Infants with cerebral palsy will seem to arch their back uncontrollably and involuntarily and not seem to be able to stop it. Cerebral palsyĬerebral palsy is a neurological disorder that affects children’s muscles and in turn their motor functions. There is a range of other neurological disorders due to which babies arch their backs. This pain often radiates to other parts of the head and neck which prompts them to arch out of reflex. Babies who are teething also arch their back due to irritation in the nerves caused within the gums. Nerve injuries caused by premature birth or due to physical trauma during difficult deliveries can cause babies to arch back while they are sitting or when tired. It predominantly occurs during sleep and needs corrective surgery for treatment. The blockage is temporarily alleviated by arching back, and hence you see them doing it to get a smoother airflow in the lungs. It occurs due to narrowed upper airway or a blockage in it. This disorder affects your child’s breathing partially or entirely during the sleep by blocking the flow of air. When you adjust their position in sleep, they move back to the arched position or suddenly wake up and start crying. If you notice your baby arching back in sleep or while resting on their back, it could be a sign of obstructive sleep apnea. Therefore when you see jaundice affected newborn arch back, it is an indicator of kernicterus and the seizures associated with it. However, when the bilirubin level in the blood stays too high and isn’t treated on time, jaundice turns into Kernicterus which causes brain damage. The condition generally resolves on its own in most babies. Kernicterus occurs when there is an excessive build up of a chemical called bilirubin in their blood. Jaundice affects about 60 – 80% of infants and is characterized by yellow coloration of the skin. Kernicterus is a rare condition involving preventable brain damage that happens in newborns affected by jaundice. Babies’ arching back while eating is also an indicator of silent reflux, wherein your baby won’t throw up but still have reflux. This causes them to arch back and throw up as a natural reaction to the reflux. Since babies have underdeveloped sphincters, they often have refluxes when they are overfed or gassy. It acts like a valve to stop contents of the stomach moving into the food pipe. The sphincter is a bundle of muscle at the junction where stomach and esophagus meet. It occurs when the stomach pours back food and digestive acids into the esophagus due to improper functioning of the lower esophageal sphincter. Gastroesophageal RefluxĬommonly known as acid reflux, it is a problem many are familiar with. Here are 10 reasons you need to know babies arch back often: 1. However, when babies’ arching back and crying turn out to be frequent, it could be the sign of something more serious. It might be something as trivial as handing them the wrong toy or singing them the wrong song. It may get tricky to figure out what has upset them. With most babies who arch their backs, the reasons are quite simple and include frustration and uncontrollable emotions. Most often it is a sign of discomfort which is being expressed, and in some cases, it could be a sign of physical disorders or developmental impairments that is neurological. According to pediatricians, almost all babies go through this phase to indicate to their parents that they are frustrated. Babies start arching their back around 6 to 9 months of age to indicate their irritability to communicate something. Arching the back is part of their body language which is indicative of something they are trying to convey to you by the unusual display. What is baby arching back and is it normal?Īs babies gain more control over the muscles of their neck and back, they occasionally arch backwards, while raising their hands. There are several reasons why babies arch their back, while some of them are quite normal and harmless, others are not. For first time parents, this behaviour can be quite confusing as much as it is surprising. One such common action parents come across is baby arching back unexpectedly while you are feeding, carrying them around or playing with them. Why do they move their arms in a certain way? It takes a while to learn to pick up on what your baby is experiencing. Are they crying because they are hungry? Or are they in pain? Or do they need a diaper change because they’re uncomfortable? Since crying is the first thing they do to express almost everything, it takes a while to understand their subtle clues. As a new mother, you will experience a lot of things for the first time while caring for your young one, and it can be quite challenging to understand what the baby needs.

Newborn arch back