General Discussion: July 2010 Archives

Safe and Healthy Development of Your Baby

By Marianne on July 6, 2010 10:50 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Recently, autism and developmental disabilities in children have been in the forefront of the news. Parents of children afflicted with autism agonize over how best to care for an autistic child and wonder what may have caused autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in their children. Learning the signs of what your children should be doing at certain milestone ages is key to the knowledge that your baby is developing safely and healthfully. Making sure you check with your pediatrician regularly is important to getting the kind of help your child may need to assure safe and healthful development.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has stated that "an average of 1 in every 110 children in certain parts of the United States has an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)." There are data which indicate that the average age at which children　are diagnosed with an ASD is 4-1/2 years, but CDC says an early diagnosis when possible is more helpful in managing the care of children with autism.　So it is extremely important for parents to be aware of how their child is developing.

CDC says that there are common milestone indicators in a child's development which let you as a parent know your child's development is on track. To make sure you know the signs of healthy child development, you can check with your pediatrician, and at the same time, you may want to check the CDC website: http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/actearly/milestones/index.html

to learn the signs for healthy child development at 3 and 7 months and at 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 years. There are check-lists you can print to help monitor your child's development noting the milestone activities your baby should be able to do by a certain age.

For example, according to CDC, at 3-months old, a baby should:

Begin to develop a social smile;

Enjoy playing with others;

Become more expressive, communicating not only with facial expressions but with their body too;

Imitate facial expressions and movements;

Raise its head and chest while lying on its tummy;

Support upper body with arms while lying on its tummy;

Stretch legs outward and kick while lying on its tummy or back;

Open and shut hands;

Push down on legs when feet are placed on a firm surface;

Bring hand(s) to mouth;

Try to touch or grasp dangling objects;

Grasp and shake hand toys.

A 3-month old baby's vision and hearing also play significant roles in their development, so be sure to note whether your 3-month old focuses on and watch faces intently and whether their eyes follow moving objects and recognize familiar objects from a distance. Your 3-month old may also smile at the sound of your voice, have begun to babble and imitate some sounds, and will be turning their head in the direction of a sound.

In the very exciting world of experiencing the joy of a new baby, there is so much for a parent to learn and do. It's gratifying that CDC's child development milestones are available for new parents to learn and to make sure their baby is developing safely and healthfully!

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