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Baby at birth: his archaic reflexes
Automatic walking
When you lift baby by the armpits and lean him slightly forward, he stands up then starts to walk, one foot in front of the other, on the sole if it is full term and on the tip if it is premature. Theoretically, he could even go up and down stairs! This archaic reflex lasts until around 3 months, a survival of the quadrupedal walk where the doctor’s hand replaces the legs.
Moro’s reflex
The pediatrician triggers the Moro reflex by subjecting the baby to stress. The newborn, arms outstretched, will then fully open his hands, then close both arms and both hands in a gripping motion. It is the survival of the faculty that the baby had on his back, on the ground, to cling instantly to his mother when she fled from danger.
Grasping
Grasping is also a gripping reflex, by which the newborn firmly and involuntarily grasps the finger that you place in the palm of your hand or in your toes.
Crawling
When he is on his stomach, his arms stretched back, baby has the reflex to extend one arm sideways, then the other. If the doctor blocks his feet, he begins to move forward with his arms and legs, like a lizard. It is the crawling reflex.
Lateral tilt of the trunk
If the pediatrician draws a line with his fingernail along the back or flank, the newborn tilts the trunk and pelvis sideways to the same side : it is the reflex of the fish, which thus progresses in the water by beating the tail.
Automatic suction
It is the only one of the infant’s primary reflexes that does not disappear. The doctor places a finger on the corner of the lips or on the chin and, normally, the baby turns his head with his mouth wide open, trying to suck: orientation, sucking and swallowing are essential to his survival.