Promoting a healthy infant microbiome
When I work with a woman during preconception and pregnancy I am always looking at optimising her microbiome in all areas of the body- gut, oral, vaginal and uterine to support a healthy transfer of bugs to her baby to be. But what about when they leave your womb? There are some simple steps we can take to optimise a baby's arrival and building of bacteria from the outside world.
1. Lots of skin to skin time. Skin to skin time with mum and also other member's of the immediate family allows the transfer of skin microbes to the baby. Baby's are born with translucent skin to these bacteria are easily transferred. Skin to skin also promotes oxytocin production in mum and bub, which is the love and bonding hormone that promotes the release of breast milk and can help calm the baby. To be clear skin to skin is baby in nappy or naked on mum's complete bare chest. A blanket can be placed over if cold. This is really important not just in the first hours of life, but also in the first few weeks for the baby.
2. Take your own blankets and towels from home and avoid using the hospital ones. Because of baby's thin skin, they are going to let any chemical in that touches them. Avoid hospital blankets and towels and take your own, which will also help transfer the family bacteria too
3. Choose 100% organic cotton or bamboo clothing and blankets. Same as above, avoiding polyester clothing that is plastic and chemicals and pesticides used in cotton farming is beneficial to promoting a healthy microbiome to the baby.
4. Don’t wash the baby for the first 5-7 days of life. When a baby is born they are covered in a thick, waxy cheese-like coating called vernix. Vernix helps protect the baby’s translucent skin as it is exposed to air for the first time after being in water their whole life, as well as containing beneficial bacteria for the baby. By holding off washing your baby, allows time for the vernix to soak into the baby’s skin. If you have a water birth, try and just have the baby patted dry, rather than rubbing to protect the vernix. Side note- My son was born at 42 weeks and had no vernix, which is common in later term-born babies as it has already soaked in in utero. I still recommend avoiding bathing for 5-7 days. I also recommend avoiding fragranced products for mum and bub for two reasons. One is that fragranced products usually contain the chemical phthalates which are hormone disruptors as well as affecting the immune system of mum and baby. A newborn is also very intune with their mum’s smell and by ‘disguising’ this with fragrance, you could potentially affect breastfeeding, through the newborn being unable to smell the milk.
5. Learn, get support and help to establish and continue breastfeeding. This is really the number 1 thing for promoting a healthy microbiome in the baby. In a study looking at C-section vs Vaginal birth infants at 6 weeks, those babies born via C section had the same levels of beneficial bacteria as vaginally born infants if they were breastfed. I recommend all women learn about breastfeeding prior to birth- See the Australian Breastfeeding Association website for 1/2 day courses and info you can complete while pregnant. If you are struggling, please get help from an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC).
6. Avoid use of non-essential medications. If you or your baby is being offered a medication, ask the questions over how essential are they, and what is the outcome they are hoping to be. Antibiotics are commonly used in the medical system during birth and post, for what can be life-saving reasons, which is not where we think about denying them. But they are also offered as a ‘just in case’, and so we need to outweigh the benefits and risks. I also see reflux medication frequently prescribed to infants, with no assessment completed on baby and purely because they are ‘unsettled’. It is very rare for a baby to have reflux as their stomach acid is so low, and so the use of reflux medication in babies needs to be questioned.