RGD - Development from Birth to Adulthood
Development from Birth to Adulthood
Neonatal Period
A neonate is a baby who is 4 weeks old or younger.
The neonatal period is the first 4 weeks of a child's life. This represents a time when changes are very rapid, and many critical events can occur.
During the first 30 days, congenital defects are discovered, genetic abnormalities may show up, and infections, such as congenital herpes, Group B Streptococcus, toxoplasmosis, and other medical conditions become apparent during this period.
Infancy
An infant is a baby who is between 4 weeks and one year of age.
During their first year, babies start to develop skills they will use for the rest of their lives. The normal growth of babies can be broken down into the following areas:
- Gross motor - controlling the head, sitting, crawling, maybe even starting to walk
- Fine motor - holding a spoon, picking up a piece of cereal between thumb and finger
- Sensory - seeing, hearing, tasting, touching, and smelling
- Language - starting to make sounds, learning some words, understanding what people say
- Social - the ability to play with family members and other children
By 6 weeks after birth, infants typically start smiling and making vocal sounds. By 6 months, infants are babbling. They have also learned to sit and are starting to crawl. The deciduous teeth (baby teeth) have started to come in. By 12 months, infants may be saying their first words. They usually can stand with help and may even have started to walk.
Toddler
A toddler is a child aged 1 to 3 years.
Mastering new skills such as how to walk, talk, and use the "potty" are developmental milestones. The normal development of toddlers can be broken down into the following areas:
- Gross motor - walking, running, climbing
- Fine motor - feeding themselves, drawing
- Sensory - seeing, hearing, tasting, touching, and smelling
- Language - saying single words, then sentences
- Social - playing with others, taking turns, doing fantasy play
Children of this age are learning to walk, or "toddle." Growth is still relatively rapid during the toddler years but it has begun to slow down.
Childhood
The age of a child starts at four years and ends at the beginning of puberty (typically just before the teenage years).
As children grow older, they develop in several different ways. Child development includes physical, intellectual, social, and emotional changes.
Children grow and mature at very different rates. There can be big differences in height, weight, and build among healthy children. Diet, exercise, and genes are all factors. Some children begin puberty or are close to it before they are teenagers.
Children start to become more independent from their parents developing close relationships with friends outside of the family. This can also be the time that parents or teachers recognize learning disabilities or behavioral problems in children.
By age 4, most children can run, climb stairs, and scribble with a crayon. They know many words and use simple sentences. The majority are also toilet trained.
By age five, children are able to carry on conversations, recognize letters and words, and use a pencil to trace letters. They can usually tie their own shoelaces and may be learning to ride a bicycle, swing a bat, kick a ball and play other games.
By age 6, most children begin losing their deciduous teeth, and their permanent teeth start coming in. They speak fluently and are learning to read and write. They spend more time with peers and develop friendships.
Older children continue to grow slowly until they start the adolescent growth spurt during puberty. They also continue to develop mentally, emotionally, and socially.
Puberty
Puberty is the stage of life when a child becomes sexually mature. Puberty begins when the pituitary gland tells the testes to secrete testosterone in boys, and in girls, the pituitary gland signals the ovaries to secrete estrogen.
Girls start puberty earlier than boys. On average girls will start puberty around age 11 and physical changes will become obvious between the ages of 11 and 14. On average boys will start puberty around age 12 and physical changes will become obvious been the ages of 13 and 16.
Puberty is the stage of life when a child becomes sexually mature and develops secondary sex characteristics. This period lasts from about 12 to 18 years of age in boys and from about 10 to 16 years of age in girls. The age when puberty begins is different from one child to another.
Learn more about the changes that happen during puberty in the movie below.
Adolescence
Adolescence is the period of life between the start of puberty and the beginning of adulthood.
Adolescence includes the physical changes of puberty. It also includes many other changes, including significant mental, emotional, and social changes. During adolescence:
- Teenagers develop new thinking abilities such as abstract thinking, thinking logically, and problem-solving.
- Teenagers try to establish a sense of who they are as individuals typically becoming more independent from parents.
- They may have emotional ups and downs partially due to changing hormone levels in the body.
Maturity
Adulthood does not have a definite starting point. A person may be physically mature by age 16 or 17 but not defined as an adult by law until an older specified age.
Early adulthood coincides with the 20s and early 30s. During early adulthood, people generally form intimate relationships, both in friendship and love. Many people become engaged or marry during this time. Often they are completing their education and becoming established in a career. Health problems in young adults tend to be minor. The most common causes of death are homicides, car crashes, and suicides.
Middle adulthood lasts from the mid-30s to the mid-60s. During this stage of life, many people raise a family and strive to attain career goals. They start showing physical signs of aging, such as wrinkles and gray hair. Typically vision, strength, and reaction time start declining. Diseases such as type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular or heart disease, and cancer are often diagnosed during this stage of life. These diseases are also the chief causes of death in middle adulthood.
During this period, women will go through a process called menopause. Menopause is the time of the last menstrual period in a women's life. The average age of onset for menopause is 51, with some women having it earlier and some later. Changing levels of estrogen and progesterone cause symptoms that women will have throughout the rest of their lives such as hot flashes, changes in vaginal health, loss of bladder control, insomnia, mood changes, change in sexual interest, and change in body shape. Menopause can also increase a woman's chances of getting osteoporosis and heart disease.
Old age begins in the mid-60s and lasts until the end of life. Many people over 65 have retired from work, freeing up their time for hobbies, grandchildren, and other interests. Stamina, strength, reflex time, and the senses all decline during old age, and the number of brain cells decreases as well. The immune system becomes less efficient, increasing the risk of serious illnesses such as cancer and pneumonia. Diseases such as Alzheimer's disease that cause loss of mental function also become more common.
Why do we decline in all these ways as we age? Generally, it's because cells stop dividing and die. There are at least two reasons why cells stop dividing:
- Cells are programmed to divide only a set number of times.
- Mutations accumulate in DNA, and cells with damaged DNA may not divide.
Review the characteristic of each stage of life in the following learning object.
Reproductive System Review
IMAGES CREATED BY GAVS OR OPENSOURCE