Being a full-time mom gives me the luxury to be with my child almost 24/7, especially since I’m with a newborn. Most of the time, I would just gaze at his angelic face and wonder about a lot of things.
Babies, like this little ball of joy of mine, have so many firsts that I often think how does my baby live the first weeks and months of his life?
What can you read in this article?
- What do babies actually see?
- How can I help my baby get better vision?
- Can my newborn see color?
One question that always pops up would be - Can my newborn see me? Does he really smile when he sees Mom or Dad wooing over him? Can newborns see colors - like the wallpaper I handpicked for him and the colorful mobile toys his auntie gave as a welcome home present?
What do babies actually see?
What does the world look like through my baby’s eyes? A recent article sparked my search to answer this.
Visual cues are easy for your newborn to respond to, according to numerous studies. If I hold something in front of my child, he will raise his chubby little arms to it.
However, images that newborn children can depict depend on the rough approximation of the degree of vision a newborn has at a certain distance.
Previous studies determined that babies’ vision deteriorates into a blur after 120cm. The further the distance, the harder it is for a child to distinguish a person’s expression.
A new study has enabled further understanding of how the newborn views the world.
Conducted at the Institute of Psychology in collaboration with the University of Uppsala and Eclipse Optics over in Stockholm, the study is based on the idea that our eyes are more sensitive to motion.
“We reasoned that if adults were unable to identify the depicted facial expressions, then it would also seem unlikely that newborn infants could identify the same expressions," said Professor Magnussen.
The researchers concluded that,
"The different expressions could be rather well identified at a distance of 30cm, but when the distance was increased to 120cm their discriminability was much degraded.”
So while newborn babies possess the theoretical capability to perceive faces and facial expressions, their “low visual resolution” vision is not enough for them to be able to distinguish faces and facial expressions at moderate distances.
Finding out that my baby sees best at 20-30 cm away gives me the advantage to better communicate with him by gazing into his eyes and talking to him through our expressions. I bet my husband will have to make faces at our baby nonstop once he finds out about this!
How can I help my baby get better vision?
Wanting to know what can my newborn see led me to other studies that are quite helpful in aiding my baby to have better vision as he grows.
I’ve also read how babies are more likely to open their eyes in dim light since their eyes are sensitive to bright light. Their eyes also occasionally cross or drift outward within the first 2-3 months but it’s nothing to worry about since their eye muscles will soon strengthen and their vision will still improve.
Although our babies can see as early as in their first month, their brain is not yet equipped to process what they actually see. Thus, during the first few months, what we need to do is to stimulate their vision through objects that we show them or let them play with.
Continuously promoting them with new visual stimulation helps their brain process new information to understand and learn. This also helps with their attention span, memory, and the development of their nervous system. Over time, our babies learn to associate images with meanings, and thus be able to comprehend and respond to stimuli.
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Can my newborn see color?
In the next 12 weeks, your baby will start noticing and following moving objects such as their toys. Colors will also develop in their vision, with red being the first color after black, white, and gray. By the time they are 5 months old, our babies can already see the rainbow!
Upon learning this, I started buying baby stuff that has colors that would appeal to his early vision. Everything is in black and white or in high contrast patterns that promote an illusion of movement - from his bedsheets to storybooks, learning cards, toys, and artwork in his room.
The best black and white, moving pattern there is? Of course, mom and dad’s eyes! So can my newborn see me? Yes, and we love gazing at him. I guess you never really get tired of looking at your baby. Plus, babies love looking at faces so it’s a win-win situation. It’s okay if your baby’s eyes are always shut though, your baby must be a good sleeper and that’s a good thing too!
What if my baby has a visual problem?
The first days since my baby was born looked a bit weird though, as with other babies. Of course, some babies do have the white parts of their eyes look blood-red at first, especially right after they were born. Our doctor said it was a subconjunctival hemorrhage, resulting from trauma during the delivery. Not a big deal though as it goes away after several days.
Of course, getting worried about my newborn is always on my plate. Sometimes, I think I tend to overreact just to protect him but a mother is a mother, and mothers knows best, right?
So, I did a bit more reading and have collated a few things that we, mommies and daddies, can do to help our newborns with their visual development.
The majority of babies are born with a healthy vision that develops normally as they grow older. However, vision problems may also emerge and it’s our job to keep an eye (wink!) on some symptoms.
What specialists say
According to specialists, excessive crying, red or crusty eyelids, great sensitivity to light, a pupil that appears white, and eyes that continually wander can indicate that your newborn's vision may be impaired.
These symptoms may indicate problems in clogged tear ducts, infected eyes, Dysfunction of the ocular muscles, increased intraocular pressure, and eye cancer.
Of course, it’s still best to consult a medical professional before landing on conclusions. I know as moms, we tend to overreact and worry too much, especially when it concerns our babies.
Alongside this, we can also help our babies by providing them with an environment that is sensitive to the development they need. For example, investing in a good night light to dim his room whenever he’s sleeping. You can also change the position of your baby’s crib from time to time and even the side where he or she sleeps.
Another thing would be alternating both sides whenever you’re feeding.
Did you know that breastfed babies have a significantly better vision than those fed with formula? According to the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, the chemical known as docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) is found to be in high amounts in breastmilk than in formula. The same chemical helps improve the vision of children, especially in their development years.
You can also bring your newborn to an eye scan at about 6 months, regardless of whether he has an eye problem or not. Your doctor will check your baby’s vision for any abnormalities such as nearsightedness, farsightedness, astigmatism.
He will also recognize your baby’s eye movement ability and eye alignment. While vision problems are uncommon, one can never be too careful, especially while it’s early. You can consult your resident physician or a licensed eye doctor about this.
I wanna see what my baby sees!
It was fun discovering how my baby sees the world. Here’s a final trick. If you want to see how your child specifically sees the things you see, try out BabySee, a mobile app that lets you see through your baby’s eyes. It’s exciting and you should try it out!
So can my newborn see me? Definitely!
Additional information from Margaux Dolores
Source:
Natural News, APA, ARVO Journals
