A Baby's Brain Development - What You Can Do to Help it Along

A baby's brain development starts prenatally. However, by the time the baby is born he will have around 100 billion brain cells. In order to meet the basic requirements for sustaining life the baby's brain will have a small selection of connections between these brain cells when she is born. These connections create circuits that program the baby's brain for doing things like breathing, eating and for organ function. Beyond these basic functions the brain is still basically just a blank circuit board that needs to be programmed.

Prenatal Nutrition

Prenatal nutrition for baby's brain development is critical. In order to develop a healthy brain that will be able to grow and mature once the baby is born, your developing baby needs a lot of nutrients. This is why it is important to avoid substances like alcohol, caffeine and junk food while you are pregnant. It is also why it is important to take a prenatal vitamin and to eat nutritious foods while you are pregnant. Without proper nutrition your baby's brain development could be impaired significantly.

Consistency and Baby's Brain Development

Consistency is important for the week by week development of your baby's brain. The brain quickly makes brain cell connections as the baby has new experiences. However, in order to cut down on the number of circuits that exist in a baby's brain it systematically eliminates those connections that are not used consistently. This is why it is important to provide your baby with consistent love and attention during their first few years of life and why it is important that your baby receives quality care by you and by other caregivers. If there is a consistency problem related to these basic needs then the baby can develop long-term attachment issues and their brain development can be stunted.

Get Rid of Stress

Stress is not good for anyone, but it can be detrimental to your baby's brain development. Stress is known to slow a baby's brain development so you need to reduce the amount of stress that is in their environment. Baby stress relates primarily to safety concerns and emotional harmony in the home. You can create a stress-less environment for your baby by babyproofing your home, by providing for their basic needs and by being affectionate and caring towards the baby.

Stimulating Baby's Brain Development

While some brain connections are going to form with or without your intervention, there are things that you can do to improve your baby's brain development. For example, you can stimulate language brain connections by interacting with your baby verbally. Reading to your baby, talking with them and singing for them are all great ways to stimulate the language center of your baby's brain. These activities can be done while you are still pregnant with your baby and they can be done when the baby has been born. The more verbal interactions your baby has the more language center brain connections will develop and the more language center brain connections will be preserved.

References

http://www.essortment.com/all/braindevelopmen_rtwl.htm

http://www.fcs.uga.edu/pubs/current/FACS01-1.html