A newborn baby sleeps about sixteen to eighteen hours per day; this sleep is distributed evenly over six to seven brief sleep periods. You can help your baby distinguish between nighttime sleep and daytime sleep, which will help him sleep longer periods at night. Begin by having your baby take his daytime naps in a [...]
For newborns, reading primarily fosters relationships with caregivers and creates positive attitudes toward books. In the first half of the first year, adults are laying a foundation for the baby to associate reading with happiness and connection. Newborns really are not so much interested in the books as they’re interested in the comfort and closeness [...]
Experts agree that it’s a good idea to limit where you take your baby during his first weeks. While a stroll in the park is fine, a trip to the mall is not. That’s because newborns can easily pick up a bug when exposed to large numbers of people in a confined space. To be [...]
Are you putting you baby on his belly for a few minutes every day? You should — it makes him stronger and improves his coordination. Introduce your baby to tummy time around the 3- to 4-month mark. At this point, she has better neck strength and control, so she’s able to lift and turn her [...]
The best way for parents to encourage visual development in their baby is to interact with him. A loving face is the best visual stimulation an infant can get. High-contrast toys, such as blocks and mobiles with black-and-white or primary color patterns, also help stimulate visual development. And pictures of shapes and patterns have been [...]
Yes, you can: talk, read, and sing to your baby. The sound of adult voices helps prime a baby’s brain, making her more receptive to learning language skills later in life. Studies have found, for instance, that hearing the rhythm of the spoken word helps children learn to read when they get to school. It [...]
The structure of the ear — though fully developed — is very delicate in infants, making them particularly sensitive to volume. Too much noise can actually cause ear damage. Experts advise parents to shield their babies from very loud noises and to give them some silent time each day away from TVs, telephones, and noisy [...]
You can help your baby develop his own sense of touch by letting his fingers come into contact with different textures: soft and cushiony, smooth, bumpy — being careful, of course, to keep him away from extreme temperatures and rough textures. And you can use your own touch to communicate your love. Massage your baby [...]
Gently massaging a baby has been shown to reduce levels of a stress hormone called cortisol. Researchers have discovered that babies who were given twice-weekly massages over a six-week period tended to be less irritable and to sleep more soundly than other babies.
The sense of touch is one of the first to develop and is operational by the time a baby is born. Infants use touch to learn about their environment. The gentle touch of a parent can not only soothe babies but actually help them grow. Nurturing touch releases growth hormones. In infants who are deprived [...]
