Developmental Milestone – Crawling
The CDC (Center for Disease Control) made a recent change to their developmental milestones checklist and have removed crawling. Although, this change may seem insignificant, there are many important elements that develop when a baby learns to crawl.
Let’s take a look.
Crawling involves multiple reflex pathways.
When a newborn baby is placed on their stomach, they will instinctively pull their legs under their body and kick out their legs in a crawling motion. This can start at the breast as newborns will crawl up their mother’s chest, looking for where to suck.
Symmetrical Tonic Neck Reflex (STNR) aka The Crawling reflex emerges around 6-9 months of age but is also present in utero. STNF is considered the transitional reflex that allows babies to go from their belly to getting up onto their hands and knees
STNR begins when Infants learn how to lift their neck while on their stomach, roll over unassisted and rock back and forth on their hands and knees. All of these movement patterns are steadily building the neurological circuitry that is needed for babies to assume crawling.
Full integration of STNR typically occurs by their first birthday.
** Please note that preemies, or baby’s with disabilities may not have the same basic timeline. All babies are different
Crawling builds muscle tone and strength
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The saying goes, ‘if you don’t use it, you lose it.’ When babies learn to crawl, they are building new muscle movement patterns that set the foundation for their entire body.
Crawling is your baby’s first independent movement pattern.
As babies begin to move, they develop the ability to co-contract their muscles through rolling, sitting and weight bearing on their hands. Co-contraction leads to postural control and maturation. Postural maturation helps develop motor skills – including breathing, speaking and eating.
Crawl before walking
Crawling is crucial milestone for a baby to hit before they learn to walk. It helps strengthen the trunk of the body(core), neck, hips, back, shoulders and arms. As the cross-body pattern is practiced, it builds stronger communication pathways between the left and right side of the brain. This will improve coordination, balance, rhythm and control that will be used in all motor movements throughout the infant’s lifespan.
Crawling helps develop other senses
As babies get comfortable with crawling, they learn to move and adjust their eyes on static objects while they are in motion. Focusing on objects or people near or far away in the room, gives them spatial awareness.
When babies learn to rock back and forth and freely crawl on their hands and knees, they naturally develop their sensory system aka ‘The Vestibular System.’ This system is located in the inner ear and helps babies understand gravity, balance and motion.
Overall, crawling has a massive impact on the neurological development that infants undergo.
The importance of crawling is something many health experts will agree is a crucial developmental milestone.
The reduction of this infant milestone from the CDC predisposes parents to potentially missing lags in their own baby’s development.
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Lowering the standards for normal body movement can have impacts that we may not see immediately but can be met with repercussions in future generations.
As a Chiropractor, I emphasize the importance of spinal alignment having a direct impact on nervous system function. Getting to the root cause of lack of crawling, difficulty with crawling, or crawling in asymmetrical positions is more important than disregarding it completely.
Crawling is still a necessary milestone in my books, so if your baby is struggling, let’s figure out why.