Nash Keen, recognised by Guinness World Records as the world’s most premature baby, has celebrated his second birthday after surviving against odds few thought possible.
Born in 2024 at just 21 weeks’ gestation — 133 days before his due date — at University of Iowa Health Care in Iowa City, Nash weighed less than 300 grams, about the size of a grapefruit, and measured under 25 centimetres long.
His parents, Mollie and Randall Keen, were uncertain whether he would survive beyond his first hours.
“The early days were a blur of fear, uncertainty and hope,” Mollie recalled.
Nash spent six months in a neonatal intensive care unit before being discharged in early 2025. On his first birthday last July, Guinness World Records officially recognised him as the world’s most premature baby.
Two years after his remarkable birth, his family says he continues to defy expectations.
Speaking to Guinness World Records on Sunday, Mollie said Nash — affectionately nicknamed “Nash Potato” — is now growing at a rate comparable to children born at full term. He has recently learned to sit up unaided and crawl, milestones she said have opened up “a whole new world for him.”
Although Nash still relies on a feeding tube for most of his nutrition, he has begun trying solid foods in recent months, with ranch dressing emerging as an early favourite, his mother joked.
She added that his vocabulary is steadily growing and that he enjoys copying animal sounds.
The journey has not been without setbacks.
Shortly before his second birthday, Nash spent about a week in hospital after developing a severe respiratory illness linked to his chronic lung condition. Mollie described the experience as “deeply triggering” for the family, but said he recovered in time to celebrate his birthday at home.
Reflecting on the past two years, she said the experience had taught her not to compare Nash’s development with that of other children.
“I’ve learned to just enjoy Nash for exactly who he is, meet him wherever he is at on any given day, and fully believe that he will get there eventually — and honestly, if he doesn’t, that is completely okay too,” she said.
AFP
