From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Infant
Infant
An infant
born’s transition from the uterus during the first minutes
after birth.
A newborn’s head is very large in proportion to the
body, and the cranium is enormous relative to his or her
face. While the adult human skull is about 1/8 of the total
body length, the newborn’s is about 1/4. At birth, many
regions of the newborn’s skull have not yet been convert-
ed to bone, leaving "soft spots" known as fontanels. The
An infant in a hall with a pacifier two largest are the diamond-shaped anterior fontanel,
located at the top front portion of the head, and the
A newborn or baby is the very young offspring of a hu- smaller triangular-shaped posterior fontanel, which lies
man or other mammal. A newborn is an infant who is at the back of the head. Later in the child’s life, these
within hours, days, or up to a few weeks from birth. bones will fuse together in a natural process. A protein
In medical contexts, newborn or neonate (from Latin, called noggin is responsible for the delay in an infant’s
neonatus, newborn) refers to an infant in the first 28 days skull fusion.[3]
after birth.[1] The term "newborn" includes premature During labour and birth, the infant’s skull changes
infants, postmature infants and full term newborns. The shape to fit through the birth canal, sometimes causing
term infant is derived from the Latin word infans, mean- the child to be born with a misshapen or elongated head.
ing "unable to speak" or "speechless." It is typically ap- It will usually return to normal on its own within a few
plied to children between the ages of 1 month and 12 days or weeks. Special exercises sometimes advised by
months; however, definitions vary between birth and 3 physicians may assist the process.
years of age. "Infant" is also a legal term referring to any Some newborns have a fine, downy body hair called
child under the age of legal adulthood.[2] lanugo. It may be particularly noticeable on the back,
shoulders, forehead, ears and face of premature infants.
Lanugo disappears within a few weeks. Infants may be
Physical characteristics born with full heads of hair; others, particularly white
A newborn’s shoulders and hips are narrow, the ab- infants, may have very fine hair or may even be bald.
domen protrudes slightly, and the arms and legs are rel- Amongst fair-skinned parents, this fine hair may be
atively short. In the developed world, the average birth blond, even if the parents are not. The scalp may also
weight of a full-term newborn is approximately 7 ½ be temporarily bruised or swollen, especially in hairless
lbs.(3.2 kg), and is typically in the range of 5.5–10 pounds newborns, and the area around the eyes may be puffy.
(2.7–4.6 kg). The average total body length is 14–20 inch- Newborns’ digestive tracts, which of course have nev-
es (35.6–50.8 cm), although premature newborns may be er been used prior to birth, are filled with a greenish-
much smaller. The Apgar score is a measure of a new- black, sticky material called meconium. This has the
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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Infant
function of standing in for fecal material and allows the The need to suckle is instinctive (see suction in biology)
intestines to develop to the point where they can process and allows newborns to feed.
milk immediately on birth. This material is passed by the Newborn infants have unremarkable vision, being
child in the first few days. able to focus on objects only about 18 inches (45 cm) di-
Immediately after birth, a newborn’s skin is often rectly in front of their face. While this may not be much,
grayish to dusky blue in color. As soon as the newborn it is all that is needed for the infant to look at the moth-
begins to breathe, usually within a minute or two, the er’s eyes or areola when breastfeeding. Depth perception
skin’s color reaches its normal tone. Newborns are wet, does not develop until the infant is mobile. Generally, a
covered in streaks of blood, and coated with a white sub- newborn cries when wanting to feed. When a newborn is
stance known as vernix caseosa, which is hypothesised not sleeping, or feeding, or crying, he or she may spend
to act as an antibacterial barrier. The newborn may also a lot of time staring at various objects. Usually anything
have Mongolian spots, various other birthmarks, or peel- that is shiny, has sharp contrasting colors, or has com-
ing skin, particularly on the wrists, hands, ankles, and plex patterns will catch an infant’s eye. However, the
feet. newborn has a preference for looking at other human
A newborn’s genitals are enlarged and reddened, faces above all else. (see also: infant metaphysics and infant
with male infants having an unusually large scrotum. The vision)
breasts may also be enlarged, even in male infants. This In utero, the infant can hear many internal noises,
is caused by naturally occurring maternal hormones and such as the mother’s heartbeat, in addition to external
is a temporary condition. Females (and even males) may noises including the human voice, music and most other
actually discharge milk from their nipples (sometimes sounds. Therefore, though a newborn’s ears may have
called witch’s milk), and/or a bloody or milky-like sub- some catarrh and fluid, he or she can hear sound from
stance from the vagina. In either case, this is considered before birth. Newborns usually respond more readily to
normal and will disappear in time. a female voice over a male voice. This may explain why
The umbilical cord of a newborn is bluish-white in people will unknowingly raise the pitch of their voice
color. After birth, the umbilical cord is normally cut, when talking to newborns (this voice change is called
leaving a 1–2 inch stub. The umbilical stub will dry out, motherese). The sound of other human voices, especially
shrivel, darken, and spontaneously fall off within about the mother’s, can have a calming or soothing effect on
3 weeks. Occasionally, hospitals may apply triple dye to the newborn. Conversely, loud or sudden noises will star-
the umbilical stub to prevent infection, which may tem- tle and scare them. Newborns have been shown to prefer
porarily color the stub and surrounding skin purple. sounds that were a regular feature of their prenatal en-
vironment, for example, the theme tune of a television
Internal physiological changes at birth programme their mother watched regularly.
Newborns can respond to differing tastes, including
sweet, sour, bitter, and salty substances, with a prefer-
ence toward sweetness. It has been shown that neonates
show a preference for the smell of foods that their moth-
er ate regularly.
Care and feeding
Infants cry as a form of basic instinctive communication.
A crying infant may be trying to express a variety of
feelings including hunger, discomfort, overstimulation,
boredom, wanting something, or loneliness.
Breastfeeding is the recommended method of feeding
Newborn infant, seconds after delivery by all major infant health organizations.[4] If breastfeed-
ing is not possible or desired, bottle feeding is done with
Main article: Adaptation to extrauterine life expressed breast-milk or with infant formula. Infants are
Upon entry into the air-breathing world, without the nu- born with a sucking reflex allowing them to extract the
trition and oxygenation via the umbilical cord, the new- milk from the nipples of the breasts or the nipple of the
born must begin to adjust to life outside the uterus. New- baby bottle, as well as an instinctive behavior known as
borns can feel all different sensations, but respond most rooting with which they seek out the nipple. Sometimes a
enthusiastically to soft stroking, cuddling and caressing. wet nurse is hired to feed the infant, although this is rare,
Gentle rocking back and forth often calms a crying in- especially in developed countries.
fant, as do massages and warm baths. Newborns may As infants grow, food supplements are added. Many
comfort themselves by sucking their thumb, or a pacifier. parents choose commercial, ready-made baby foods to
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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Infant
A baby breastfeeding
supplement breast milk or formula for the child, while
others adapt their usual meals for the dietary needs of
their child. Whole cow’s milk can be used at one year, but
lower-fat milk should not be provided until the child is
2 to 3 years old. Weaning is the feeding stage for older
infants almost toddlers. It is a process where solid foods
are introduced into the diet and is slowly replaced in ex-
change of milk. [5] Until they are toilet-trained, infants
in industrialized countries wear diapers. Children need An infant being immunized in Bangladesh
more sleep than adults—up to 18 hours for newborn ba-
bies, with a declining rate as the child ages. Until babies or distress for the purpose of survival.[9] The forming of
learn to walk, they are carried in the arms, held in slings attachments is considered to be the foundation of the in-
or baby carriers, or transported in baby carriages or fant/child’s capacity to form and conduct relationships
strollers. Most industrialized countries have laws requir- throughout life. Attachment is not the same as love and/
ing child safety seats for infants in motor vehicles. or affection although they often go together. Attachment
and attachment behaviors tend to develop between the
age of 6 months and 3 years. Infants become attached to
Infant mortality adults who are sensitive and responsive in social interac-
Infant mortality is the death of an infant in the first year tions with the infant, and who remain as consistent care-
of life, often expressed as the number of deaths per 1000 givers for some time. Parental responses lead to the de-
live births (infant mortality rate). Major causes of infant velopment of patterns of attachment which in turn lead
mortality include dehydration, infection, congenital mal- to ’internal working models’ which will guide the indi-
formation and SIDS.[6] vidual’s feelings, thoughts, and expectations in later re-
This epidemiological indicator is recognized as a very lationships.[10] There are a number of attachment ’styles’
important measure of the level of health care in a coun- namely ’secure’, ’anxious-ambivalent’, ’anxious-
try because it is directly linked with the health status avoidant’, (all ’organized’) and ’disorganized’, some of
of infants, children, and pregnant women as well as ac- which are more problematic than others. A lack of at-
cess to medical care, socioeconomic conditions, and pub- tachment or a seriously disrupted capacity for attach-
lic health practices.[7][8] ment could potentially amount to serious disorders.
Emotional development Common care issues
Attachment theory is primarily an evolutionary and • Baby colic
ethological theory whereby the infant or child seeks prox- • Bassinet/crib
imity to a specified attachment figure in situations of alarm • Bathing
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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Infant
• Cradle cap [6] Garrett, Eilidh (2007). Infant Mortality: A Continuing
• Day care Social Problem. Ashgate Pub Co. ISBN 0754645932.
• Diaper rash [7] Hertz,, E; Hebert JR, Landon J. (July 1994). "Social
• Infant formula and environmental factors and life expectancy,
• Infant massage infant mortality, and maternal mortality rates:
• Immunization results of a cross-national comparison". Soc Sci Med.
• Pacifier 39 (1): 105–14. doi:10.1016/0277-9536(94)90170-8.
• Paternal bond PMID 8066481.
• Teething [8] "The relationship between socioeconomic factors
• Umbilical cord and maternal and infant health programs in 13
Argentine provinces" (in Spanish). Rev Panam Salud
See also Publica 21 (4): 223–30. April 2007. PMID 17612466.
[9] Tronick, Morelli, & Ivey, 1992, p.568. "Until
• Attachment in children recently, scientific accounts ... of the infant’s early
• Babysitting social experiences converged on the view that the
• Baby monitor infant progresses from a primary relationship with
• Child development and child development stages one individual... to relationships with a growing
• Cord blood and cord blood banking number of people... This is an epigenetic,
• Elimination communication hierarchical view of social development. We have
• Infant vision labeled this dominant view the continuous care
• Infanticide and contact model (CCC...). The CCC model
• Neonatal jaundice developed from the writings of Spitz..., Bowlby...,
• Maternal bond and Provence and Lipton... on institutionalized
• Maternal health children and is represented in the psychological
• Organic baby products views of Bowlby...[and others]. Common to the
• Parental leave different conceptual frameworks is the belief that
• Pediatrics parenting practices and the infant’s capacity for
• Neonatology social engagement are biologically based and
• Pregnancy conform to a prototypical form. Supporters of the
• Safe-haven law CCC model generally recognize that the infant and
• Shock of birth caregiver are able to adjust to a range of
• Prenatal nutrition and birth weight conditions, but they consider the adjustments
observed to reflect biological variation. However,
References more extreme views (e.g., maternal bonding)
consider certain variants as nonadaptive and as
[1] "Neonate". Merriam-Webster online dictionary. compromising the child’s psychological
Merriam-Webster. http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/ development. Bowlby’s concept of monotropism is
dictionary?book=Dictionary&va=neonate. an exemplar of the CCC perspective..." (Tronick,
Retrieved 2007-03-27. Morelli, & Ivey, 1992, p. 568).
[2] "Infant". Merriam-Webster online dictionary. [10] Bretherton,I. and Munholland,K., A. Internal
Merriam-Webster. http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/ Working Models in Attachment Relationships: A
dictionary?book=Dictionary&va=infant. Retrieved Construct Revisited. Handbook of Attachment:Theory,
2007-03-27. Research and Clinical Applications 1999eds Cassidy,J.
[3] Warren SM; Brunet LJ, Harland RM, Economides and Shaver, P., R. Guilford press ISBN 1-57230-087-6
AN, Longaker MT (2003-04-10). "The BMP
antagonist noggin regulates cranial suture fusion".
Nature 422 (6932): 625–9. doi:10.1038/nature01545. Bibliography
PMID 12687003. • Simkin, Penny; et al. (1992 (late 1991)). Pregnancy,
[4] Gartner LM; Morton J, Lawrence RA, Naylor AJ, Childbirth and the Newborn: The Complete Guide.
O’Hare D, Schanler RJ, Eidelman AI, etal (February Meadowbook Press. ISBN 0-88166-177-5.
2005). "Breastfeeding and the Use of Human Milk".
Pediatrics 115 (2): 496–506. doi:10.1542/
peds.2004-2491. PMID 15687461.
External links
[5] Marriott and Foote, L.D and K.D (2003). Weaning of • Herbal Recipes for Moms and Babies, includes herbal
infants. (Review). 88.6. Academic OneFile.. recipes for diaper rash, teething, mom’s vulva and
ISBN 1412904757. breasts, how to make woolen soakers and more
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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Infant
Preceded by Stages of human development Succeeded by
Fetus Infancy Toddlerhood
• Discovery Health’s Infant & Toddler Center • The World Health Report 2005 – Make Every Mother
• American Academy of Pediatrics and Child
• The impact of buggy orientation on parent-infant • Infant eyesight - University of Illinois
interaction and infant stress
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Infant&oldid=465055299"
Categories:
• Infancy
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