Infant Brain Growth Stages.
A baby in the womb starts maturing its brain from the development of special stem cells. All encompassing stem cells are unique, since they provide the power to turn into any cell type that we need in the body, like skin cells, bone cells, brain cells or blood cells. The majority of brain cells or neurons that are maturing in pregnancy period will stay with us throughout our entire life, unique to any other cell type in the body.
A baby in the womb of a few weeks or a month is maturing 500,000 brain cells or neurons every minute or so! These maturing brain cells or neurons take their appropriate spot in the brain by connecting with of supplementary cell types referred to as glia cells. From the fourth month forward the cells or neurons will start creating bonds to different cells or neurons. They do this at a astonishing capacity of 2,000,000 bonds each second. This linking of the cells or neurons adheres to a genetic plan, passed down from mother and father, and their predecessors.
At about the sixth or seventh month of fetal development the pruning starts. In this time the brain will begin cutting off some bonds, while enhancing others. This work seems to be to make sure that only the strongest continue to function, since the cells or neurons that comprise the very first bond will survive while the cells that were supposed to establish the same bond, but didn’t get the job done, will cease to exist. As with evolution, only the strong survive.
At the end of pregnancy a baby’s brain is smaller than 1 pound, about 33% of the weight of the fully developed brain. Imagining a component of the brain no bigger than a single grain of rice, it consists of approximately 10 thousand cells or neurons. After the infant is birthed the five senses will begin maturing, of which eyesight will be the latest.
Of the entire maturation of the brain, four fifths will take place after the end of pregnancy. In addition, the cleaning up of bonds, will now occur due to information from the world as opposed to solely a genetic plan. Clinical groups have discovered that when a infant receives constant information tied to a movement to perform something new, like producing a verbal sound, it will learn quicker than when no cue is given.
Following when the infant is born it will make use of roughly three quarters of the energy it takes in for the maturation of the brain. This demonstrates why infants are typically resting in these beginning stages, due to all of the energy they ingest is reserved for the maturation of the brain and rest of the body.
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