Chapter Nine

• Amniotic fluid


  The fluid surrounding the embryo/foetus that protects the unborn baby
• Antenatal care


  The medical care given to pregnant women before their babies are born
• Blastocyst


  A thin-walled hollow structure consisting of a cluster of cells making up an outer cell mass that becomes the placenta, and an inner cell mass that becomes the embryo
• Cell differentiation


  When cells take on specialised roles
• Cephalocaudal development


  Development that occurs from the head downwards
• Chromosomes


  Strands of DNA that contain genetic information
• Developmental milestone


  The average age at which a child achieves skills such as crawling or standing or saying its first word
• Embryo


  Cell mass from approximately the second to the eighth week after fertilisation
• Emotional needs


  The need to feel loved and wanted by caregivers
• Emotional support


  The feeling that others understand your needs and will try to help you
• Endometrium


  The nutrient-rich lining of the uterine wall in which the ovum (blastocyst) embeds or that is expelled every month if pregnancy does not occur
• Epigenetics


  The study of how behaviors and environment can cause changes that affect the way genes work
• Epigenome


  Set of instructions that decides which bits of your DNA are activated, or which genes are switched on or off
• Fertilisation


  The fusing of a sperm and an egg cell, marking the beginning of pregnancy, also known as conception
• Fertility


  The natural capability to produce offspring
• Foetal alcohol spectrum disorder


  Describes a range of features seen in babies who have been exposed to alcohol while in the womb
• Gamete


  Sex cell, i.e. ovum or sperm
• Genes


  The blueprint of the body that controls growth, development and how the body functions
• Genome


  An individual's complete set of DNA
• Implantation


  When a cluster of cells that will become an embryo attaches itself to the endometrium
• Intellectual needs


  Knowledge, understanding, curiosity and search for meaning
• Intergenerational


  The health and wellbeing of one generation affects the health and wellbeing of the next
• Low birthweight


  Weighing less than 2500 grams at birth
• Morula


  A solid ball of cells created from a zygote
• Needs


  Things we must have to survive, such as food, water, and safety
• Neural tube defect


  Failure of the neural tube to close during the development of the embryo, resulting in conditions such as spina bifida
• Object permanence


  An awareness that objects continue to exist even when they are out of sight
• Organogenesis


  The formation of organs
• Parenting


  The process of promoting the physical, emotional, social, and intellectual development and health and wellbeing of a child from birth to adulthood
• Physical needs


  The need for food, air, water, activity, rest and physical safety
• Placenta


  An organ that allows the transfer of nutrients, gases and wastes between mother and foetus
• Protective factor


  Something that enhances the likelihood of a positive health and wellbeing outcome and lessens the likelihood of negative health and wellbeing outcomes from exposure to risk
• Proximodistal development


  Development that occurs from the core or centre of the body outwards towards the extremities
• Regenerate


  To regrow to replace damaged, old or dead cells or tissue
• Responsibility


  Being answerable or accountable for something within one's control
• Risk factor


  Something that increases the likelihood of developing disease or injury
• Sanctions


  Rewards or punishments imposed to encourage appropriate behaviour
• Social needs


  The need for belonging, self-worth and the respect of others
• Social support


  Informal or practical assistance from relatives, friends, neighbours or the community
• Socialisation


  The process by which an individual learns to live according to the expectations of a group or society