Baby Brain Development

An article written by a renowned chiropractor at Neurohealth Chiropractic clinic in Northern Beaches, Manly has explained why there is effects on brain development when a baby has plagiocephaly (flat head syndrome). In light of the recent developments in brain research that is being published in prestigious journals like Pediatrics and Craniofacial Surgery, it is becoming now clear that we are starting to get great insight into how the brain (most immature of the organs at birth), continues to grow and develop after birth.

When born, a baby’s brain is immature and its brainstem is what is responsible for a baby’s survival. Primitive Reflexes, sleep wake cycles, control of digestive system and regulation of heart and breathing is all governed from the brainstem. These systems give us a window into how well the brainstem is functioning and how well the higher levels of the brain are going to develop.

An important study by Speltz and Collett, published in 2010 concluded that ‘deformational plagiocephaly seems to be associated with early neurodevelopmental disadvantage, which is most evident in motor functions’. This was followed up with their most recent study, which was published this year in July that stated ‘Toddlers with deformational plagiocephaly continue to exhibit developmental delays relative to toddlers without deformational plagiocephaly’.

It can be shown in the article, that flat head syndrome does not only fix the beauty of a babies head but it also ensures that they have healthy brain development.