Spring for newborns

Spring at the newborn on the head, despite its poetic name, does not flow anywhere and does not rumble. Its purpose is quite different. First, it helps the baby to be born. The neonatal rodney makes the skull bones mobile, and the head is easier to pass through the birth canal. Then it helps the baby's head to grow.

In fact, the fontanel in newborns is not one - there are two. The first is large. He is in the place where later frontal and parietal bone converge . It is also called the parietal fontanel. Its shape resembles a rhombus. The other - the size of a smaller one resembles a triangle, it is located on the back of the head. There will have to meet the parietal and occipital bones.

If we talk about when the fontanel is closed at the nape of the nape of the head, then we can note that by the fourth month of the baby's life, the bones have hardened and almost completely closed. The dark one is still quite noticeable. Pediatricians call the age of 12-15 months in the meantime, when the fontanelle grows between the parietal and frontal bones of the baby. Nature is not without purpose leaves it for children for quite a long time. The fact is that in the first year of life the baby's brain actively develops, and the fontanels and some other, almost imperceptible intervals between the skull bones allow the brain to grow. Spring is not allocated on the surface of the head, its edges are not at all sharp and moderately elastic. The side of the rhombus (the shape of the fontanelle) is from one centimeter of seven millimeters to two and a half centimeters. If you decide to measure the fontanel of your baby and find that the sides are not exactly the same in length, do not worry - it is difficult to find this gentle place in newborns of ideal shape. Reduction of the parietal fontanelle is approximately two and a half millimeters on each side.

It can also happen that a three-month-old baby has the size of a small fontanel - only 1x1 cm. It turns out that the body is in a hurry to close this window. The causes of this lie inside the infant organism. Most likely, mother, being still pregnant, took too many vitamins, preparations with calcium, very often ate cottage cheese. So she involuntarily set the acceleration of the organism of her baby. That's why you need to consult your doctor more often during pregnancy, and not only about taking various vitamins, but also about eating in general. However, if a child develops mentally in accordance with age, and does not have rickets, the rapid closure of the fontanel should not alarm the parents. Simply enough to talk to the pediatrician. He will propose to stop the measures for the prevention of rickets - the intake of vitamin D and calcium and advise to postpone the introduction of the cottage cheese in the child's diet.

But if there are noticeable delays in development (ie, in two and a half months the baby does not yet hold the head, but at four, lying on the tummy, does not lean on the elbows, can not turn over and back) - by no means Postpone visiting a neurologist, otherwise you can skip the onset of a serious illness.

Sometimes on the contrary - the fontanel does not hurry to close by the due date. If the baby is three months old, and the area of its fontanel is much larger than 1.5x2 centimeters, it is worthwhile to be on the alert. Perhaps this is a sign of rickets. Address to the pediatrist.

In the first months of life you can you can track the development of crumbs, watching the fontanel. If it is tense and pulsing, bulging - you need to turn to a neurologist, because, most likely, intracranial pressure in a child is increased. If the rhomb is visibly involved, then the body is dehydrated. It happens when a baby breaks and has diarrhea, and after that everything comes back to normal.

Parents should not be afraid to damage the fontanel font, you can brush your baby's hair without fear of harm.