Bayo Ajibola

7 Reasons Why Movement And Physical Activities Is Good For Your Baby

Children usually start off as bundles of joy and they progress into well, bundles. Carrying them around becomes quite a task and you simply can’t wait for them to begin crawling and then walking so that they can give your arms and back a break. Once this stage begins you somehow can’t seem to catch them because their little feet are always pattering away with excitement.

Times are changing and technology is creating a gadget and an application for everything! You are more likely to find a child seated in front of a screen hammering away at a game pad than outside rolling in the mud and that qualifies as play time. Toddlers are left to entertain themselves with cartoons and while some of these may be educational they will not add anything in terms of physical activity.

Humans are built for movement from the word go and this need is seen even in babies once they learn how to walk. They just cannot get satisfied with the tiny steps they make so they make them count for something by covering longer distances. Movement and physical activities add so much value to the body and it is not just about muscles.

Emotional and mental health

All kinds of physical activity have been found to increase the production of norepinephrine, serotonin and dopamine. These are neurotransmitters that facilitate the movement and processing of thoughts and emotions. Exercise therefore has an effect on a human being’s emotional and mental state.

Brain function

It is a well known fact that exercise aids in the pumping of blood. As blood is pumped throughout the body it gets to the brain as well. Proper blood circulation provides enough oxygen for the brain to function properly and more efficiently.

Brain development

It takes a lot of repeated activity to form behaviors and learn new things. The brain develops with newer activities and when a child only gets to experience minimal activity their cerebellum risks being underdeveloped. This may lead to readingdifficulties and attention issues.

Self control

Apart from video games and cartoons, other gadgets like walkers, prams and high chairs may keep children from moving about. They only leave these contraptions when someone chooses to remove them so they are not really given the chance to learn how to make choices. They will continue sitting there even if they are tired and this dampens their ability to regulate or control themselves which may lead to inappropriate behavior and restlessness that may be seen in preschoolers.

Proper posture

The human body continues to grow constantly and children experience a lot of this growth. The spine is ideally designed to keep the body upright and support its weight but most of the devices used on children do not encourage this. You may find that children do not sit upright and this affects how their spine grows.

This may cause children to have bad posture and constant backaches when they are as young as in primary school. This is not healthy at all.

Learning ability

Children move a lot and parents sometimes need a break. This however does not mean that you get your child on a high chair just to get some rest or because you do not want the extra work. Children gain so much knowledge from playing and moving about and you will realize that active children tend to grasp things faster.

A child’s learning ability is improved as they discover new things and practice what they already know. Letting your child roam around the house alone may just be what your child needs.


There are so many cute baby shoes on the market, aren’t there? This however does not mean that you should get your little princess shoes as soon as she can stand up. Feet have a certain sensitivity that connects them to the brain. Whenever a child walks barefoot they keep their head up for longer because they know what is going on under their feet from what they feel. This reduces the need to look down and looking down may interfere with their balance and lead to falling.

Bayo Ajibola



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