when they have just stopped crying.
Importantly, premature babies are most prone to irregular breathing. This is because their lungs are not yet working optimally.
2. Babies only breathe through their nose
Another interesting fact about a baby’s breathing is that they only breathe through their nose. This is because their soft palate is close to the epiglottis. This ensures that no oxygen can get through the mouth. This is the case until children are 6 months old.
3. About the snoring
Another common action related to a baby’s breathing is regular snoring. The culprit for this is the nasal secretions, which are common in babies. These are caused by crying and colds, which babies are more susceptible to.
You should pay extra attention to snoring. If your child does not have a cold or has mucus in his nose and still snores frequently, you should see the pediatrician. This could be sleep apnea syndrome.
To find out if your child has this syndrome, you should pay attention to whether your baby sweats a lot when he sleeps at night. Also check if your child is uncomfortable or sleeps in strange positions and if he stops breathing for a few seconds.
Remember that your baby’s life can be in danger if he doesn’t breathe for more than 20 seconds. This can lead to SIDS, which is caused by a child not breathing, usually lying on his stomach.
4. Periodic or Cyclic Breathing
Although it doesn’t seem normal, newborns often stop breathing for a while. As we said before, it can be dangerous when the break is longer than 20 seconds.
However, it is common for babies to stop breathing for 5 to 10 seconds in the first months and then automatically start breathing again. This has no effect on their cardiovascular system.
Warning Signs
Finally, we would like to give a number of signals that we have not yet mentioned:
- When you notice that the breathing is too fast and your baby inhales more than 60 times per minute.
- If your baby has trouble breathing and sees his chest and ribs drop too much.
- When your newborn’s face, mouth, tongue or other body part turns blue.
If possible, it is very helpful to learn about first aid and CPR. If your baby doesn’t breathe for more than 30 seconds and doesn’t react to anything, this can be a very important tool to resolve the emergency.
