Full of Thanks for Thanksgiving!

Today I am thankful and proud to be an uncle!  My sister gave birth 2 days ago to a beautiful baby boy.  I arrived at the hospital just in time to hear a lullaby over the loud speaker, signaling that I had just become an uncle and my sister a mother for the very first time.  I was escorted down the hall by my brother in law to meet baby Foster. Seeing him for the first time, taking some of his first breaths of air, and seeing the world outside of the womb for the first time was an experience that I’ll never forget.  I could see the beauty that culminated after 9 long months of pregnancy.  The body is truly a miracle… the awesome Nervous System at the center of it all. And to think, that this little guy…with a healthy beating heart, a fully intact nervous system… complete with 5 senses and a spine protecting it, a properly functioning immune system, digestive system… I could go on and on… was just 2 cells only 9 months prior, which contained the information to produce a miraculous creation.

 

I learned a few facts about pregnancy and birth that I would like to share with you all, because it can become very apparent how beautifully designed we really are.

 

Fact numero uno:  The baby’s vision is tuned to mom.  They can see only the exact distance from the mother’s arms to the mother’s face.

 

Fact 2:  During vaginal birth, the baby gets his/her first dose of probiotics from the vaginal walls.  This bacteria is known as Bifidus Infantis.  Building a strong immune system begins just seconds before they enter the world!

 

Fact 3: Babies with a healthy nervous system will be able to display many reflexes, though they’ve never learned them.  They are encoded within our genes and within our nervous systems!

Rooting reflex- in response to stroking their cheeks, the baby will turn its  head toward the touch and attempt to suck

Grasping reflex- press into their palm and they will grab on

Blinking reflex- in response to a puff of air , the infant closes their eyes.  (doesn’t seem that impressive, but the body is born with the intelligence to protect itself from environmental hazards… the key is,

from the very first second, the body’s innate intelligence is hard at  work!)

Stepping reflex- in response to holding the infant so that its feet barely  touch a surface, the infants leg will “step” forward as an automatic reflex.  We were born to move.

These are just a few of the many wonderful reflexes that our innate intelligence provides us with.  (He even sneezed, a sign that his nervous system had detected and fought off a pathogen before it could enter his circulation!)

 

Fact 4- The mother’s sense of smell increases dramatically. The mother’s nervous system is now capable of smelling minute toxins that could be damaging to the fetus during pregnancy.  Mothers become increasingly aware of coffee, smoke, alcohol, and household chemicals in their environment.

 

Fact 5- Breast milk is made in perfection.  Antibodies from mom’s fully formed immune system are passed through the breast milk to give the baby an immunity to its environment.  Mom’s immune system is specifically attuned to her environment, and since the baby’s environment is mom’s environment… it works out very well.  Antibodies are not the only thing the baby receives from breast milk though.  Similarly, oligosaccharides are passed down which give an added boost to the baby’s immune system… attaching to bacteria and viruses and showing them the way out.  Yet another form of immunity is passed along in the form of white blood cells.  Besides immune function, the baby receives nutrition through a plethora of vitamins, minerals, fat, protein, and carbohydrates.  Sodium and potassium come in a 1:10 ratio… a ratio conducive to eliminating waste and maintaining a pristine internal environment, while providing a healthy support to the newly developing nervous system.

 

Corn Syrup laden formula milk on the other hand… can do no such things, but only deprive the baby of a healthy immune system and support the health of a pathogenic bacteria in the gut.

 

Fact 6- Touch is vital.  A multitude of studies have shown the importance of touch in infancy.  Those babies that receive a lack of human touch grow up with a sense of a hostile world and develop behavioral, emotional, and social problems. Babies that receive love and affection by touch will grow up happy and with a sense of security.  One study illustrated the vast difference in levels of the stress hormone, cortisol, between orphaned babies and those with a parental upbringing.  Chronic increases in cortisol break down the health of the body in every imaginable way.

 

On that note… the body begins to grow through stimulation to the nervous system.  Touch, smell, taste, hearing, sight, and gravity are all stimulating to the nervous system and trigger growth.  Everything that the nervous system can detect will shape our worldview, our character, and our health.

 

Oh, and by the way… Dad is a chiropractor.  You better believe Foster received his first adjustment already!

 

Happy Thanksgiving everyone, I hope you all have a wonderful holiday and take the time to appreciate how special life really is! Dr. Mike Moss