Seven-month-old babies: development, nutrition, care features. Classification of prematurity. Premature birth: causes and prevention

2024 Author: Priscilla Miln | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 00:21

A woman's pregnancy normally lasts nine months. However, in some cases, labor may begin prematurely. This means that the baby is not yet quite ready for life outside the womb and needs additional care. That is why newly-made parents, whose baby was born ahead of schedule, need to know how to provide the child with everything necessary and what conditions must be created for proper development and active growth. Mom and dad need to clearly understand how to organize the diet of a newborn baby and how to help the baby adapt to new living conditions. In addition, the expectant mother should know which births are premature. When does the seventh month start? How many weeks is this? This will be discussed in the article.

Causes of preterm birth

A baby born before 37 weeks is considered premature. There are a huge number of reasons and factors that can provoke prematurechildbirth. It is worth noting the most common:

1. Isthmic-cervical insufficiency. It is characterized by a pathological condition of the cervix, which does not allow holding the fetus.
2. Various anomalies in the structure of the reproductive organ of a woman. For example, the bicornuate uterus, the presence of an intrauterine septum.
3. Diseases suffered by a woman during the period of bearing a baby: SARS, acute respiratory infections, rubella, etc.
4. Somatic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, hypotension, heart defects and other pathologies of the cardiovascular system.
5. Thyroid disease.
6. Toxicosis, manifested in late pregnancy and accompanied by swelling.
7. Large fibroma or submucosal uterine leiomyoma.

Often, preterm birth at less than 38 weeks is the result of an Rh conflict.

Classification of prematurity

There are four degrees of prematurity depending on the gestational age, height and weight of the newborn:

1. The first degree of prematurity (mild), in which the baby weighs from 2.1 to 2.5 kg, and the height is from 41 to 45 centimeters. First-degree babies are usually born at 36-37 weeks of gestation.
2. The second degree of prematurity is characterized by the weight of the newborn in the range from 1.5 to 2.1 kg. The height of the baby is 36-40 centimeters. With these parameters, babies are born at 32-35 weeks.
3. Third-degree premature babies are babies whoborn at 28-31 weeks of gestation. The weight of the baby does not exceed one and a half kilograms, and the height is no more than 35 centimeters.
4. For the fourth degree of prematurity are babies who were born before 28 weeks. These are very premature babies weighing less than one kilogram and less than 30 centimeters tall.

The most common cases of first-degree prematurity. These are children born at 7 months of pregnancy. This is how many weeks from the prescribed forty? The seventh month ends at week 32.

Features of development in prematurity

Parents of a premature baby need to understand that it will not develop like other babies. This is due to the fact that a premature baby has incompletely formed organs. In addition, in the first month or two of life, the weight of a seven-month-old child or a child born at a later date does not increase so intensively, since the sucking reflex is rather weakly developed or absent at all, and the child cannot independently extract milk from the mother's breast. If the baby has a second, third or fourth degree of prematurity, he spends the first weeks of his life in a special incubator, which receives oxygen and the food necessary for growth and development. Neonatologists carefully monitor the baby in the first weeks of life. Parents of a premature baby need to understand that the newborn's immune system is weakened, the body is susceptible to infections and viruses. That is why the staff and parents at first should showmaximum care, carefully monitor hygiene.

Children who were born prematurely later catch up in the psychomotor and physiological development of their peers who were born on time. However, in the absence of adverse factors, premature babies catch up with the development of other babies by the age of twelve months.

Appearance of a prematurely born newborn

Babies born prematurely have several external features, clinical symptoms. The degree of severity directly depends on the period at which the premature birth occurred.

The skin of deeply premature babies is thin, has a bright red color. It is richly covered with primordial grease and fluff. The skin of the baby turns pale only two to three weeks after birth.

The body structure of the crumbs is disproportionate. The head is about one third of the body of the baby, and the limbs are short. The tummy is large and its surface is flat.

In deeply premature babies, all fontanelles and sutures of the skull are open. The auricles are quite soft, easy to bend. The nail bed is not completely covered with nails. The nipples and areolas are poorly pigmented and barely visible on the baby's body.

Deeply premature babies may have underdeveloped external genitalia. As a rule, in newborns of the first and second degree of prematurity, clinical symptoms do not appear so brightly.

Premature babies rarely cry and do not show excessivemotor activity. If a seven-month-old child was born, his body weight will be approximately 1.5-2 kilograms. Eight-month-old babies can weigh more than 2 kilograms.

What to feed the baby

New moms and dads need to know how to properly organize the diet of a seven-month-old baby. Parents should be prepared for the difficulties that may arise on the way to creating the most appropriate food intake. A correct and balanced menu is necessary in order for the height and weight of a premature baby to actively increase.

The best nutritional option for a newborn baby, regardless of the timing of the birth, is breast milk. This is an absolutely natural product, the composition of which fully meets the requirements of the baby's body. It is nutrient-rich, rich in vitamins.

It is very difficult for a baby who appeared before the due date to suck mother's milk from the breast due to the fact that the corresponding reflex is rather poorly developed or not developed at all. That is why, in order to fully saturate a premature newborn, parents need to supplement their baby with expressed milk from a bottle.

If for some reason breastfeeding is not possible, newly-made parents purchase special milk formulas, which form the basis of the baby's diet for the first few months of life. For babies born prematurely, in pharmaciesyou can buy special mixtures for premature babies. The constituent components of the product contribute to faster weight gain, stimulate the development of the baby. In addition, feeding a special diet minimizes the risk of allergic reactions. Parents need to consider that you can purchase the mixture only after consulting with a specialist. As a rule, at discharge, the doctor gives the newly-made parents of a premature baby the necessary recommendations and advises which mixture is best to purchase.

You need to feed the baby in the first month from 10 to 15 times a day, in small portions. In some cases, the number of feedings can reach 20. From the second month of life, the number of feedings can be reduced to eight.

After the child reaches six months of age, it is necessary to introduce complementary foods in order to diversify the daily diet and enrich it with additional nutrients and vitamins. It is categorically not recommended to introduce new products before the specified period, since the digestive system of a small child is not ready for the consumption of any components other than mother's milk or formula.

But it's not worth delaying the expansion of the baby's diet. This is fraught with a deficiency of vitamins and minerals. Dairy-free porridge should be the first food. Then, starting from the eighth month of life, vegetables and meat, fresh juices can be added to the baby's menu. Closer to a year old, the baby's daily diet is allowed to expand with fermented milk products. It is strictly forbidden to feed a small child with sweet fruits, add sugar to food.

Weight gain

One of the determining factors in the proper development of a baby born earlier than expected is weight gain. A good increase can only be ensured with a well-established complete nutrition of the child, which will include all the necessary vitamins and minerals, satisfy the energy costs of a newborn baby.

The neonatal period in premature babies is divided by doctors into three stages, in the first of which the child does not gain weight, but, on the contrary, loses it. Babies born at term lose no more than 5% of their original body weight, and the weight of premature babies can decrease by 10%, or even 15% (for very preterm ones).

At the second stage, the specialists of the medical institution, together with the parents, are trying to achieve a permanent weight gain, which should be about 15 grams per day. After the baby's body weight is 2.5 kilograms, the newborn and mother are discharged from the premature ward.

At the third stage, the baby's weight returns to normal. The last period lasts up to a year. In premature babies, this stage lasts longer depending on the degree of immaturity.

In the first month of life, as a rule, the baby adds a little, on average 200-300 grams. From the second month, weight gain is about 700-800 grams. From the third month to six months, the monthly increase in body weight can reach 800-900 grams. On average, in the first year of life, a baby born prematurely adds about 8-9 kilograms. It is closer to a year that a premature baby catches up with peers indevelopment.

How to care for a premature newborn

In order for a child born earlier than expected to catch up with his peers faster, parents need to know how to properly take care of the baby and what conditions he needs to create. Improving the functioning of organs and systems of seven-month-old children, the development of their psyche largely depends on their parents, especially in the first year of life.

First of all, parents should take care of the microclimate of the room in which the newborn will live. It should be bright and spacious enough. The air temperature in an apartment or house should be in the range of 20 to 25 degrees. The room must be regularly ventilated. Drafts should be avoided.

In addition, new moms and dads need to keep the air moist. Its level should be in the range from 50 to 70%. Too dry air often causes a runny nose. A humidifier, which can be purchased at any hardware store, can make the task easier.

Some babies may need extra warmth. A heating pad is ideal for these purposes.

Hygiene procedures in the first month of life are not recommended for those babies whose initial weight was less than 2 kilograms. For baby skin care, cotton swabs soaked in warm water are suitable. After completing the hygiene procedures, you need to dry the skin of the crumbs and use a baby cream.

Babies weighing more than two kilograms need to be bathed every other day in a smallbath. The water temperature should be 36-37 degrees. It is best to boil water for hygiene procedures. If desired, you can add chamomile, calendula to the bath. After a few months, the use of special herbal solutions is allowed, which can be purchased at any pharmacy without a doctor's prescription.

You can go for a walk with a premature baby after three to four weeks after arriving home. The baby should be dressed according to the weather. In the summer, you do not need to go outside from 11 am to 3 pm to avoid overheating. For walks, it is better to choose the morning or evening time of the day.

You should not walk with a baby weighing less than three kilograms, at temperatures below ten degrees. After the weight of the baby reaches this value, you can take walks at minus fifteen degrees. You should not choose crowded places and areas around which many cars drive. The baby does not need to breathe exhaust fumes. Yes, and this will not benefit a nursing mother.

Features of care

A premature baby needs more attention and care precautions. First of all, seven-month-old children, whose development depends more on their parents and the environment, should grow up in a favorable environment, in love and warmth.

Clothes and related products (caps, socks, etc.) must be made exclusively from natural materials. Fasteners should be presented in the form of buttons and be on the outside. Inside the undershirts andsliders should not have tags and labels. They can injure the delicate skin of the baby. Premature babies need to buy special clothes, since standard-sized baby onesies and sliders are too big for them.

Hygiene products deserve special attention. It is worth giving preference to hypoallergenic compositions, the quality of which is confirmed by certificates. For babies who have appeared earlier than expected, it is possible to purchase size zero diapers in baby goods stores, which are intended for newborns whose weight is in the range of one to three kilograms. There are also diapers for babies whose birth weight was less than one kilogram.

Massage will be useful. It will help increase muscle tone, strengthen all ligaments and bones, improve metabolism and the digestive system. A child up to a year old can be massaged, which includes stroking movements. In any case, before carrying out any manipulations, it is necessary to contact a medical institution for the advice of a qualified pediatrician. Some parents provide professional nursing care for a premature baby. The he alth worker will not only be able to better assess the development of the baby in the first weeks of life, but also, in which case, signal to parents about the occurrence of any problem.

Why is it better to have a seven-month-old than an eight-month-old baby

There is an opinion that it is better to give birth to a seven-month-old than an eight-month-old baby. Why? Let's turn to embryology. 7 months ishow many weeks pregnant? As already noted, this period lasts from 28 to 32 weeks. The child is actually fully formed and may well live outside the womb. However, his organs are not fully developed, the systems do not function at full capacity. Only the stomach and intestines were completely formed. The cerebral cortex is actively developing.

For a long time, doctors have argued that the probability of successfully nursing a seven-month-old baby is much higher than saving an eight-month-old. Actually this is a myth. At 8 months, the vital stages of the development of the baby are left behind, and he is almost ready for the birth. The only organ that continues to actively mature is the brain. Experts say that the probability of successful nursing of a premature baby does not even depend on the period at which he was born, but on his performance at birth. First of all, from the height of the child and his body weight.

Medicine has come so far that doctors are now able to save and exit babies born at 28-29 weeks of pregnancy. Seven-month-old children, whose development is not complicated by adverse factors, with proper care and regular supervision of medical personnel, after a while, are able to catch up with their peers.

Prevention of preterm birth

Every woman who has a baby should know about measures to prevent preterm birth. This will allow you to bear the long-awaited baby and give birth on time.

At the moment, the most informative way to determine the risk of preterm birth is a test based ondetermination in cervical mucus after 20 weeks of fibronectin glycoprotein. The presence of this substance in the cervical mucus is considered a harbinger of an early birth. The most accurate is the study a couple of weeks before the intended delivery. The accuracy of testing is more than seventy percent. Women need to understand that such a study is carried out exclusively within the walls of a medical institution and only on the advice of a doctor who is conducting a pregnancy.

Another test that can help prevent early labor is a transvaginal ultrasound. Ultrasound allows you to measure the length of the cervix. If the indicator is more than three centimeters, the probability of premature birth is reduced to zero.

The woman herself can also prevent early childbirth, and not only during the period of bearing a baby, but also during pregnancy planning. Before conception and during childbearing, it is best for a woman to give up alcohol and cigarettes. Narcotic and psychotropic substances are out of the question. Do not use any drugs during pregnancy planning. It is also better to refuse antibiotics. You need to be very careful about your he alth directly during the period of bearing a baby. A woman's immunity is weakened, which means she is susceptible to viruses and infections. Any unfavorable factor can provoke premature birth.

During pregnancy, it is best to avoid high heels. In winter and spring, when there may be ice on the roads, you need to give preference to boots andshoes with non-slip soles. This will prevent falls and, as a result, injury. An accidental fall can cause an early delivery.

Conclusion

Premature birth is a test not only for the woman, but also for the baby. Organs and systems are not fully mature, which means they are not ready for proper functioning. A baby born before 37 weeks of gestation is considered premature.

It is very important in the first year of a baby's life, who was born prematurely, to carefully monitor the implementation of the rules and norms for its development, to be constantly monitored by specialists in a medical institution. Moms and dads of a special baby should know how to feed a seven-month-old baby or a baby born later, how to properly organize his diet.

Parents need to protect their children. Without fail, seven-month-old children in development should not be exposed to any negative factors.

Modern medicine has stepped very far. Doctors have the opportunity to save babies born at the 28th week of pregnancy. The likelihood of nursing premature infants and the viability of the fetus directly depend on the initial body weight of the child at birth, as well as on his vital signs.