Infant
Physical Characteristics of Infants: – Newborns have wide shoulders and hips with a protruding abdomen. – The head of a newborn is large compared to […]
Physical Characteristics of Infants:
– Newborns have wide shoulders and hips with a protruding abdomen.
– The head of a newborn is large compared to the body, with soft spots called fontanels.
– Some newborns have lanugo body hair that disappears within weeks.
– Normal head circumference is 33–36cm at birth.
– Infant skull changes shape during birth to fit through the canal.
Infant Care and Development:
– Infant health is influenced by social and environmental factors.
– Understanding infant growth and development is crucial for health outcomes.
– Proper baby food and birth weight are critical for infant nutrition.
– Infant care involves stages of human development, transitioning to toddlerhood.
– Caregivers must provide responsive care to foster healthy development.
Language and Social Development in Infants:
– Caregivers should mirror infants’ facial expressions for recognition.
– Encouraging babbling leads to faster language acquisition.
– Positive responses to babbling are crucial for language development.
– Touch is vital for emotional well-being and social interactions.
– Responding to sounds helps infants refine their ability to locate sounds accurately.
Infant Health and Mortality:
– Infant mortality is the death of an infant within the first year.
– Major causes include dehydration, infection, congenital malformations, and SIDS.
– Infant mortality rates are linked to healthcare access and socioeconomic conditions.
– Wealthy countries with advanced healthcare systems have lower infant mortality rates.
– Social and environmental factors impact maternal and infant health programs.
Infant Psychology and Babyhood:
– Babyhood is a critical period for laying the foundations of adult personality.
– Infants are responsive to fear-relevant sounds and achieve relative independence in toddlerhood.
– Internal working models play a role in attachment relationships.
– Child maltreatment can have severe consequences for infants’ development.
– Infant experiences during babyhood shape future cognitive and emotional development.
An infant or baby is the very young offspring of human beings. Infant (from the Latin word infans, meaning 'baby' or 'child') is a formal or specialised synonym for the common term baby. The terms may also be used to refer to juveniles of other organisms. A newborn is, in colloquial use, an infant who is only hours, days, or up to one month old. In medical contexts, a newborn or neonate (from Latin, neonatus, newborn) is an infant in the first 28 days after birth; the term applies to premature, full term, and postmature infants.
Infants born prior to 37 weeks of gestation are called "premature", those born between 39 and 40 weeks are "full term", those born through 41 weeks are "late term", and anything beyond 42 weeks is considered "post term".
Before birth, the offspring is called a fetus. The term infant is typically applied to very young children under one year of age; however, definitions may vary and may include children up to two years of age. When a human child learns to walk, they are called a toddler instead.