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Links:     •  Self Test                 •  Print Ready Version                  •  Chapter Index		The Play Years: Biosocial Development - Body Changes -

Ψ  Changes in Body Size & Proportions
 
 •  2 to 3 inches in height & about 5 pounds in weight are added each year.
  •  Child gradually becomes thinner.
   •  Girls retain somewhat more body fat, boys are slightly more muscular.
    •  Posture and balance improve, resulting in gains in motor coordination.
     •  By the end of the preschool years, children start to lose their primary teeth.
      •  Physical growth is an asynchronous process: different body systems have
          their own timed patterns of maturation.
        •  The brain continues to grow, increasing from 70% of its adult weight at age 2
             to 90% by age 6.
          •  An average child in a developed nation at age 6 weights around 46 Lbs.

Ψ A typical 6 year old:
 
•  Is at least 31/2 feet tall.
  •  Weights between 40 & 50 Lbs.
    •  Looks Lean, not chubby.
      •  Has adult like body proportions (legs constitute about half the total height).

Ψ  Three Major Factors that influence growth are:
 
      •  Genetic Background
        •  Health Care
          •  Nutrition

Ψ  The most common diet deficiencies of preschoolers in developed nations is an insufficient intake of iron, zinc & calcium. Sugar causes tooth decay, the most common disease of young children in developed nations.

Ψ  Many young children are quite compulsive about daily routines. This Just-right phase peaks at age 3, when children:

Ψ  Most, if not all, children exhibit these normal age-dependent obsessive compulsive behaviors, which are usually gone by middle childhood (age 6).

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Lifespan Growth & Development Robert C. Gates