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The Conversation
Steven Leach, Senior Lecturer, Medicine & Health, UNSW

Why a face full of poo can be your baby’s best start in life

Mayte Torres/Getty

It may sound surprising – even a little shocking – but the very first thing many babies encounter when they’re born is their mother’s poo.

If they’re born vaginally, head down, with the face against their mother’s rectum, the pressure can expel faecal material just as they are born. In other words, they can be born with their mother’s poo on their face.

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