Newborn baby with swollen belly

After a baby is born, since the baby's physical development is not yet complete, many mothers are very careful and meticulous when taking care of the baby. Many people will find that the newborn baby's belly always looks bulging, so many mothers will worry that the baby has eaten too much, or that the baby has some disease. In fact, a newborn baby's bulging belly is a normal phenomenon in many cases.

There are mainly two situations when a baby has a big belly. One is a bloating caused by indigestion due to gastrointestinal problems such as bloating; the other is a normal situation caused by the baby's physiological abdominal distension.

Therefore, whether it is normal for a baby to have a big belly depends on the specific symptoms.

Specific analysis:

1. Babies mainly breathe abdominally, their digestive tract produces more gas, and their intestinal smooth muscles and abdominal wall striated muscles are weakly developed. Therefore, normal babies have a physiological abdominal distension, which presents a slight "frog-shaped belly". Because of this, parents generally believe that it is normal for babies to have a big belly.

2. In addition, under normal circumstances, because the baby is still small, the internal organs are not fully developed and are not in their proper places. They are all concentrated in the abdomen, so the baby has a big belly.

3. Check whether the baby's feeding, sleeping, defecation, urination, mental state, growth and development are normal. If not, the baby may be in a state of illness and you should take the baby to the hospital for a check-up as soon as possible.

1. Physiological abdominal distension

When the abdominal muscles do not have enough strength to bear the weight, the abdomen will appear more prominent, especially when the baby is held, the abdomen will appear to sag. In addition, the baby's body is round from front to back, not slightly flat like an adult's, which is one of the reasons why the belly looks bloated.

If the baby eats and sucks too quickly, he will inhale air into the stomach; if the hole of the bottle nipple is not of appropriate size, air will enter the baby's body through the gap in the nipple; in addition, the baby cries too much and inhales air; eating milk or other food will ferment in the digestive tract through the action of intestinal bacteria and other digestive enzymes, producing a large amount of gas, which will cause abdominal distension.

3. Indigestion and constipation caused by fullness

It promotes the growth of bad bacteria that produce gas, or causes digestion and malabsorption due to milk protein allergy, lactose intolerance, enteritis, etc., which can easily produce a large amount of gas.

Intestinal obstruction in infants and young children, including severe complete obstruction, is often discovered soon after birth due to obvious symptoms. However, if the blockage is incomplete, it may still be missed after a long delay.