Was the baby born in winter? He will start crawling earlier than a baby born in the summer

Researchers at the University of Haifa: there is a seasonal effect on the onset of crawling and the rate of motor development of babies in their first year of life. Children born in the winter season crawl earlier than children born in the summer season

Babies born in the winter (December-May) start crawling earlier compared to babies born in the summer (June-November) according to a new study conducted by Dr. Esnat Atun-Aini from the Department of Physiotherapy at the University of Haifa, Dr. Dina Cohen, Moran Samuel and Prof. Anat Sher from the Department of Counseling and Human Development at the University of Haifa.

In a study conducted under the guidance of Prof. Anat Sher, 47 healthy babies, with typical development, participated, who were divided into two groups. The first group, "summer-autumn babies" (summer group) included 16 toddlers born between the months of June and November, and the "winter-spring babies" group (winter group), which included 31 toddlers born between the months of December and May. The study included a series of motor observations in the babies' homes at the age of seven months and observations at the beginning of crawling. During the observations, the parents were asked to mark the stages of the baby's motor development. In addition, the study included the use of a standard motor diagnostic tool (AIMS -Alberta Infant Motor Scale), which is used to diagnose the motor development of infants from birth to 18 years old. The tool refers to four positions: lying on the stomach, lying on the back, sitting and standing.

From the findings it became clear that babies born in the winter (and started crawling in the summer) started crawling on average at the age of 30 weeks, while babies born in the summer (and started crawling in the winter) started crawling on average at the age of 35 weeks, when no differences were found between boys and girls in the time of crawling nor in the style of crawling (belly crawling or crawling on 6).

In the study it was found that the total score in the motor diagnosis (AIMS) was higher in the group of winter babies. Similarly, the score on the stomach position scale, a meaningful scale and related to crawling abilities, was significantly higher in the group of winter babies. On the other hand, no significant difference was found in the index for the other three positions: reclining, sitting and standing.

According to the researchers, the research findings strengthen the assumption that there is a window of opportunity for the beginning of crawling and emphasize the effect of the season on the age at which crawling begins.

According to the researchers, the difference found in the timing of the beginning of crawling - 4 weeks which make up 14% of a baby's life between seven months - is significant. They also added that the fact that the motor diagnostic tool also found a similar trend indicates a significant seasonal effect in the Israeli context, even though the Israeli winter is considered a "mild winter". "From an ecological point of view, the season of the year affects the design of the babies' experience in several aspects such as the number of layers of clothing, the opportunities to stay on the floor surface lying on the stomach and the hours of activity and light. Awareness of the seasonal effect is important so that parents provide opportunities for mobility and normal motor development even in the winter season", concluded the researchers.