HDF 313 Chapter 5: Chapter Five - Physical Development of Infants
10 Feb 2017
School
Department
Course
Professor
Document Summary
Cephalocaudal pattern the sequence in which the earliest growth always occurs at the top the head with physical growth and feature differentiation gradually working from top to bottom. Sensory and motor development generally proceed according to the cephalocaudal principle. Proximodistal pattern the sequence in which growth starts at the center of the body and moves toward the extremities. The average north american new born is 20 inches long and weighs 7 pounds. In the first few days of life, newborns lose between 5-7 percent of their body weight before they adjust to feeding. By the age of four months, their birth weight doubles and triples by their first birthday. Newborns grow at a rate of about one inch per month. Growth is slower in the second year of life. At the time of birth, the infant has a brain with approximately 100 billion nerve cells.
