At what age should tummy time start

Tummy Time (for Parents) - Nemours KidsHealth

Reviewed by: Mary L. Gavin, MD

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What Is Tummy Time?

Tummy time is laying babies on their stomachs for brief periods while they're awake. It's an important way to help babies strengthen their neck and shoulder muscles, and improve motor skills.

Be sure to stay with your baby and watch closely during tummy time.

What Can Tummy Time Help With?

Tummy time is good for:

Newborns and infants 1–3 months old who are just developing neck control. Tummy time helps develop the muscles they'll need to roll over, sit up, crawl, and walk. Always stay with your baby during tummy time.
Older babies, 4–7 months old. They should still spend some supervised time on their bellies, even if they can roll over and sit with some help. Tummy time helps them practice lifting their head and chest further by straightening their arms. This strengthens arm, chest, and back muscles.
Newborns who have a neck condition called torticollis (tor-ti-KOLL-iss). Tight neck muscles keep the baby from turning their head. Tummy time encourages babies to look around, and along with exercises your doctor will show you, can help your baby's neck muscles relax.
Babies with flat head syndrome (positional plagiocephaly). This happens when babies spend too much time on their backs in the first few months of life. This can cause a flat spot, either on one side or the back of the head.

How Do I Do Tummy Time?

Newborns

Start newborns on tummy time by placing them belly-down on your chest or across your lap for a few minutes at a time, two or three times a day. While lying on their belly, they can practice lifting their head and strengthening the neck and shoulder muscles. As your baby gets used to it, you can go for a little longer.

Older Babies

Place a blanket down in a clear area on the floor. Place your baby on their stomach on the blanket for 3–5 minutes to start, several times each day. Your baby may get fussy and frustrated in this position. Keep the first sessions of tummy time brief and gradually lengthen them. It's also a good idea to do tummy time when your baby is fed, changed, and happy.

As your baby gets used to it, place your little one belly-down more often or for longer periods of time. Experts recommend that babies work up to about 1 hour of tummy time a day by the time they're 3 months old.

Make some noises or shake a rattle to get your child to look up and push up. Place a favorite toy in front of your baby to encourage reaching and forward movement.

Babies With Torticollis or a Flat Spot

This exercise is good for babies with torticollis and/or a flat spot, and can help treat both problems:

Lay your baby on your lap for tummy time. Position your baby with their head turned away from you. Then, talk or sing to your baby. Encourage your little one to turn and face you. Do this exercise for 10–15 minutes.

What Else Should I Know?

Always stay with your baby during tummy time.
Always place babies on their backs (never on their bellies) to sleep to help prevent SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome).
Do tummy time on a low, safe surface. Don't put your baby on a sofa or bed, where they could roll off or suffocate on pillows or a soft surface.

If your baby doesn't seem to enjoy tummy time, add some variety. Sing songs, keep colorful toys nearby, get down on the floor and eye-to-eye with your baby, and have others join you. Don't give up! Tummy time is important, and some babies just need a little extra time to get used to it.

Reviewed by: Mary L. Gavin, MD

Date reviewed: October 2019

When to Start and How to Do It

With all the focus on putting baby to sleep on their back, it’s easy to forget that tummy time is actually pretty important. Though it’s tough to see at first, all those little wiggles and attempts at half-lifts are contributing to baby’s development in major ways, preventing flat spots from forming on the back of their head (a side effect of all that time on their back) and preparing them for a few down-the-road milestones like rolling over and crawling. But if you’re new to this whole parenting gig, you might be wondering what exactly tummy time is and how it works. Don’t worry, we’re here to help with answers to all the questions you didn’t even know you had. So at what age should you start tummy time? And how often does baby need to do it? Read on to learn everything you need to know about the important developmental exercise known as tummy time.

In this article:
What is tummy time?
Benefits of tummy time
When to start tummy time
How long should tummy time last?
How to do tummy time
Tummy time tips

What Is Tummy Time?

When we talk about tummy time, what exactly do we mean? Suffice to say, tummy time is exactly what it sounds like—time that baby spends on their stomach while awake and supervised. Placing baby on their tummy encourages them to lift their head, which helps strengthen their head, neck and shoulder muscles and boost motor skills.

Benefits of Tummy Time

We know, it’s not easy to make baby do an activity they’re less than thrilled about. But trust us, tummy time is worth it. In addition to offering a sweet way for the two of you to bond, there are some major benefits of tummy time:

• Practice for milestones like rolling over, sitting upright and crawling

• Strengthens gross motor skills

• Engages lesser-used muscle groups

• Prevents plagiocephaly (aka flat head syndrome)

• Helps baby master head control

• Alleviates gas pain

• Exposes baby to a different environment

When to Start Tummy Time

At what age should you start tummy time? While there’s no prescription for exactly when to begin practicing tummy time, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends parents get going on it early. In fact, babies born at full term with no health issues can start tummy time as soon as their first day home from the hospital—so long as you and your newborn are both awake and alert, and you or another caregiver are there to supervise.

Don’t be surprised if baby hates tummy time and those initial attempts are met with some resistance. “Babies usually don’t like it and get cranky about it,” says Michael McKenna, MD, a pediatrician at St. Vincent Medical Group in Zionsville, Indiana. “The first time, they might only be down there for a minute before they start screaming. It’s about getting them used to being in that position. You’ll probably have to start with short sessions and work your way up.”

How Long Should Tummy Time Last?

Now that you know when to start tummy time (the sooner, the better!), you may be wondering how long each practice session should last. A little bit of tummy time actually goes a long way. When it comes to newborn tummy time, aim for two to three sessions a day for three to five minutes at a time, ideally after a nap or diaper change and as part of playtime. “You can stop or take breaks in there if your baby is having a tough time,” says Ashanti Woods, MD, a pediatrician at Mercy Family Care Physicians in Baltimore, Maryland.

As baby gets older and begins to enjoy this “workout,” gradually ramp up the number and duration of tummy time sessions. Aim for around 20 to 30 minutes a day of baby tummy time by the time they’re 3 or 4 months old. Remember, it doesn’t have to happen in one long session. Keep the practice up until baby can roll over on their own, a feat many babies accomplish around 6 or 7 months of age. Even then, you may consider keeping tummy time practice a part of your regular routine; it’ll help them as they start learning to crawl.

How To Do Tummy Time

Like most exercises, tummy time is pretty straightforward. Here’s how to get started:

• Set-up a soft, safe space and lay baby down. A blanket or a tummy time mat on a firm, flat surface works well. The floor is an ideal spot, though you can also lay your infant tummy down on your stomach or chest or across your lap.

• If baby doesn’t respond to tummy time on their own, try to engage them. Seeing your face can be incentive enough for baby to try lifting their head from your body, but McKenna warns that sometimes this plan can backfire. A sleep-deprived new parent (read: all of us!) might be tempted to snooze. Or, if you manage to stay awake, baby might not have incentive to lift their head off of your warm body and they could drift off to sleep.

See how it goes and how baby responds to tummy time. You may need to play around with positioning. If, say, baby really can’t handle being on their stomach, consider laying them on their side. This AAP-recommended position has baby on a blanket, laying on their side, with a rolled-up towel behind their back and a rolled-up washcloth under their head for support (if needed). Bring both of baby’s arms in front of them and both legs forward, bending their knees for comfort. Be sure to roll them to the alternating side every 10 to 15 minutes.

Tummy Time Tips

In a perfect world, your infant will push up and move around on their own during tummy time. But chances are, they’ll need some sort of stimulation to stay engaged. Here are some tummy time moves and distraction to try:

Use special tummy time toys. Pull out one or two novel tummy time toys and place them just out of reach, so baby has to extend themselves to grab them. You can also try holding a brightly colored stuffed animal or shaking a rattle near baby’s face to distract them from the task at hand.
Use a mirror. Do you have an unbreakable baby mirror from a playmat or toy? Put this in front of baby’s face. They may enjoy seeing their reflection during tummy time.
Get in on the tummy time action. If your little one isn’t happy about exercising alone, you can join the activity. “Lay down there with your baby,” McKenna suggests. “Move their hands around, have them feel new things, read to them or put down different-colored blankets—something to keep it interesting for baby.” You can also enlist a sibling to help entertain baby.
Use your body. Tummy time on the floor might not be your baby’s thing for a while. If this is the case, you can use your own body as baby’s personal tummy time mat. Place baby across your lap, belly down. Use your hand to rub their back or offer gentle, rhythmic pats. You can also try laying down on your back and placing baby tummy down on your belly.
Try a football hold. Hold baby like a football, balancing their tummy on your arm with their legs and arms on either side. Be sure to support their back and neck with your other hand. This is a good beginner option for babies who resist any and all tummy time.
Prop baby up. If baby doesn’t like being flat on their tummy, you can try propping them with a nursing pillow under their chest at first. This will hopefully get them used to the position, so that you can eventually (and gradually) remove any props. With or without a pillow, remember to always keep an eye on baby while they’re practicing tummy time.

What if baby still hates tummy time? Don’t stress—and don’t give up, Woods advises. “Like many things with children, it’s okay to step back, take a break and come back to tummy time,” he says. “Take a couple of days or a week off, and try again later. You’ll likely see success after you take a breather.” Also consider shortening sessions and spacing tummy time out throughout the day to make the task a little more bearable for baby. A little here and there all add up. “As long as they are doing some [tummy time], it will have some benefit,” McKenna points out.

Incorporating tummy time into your daily routine with baby might feel daunting at first—especially if they fight the activity. Don’t put too much pressure on yourself or your little one right away. Gradually, they’ll get used to this position, and you’ll find a few creative ways to squeeze in some practice.

About the experts:

Michael McKenna, MD, a pediatrician at Ascension Medical Group in Zionsville, Indiana. He earned his medical degree at Indiana University School Of Medicine in St., Indianapolis.

Ashanti Woods, MD, a pediatrician at Mercy Family Care Physicians in Baltimore, Maryland. He earned his medical degree from Howard University College of Medicine in Washington, DC.

Please note: The Bump and the materials and information it contains are not intended to, and do not constitute, medical or other health advice or diagnosis and should not be used as such. You should always consult with a qualified physician or health professional about your specific circumstances.

Plus, more from The Bump:

What You Need to Know About Baby Growth Spurts

When Do Babies Start Talking?

Why Babies Get Clingy—And How to Cope

Puberty of boys - what should be said? | Mamovediya

Maturity is a period in the life of every boy that worries parents a lot. They still remember their own problems at the same age. The stories of acquaintances who are parents of teenagers are not very optimistic. When do guys begin to mature and what are the first signs of this process?

When should puberty start in boys?

The average age at which the first signs of maturation appear in children is 11-12 years, but the presented range is very arbitrary. Physiological development does not depend specifically on age. It is influenced by many factors: heredity, state of health, diet, physical activity of the child, and the like. It is not completely known what exactly influences the onset of maturation. In general, these are genetic features. Mostly, this process in a guy begins at the same age as his father. However, it should be remembered that for everyone the maturation process begins at a different age and has a different course. Signs of maturation, even among brothers, can be completely different.

Signs of maturation in boys

Height

The first sign that indicates the arrival of the maturation period in a boy is an intense increase in height. At this time, a boy can grow 10 -12 cm per year. Get ready to update your wardrobe frequently.

Weight

The boy's physique is changing. He's gaining weight. Testosterone leads to an increase in muscle mass. At this time, the shoulders expand, and the hips remain narrow. The body is gaining a purely masculine appearance.

Feet and palms

Guy's feet and palms are significantly enlarged. It may be that during the year the foot will change by 3-4 sizes and at the end of the season the shoes that you bought earlier will already be tight.

Arms and legs

Guy's growth is accompanied by lengthening of arms and legs. This is usually very inconvenient for teenagers. Limbs suddenly begin to interfere with him. The guy becomes awkward and deeply embarrassed by his new body. Active exercise can alleviate these discomforts.

Face

A boy's face loses its characteristic baby plumpness in adolescence. It becomes thin, the chin and jaw are clearly defined. A shadow of stubble appears on the cheeks, and youthful mustaches appear under the nose.

Acne

Acne is a common complication of puberty in boys. This unpleasant phenomenon occurs due to a storm of hormones raging in the body of a teenager. If there are a lot of acne, then you should consult a specialist.

Voice

The boy's larynx is growing and the vocal cords are lengthening. This process is called mutation. During this period, the voice often annoys the young man, because starting a conversation in a deep, low tone, he unexpectedly ends it with a high, creaky sound.

Body hair

Hair appears all over the body. First, hair grows under the armpits and, as mentioned above, on the face. Subsequently, they are noticeable on the legs, on the arms, on the chest, as well as on the genitals. Hair on the body goes through a transformation from thin hairs to stiff, slightly twisted vegetation.

Puberty

When boys begin to mature, their sexual organs also undergo significant changes.

First comes the so-called prepubertal phase, when the testicles and scrotum are enlarged and the skin color on them changes from pink to dark red. The penis gradually thickens and lengthens. He becomes very sensitive to irritants, erections appear more and more often. They are caused both by situations with sexual overtones, in which the guy becomes more and more interested, and completely random stimuli, such as irritation with the fabric of underwear, tight pants, exercise, etc.

This phase of maturation in boys begins between 11 and 16 years of age (usually at 13 years of age).

Next comes pubertal phase (from Latin - puberty). As the name implies, it is associated with the preparation of the boy's body for reproduction.

At this time, the testicles begin to produce testosterone - the male sex hormone responsible for the production of sperm. This is accompanied by the first ejaculation in the boy's life (sperm eruption), which occurs spontaneously, without the participation of erotic stimuli, especially at night. Night dreams begin. The body of a teenager is preparing for a future sexual life.

Testosterone in the blood of a guy also stimulates sexual desire and to a certain extent affects the development of characteristic male traits, such as courage, courage and even recklessness.

This is the longest phase and lasts for 4 years between 12 and 18 years.

The postpubertal phase is the period in which all changes stabilize and the guy reaches puberty.

Purely male conversation

The previously described changes in the body: growth of hair on the body, acne, voice changes, involuntary ejaculation during sleep - all this is very disturbing, irritating and frightening for the child. And imagine a boy who has no idea about this - no one told him, and he wakes up in the morning wet or has an erection. He's in shock!

Psychologists note cases with adult patients who talk about their maturation: "How much easier life would be if someone talked to me about it." How much less shame, fear, sadness, mixed with aggression, if they knew it was normal and they would be fine.

To avoid unpleasant surprises, tell your 10-year-old son about puberty. Prepare him for the physiological changes that await him. Of course, it's good if this conversation is male (with father, older brother, etc.). A man can give useful advice on how to cope with unpleasant situations, how to choose comfortable underwear, how to properly care for your body. However, not every man knows how to talk with a teenager, and not always there is an adult man in the family (single-parent families). In this case, you can inform the child by giving him a book on physiology or signing him up with a specialist. But in any case, do not neglect this issue.

It is very difficult to make a complete and unambiguous description of the adolescent's sexual formation. Thousands of studies, hundreds of books, try to most accurately characterize this period in human development. At the same time, each child, taking into account a huge number of factors, goes through the stages of maturation in his own way, at his own pace, with individual final indicators. All you can do to help your boy is to accompany him on the journey called Growing Up.

Colic - they pass! - articles from the specialists of the clinic "Mother and Child"

You can't confuse it with anything

A healthy baby has been discharged from the hospital, he is growing and making his loved ones happy. Yes, the baby sometimes cries a little, but what children do not cry! Moreover, over time, mom and dad get used to their new role and gradually understand what their baby needs. Yes, and the reasons for crying are usually simple: the child wants to sleep or, conversely, to communicate, he is cold or hot, in the end, he most often just needs to eat! Later, when colic begins, that crying of the first days and weeks of life will seem to parents only a slight irritation or whims. But mom and dad don’t know this yet and just rejoice at how their son or daughter is gaining weight and gaining strength. And suddenly out of the blue it starts! Usually in the afternoon, a child who was completely calm before that first frowns, wriggles, twists his mouth, grunts, then such a cry is heard that at the first moment especially tremulous parents clutch at their hearts. The baby presses the legs to the stomach, and often beats the air with his hands, his face turns red from crying, and his stomach tenses. And suddenly the child stops. Gone? No, almost immediately everything repeats again. And so at least half an hour in a row, and as a maximum - several hours a day. In the end, the child's strength ends and he falls asleep in exhaustion. Exhausted parents, too. The next day everything starts all over again.

If you are very lucky, then such attacks will last only one or two times per evening for 30 minutes - 1 hour. On average, the attack lasts up to 3 hours. But there is a worse option: every day the strength, duration and frequency of screams will increase, until in the end the child starts screaming every two hours in the morning, and in the afternoon, and in the evening, and at night, of course. It will seem to parents that now this one is forever, but by 3 months babies are miraculously healed, only a few have colic that lasts up to 4-5 months (it’s good that they are already much less pronounced). That's what they are, infantile colic! Well, from the point of view of doctors, colic is just paroxysmal pains in the abdomen, accompanied by pronounced anxiety of the child.

Many years ago it was noticed that there is a certain pattern in the manifestation of colic, the so-called "rule of three" :

Colic often begins by three weeks of age - yes, this is almost always the case.
Lasts an average of about three hours a day - unfortunately, this is only an average.
Usually found in children of the first three months of life - fortunately, this is true.

There is also a positive moment in colic : usually the general condition of the child does not worsen with intestinal colic: the child has a good appetite, he gains weight properly, in the intervals between bouts of colic the baby is cheerful and looks as if nothing had happened. Against the backdrop of an endless ora, parents are already happy with every little thing. And since there are no other symptoms other than crying, then colic is not considered a disease. Doctors call them a functional disorder in the work of the gastrointestinal tract (this means that there is no structural disturbance in it, it’s just that the digestive system is not yet working quite correctly).

Have you read this far and become a little scary?

The best news is that not all children have colic! There are lucky ones who only shrug their shoulders in surprise when asked if their child had colic.

The reason is not established

There is another interesting feature of colic: it is difficult to determine exactly why colic occurs. There are many reasons for this, and each baby may have his own:

The enzymatic system of the gastrointestinal tract is not yet mature. Therefore, the food is not fully digested and too much gas is formed in the intestines, the gases stretch the walls of the intestine, hence the pain.
The intestinal microflora is not yet fully established and changes frequently, again leading to excess gas and pain.
The neuromuscular apparatus of the intestine is also not yet fully mature. As a result, intestinal motility and spasms increase.
The baby swallows too much air during feeding (he is not properly attached to the breast or sucks too greedily). Air stretches the walls of the intestines, which is also painful for many children.
Mom is breastfeeding and eating a lot of dairy products, and the baby is allergic to cow's milk protein. As a result of this allergy, the intestinal wall is damaged. Secondary lactase deficiency occurs, the child lacks the enzyme lactase, which breaks down milk sugar. Sugar ferments in the intestines, there are more and more gases and, as a result, pain occurs.
The baby has an increased sensitivity of the intestinal wall to stretching. The child feels pain that another infant (or adult) will not pay attention to.
If the baby is bottle-fed, then the whole thing may be in the mixture. Most likely, it is not suitable for a child.

Well, if the cause of colic is some one and not very serious. For example, a baby swallows a lot of air during feeding. Then the colic will not be too pronounced. In addition, it is not difficult to eliminate this cause, you just need to adjust the feeding. As a rule, colic is quite tolerable as long as the child has functional immaturity of the gastrointestinal tract (for example, the microflora has not been established or there are few enzymes). The baby cries in the evening, even if for three hours, but 21 hours out of 24 he is quite calm. In the end, when every evening (or three or four times a week) the same scenario is repeated, you already get used to it.

But if there are several causes of colic at once or there is an allergy to cow's milk protein with lactase deficiency, then parents will fully feel what it is like when a child throws a tantrum every two hours.

To make it easier for the pediatrician to figure out what is likely to cause colic, parents should tell them as much as possible about their child. To do this, will have to keep a diary of colic and nutrition of the baby . By the way, some mothers are so addicted to these records that they continue to keep them even when the colic has already passed (just in case). Well, then they get used to the fact that there are no more colic, and calm down.

What should be recorded in the food diary:

When colic occurs: before, during or after feeding, if after feeding, after what time.
How long does colic last.
Is there any rhythm in colic, do they occur at the same time or at different times.
When colic is most pronounced (morning, afternoon, evening).
How a mother feeds a child - breastfeeding or formula. If breastfeeding, then how many milliliters the baby eats in one feeding. Breastfeeding by the hour or free.
If formula is given, what kind, dosage and how often.
What does a mother eat if she is breastfeeding.

What to do about it

Is it necessary to somehow examine a child with colic? Even if the doctor says that the baby has the most common colic, parents will still want to take a lot of tests and ultrasound of the abdominal cavity.

And it is clear that the more a child cries, the more mom and dad want to examine him .

Ultrasound usually shows that everything is in order with the structure of the child's internal organs (immaturity and allergy are not visible on ultrasound). But parents even from this are already calmer. In coprology (fecal analysis), some changes are possible, and in the analysis of feces for carbohydrates (it confirms lactase deficiency), carbohydrates will be increased. Microbiological examination of feces (sowing) does not bring clarity to the picture of colic. The composition of the microflora, and so on, may not yet be fully established, and against the background of increased gas formation, in addition, it will be changed.

So what to do now? As already mentioned, colic disappears with age. Someone will say that you just need to be patient and wait. This, of course, is true, but when the baby cries and screams all the time, it affects the nervous system of everyone around. The situation in the house becomes nervous, the parents calm the baby with their last strength, and the mother also needs to feed the child, and walk with him, and cook food. Dad is also exhausted by endless screams and night vigils, and he is the breadwinner in the family, plus, if driving, he must concentrate on the road. In general, everyone needs rest, which means that colic needs to be dealt with somehow.

Let's say right away that there is no 100% effective treatment for colic: although many ways have been invented to deal with them.

Someone helps one thing, someone else, you will have to try almost all methods:

Proper feeding . If the mother is breastfeeding on demand, then feeding should not become erratic, especially if colic is aggravated during meals or immediately after it. The baby should not swallow air during feeding, so you need to make sure that he completely captures the areola. If the baby is bottle-fed, then the nipple should be age-appropriate (the hole for milk in it should not be very large). You can use special anti-colic bottles - they prevent the swallowing of air during feeding. Before feeding the baby, you can put it on your stomach for 10-15 minutes, this stimulates the intestines. After feeding, the child must be held upright so that he burps the air. But for some reason, colic often occurs even if all these rules are observed.

Heat and massage . For some children, colic is relieved (or relieved) by putting something warm on their stomach or simply taking a warm bath. Someone helps just a diaper folded several times and ironed with an iron. But caring fathers wear someone for hours, attaching to their chest, or simply put the baby on their stomach, but, alas, there is no effect. The same thing happens if you give the baby a light massage of the abdomen in a clockwise direction: it will not help, you can only guess.

Mom's food . Pediatricians often recommend that mom exclude any dairy and sour-milk products (milk, cheese, cottage cheese, yogurt, kefir, ice cream) from her diet. Under the ban are products that, even partially, contain milk: for example, cookies, pastries. Well, women are no strangers to diets, especially since with severe colic in the crumbs, the mother will already agree to everything. Usually after 7-10 days you can see if the diet helps or not. If there are results, then it is most likely that the child is allergic to cow's milk protein and the mother will have to stay on a dairy-free diet for some more time.

Children's herbal teas and products with chamomile, fennel (they relieve intestinal spasm and improve flatulence) - again, they have the most opposite result. But it is better not to give them yourself. Herbs can also be allergic, which will only increase colic. What remedy is better to give (or not to give anything at all), the pediatrician will decide.

Drugs that destroy the walls of the gas bubble . Here, as with other methods, the effect is often temporary and not 100%. After all, these funds only relieve the symptoms, and the cause of gas formation remains.

Enzymes for lactase deficiency . If it is confirmed, then enzymes (lactase) help well. The main thing is that the cause of colic is established correctly.

Motion sickness, wheelchairs and driving . They always rocked children, but it’s just necessary to pump, and not shake the child like a pear. Violent shaking can cause a concussion.

Unconventional products . It sounds strange, of course, but some parents claim that the sound of a vacuum cleaner or a hair dryer calms a screaming baby well.

Another way is to sleep in the fresh air. There are such amazing babies who, for some reason, calm down perfectly in the fresh air in the evening, but as soon as their mother tries to return home, they instantly wake up and raise a cry.