home Face Until how many months is a child considered an infant? Up to what age are children considered newborns: timing and general characteristics of mental development in a given period. Basic definition. Age at which a child is considered a newborn

Until how many months is a child considered an infant? Up to what age are children considered newborns: timing and general characteristics of mental development in a given period. Basic definition. Age at which a child is considered a newborn

Infancy is one of the most important periods of child development. At what age does this stage begin and when does it end in an infant? What are the main stages of development that a child goes through during infancy?

Time frame

The lower limits of infancy are considered and defined by specialists in different ways:

Some doctors believe that these age limits begin immediately at the moment the child is born and end at one year old. Moreover, within a large period of 12 months, a “sub-period” is distinguished when the baby is called a newborn.
Other experts distinguish the first month of life as a separate stage; the baby during these 4 weeks is considered a newborn, and from the 5th week up to a year - an infant.

The behavior of a baby is strikingly different from how a newborn behaves. If the latter spends almost all the time in sleep, then the infant’s waking stages become more and more saturated with active activity. That is why, when determining at what age to count the period of infancy, experts come to the conclusion that it would be correct to start from the point of 4 weeks - the end of the newborn.

Such age limits conveniently distinguish the period of adaptive inactivity, which the newborn is mainly “occupied” with in the first 4 weeks, from the stage of active development and cognition of the child, which lasts 11 months.

The beginning of the infancy period begins after the newborn turns one month old, that is, the newborn stage immediately ends.
The period of infancy ends when the baby turns one year old.
Psychologists, neurologists and pediatricians divide infancy into several important stages. Some of the specialists divide this period almost equally, by half-years, others by quarters, that is, 3 months.

During the first year of life, the baby develops at a colossal pace, and this applies to both the physiological, physical and psychological aspects. In the first six months, it’s as if the baby is preparing for “records”: his organs improve their functioning, the muscles gradually get rid of hypertonicity, the nervous system develops, and the muscles build up. Shortly before 6 months, babies begin to actively use their accumulated skills - they learn to roll over and then crawl, tirelessly communicate with adults and explore the world around them.

Physiological development

All parents, celebrating their child's first birthday, look with interest at the photographs and videos accumulated over the year and are amazed at how much the baby has changed and how much he has grown during the period of infancy.

Indeed, the growth rate of an infant is very intensive; every month the child grows by 3 cm in the first six months and by 2-1 cm in the second half of the year. In general, during the period of infancy, the child’s body length increases by 1.5 times.

Motor development

In the first six months, the baby gradually learns to control his own body and, although at a slow pace, achieves good results:

at two months he can lift his chest while lying on his tummy;
at three months of age, the baby makes attempts to reach out to an object and grab it;
by 5-6 months the baby grabs objects and pulls them towards him;
the baby can sit down with support, roll over and try to crawl.

The baby’s motor development in the second six months continues to progress at an active pace: the acquired skills are consolidated, and new physical achievements of the baby grow from them.

After six months, the child masters crawling, rolling over and can sit up independently;
the crawling process is gradually transformed: “plastic” movement in 2-3 months develops into fast running on all fours;
by 9 months, babies can stand up with support, and also move while standing, holding onto the sides of the crib or bed;
by 11 months, the baby’s vestibular apparatus begins to function more or less normally, and now the child can stand independently, without holding on to anything, and even takes a few steps.
By the age of one year, most children can already walk, although they do not do it quite confidently.

The described motor skills that a baby must master are not strictly tied to timing: there are only statistical data on healthy babies collected by WHO. Each baby develops in its own way, jumping over the stages of crawling or rolling over, so don’t worry that the baby hasn’t mastered something until a certain age. If the baby is generally active and tries to walk at 11 months, skipping movement on all fours, this development is considered normal.

Mental development

In addition to mastering motor skills and enormous growth and weight gain, the period of infancy is characterized by active cognitive and emotional development baby.

Memory gradually develops: the child remembers faces, toys and makes cause-and-effect relationships between actions and their consequences.
By 4 months, children begin to clearly express emotions: surprise, joy, fear.
During the period of infancy, the baby's attitude towards strangers changes greatly: in the second half of the year, goodwill sharply gives way to wariness and fear.
By six months, a psychological crisis arises, and the child becomes overly attached to his mother, not wanting to let her go even a step.
Communication with loved ones also goes a long way: from an infantile revival complex to active communication.
Gradually, the baby realizes that something can be achieved with the help of adults: to see something high close up, to get a distant object at his disposal - and in all ways (gestures and speech) the child asks his parents to help him.
A child’s speech develops throughout the entire period of infancy, starting with humming and articulatory fun in the first half of the year and ending with its own “language” and a dozen recognizable simple words by the year.

There are several significant periods in a child’s life. The first of them begins immediately after birth, or more precisely, at the moment of cutting the umbilical cord, when the baby’s breathing and blood circulation become autonomous. This time interval is called the newborn period or neonatal period. Its essence is to adapt the baby to extrauterine life.

The neonatal period begins after the baby is born and the umbilical cord is cut.

Time frame

For most young parents, it remains a mystery on what basis children are divided into newborns, infants and infants. Let's look into this issue. Let's find out how many days make up the duration of the neonatal period. According to medical sources, a baby is considered a newborn from the moment of birth until 28 days, that is, 4 weeks.

In turn, the neonatal period is divided into:

early – 1-7 days;
late – 7-28.

Infant, infant, infant are identical concepts. They refer to a baby whose age is more than 28 days, but less than 1 year. The infant period in pediatrics is divided quarterly - 3 months from the date of birth, 6, 9, 12.

General characteristics of the neonatal period

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All organs and systems of a newborn baby are immature, both in terms of morphology (structure) and taking into account functional activity. After birth, they undergo intensive restructuring, the purpose of which is to adapt the body to extrauterine existence, to the conditions of the external environment.

After birth, the child actively adapts to the conditions of the surrounding world.
An important feature of the neonatal period is the instability of the balance in which all systems of the baby’s body are. Minimal changes in external conditions can significantly affect its internal state.
The main changes that occur in the baby’s body when the blood pulsation in the umbilical cord vessels stops:
starting the pulmonary circulation;
the beginning of the functioning of pulmonary respiration;
transition to enteral nutrition, in which food is absorbed through the mucous membrane of the gastrointestinal tract.

Crisis moment
Life begins with stress. The moment the baby passes through the birth canal is called the neonatal crisis. Experts in the field of psychology consider this stage to be difficult and turning point for a new person. Components of the crisis:
Physiological factors. There is a physical separation of the child from the mother. He ceases to be part of her body and becomes autonomous.
Psychological aspects. The actual distance from the mother causes the baby to feel helpless and anxious.
Changes in external conditions. After birth, the child finds himself in a completely new world, where everything is different from the previous living conditions - temperature, air, light, a different way of eating, breathing, and so on.

The life of a little man begins with stress caused by a difficult passage through the birth canal
A person is born absolutely helpless. To protect him and ensure his survival, nature has laid in him a certain set of unconditioned reflexes - sucking, swallowing, grasping and others.
Early neonatal period
IN early period Newborn period, which lasts one week from the moment of birth, not only introduces the baby to the world, but also the first contacts with the mother. Real appearance the crumbs may differ from the image she imagined. This is due to the physiological borderline states of his body.
Skin tone
A child’s uneven and uncharacteristic skin tone may be due to:
erythema;
vascular response to external conditions;
jaundice.

Erythema is redness of the skin with a bluish tint. It usually appears on the feet and hands. The cause of erythema is a sudden change in temperature environment: from 37° in the womb to 20-24° in the hospital room. In addition, the water environment familiar to the child is replaced by an air environment. Erythema is not pathological condition and does not require treatment. The baby's body temperature, general health and appetite are within normal limits. After a few days, peeling of the epidermis may begin in places of redness.

The cause of erythema is a sharp change in ambient temperature
The physiological reaction of blood vessels more often occurs in premature infants during the neonatal period. It is a consequence of the immaturity of the vascular system. Its manifestations:
marbling of the integument, bluish spots;
uneven body color, on one part the skin is red, and on the other it is pale with blue, this happens after sleeping on one side.

This condition can occur within 2-3 days after birth. The child does not need treatment, but doctors are monitoring him.
During the newborn period, jaundice occurs due to functional liver failure due to its immaturity. The organ cannot neutralize the increased amount of bile pigment entering the blood. Normally, physiological jaundice, in which the baby’s skin acquires a characteristic shade, lasts about a week. In babies born ahead of schedule, it can last up to 6 weeks. Yellowness of the skin that persists longer than expected is a reason to consult a doctor.
Milia and acne
The functioning of the sebaceous and hormonal glands in a newborn is not established. After birth, you can notice miles and acne on his face.
Milia are white spots that usually appear on the nose, forehead and cheeks. They occur due to blockage of the sebaceous glands. It is strictly forbidden to touch them. Milia goes away on its own within a few weeks.

Milia does not require treatment and goes away on its own in the child
Newborn acne is red pimples with a purulent white tip, similar to juvenile acne (more details in the article:). They usually appear on the face, but can appear on the back and neck. The cause of acne in babies is an excess of maternal hormones in the blood and imperfect functioning of the sebaceous glands. They go away within 2-3 months. Pimples do not need to be treated. Careful hygiene must be observed. In addition, you can apply Bepanten cream in a thin layer once every 3 days.

During the neonatal period, not only the described physiological phenomena related to the normal development of the child are discovered. Structural anomalies, hereditary pathologies, fetopathies, and so on can be identified. The mother is required to pay increased attention to the child, which will help to notice deviations in physical and mental development in time.
Late neonatal period
The late neonatal period lasts 3 weeks. Pediatricians call it the time of recovery from maladaptive syndromes. Main characteristics:
the baby is actually separated from the mother, but is strongly connected to her physiologically and emotionally;
the child’s organs and systems are in the process of development, they have not fully matured, especially the central nervous system;
water-salt metabolism is very dynamic;
the newborn’s body undergoes changes in biochemical, functional and morphological aspects;
the child’s condition is significantly dependent on external factors;
When living conditions are violated, physiological processes quickly transform into pathological ones.

The condition of a child during the late neonatal period greatly depends on the quality of care
At this age, the baby needs care. It is important to satisfy his needs for food, drink, sleep, affection. This is what ensures the child's survival. The newborn spends most of the day sleeping, but over time the number of hours of wakefulness increases. The visual and auditory systems develop, and instead of unconditioned automatisms, conditioned reflexes arise. The baby overcomes the crisis and gradually adapts to new conditions.
Features of the functioning of various organs and systems of the child
Mental and physical development children has certain age-related patterns. Until what age the maturation of a particular system lasts depends on the individual characteristics of the child and the external conditions of his life. However, doctors identify general norms that are typical for most healthy babies.
Vision
The muscles responsible for the movements of the eyeballs, as well as the optic nerves in newborns, are not 100% formed. As a result, physiological strabismus occurs. This phenomenon, caused by insufficient development of the oculomotor muscles, is considered normal and goes away over time. At the early newborn stage, the baby distinguishes light from darkness, that is, distinguishes between day and night.

Physiological strabismus is considered normal and goes away without treatment
Hearing
During the first 3-4 days of life, the child’s ear cavities are not filled with air, so his hearing is somewhat reduced. Then the hearing system gradually develops and the baby hears almost like an adult. He flinches at very loud noises. At the same time, you can notice how the frequency and depth of his breathing, as well as facial expressions, change.
Touch, taste, smell
Due to the uneven distribution of nerve endings, the newborn reacts differently to touch on different parts of the body. The skin of the face and limbs is more sensitive than the skin of the back. In general, the sense of touch is well developed.
An age-related feature of the baby is the love for the sweet taste that mother’s milk has. Having tasted something sweet, he licks his lips, makes swallowing movements, and calms down. If the liquid is bitter or salty, the child stops sucking, cries, and grimaces.
The baby's sense of smell is developed. Strong aromas cause a reaction in him, expressed in a change in breathing rate.

The baby's favorite sweet taste is supplied by his mother's milk.
Leather
The skin of a child is supplied with blood much more intensely than that of adults, due to large quantity and increased capillary diameter. Any damage, the cause of which has been eliminated, heals quickly. However, the development of sweat glands is insufficient. As a result, a child less than a month old easily overheats due to high temperature air or too warm clothes.
urinary system
The baby's kidney development ends after birth. IN bladder contains a small amount of urine, the properties of which differ from the standards characteristic of an adult. For newborns, their own age standards are used regarding protein content, specific gravity, and biochemical reactions. In the first week, urination occurs 4-5 times a day, then 15-25 times.
Respiratory system
Children at the newborn stage, as well as in infancy, have narrow upper respiratory tracts, which include the nasal passages, larynx, and trachea. The mucous membranes lining them are actively supplied with blood. They are very sensitive to mechanical irritants and dry air. The normal breathing rate is 40-60 movements per minute.

Children's breathing is quite shallow even during sleep
The cardiovascular system
Post-birth functioning of cardio-vascular system the child changes dramatically. The vessels and openings through which placental blood flow was carried out are closed. The lungs fill with blood. Normal heart rate is 110-140 beats per minute. Any external influence leads to its change.
Digestive system
The maturation of the digestive organs continues after birth. The child is born with developed chewing muscles and a large tongue. Thanks to this, he can actively suck without getting tired for a long time. The salivary glands are underdeveloped and therefore produce little secretion.
During the first day, the baby’s gastrointestinal tract is sterile, but is quickly populated by flora. The volume of the stomach grows daily: after birth its capacity is 20 ml, after a week - 50 ml, after 4 weeks - 100 ml. The optimal food is breast milk. The baby's body produces enzymes specifically for its digestion.
The appearance of stool changes gradually. At first it is brown, then yellow-green, then yellow, mushy with a sour odor. Transformations are associated with the process of colonization of mucous membranes by bacteria.

Breast milk is considered the optimal food for a child of this age group.
Nervous system
During the first months of life, the child’s nervous system develops most actively. At first, he spends most of the day (20-22 hours) in sleep, since in the cerebral cortex the processes of inhibition prevail over excitation. Over time, periods of wakefulness increase.
The baby's excitability, reflexes and reactions are constantly transforming. The tone of the muscles of the arms and legs is very pronounced. During this period, for example, physiological tremor may be observed - trembling of the muscles of the limbs. In addition, there are a number of unconditioned reflexes associated with brain immaturity, which all children initially have, but fade away in the first year of life.

Once born, every baby will get to know many exciting things. Mom will undoubtedly have to learn new things too. In specialized literature you can often come across such a concept as a newborn baby. But many parents don't understand what it means. However, it is necessary to know this, because most recommendations are given directly in relation to newborn children.

Basic definition

According to modern medical concepts, a child is considered a newborn during the first 28 days of life. They are counted directly from the moment the baby is born. The first seven days are referred to as the early neonatal period. From the 7th to the 28th day the so-called late newborn begins. But do not confuse the newborn period with the infant period. After all, the second is divided into four quarters, each of which lasts three months. The first year of life is most important in the development of every child. At this time, the baby develops physical abilities and mental functions of the body.

Features of development

The first month of life is very important for a child. After all, development internal organs the baby is not completed at the time of birth. Their improvement continues. For this reason, pediatricians pay attention during birth Special attention babies, carefully monitoring the development of the newborn.

Doctors examine the baby, assess the baby’s condition, his motor functions, the baby’s reactions, bowel function, volume and diet, cleanliness of the skin, as well as other indicators. At first, the most important indicators include the weight of the baby. After all, after birth, the majority of children lose a little weight. Under normal conditions, this is about 7% of the weight that the child had at birth. Therefore, this phenomenon should not cause concern among parents.

First year of life

When compared with other age periods, during the first 12 months the baby’s body grows rapidly, all systems and organs develop very quickly, and intensive metabolism occurs. For example, the weight of a baby with which he was born doubles by 4-5 months, and when the child reaches a year, it triples, amounting to approximately 10-11 kg.

During this period, the child’s height increases by a quarter of a meter, amounting to about 75 cm per year. The morphological structure and functions of the child’s nervous system are improved. In just the first 6 months of life, the mass of his small brain increases by 200%.

Due to the accelerated development of the functions of the central nervous system, the early development of conditioned reflexes of all analyzers occurs. Neuropsychic development occurs quite quickly. It is in the first year of life that babies begin to develop the rudiments of speech. When a baby is only 2 months old, all his senses are so developed that the child picks up and distinguishes different signals sent from the outside.

How do movements develop?

Perhaps all mothers know that babies are born with the necessary minimum of unconditioned reflexes: sucking, grasping, and stepping reflex. During the period from 1 to 3 months, babies begin to hold their heads. By 4 they can already roll over from their back to their side, and a little later on their tummy. The little ones reach for the rattles and take them in their hands. Now they are very inquisitive.

By 5 months, babies begin to crawl, pulling their legs towards their tummy, they arch their backs in a very funny way. True, this doesn’t work out for everyone.

By the age of six months, babies begin to sit up and kneel in the crib, bravely holding on to the bars. If they are driving down the street in a stroller, they carefully study everything that surrounds them. Kids are interested in everything - cars, flying pigeons, running dogs, cats and much more.

By 7-8 months, babies can safely stand up in their cribs and walk along the railings, holding on with their hands.

There is very little time left until the babies begin to walk. This usually happens when babies reach 10-12 months of age.

The infancy of a child is quite interesting both for him and for his parents. Every day for the baby is marked by a new skill and discovery. Eyes loving mother can notice even the most minor changes in the baby’s behavior. But don’t forget that all babies are different: for example, some begin to sit at 5 months, and others only at 7. This is completely natural, so you shouldn’t rush things, but you just need to enjoy every moment.

Oh, those teeth!

It is impossible to imagine a baby’s infancy without the appearance of teeth. This does not go smoothly for everyone. Children may have a fever, tearfulness and excessive salivation, and a decrease in appetite.

At about six months, the baby's first teeth appear - two lower incisors, and after a couple of months - two upper ones.

By 10 months, children have two upper lateral incisors, and by one year, two lower lateral incisors.

By the age of one year, toddlers usually already have eight baby teeth. If a child does not have that many teeth, parents should not worry: everything happens strictly individually. Some babies don't get their first teeth until they are one year old.

How does speech develop?

During infancy, the baby’s speech also develops.

For the first six months, the little ones laugh a lot, walk around, and utter simple sounds: “aha”, “gee”, “a-a-a”.

After six months (up to about 9 months), the baby begins to pronounce sounds such as “ma”, “ama”, “ba”. By 10-12 months, the toddler repeats the sounds of adults. He can already say “ma-ma”, “ba-ba”, “give”. In his first year of life, the child begins to utter his first meaningful words.

It should be clarified that the toddler perceives the speech of his mother, father, and grandparents addressed to him from birth. But during this period, he recognizes intonation more than the speech itself. Kindly spoken words can calm a baby, but a raised or irritated voice can frighten.

At six months, the baby already responds to her name and smiles meaningfully. After a month or two, he already begins to understand when they say to him: “come to me,” in response he stretches out his hands. At the same age, the child understands the word “impossible.” Hearing a word addressed to him, he breaks away from unnecessary activities.

At one year old, the baby can wave his hand to adults at their farewell gestures and the words “bye-bye.”

In order for the baby to develop speech faster, you need to read him fairy tales, sing songs, and talk to the baby more often.

About feeding

A baby comes into this world unadapted to independent existence, so feeding an infant is an integral part of his life support. Parents are obliged to take care of him to provide all his physiological needs. Different types feeding, depending on the existing capabilities and needs of the child, the use of breast milk is suggested, artificial mixtures And different types complementary foods Experts are confident that breastfeeding is optimal for babies.

Infant feeding should combine nutrients, fluids, and vitamins that are necessary for the body of a newborn baby. All these components are present in breast milk mother.

Necessary basis

Breast milk contains the necessary balance of nutrients, which changes as the baby grows, as well as antibodies that protect the baby from various diseases during the most sensitive period of infancy. Based on this, the process of natural breastfeeding can be regarded not only as a form of nutrition, but also as a basis for the proper formation of the body’s immunity.

The natural mechanism that provides the baby with the necessary period for feeding (until the main part of the baby teeth grows) lasts 1-1.5 years. It is during these months that each mother decides on her own whether the child needs it so much. In most cases, this lasts approximately 1.5-2 years.

When is a child called a newborn and when is it an infant? How long does this age last, what are its features?

Basic definition. Age at which a child is considered a newborn

A baby remains a newborn during the first month of life. This period is divided into two - early newborn and late. The first lasts a week, exactly 7 days from the moment of birth. The rest of the time is late neonatality. The baby remains a baby until one year, this time has its own characteristics. Every three months the baby changes a lot - it grows and develops rapidly physically, motorically and psychologically.

Newborn development:

Physical development

In just 1 year, the baby changes beyond recognition. If you compare photo and video materials at the beginning and after a year, you can analyze the progress, it is simply stunning.
The baby is rapidly gaining weight and height. Height increases by about 3 cm per month, and weight increases by up to 300 grams. Over the course of a year, a baby’s body increases by about one and a half times.

Motor development

At first, the baby’s movements are chaotic and unconscious. He flaps his arms and legs, often frightening himself. Over time, the picture changes radically:

After 2 months, the movements become calmer, the baby pays attention to surrounding objects. When lying on his tummy, he raises his head and upper body, leaning on his arms, turns towards sounds that he hears well, and smiles in response.
After another month, the child grabs toys and various objects with his hands or tries to reach them.
Starting from the age of 5 months, he takes out toys himself, examines them, and pulls them towards himself. In a position on his stomach, he tries to push off, imitating crawling; if there is a base, he rises on his own, rolls over onto his stomach and back, and can sit with support.
After 6 months of life, crawling is gradually getting better and better. At first, hesitantly and somersaulting onto his back. Then faster and more confidently. By 8 months, the baby moves quite quickly on all fours.
During the same period, he tries to stand on his feet. First with support, then independently, holding on to something, he rises and can stand.
By the age of 11 months, some babies already walk with support, stand on their own feet and can maintain balance without holding on to anything.
At one year of age, most children slowly walk, and some already confidently move on two limbs.

Motor abilities are formed and realized in all children individually, some from the age of 8 can not only stand, but also walk, others do not want to get up on their feet, but masterfully move by crawling. In both cases, development is considered within normal limits.

Psychological development

In infancy, a child learns not only to crawl, stand and walk, but also undergoes intense psycho-emotional development:

First, the child observes objects and fixes his gaze. Then he begins to distinguish color and shape. Recognizes familiar faces and objects.
After 4 months of age, a child experiences the same emotions as adults - fear, joy, and knows how to be surprised.
At first, the baby does not pay attention to who is holding him. Over time, he distinguishes between friends and strangers. Cries when he sees strangers.
Closer to 6 months, the child becomes very attached to his mother, does not allow him to move even a step, and immediately reacts with a loud cry.
Gradually the child becomes more and more contactable. Begins to react to advances, respond with laughter, smile, and cry when exposed to unpleasant influences.
Then he understands how to get what he wants with the help of his mother or adults.

Also over the year there has been great progress in speech development, from cooing and meaningless babbling, to a fairly large vocabulary, although there are few distinguishable, correctly pronounced words among it, but the child can explain what he wants and what hurts.
Not everyone experiences the infancy period the same way. The main thing is that by the end of the first year of life the child has acquired basic skills for further physical and psycho-emotional development.

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Until how many months is a child considered an infant? Up to what age are children considered newborns: timing and general characteristics of mental development in a given period. Basic definition. Age at which a child is considered a newborn

Time frame

Physiological development

Motor development

Mental development

Time frame

General characteristics of the neonatal period

Crisis moment

Early neonatal period

Skin tone

Milia and acne

Late neonatal period

Features of the functioning of various organs and systems of the child

Vision

Hearing

Touch, taste, smell

Leather

urinary system

Respiratory system

The cardiovascular system

Digestive system

Nervous system

Basic definition

Features of development

First year of life

How do movements develop?

Oh, those teeth!

How does speech develop?

About feeding

Necessary basis

Basic definition. Age at which a child is considered a newborn

Newborn development:

Physical development

Motor development

Psychological development