WASHINGTON – They call it kangaroo care: A premature baby nestles skin-to-skin against mom’s bare, warm chest. In Malawi, mothers’ bodies take the place of too-pricey incubators to keep these fragile newborns alive.

Nearly one in 10 of the world’s babies is born premature, and about one million infants die each year as a result, says a startling first attempt to measure a toll that in much of the world is hidden.

It’s a problem concentrated in poor countries, with the vast majority of the nearly 13 million preemies born each year in Africa and Asia, according to the report released Sunday by the March of Dimes.

But take a closer look at the proportion of all babies born too early. Those rates are highest in Africa, but followed closely by North America, concludes the first part of a collaboration with the World Health Organization to tackle the growing problem.

How? “That’s the 13 million-baby question,” said March of Dimes epidemiologist Christopher Howson, who headed the project being debated this week at a child health meeting in India.

Different factors fuel prematurity in rich countries and poor ones. Wealthy countries such as the United States have sophisticated neonatal intensive care units for the tiniest, youngest preemies. That produces headlines about miracle babies and leads to a false sense that modern medicine conquers prematurity – without acknowledging lifelong problems including cerebral palsy, blindness and learning disabilities that often plague survivors.

Scientists don’t even know all the triggers for preterm birth or how to stop early labour once it starts, one reason that the report urges major new research. Nor does much of the world even track how many babies are born too soon, why or what happens to them.

“These are conservative estimates,” Howson said. “As shocking as this toll is, that toll will only rise” as next year the WHO finishes a more in-depth country-by-country count.

Yet even in very poor countries, there are steps to improve preemies’ survival if only more mothers knew, said Dr. Joy Lawn, a pediatrician-turned-policy director for Save the Children who is based in South Africa.

“Even in educated families, there’s a sense of fatalism if a baby is born preterm. There’s no expectation they can do anything,” Lawn said. “With pretty simple solutions, these deaths could be halved, but it doesn’t seem to be a priority.”

She points to Malawi, where traditionally new mothers have tied babies to their backs as they go about their day. Today, mothers of preemies are taught to tie them in front, under their clothes, kangaroo care-style, she said. The skin-to-skin contact keeps the infants’ body temperature more stable, a key to survival, and they can nurse at will, promoting weight gain.

Now Uganda is starting to teach kangaroo care.

Babies born before completion of the 37th week of pregnancy are premature. The March of Dimes report found a small fraction in the U.S. are born before 32 weeks, the very early preemies who face the greatest risk of death and lifelong health problems. But even being born a few weeks early can lead to breathing problems, jaundice and learning or behavioural delays.

Among the risk factors:

-Lack of prenatal care to be sure the mother-to-be is adequately nourished and getting proper care for pregnancy-harming conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure or infections.

-Smoking and alcohol use.

-Pregnancy before age 16 and after 35, or pregnancies spaced too closely, less than two years apart.

-Carrying twins or more.

-In wealthy countries, early elective inductions and cesarean sections.

Sunday’s report is believed the first region-by-region estimate of prematurity, but it undercounts the problem by examining only singleton births to mostly healthy women, Howson said. As a result, it estimates 480,000 preemies are born in the U.S. and Canada each year when more precise U.S. government figures put that total at more than half a million in this country alone.

Whatever the precise number, the point is to increase research into the problem and note the simple steps to lessen preventable risks today, Howson said.

“What leads to a healthy outcome or adverse outcome are factors that begin far before that third trimester,” he said, stressing care for infections and chronic conditions, better diet and family planning so the mom-to-be is healthier before she conceives. “We as an international community must think more upstream.”

Are you about to start your baby nursery decoration project? Don’t even consider your colors until you have read these important facts.

Newborn Eyesight

…is primitive to say the least. They can distinguish light and facial features, albeit in a very fuzzy way. Think about it: looking at anything is really hard work at this extremely tender age. Your aim should be to make it as easy as possible for little one to develop this fundamental ability. For this reason it’s essential to plan…

High Contrast Visuals

Include some patterns like black and white or black and yellow. Think of this as you would watching something easy and familiar on television. Did you know that the best present for a new arrival is a panda soft toy? (Odd that they are so hard to get hold of, but indicative of the general level of ignorance on this topic). Bold, contrasting images will help your new arrival see better.

Sophisticated Thinking

Babies are more sophisticated thinkers than we assume. As Linda Acredolo and Susan Goodwyn explain in their very clear and straightforward book Baby Minds, some newborns can imitate adults sometimes at only a day old by sticking their tongue out in response to an adult doing it .

Memory

It might seem that children don’t remember much at such a young age (apart from recognizing family members’ faces). Not true. Acredolo and Goodwyn point to research that shows how a 3-month-old baby can register what the decor of her nursery looks like.

Long Lasting Effects

Research from the Albert Einstein College of medicine shows that youngsters who perform better at memory tests in infancy also perform well in memory tests later in life. Whether this is due to an innate ability at this age or the likelihood of being in a nurturing, stimulating environment is not clear, but it’s best to err on the side of caution and assume that there is a link.

So…

The last two facts lead to a rather exciting conclusion. If babies can remember what their wallpaper looks like, and if a good infant memory is a skill for life, then if we can stimulate this ability to retain information surely it can only enhance their memory. But how?

Mix It Up

The answer is to change elements of your baby nursery decoration scheme regularly. This gives your baby more to remember, more mental gymnastics to work out to.

Of course none of this means you should go for an entire redecoration every two months. the key word is elements here. Even changing the position of your cot mobile and introducing a new wall sticker or even colorful image from a magazine, tacked up with blu tak, will make a difference.<!–