ADVERTISEMENTS:
This article throws light upon the top five basic needs for child’s development during first year. The needs are: 1. Need for Oxygen 2. Temperature Regulation 3. Need for Sleep 4. Need for Elimination 5. Hunger and Thirst.
Child’s Development: Need # 1.
Need for Oxygen:
Oxygen is inhaled through a reflex mechanism the neonate achieves the adult level respiratory stabilisation within the first few days of birth. The drive rarely needs to be high for having an adequate supply of oxygen. The neonate may have irregular and shallow breathing, but if its breathing is noisy, it may be an indication of the child’s having contracted croup, asthma, or other infection.
Child’s Development: Need # 2.
ADVERTISEMENTS:
Temperature Regulation:
Before delivery of the child into the external environment, the amniotic fluid keeps the body temperature of the organism fairly stable.
After delivery, an automatic mechanism continues to operate to maintain the body temperature stable, but because of so much variations in the temperature of our atmosphere, the elders have to be careful as to when to shut a window, and when it should be opened, when the child needs extra protection against cold by way of putting a blanket about its body, and so on.
Sometimes, even the use of some drug may become essential to maintain the body temperature of the child to a certain level.
Child’s Development: Need # 3.
ADVERTISEMENTS:
Need for Sleep:
Neonates on an average spend 80 per cent of their time in sleep. By the time the baby is one year old, the time is reduced to 50 per cent. The rhythms and depths of sleep also go on changing. For the first 3-4 weeks, the average infant has 7-8 short naps in 24 hours; the number is reduced to between 2 and 4 longer periods of sleep by 6 weeks of age.
By 28 weeks, most children, generally, have a long stint of sleep during night only.
A one-year-old child would not require more than two or three short naps during the day, but his night-time sleep happens to be a long and unbroken one. Though individual differences in regard to the periods and rhythms of sleep may be found but, generally, as the child grows in age, the number of naps (or rhythms per day) goes on reducing, and the period of long sleep goes on increasing.
The parents will have to see to it that the sleep of the child is not disturbed because of noise, inclement weather conditions, or other physical disturbances—a sound and full sleep is very much needed for the health of the child.
It is through sleep that the body regulates itself. It is through sleep that the body accumulates energy for the performance of different physical and mental functions, though a part of energy released because of metabolism, is consumed, even when the organism is asleep, in the all-time going on functioning’s of some of the systems of body.
It is through sleep, that equilibrium is maintained in the chemical constitution and physiological processes of the body.
Child’s Development: Need # 4.
Need for Elimination:
In the beginning, the passing of urine or faeces, is purely a reflex action. The neonate has frequent and irregular eliminations. By the time the child is about 4 weeks old, the frequency is, generally, reduced to 3 to 4 times a day. The bowel movements, ordinarily, occur at the wakening time of the child.
ADVERTISEMENTS:
During the beginning weeks, enough control of sphincters do not happen to be there, but by and by this control increases, and, by the time, the child is 8 weeks old, the frequency of bowel movements is reduced to two times only—one, when the child awakes, and second, when the mother is to start feeding it, or, during the feeding.
When the child is about 16 weeks old, there, generally, happens to be a definite interval between the feeding and the evacuation times.
Toilet training is important, which each parent seriously imparts through inhibition and suppression. Lot of patience and skill are required on the part of the guardians while helping the child to learn toilet discipline as to when one may defecate or urinate.
Patience is necessary because no amount of training can enable the child to exercise control over his anal and urethral sphincters, until these have got the needful level of neuromuscular maturity.
For a successful learning of toilet discipline, reflex actions will have to be substituted by voluntary control—a skillful parent can adopt an effective device to help the child learn it. Breckenridge’ et al. write that by the end of first year, the bowel training is complete.
Until the child is toilet-trained, the sporadic bowel movements of the child may prove very tiring for the mother. And, her annoyance may make her irritable in her responses towards such a behaviour of her child; this further accentuates the problem, as the child may himself grow aggressive, and cause more trouble for the mother, by way of bowel movements, when it is the most unsuitable time for the same.
So, it needs to be reiterated that if the parent loses patience in regard to imparting toilet-training, the child may grow peevish forever.
Child’s Development: Need # 5.
Hunger and Thirst:
Satisfaction of hunger and thirst is among the most important drives of a neonate. If these are not satisfied timely, the child becomes very irritable. Undue delay in feeding the child upsets the mood of the child, and he reacts with violent crying, blushing of face or entire body and the child may not even accept feeding in such a situation.
If the mother, for whatever reasons, is unable to respond positively to the child who needs to be fed, the child would grow pessimistic, and would be having no feeling of belongingness, which is so essential for a proper emotional development.
The earliest learning’s of the child are closely related with the way his/her needs of hunger and thirst are satisfied. If they are satisfied timely and properly, it will be an important factor in the desirable physical development of the child.
It affects his emotional development, too. The child should not often be required to undergo a long period of stress under hunger and thirst. If it so happens for a long period, it may make the child irritable and aggressive.
The pattern of feeding varies from society to society; it may vary from family to family depending upon the socioeconomic status of the family. Even then, norms are available to guide us as to how much to feed and how often to feed. An American new born infant, on an average, has seven or eight feedings a day.
By 4 weeks of age, the average intake is 18 to 25 ounces. The intake increases to 35 ounces when the infant is 6 to 8 weeks of age. As the child advances in age, the amount of intake, naturally increases, but the frequency decreases.
Solid food should be started when the child is about 20 weeks old (the time and manner of weaning the infant to solid food vary from culture to culture)—cereals and vegetables may form a regular part of his diet. To a child who is one- year-old, three meals a day, are required. Food given to the infant should be nutritious, healthy and at the same time, appealing so that the child will eat it eagerly and willingly.
Cleanliness of the environment, mood and health of the mother, are also factors to be taken into consideration, as they too affect the physical and emotional development of the child, especially, when he depends upon breast-feeding. During the period when the mother breast-feeds her child, she, herself, requires proper nourishment.