Physical Development and Health in Early Childhood

Physical development and health in early childhood (Insert name) (Institutional affiliation) Physical development and health in early childhood Introduction Studies have shown that experiences in the early years of life are significant in the child physical and health development and also learning. The way in which a child develops at this stage influences future social, emotional, cognitive and physical development which affects school performance and success in later life. Early childhood is the age between the time a child is born up to 6 years of age and this is the time that there is evidence of tremendous development. During this stage, a child passes through 2 stages i.e. infancy and toddlerhood and they are the ones that make up early childhood (Young, 2003). To ensure that there is development in a child and that he/she is attaining optimal health, it is obligatory to know what normal child development is and what influences and affects child development. When parents understand this, they are then able to know if the child might be in need of any physical assistance or any treatment to ensure healthy development. However, in this stage, parents should be very keen in observing the development in their children to ensure that the child grows in the right way because, if a problem is not detected in early childhood, it will be carried on up to later years in the life of the child. Petrie & Holloway (2006) are of the view that children who have parenst who are not serious in parenting usually have challenges in their development and some problems that they suffer from, are problems which would have been addressed earlier and treatment sought. Therefore, this paper seeks to examine the physical, emotional, and other skills that a child develops in early years of life and the role of parents in ensuring the health of the child is okay. Physical development and health in early childhood According to (Barnett & Belfield, 2006), during this stage, the major physical development is development in gross motor skills. These include the physical skills that requires exercise of muscles e.g. rolling over, head lifting and taking a step. A child requires a lot of calories during this stage. However, a child does not always keep balance of his/her body due to the fact that the body is still developing. There is a difference in physical development of both boys and girls in that a girl maintains more fats in their bodies while boys increase their muscles. As they grow, there is increase in balance and posture which results to motor coordination. On the other hand, sleep is a factor that contributes to growth in early childhood (Young, 2003). Thus, children should be encouraged to sleep most of the time to enhance growth. In addition, the brain develops to 90% by the age of three years (Barnett & Belfield, 2006). This is the period in which children attain developmental milestones which comprises language development, motor skills and motional attachment and regulation. On the other hand, if a child experiences stress from the surrounding at this stage, his/her brain can be affected and this will in turn interfere with physical, emotional and cognitive development (Barnett & Belfield, 2006). However, healthy growth of the children is influenced by healthy lifestyles. Young (2003) maintains that Parents should encourage their children to get enough exercise and eat a diet that is balanced so that they can develop strong bones and muscles in order to keep up a healthy weight. To ensure that they are healthy, they should be taken for check ups regularly so that they can be checked for abnormalities. Moreover, at this age, healthy lifestyle should be emphasized to prevent child from developing conditions e.g. obesity and diabetes which are the main conditions that are affecting many children at their early ages (Young, 2003). Diabetes results from obesity and it is only by children taking balanced diet that all these problems can be avoided. In addition, when a child is overweight, he/she will be bullied by his/her colleagues in school and this will affect his/her performance in school due to low esteem. It may also cause mental problems due to depression as the child will always be admiring to belike the other children hence, will not be able to accept his/her situation as it is (Young, 2003). Moreover, during this stage of development, a child continues to increase their repertoire of physica...