As a pediatric occupational therapist I have a few soap boxes that I step onto frequently and one of them in particular is putting babies on their tummies as they are lying on the floor (or another firm surface) while supervised. Many parents do place their infants in this position, but some do not. And even the ones who do place their babies to ly on their tummy, it is often not done for long enough. This article has some good suggestions on tummy time strategies:
Tummy Time for Baby | Articles | Babies Today
Because so many of the babies I work with have endured medical problems including heart surgery, I have to be creative in helping to build the infant's endurace for the tummy time position. Sometimes it has to start with the baby lying on top of the parents chest as the parent lies back in a reclining chair at a 45 degree angle. Other times it is just as simple as getting down on the floor and talking to the baby or shaking a rattle near them to distract them from the disliked position. Whatever the strategy, it needs to be done on a regular basis (daily) or the child will not become tolerant. Unfortunately, when tummy time is not emphasized the child is at risk to be delayed with rolling over, crawling, and sitting skills. I even see older toddlers and preschoolers who have delayed fine motor skills with drawing and manipulating small toys because they don't have the upper body strength...yet had they got in tummy time they may have had stronger shoulder girdles to support fine motor control in the fingers. :(
Sunday, December 12, 2010
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