Child development in the 20th month after birth

The article is professionally consulted by Resident Doctor, Doctor Nguyen Hung Tien - Resident Doctor of Pediatrics - Neonatology - Department of Pediatrics - Neonatology - Vinmec Hai Phong International General Hospital

20-month-old babies are becoming smarter and more alert than before. At this age, children also undergo many physical, cognitive and psychological changes. Learn about the changes in a 20-month-old baby that will help the process of caring for your baby better.

A 20-month-old baby will sleep an average of about 13 hours a day in total. Children will take a long night sleep of 11 to 12 hours and a nap in the afternoon from 1 to 2 hours.

At the age of 20 months, in addition to three main meals a day, you should give your baby a few healthy snacks. This is the time for mothers to supplement nutrition for children with new foods in their diets such as cheese, unsweetened rice cakes, slices of fruit (such as apples, bananas or pears), tomatoes Carrots or cucumbers are good complementary foods and are beneficial for the development of children.
At this age, children should not drink too many soft drinks, especially carbonated soft drinks.
In addition, it is also necessary to create a happy eating time for children to help them eat better and eat more. In particular, children should not be forced to eat, because if they are forced to eat too much, they will create a fear of eating for children.

According to the standards of the World Health Organization, the average height and weight of a 20-month-old baby for a girl should be 82.7cm, 10.6kg and 84.2cm; 11.3 kg for boys.
20 months old can walk and run alone, can climb stairs (although he may not be able to climb down). Some children can dance and can undress with help from an adult.

Your child can understand simple instructions or commands from you; for example, “Pick up your toys” or “Go to sleep”. However, some children do not follow their mother's orders, or prefer to do the opposite. And don't be surprised if your child sometimes cries, screams, and refuses to do what you want. Instead of being frustrated, stay calm with your child.

Reading, looking at pictures and assigning things in books or pictures will be good for the child's development. This will encourage the child to speak. For example, say “where is the dog in this picture” and have the child respond while pointing at it.
20 months is also a good time for you to teach your baby manners, like teaching him to say thank you, which helps build a cognitive foundation for him.
You can also teach your child to count and he will imitate it if repeated many times. But babies can only understand numbers correctly until they are about 30 months old.
About 90% of a child's brain develops during the first 5 years of life. Create for your little one a living environment full of music, colors and fun activities interwoven that can teach them to count. Play and teach your baby something new and interesting every day. These things are really beneficial for the child's development later on.
Children in the first years of life are often at high risk of diseases, especially neurological diseases, high fever leading to convulsions; or there are signs that the child is slow to speak, slow to move. Therefore, parents observe and monitor the child's health so that they can provide necessary information to the doctor. Take your child to the doctor for regular check-ups to detect some possible diseases early and treat them properly.

Children 20 months old need 5mg of elemental zinc/day to eat well, reach the correct height and weight and exceed the standard. Zinc plays a role in affecting most biological processes taking place in the body, especially the breakdown of nucleic acids, proteins... Organs in the body when zinc deficiency can lead to a There are a number of diseases such as neurological disorders, irritability, etc. Therefore, parents need to learn about the role of zinc and guide them to appropriate zinc supplements for their children.
In addition to zinc, parents also need to supplement their children with other important vitamins and minerals such as lysine, chromium, B vitamins,... errands.
Please regularly visit Vinmec.com website and update useful information to take care of your baby and family.

Reference source: emmasdiary.co