Many pregnant women wonder what their baby is doing when they feel those rhythmic movements later in pregnancy. Most are surprised to learn their baby has the hiccups! That is right, many babies have the hiccups while they are in the womb and some babies have the hiccups multiple times per day. So why do babies hiccup in the womb anyway?

There has not been an overwhelming amount of research on fetal hiccupping in the womb, although there is some speculation as to why it happens. First of all, only more mature fetuses hiccup in the womb because their central nervous system is adequately developed in order to allow this to happen. It is believed that the fetus breathes in amniotic fluid or drinks it. When this happens and the amniotic fluid enters and exits the fetus lungs then the diaphragm contracts and hiccups results. Fetal hiccups appear to be extremely normal and most moms will feel their baby’s hiccups at least once if not on a regular basis.

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