Immediately after the birth of a child, they are tested at the Apgar school - they check for innate reflexes, heart rate, skin condition and color, breathing, muscle tone. This test allows you to judge the physical development of the child and his nervous system.
A score below 6 points means that the child is weak and requires special care. The highest score is 10 points - the child is healthy. In more detail, the mother can check all the reflexes of the newborn herself. In the absence of any reflex, it is necessary to tell the doctor about this during the examination.
The Babinsky reflex manifests itself in the following: if you hold along the outer edge of the foot, the toes spread out.
Babkin's reflex is checked by pressing on the child's palm. In this case, he turns his head and opens his mouth.
The grasping reflex is expressed in the fact that the child firmly squeezes the finger placed in his hands.
The Moro reflex acts when the child is frightened: with a sharp loud sound, he throws his arms and legs to the sides.
The search reflex is important for the child. If you stroke the baby's cheek, then he turns his head towards the stroked cheek (this reflex can be used to help the newborn find the breast). Immediately after this, the sucking reflex turns on - the child finds the breast and grabs the nipple with his mouth, sucks actively, but with little breaks.
The swimming reflex appears when the newborn lies on his tummy, makes swimming movements with his arms and legs.
The walking reflex is manifested if you put the child slightly on his feet and tilt a little forward - the baby moves his legs, as if walking.
The tonic cervical reflex is expressed as follows, if the head is turned to the right, the right arm and leg are straightened, then the left hand is clenched, like the left leg.
The withdrawal reflex occurs when stroking and tickling the upper part of the body, while the baby's legs are pulled back, because it is a defensive reaction.
Thanks to innate reflexes, the infant is adapted to the beginning of life. Over time, by the end of the first year of life, almost all reflexes fade away. This suggests that the baby is developing correctly - the simplest reflexes are replaced by deliberate actions.
