WEDNESDAY, Aug. 14, 2002 (HealthDayNews) -- When it comes to reaching for something they want, babies jump feet first into the task -- literally.
That's the conclusion of University of Delaware researcher J. Cole Galloway, who has studied the movements of more than three dozen babies. He was surprised to discover that long before they try to grasp objects with their hands, babies reach with their feet.
"Legs may be even easier for babies to control than their arms because the hip is a very solid joint," Galloway suggests.
The notion that babies purposefully reach with their legs runs contrary to what scientists have long believed about babies' development. It's commonly thought that infants' bodies develop in sequence from the head down, so the arms and hands should be reaching for objects first.
Galloway was studying how infants go from random arm flapping and kicking to learning how to purposefully reach for an object when several mothers commented that it seemed like their babies were reaching with their feet.
Intrigued by that idea, Galloway initially studied six babies from the time they were eight to 10 weeks old until they started reaching for objects with their arms. All of the babies reached for and made contact with toys using their feet an average of four weeks before they started doing so with their arms.
He repeated this study several times, putting different babies in different positions or in different environments, such as the home or a laboratory. In all, he says, he studied about 40 babies, and found most were reaching with their feet long before they started using their arms.
He says this work could have a lot of implications for infant rehabilitation.
Reaching is a significant milestone in newborn development, but it isn't until around six months that babies are considered developmentally delayed if they're not reaching, Galloway explains. So, he says, if a problem with reaching behavior could be picked up four weeks earlier, therapy could be started sooner.
Dr. Andrew Mezey, vice chairman of research in the department of pediatrics at Maimonides Medical Center in Brooklyn, N.Y., says this is an interesting observation, but he wonders if it is truly a relevant milestone in infant development.
"It may be a helpful sign," Mezey says. "But, is [feet reaching] a better indicator than some of the other developmental clues used to determine if a child is a target?"
For example, he says that at three months -- around the time Galloway observed feet reaching -- pediatricians check to see that infants have developed the visual acuity to look at their hands and feet. He says if a baby isn't looking at that age, he or she likely won't be reaching at four months.
Galloway has presented his findings at several child development conferences. The most recent was at the International Society for Infant Studies biennial conference in Toronto.
Galloway says parents should provide their infants with all kinds of opportunities to explore their world, but they don't need to spend a lot of money doing so, or worry if they're providing the "right" opportunities. What's really important, he says, is to have fun with your baby.
What To Do
For more information on infant motor skills, visit the Children's Hospital in Richmond, Va., or ZeroToThree.org.
