Inside the womb - How food reaches your baby

Food reaches your developing baby through the umbilical cord after being filtered through the placenta. The baby's meal descends through her esophagus. In her stomach, the food will be broken down into glucose, fats and protein. After digestion, the food will be absorbed into the blood and passed from mother to child through the placenta, a very efficient filter that rejects harmful elements, such as bacteria, that can harm the fetus. Smaller elements can pass through the barrier: oxygen, glucose, fats, protein, vitamins, minerals and in addition, caffeine and alcohol. After they have entered the bloodstream, these elements are passed on to the fetus through the umbilical cord.