gak rame: [FunOnTheNet] Pro Abortion Folks, See This

Still going that extra smile: The baby seen grinning in the womb

By Sophia Borlnd
Last updated at 10:47 PM on 10th April 2011

It's hardly surprising that baby Joseph Henry keeps smiling – he's been doing it since long before he was born.

As the Daily Mail revealed in October, Joseph wore an unmistakable grin in a scan taken when his mother was only 17 weeks pregnant.

And as this delightful picture of him at almost three months old shows, practice makes perfect.

Happy chappie: Joseph at almost three months - and still smiling

His parents Sam and Louise say he is very content and frequently smiles without any apparent reason.

Mrs Henry, from Swallowfield, Berkshire, was 40 when she became pregnant and when she and her husband saw the image taken at a private clinic in London they were initially just relieved that the baby looked healthy and contented.

It was only when their gynaecologist said he had not seen such a young foetus smile in his entire 40-year career that they realised how remarkable the scan was.

Mr Henry, 41, who runs a financial advice business, said: 'It was wonderful to see and we hoped it was a reflection of how safe and secure Joseph felt.'

Beaming: Joseph in the womb pictured on his 17-week scan

ADDENDUM:

The latest an abortion can legally be carried out in Britain is 24 weeks. Doctors have believed until now that foetuses do not begin experiencing emotion until between 28 and 32 weeks.

So this evidence suggests that unborn babies can feel pain or happiness much earlier.

Professor Stuart Campbell, who took the scan of Joseph, said it was the earliest smile ever recorded on an unborn baby. 'I would love to give a scientific explanation for this but I honestly don't know.'