Will babies become smarter the more they crawl? What are the benefits of babies crawling?

As the saying goes, "sit at seven, crawl at eight, and teeth grow at nine." The development of babies before one year old is what every parent is most concerned about. At what age will babies start to "crawl" on their own? Are there so many benefits of crawling? Will not crawling enough affect future development? How to create a safe crawling environment for your child? Come and listen to what the experts say!

When does your baby start crawling?

When mommy starts to notice that the baby wants to crawl, don’t be too nervous or want to help him move his hands and feet, because the baby is still practicing how to move his body forward, and it takes some time to learn and get used to it. If you force him to practice at this time, the baby may be disgusted with the experience of crawling in the future, which will have the opposite effect. Therefore, don’t force your baby to crawl too early just because crawling is important!

When the baby is about seven months old, he can crawl forward with his belly touching the ground. At first, the movements may not be very beautiful. He may be like a rabbit, with his hands going out first and then his feet, or he may have his hands and feet at the same time. This is all normal!

By about eight months, the baby can crawl to about one meter in this not-so-pretty way.

At nine months, the baby can use the hands + knees method, with the belly off the ground, and use the hands and knees to support the body. At this time, mothers may find that the baby likes the feeling of rocking back and forth, and slowly, he can develop the way of crawling side to side.

Around ten months old, the baby can crawl very well and can crawl quite high. At this stage, mommy can sit on the ground, stretch out her thighs, let the baby crawl over your thighs, and play some interactive games with him.

If the baby still cannot crawl after ten months, the mother may need to seek professional help because there may be some problems with the central nervous system or lower limb musculoskeletal system.

Is it a problem if the baby walks without crawling?

There may be many reasons why babies don't like to crawl. It may be that they are sensitive to touch, so they don't like to touch the floor with large areas of their bodies. In this case, they will try their best to stand up and want to walk. Another reason may be that the space at home is too small, so the baby doesn't have much chance to crawl. When he stands up with the help of something and finds that he can stand and walk, he may skip the "crawling" stage.

In fact, if the baby can already stand up, it means that his lower limb strength is sufficient. Therefore, the mother does not need to be too nervous or deliberately stop him.

The more you crawl, the smarter you are. What are the benefits of crawling?

Crawling has many benefits that moms should know

- Promotes bilateral differentiation/coordination of the brain

- Promote the development of neck muscles and bones

- Practice your balance

-Visual Development

The experience of crawling can make the baby's future development smoother, because crawling is a bilateral alternating activity. The right hemisphere of the brain governs the left hand, and the left hemisphere governs the right hand. Therefore, through crawling, the alternating exercises of the upper and lower limbs can promote the bilateral differentiation of the baby's brain. In addition, it can also allow the baby to practice the stability of the body, because when crawling, one hand has to go out and the other hand has to support, which may be unstable, so the crawling process can allow the baby to practice balancing the body. In addition, the crawling process can make the baby's muscles more developed and promote the development of vision, because when crawling, there will be a sense of speed, and the muscles of the eyeballs will make adjustments to see far and near, which promotes the development of vision. Therefore, if you hold the baby in your arms all the time, it will reduce these experiences, not practice the coordination of hands and feet, and not practice the stability of the trunk. Some primitive reflexes may remain, such as the neck tension reflex.

The neck tension reflex is divided into "symmetrical" and "asymmetrical":

ATNR is an asymmetric neck tension reflex that appears between birth and two months. At this stage, mothers will find that when the baby is lying down, if the head turns to the right, his hands will stretch out to the same side, his feet will stretch out, and his hands will bend. If he turns to the other side, it will be the same on the other side. This is an asymmetric neck tension reflex that will be integrated at about four to six months.

STNR is a symmetrical neck tension reflex. When the baby is kneeling on all fours, if the head is raised, the hands will be straight and the feet will be bent, like a rabbit; when the head is bent down, the hands will bend and the feet will be straight, like the feeling of a rabbit jumping.

These two reflexes are primitive reflexes. ATNR can help babies grab things, turn around and see something next to them, and reflexively grab or avoid some dangers. STNR can help babies develop crawling because it gives them a kicking force. Both reflexes are very important, but if the child is often held and there is no good integration in the crawling stage when they are young, there may be residual phenomena, causing the child to be more restless. Because when he turns his head, his hands will naturally want to reach out and touch things. This kind of touching will affect learning. Therefore, moms must remember: Don’t be afraid of your child getting dirty! Prepare a safe space and let your child crawl as much as he wants!

If the baby does not have enough experience in crawling when he was young, which causes problems with integration, the mother can let the baby practice more coordinated exercises of the limbs, such as swimming, or play some crawling games, for example, let him hold something between his heads and play a crawling game of carrying things, pinching the right side and then the left side, which can suppress some primitive reflexes.

Create a safe space for your baby to crawl safely

When the baby starts to practice crawling, it is recommended that he do it on a soft cushion with a thickness of 2 to 3 cm or more. If it is too thin, the shock absorption will not be enough. If the baby is too tired, his head may hit the ground. Or if the parents pull the baby to sit up, he suddenly lets go and hits his head backwards. If it hurts, it will form a bad experience and he may be more resistant to practice in the future. Therefore, it is very important to prepare a cushion with moderate hardness! In addition, the edges and corners of furniture, such as table legs and chair legs, are more likely to be hit. It is also recommended to use some anti-collision materials to protect the baby's limbs and head.