During the first twelve months, parents can observe growth surges in infants. They are completely natural stages in the development of babies. It is not only their physical growth. But the development is mental. True, they do not always coincide with each other (there are much more jumps in physical growth). The development of all the peanuts occurs precisely irregularly. Somehow by chance, suddenly they start to do something new, which they did not know how to do yesterday. Then a short pause occurs in their development, and then the next leap.
It is important for parents to remember that for such a crumb each such leap is a difficult period, because he only learns to adapt to new impressions and feelings for him. Many babies are a little afraid of the changes that are happening to them. Adults can also not be sweet. Moms and dads need time to calm their little ones. Parents are obliged to help the little ones during this period of their life. When growth irregularities occur in infants up to a year old, they suddenly have a greater need to be closer to their mother all the time.
What are these races?
Exceptionally all babies experience difficult periods. This occurs at 5, 8, 12, 19, 26, 27, 46, 55, 64 and 75 weeks. Children are often capricious, cry, dealing with them is quite difficult. Each growth spurt in infants, the symptoms of which will be indicated below, brings with it greater independence for the peanut, and he needs to get used to it somehow.
But such difficult life periods pass as suddenly as they come. Parents can finally take a breath, because the baby is fully occupied with the newly acquired skills. But this does not last as long as you want, because in the first year of life there are a lot of such jumps.
Horse Breastfeeding
Experiencing growth spurt in infants, mothers should not panic. Being in the first month of life, crumbs usually suck their motherās breasts for a much longer time and much more often. This is good for increasing the amount of milk, so that it is enough to provide an actively growing organism of the peanut.
Mom should not resist. It is better to feed the baby as much as he needs. Failure in this period of the babyās life in milk will be a gross motherās mistake.
Everyone knows that the longer the baby sucks the breast, the more milk will be produced in it, which, in fact, is what he needs. In just a few days, the milk will become larger, and the baby will eat as before.
What are the growth standards for babies?
In order not to worry once again, parents can trace how their baby develops in such parameters:
- when the baby reaches 4-5 months of age, its weight should double;
- by the first year, the weight should increase three times;
- in the first six months, 800 g is considered normal weight gain every month;
- in the second six months, 400 g is considered a normal weight gain every month.
While still in the motherās tummy, the baby grows by about 2.5 cm for every 7 days (this is from 4 to 6 months of pregnancy). For the first year of life, the growth rate decreases slightly (by its first birthday, about a quarter of a meter is a growth spurt in infants. The calendar also provides the following numbers: by two years - by 8-12 cm, by three the baby grows only by 10 cm, and then the norm is an increase in growth by about 4 centimeters every year.
Possible causes of a violation of the norm
The standard norm may be violated due to some changes in the development of the baby, for example, rickets, anemia, diseases of the central nervous system, endocrine system ... If the baby is breastfed, then the mother must make sure that the baby has enough milk. If not, you may need to supplement the mixture.
Indicators of development of babies up to a year - height, weight, head volume and chest circumference are recorded in the children's card. They are checked against the generally accepted norm of indicators, which will allow the doctor to detect a possible deviation in time. There are many factors that influence how the weight and height of the baby changes (a specialist must take them into account).
1. The gender of the child. Girls usually recover and grow more slowly than boys (about a couple of centimeters in height and half a kilogram in weight).
2. Heredity (if the parents were large, it is not surprising that the baby will repeat their parameters).
3. It is necessary to take into account the height and birth weight of the baby.
4. The state of health of the baby - teething, worries, infections ...
5. Type of feeding (artificers gain weight faster).
6. Congenital disorders in the work of internal organs.
All this should be taken into account when drawing up the general picture of the childās health.
Recognize the jumps correctly
When the first month of the life of the little one ends, the first stage begins. This is both a growth spurt (the newbornās body develops very quickly) and a jump in the development of its sensory organs. Now the baby is gradually paying attention to the fact that around him something is changing, something is happening. But the fact that he develops sensory organs does not mean at all that his ability to process new sensations is also growing. And the expected result - the child is afraid of what is happening.
Using his instinct, he tries to find protection from everything that happens with his mother, and since he cannot yet say this with words, he does what he can: he screams.
This period is different in that the baby sleeps much worse, especially if he is alone in his crib. Calmly and without tears, the child can lie, for example, on the stomach of one of the parents, even if he had not recognized this before. Now he increasingly needs his motherās breasts as a comfort from adversity. With his appearance and behavior, the newborn makes it clear to his mother that he really needs her and the greatest comfort.
What should mom do when a developmental jump occurs?
Most importantly, donāt be afraid of jumps in development. The first thing that comes to momās mind is that the little one wants to eat, and she doesnāt have enough milk to satisfy all the growing needs for food. The second - that the baby has a tummy ache. Then they take him to the doctor.
But during this period, the most important thing a baby needs is a mother, who is always nearby. Only she can calm him down and give a sense of security. Therefore, growth jumps in infants they should not scare mom, because only she at this time is the most important person for the baby.
Help during this period is quite simple:
- Carry the baby in your arms as much as possible: mother's voice, smell, warmth, habit of holding a newborn - everything is very important for him.
- Do not stop breastfeeding, even if the mother thinks that there is not enough milk.
- To soothe the peanut: to press it so that on one hand there is an ass, and the other mother's hand held his head, which will lie on the bend of the elbow. So the baby can hear momās heartbeat. He will quickly calm down, especially when his mother shakes him, sings a song or gently pats his ass.
Feelings of the baby during developmental jumps
So, we figured out that every new growth spurt in infants brings new skills. The calendar and symptoms of what is happening during this period will help young and inexperienced mothers find out at what age their children will have the first difficult phases. After all, all the children experience them at the same time (with minor amendments). There are eight such phases. And they appear in the first fourteen months from the birth of the baby.
The main thing that mom should pay attention to is the increased appetite of the baby. His behavior becomes demanding and capricious. Consider growth spikes in infants by week.
The first crisis begins around the 4th week (this was mentioned above). The kid learns to feel a lot of new things, but can not yet explain his feelings.
The second leap occurs at the beginning of the 8th week. The kid sees, hears, distinguishes taste, sniffs. And again, all this novelty scares him. Just as before, he really needs a mom.
Third jump (12th week) - smooth transitions. Now the baby learns to control his body and the objects surrounding it. He can feel his movements, he can take a toy and shift it to another place.
The fourth jump (the 19th week of the first year of life) allows the baby to realize the world around him. Now the peanut knows that he can not only stretch the handle to his favorite toy, but also take it, twist it, taste it.
The fifth leap (beginning of the 26th week) allows the baby to understand the relationship of objects around him. He realizes what distance is. During this period, the baby can both calm down in the arms of his mother, and switch to some book or toy .
The sixth leap occurs on the 37th week. This is a world of categories. The kid understands that all objects are different from each other. The rapid development of the speech abilities of the baby begins.
The seventh leap ācatches upā the baby at the 46th week. This is a world of sequences. The karapuzik for the first time in his life begins to collect something, to construct something.
The eighth jump occurs at the 55th week (for some babies it can start at the 51st). This is a world of software. The baby already perfectly understands who his parents are grandmothers and aunts and who is a stranger (a doctor or a neighbor, for example). He knows how to perform simple actions, compared to the first jump, the baby is already almost independent. But he still needs a mom.
Jump or check?
What are jumps in growth in infants and how to behave to mom at this time, we have already figured out. It remains to make some important accents. The timing of jumps may vary slightly. It depends on the fact that each baby is individual and its development takes place in its own way. As a rule, each jump lasts two to three days. In rare cases, it drags on for a whole week. Therefore, parental patience will be very helpful.
These periods can simultaneously destroy the entire created regimen of the day, the schedule of sleep and nutrition. But do not panic. You just need to survive it, giving the baby these days as much attention as possible. Mom should be calm, patient and try to concentrate fully on the needs of her child.
A completely natural process of changes in physical and mental development should be considered a growth spurt in infants. The table can give a general idea, but we should not forget about the features of development and others like them (this was already mentioned above).
And another important point: mothers should recognize such a crisis on time and not confuse it with a baby checking the boundaries of what is permitted (after all, even little ones often arrange such tests for their parents). If, judging by the developed calendar of crises, the baby is just at the age when the next leap should occur, this means that a new responsible period in his life has nevertheless come.