Newborn period
A child under one month of age is called a newborn or an infant.
During the newborn period, the child is very helpless and is easily susceptible to various diseases. That's why proper care for it is very important. Before it heals (within 8-12 days), the umbilical wound is systematically treated and protected from germs.
Due to the fact that a child's skin is thin and delicate, it should be kept clean. Diapers should be clean, ironed, those caring for the child should wash their hands with soap more often and wear a mask made of four layers of gauze.
The digestive organs of a newborn are very delicate, so special attention should be paid to feeding rules. The newborn feeds on mother's milk. If it is absent or in insufficient quantities, the child is given artificial milk formula. The newborn should be fed every three hours with a 6-hour break at night.
When to visit a mammologist?
It is necessary to contact a mammologist urgently and “unscheduled” if a woman has:
- there are lumps or pain in the chest;
- there is discomfort during self-examination;
- bloody and other discharge appears from the nipples;
- there is a sharp deformation of the breasts or nipples.
Routine screenings after age 40 include a test called a mammogram. This is an x-ray diagnostic method. An accompanying method is ultrasound examination, which helps confirm or exclude the diagnosis. Until the age of 40, in the absence of alarming symptoms, women are not given a mammogram, but only if indicated.
After 50 years, every woman is recommended to have an annual mammogram, since the peak activity of cancer cells in the mammary glands is observed precisely in this age period. The sooner the diagnosis is made, the sooner treatment can begin.
If an ultrasound or mammogram shows a tumor formation in the breast, the doctor’s task is to find out its origin and causes. As a rule, we are talking about mastopathy or a formed tumor. Depending on the nature of the tumor (benign or malignant), the doctor decides on further treatment.
Monthly self-examination (regular palpation of the mammary glands for lumps) will help to detect pathological changes in a timely manner and promptly see a doctor.
Infancy
Infancy covers the period from two months of age to one year.
As the child grows, his sense organs, nervous system, and musculoskeletal system gradually develop. In a one-month-old baby, you can observe the activity of the visual organs: he directs his gaze towards the movement of the toy. A two-month-old baby sleeps 20 hours, a three-month-old baby sleeps 18-19 hours a day. A three-month-old child turns his head towards the source of the sound, laughs, tries to reach the toy with his hands, and begins to hold his head. A five-month-old child begins to recognize his loved ones, laughs, and gurgles; at seven months of age he sits steadily and crawls; an eight-month-old child tries to get up while holding onto objects with his hands; at the age of 11 months he begins to pronounce individual simple words and walk if held by his hands; a one-year-old child begins to walk independently and can pronounce 10-12 words.
How a child develops can also be judged by the eruption of baby teeth, which begins at 6-7 months of age. A one-year-old child should have 8 baby teeth.
It is known that small children have fontanelles on the skull: between the occipital and parietal bones there is a small fontanel, and between the frontal and parietal bones there is a large one (Fig. 84). With a lack of vitamin D, the ossification process is disrupted, the fusion of the fontanelle and the eruption of baby teeth are delayed. The child's bones soften and become flexible.
A newborn's spine is straight and has no physiological bends. At the age of 8-10 weeks, the child begins to hold his head and a cervical curvature of the spine appears. A five-month-old child begins to sit up and a backward thoracic curve of the spine forms. At one year of age, when the child begins to walk, his lumbar curve forms (Fig. 85).
Why do the Church differentiate between the ages of children?
There are certain rules in the Orthodox Church. How a parishioner should behave during services, how to fast and pray, how to prepare for confession and communion. And many other points related to church life are described in detail. But these rules are mainly made for adults. “But how should children behave spiritually? At what age does a child consciously sin and how should adults respond to this? When should a child be taught to confess? Until what age is a child considered an infant?” – these questions are relevant for every Orthodox parent.
“They brought children to Him so that He could touch them; The disciples did not allow those who brought them. Seeing this, Jesus was indignant and said to them: Let the little children come to Me and do not hinder them, for to such is the Kingdom of God. Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the Kingdom of God like a child will not enter it. And he embraced them, laid his hands on them and blessed them” (Mark 10:13 – 16).
Baby in the temple
Preschool age
At the age of two months, the child’s physical and neuropsychic development is enhanced, monthly weight gain is 200-250 g, and growth is 1 cm. The body weight of a three-year-old child increases by 2-2.8 kg per year, height - by 7-8 cm During this period, speech develops rapidly and by the end of the third year of life, the child’s vocabulary reaches 1000-1200 words. The peculiarity of two to three year old children is that they are very mobile. Therefore, they often suffer from damage and poisoning from various chemicals and medications. This is why young children should not be left unattended, even for a short time. At 4-5 years of life, body weight increases by 1.5-2 kg per year, and growth slows down somewhat and amounts to 4-6 cm; at 6-7 years of age, growth accelerates and over the course of a year, body length increases by 8-10 cm, and body weight by 2.5 kg. Material from the site https://wiki-med.com
Postmenstrual age
Postmenstrual age (PMA) is the time elapsed between the first day of a mother’s last menstruation and the current moment.
Postmenstrual age = gestational age + postnatal age [1].
PMV is measured in complete weeks.
For example, if a baby was born at 26 weeks gestation and is now chronologically 10 weeks old, then postmenstrual age = 26 + 10 = 36 weeks.
Postmenstrual age can also be measured in weeks and days. For example, if a baby was born at 26 weeks and 5 days and is now 10 weeks and 1 day, then postmenstrual age = 26 5/7 + 10 1/7 = 36 6/7 (36 weeks and 6 days).
Postmenstrual age is preferable for use when monitoring a premature baby in the neonatal intensive care unit and pathology department.
School age
It is known that every person spends more than 10 years in school, academic lyceum, or college. During this period, the body of children and adolescents continuously grows and develops. Along with this, the young body during this period is very susceptible to various environmental influences. In other words, the living, studying and upbringing conditions of young people have a strong impact on their normal growth and development, on their health. Therefore, normal or abnormal growth and development of children and adolescents depends on what these conditions are.
Post-conceptual age
Postconceptual (conceptual) age is the time elapsed from the moment of fertilization / conception until the birth of the child [1].
During a pregnancy that occurs naturally, it is impossible to calculate or determine the true time of conception. In pregnancies resulting from the use of reproductive technologies, the time of conception is known; therefore, the postconceptional age can only be determined for this type of pregnancy.
However, given that the vast majority of pregnancies occur naturally, the term postconceptional age is confusing and is not recommended for use [1,4]. For each fetus, regardless of method of conception, a gestational age should be used.
In order to determine the gestational age of the fetus/child, it is necessary to add two weeks to the postconceptual age. This is usually the time between the first day of your last menstrual period and conception. Postconceptual age is not equal to gestational age and is not synonymous with it [1,2].
Gestational age ≠ postconceptional age
Gestational age = postconceptional age + 2 weeks
Acceleration
Over the past decades, there has been an acceleration in the physical and physiological development of the human body. For example, over the past 100 years, the average body length of newborns has increased by 5 cm, adolescents - 10-15 cm, middle-aged men - 6-8 cm. The mental development of children during the period of reaching adulthood has accelerated. The process, called acceleration, depends on improving living conditions in the family, nutrition, lengthening daylight hours, etc.
Categories: Ontogenesis of childhood
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How does the growth and development of preschool children occur in brief?
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Questions for this article:
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What anatomical and physiological features characterize a newborn?
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Infant - youth - youth
Let us immediately note that there is no separate established charter regarding children as participants in church life. But there are norms of behavior and established traditions of how a child should behave at different periods of his growing up.
In Orthodoxy there is a certain system of children's ages: baby - youth - young man. In the Orthodox Church, a person is perceived as a developing personality. Therefore, the approach to the spiritual education of a child at different ages has significant differences.
Saint John of Kronstadt said: “Do not leave children without attention regarding eradicating from their hearts the weeds of sins, ... sinful habits, inclinations and passions; the enemy and the sinful flesh do not spare even children, the seeds of all sins are in children; Present to your children all the dangers of sins on the path of life, do not hide sins from them, so that through ignorance and lack of understanding they do not become established in sinful habits and addictions...”
Baby
Until what age is a child considered an infant? In Christianity, a child is considered to be a child under seven years of age. There is a theological point of view that until the age of 7, a child carries the germ of sin within himself, but does not yet bear personal responsibility for it. That is, from a very early age, a child’s bad actions are associated with his natural inclinations. He is not guided by moral standards, which he still knows nothing about.
Character traits such as anger, irritability, selfishness, vindictiveness, and envy are also inherent in young children. But an adult is able to control his emotions, cope with them, and understands what sin and repentance are. A small child has yet to learn this with the help of parents and other adults.
It is for these reasons that infants under 7 years of age are allowed to take communion without confession. We must remember that every child is individual. Some people grow up faster, while others only by the age of 10 realize what sin is and can repent of what they have done. Therefore, it is better to discuss with your confessor or the priest to whom you go to confession how to fast and when to start confessing to a grown-up baby.
Also, children under 3 years of age do not have to fast, including before communion. After the age of three, there are significant relaxations in this matter.
Another worrying point for parents is what time to come to morning services and bring their child. Most priests agree that for the first time after baptism, a baby can be brought to church immediately before communion, gradually increasing the time spent at the service. Parents should observe how much time the child can calmly, without being capricious, spend in the temple. If a baby cries and runs around during a service, thereby interfering with the prayer of those around him, it is better to go outside and calm him down.
Youth
Until what age is a child considered an adolescent? From 7 to 14 years of age, a child is an adolescent. It is 7 years old that is considered to be the starting point in a child’s growing up. He can already divide his actions into good and bad. He is already able to bear responsibility for the sins he has committed. Therefore, you should try to prepare the child for confession, explain the meaning of repentance and fasting.
When preparing for the first confession, the child, together with his parents, must analyze his actions. And in the future, teach him to be independent in such an important task. But all children are individual. And if it is obvious that a 7-year-old child is not yet ready for independent Confession, has not matured for it, there is no need to insist. We must try to slowly prepare him for Confession.
The age of adolescence is very important in the formation of both the individual as a whole and an Orthodox Christian. It is important for parents to instill in their children a love of worship and prayer, fasting and reading the Holy Scriptures. But the most important thing is to set an example with your life of how a real Christian should live. Without the personal example of parents, any Orthodox education is doomed to failure.
