Babies can smile in the womb

Unborn babies "practise" facial expressions of pain while they are in the womb, scientists say. The researchers, from Durham and Lancaster universities, suggest the ability to grimace is a "developmentalprocess" which could help doctors assess the health of a foetus. The study, published in the journal Plos One, found when the mother was24 weeks' pregnant, unborn babies were able to make simple expressions such as smiling. By 36 weeks the children were able tocreate "complex multi-dimensional expressions" such as pain.