“Image from ‘Amazing Things Babies Learn in the Womb.’ BabiesMata, https://babiesmata.com/things-babies-learn-in-the-womb/. Accessed 15 Nov. 2024.”
A common question answered

Author: Charlotte Leung

Babies are something we once were, a world entirely of mystery and light. We all were once nothing but a small peck of life housed inside our mothers’ wombs, inside a small sack of fluid. Life is not what we now know to be. Think about it: what we consider not alive is not how we were as tiny fetuses. To clarify, we feel a person not breathing as dead; breathing means inhaling oxygen and exhaling carbon dioxide. But how did we sustain our lives without breathing actively inside a sack of fluid? How did we prepare to breathe during and after delivery?

To answer that question, it is essential to trace back to the critical components of the amniotic sack that we once called home. Although small, this sack contained crucial components for the baby to receive oxygen, including the umbilical cord. In the developmental process, babies typically do not breathe like we usually do. Instead, every breath the mother takes brings oxygen into the bloodstream, sending oxygen-rich blood through the placenta into the umbilical cord for the baby.

When it comes time for delivery, this process changes. As contractions get more intense, the mother squeezes the baby harder and harder, maneuvering the baby to exit the birth canal. These contractions also push the amniotic fluid out of the baby’s lungs, preparing it to breathe in the outside world while still connected to the placenta with the umbilical cord. The final exit of the process comes a few moments after the baby completely exits the womb; they take a sharp inhale and finally manage to breathe on their own without the oxygen delivered by their mother.

Work Cited

Prophete, Carla. “How Do Babies Breathe in the Womb?” 31 May 2023, https://www.healthline.com/health/pregnancy/how-babies-breathe-in-the-womb. Accessed 15 11 2024.