Question: how does a baby get the correct nutrients from there mother and is there seperate roots in the umbilical cord for food and drink or is it just a simple tube?????????????

Simon Langley-Evans answered on 11 Nov 2013:

Ah- good to see your question lugerman24, I remember you from the chat today.

The umbilical cord is not just a simple tube as it contains an artery and a vein. The artery carries blood from the mother to the placenta and that blood delivers nutrients (food and drink) to the baby. The placenta is an organ that looks a bit like liver (if you’ve ever eaten that?) and allows nutrients and oxygen to cross but keeps out some of the things that might harm the baby. The vein in the cord takes the blood back from the placenta and that carries waste products from the baby for the mum to get rid of (babies can’t go to the toilet in the womb!).

The nutrients from mother will mostly come from her diet. When the mother consumes food it gets broken down into sugars, amino acids, fats, vitamins and minerals and these get passed to the baby directly. If the diet of the mother lacks things that the baby needs she can also use some of the nutrients she stores in her body (protein can come from muscle, fat can be made available and vitamins and minerals that she stores in her liver are released into her blood).