What happens if the immune system doesn’t work?
Very rarely, a baby is born without a proper immune system. It will have no resistance to infection. When this happens, the baby has to live in a plastic bubble from which all germs are kept out. Sometimes the immune system recovers as the child grows, so they can be released from the bubble.
How are babies protected from infections?
A newborn baby is protected from infection by antibodies that were present in its mother’s blood. The mother’s blood contains antibodies to the infections to which she has become immune during her life. These antibodies are transferred to the baby’s blood via the placenta that nourished the baby in the womb.
The antibodies continue to protect the baby for several weeks, while its own immune system develops and begins to work property. This period of protection is increased if the mother breast feeds her baby, as her milk will also contain these antibodies. Bottle fed babies do not have this natural immunity.
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