Child Adolescent

• Genes

  Can either be dominant or recessive, meaning they can either be expressed or hidden
• Fetal Stage

  1. When the organism is about 9 weeks old, the embryo is called a fetus

  2. Development milestones at different weeks of gestation
• Stages of Prenatal Development

  1. Germinal Stage

  2. Embryonic Stage

  3. Fetal Stage
• Environmental impacts on prenatal development

  • Alcohol
  • Prescription and/or Illegal Drugs
  • Nicotine
  • Smoking
• Embryonic Stage

  1. The zygote travels down the fallopian tube and implants itself in the lining of the uterus and is then called an embryo

  2. Blood vessels grow and form the placenta which is connected to the uterus that provides nourishment and nutrition

  3. Layers: ectoderm, mesoderm, endoderm
• Genetics play a particularly important role in prenatal development
• Chromosomes


  Genetic materials that determine many things about a person, such as eye and hair color, biological sex, and personality traits
• Environmental impacts on prenatal development
• Germinal Stage


  1. Conception occurs when a sperm fertilizes an egg and forms a zygote

  2. Father's and mother's DNA are passed on during the moment of conception

  3. Mitosis happens as the cells rapidly divide and multiply
• Before birth, a fetus has limited opportunity to be shaped by its environment, beyond factors such as the mother’s diet, substance use, and anxiety level
• Any type of drug, whether illegal, prescription, or over-the-counter, can be dangerous during pregnancy
• Maternal Health Factors

  • Maternal infections
  • Nutrition
  • Age
  • High anxiety and stress
• Girls develop earlier than boys during adolescence
• Puberty can occur earlier than normal due to hormones released, known as Central Precocious Puberty
• Physical growth is still gradual and steady but a little slower than the previous stage in preschoolers
• In puberty, another growth spurt occurs in preschoolers
• Prescription and/or Illegal Drugs


  • Nicotine travels through the placenta to the fetus
  • Smoking by the mother leads to a reduction in blood oxygen levels in the developing baby
• Weight of a full-term newborn is around 5 to 9 pounds
• Physical growth of a newborn is very fast, with the birthweight tripling by the 12th month
• Teething begins by six months in infants
• Tooth formation is already in progress at birth and permanent teeth are also developing
• Teenagers go through drastic physical, cognitive, and emotional changes, with both genetic and environmental factors involved in the timing
• Puberty usually occurs in girls between ages 10 and 14 and between ages 12 and 16 in boys, with both genetic and environmental factors involved in the timing
• Bone development continues in toddlers
• Paternal Factors


  • Abnormalities in the sperm can lead to miscarriage
• Many infants would have six teeth by age one
• Physical growth levels off into a more gradual and steadier rate until puberty in toddlers
• All 20 primary teeth have appeared by two years of age in toddlers
• Environmental Hazards


  • Radiation in job sites
  • X-rays
  • Environmental pollutants
  • Toxic wastes
• A stressed mother is more likely to engage in behaviors that could negatively affect the fetus
• Proximodistal Growth


  Trunk and shoulders develop first and then the arms, fingers, and toes
• Cephalocaudal Growth


  Head starts to grow at a very rapid rate immediately followed by conception, followed by the trunk, and arms and legs
• Height or length of a full-term newborn is around 20 inches