Major Physical Changes in Physical and Cognitive Development in Early Childhood

Question:
What are the major physical changes in the early childhood? You notice that the child next-to-your-door is overweight. What will you talk to his parents?

Answer:

At the ages 3 - 6 year olds, the child grows more slowly than before, but still grwos at a fast pace. The child will make more progress in muscle development and coordination. At 3 year olds, the child will lose his/her 'baby fat' and become more slender and athletic. With the head still relatively large, other parts of the body starts to 'catch up.' The child will grow an estimated 2 to 3 inches a year, gaining around 4 to 6 pounds per year. At the same time, cartilage turns to bone at a faster rate, hence, bones become harder. There will also be increased capacity of the respiratory and circulatory systems, with the immune system developing. At 3 years old,he/she will have all primary teeth in place while 6 years old will develop permanent teeth.

If I have a chance to talk to his parents, I will probably ask whether too much fat has been consumed by the child. If so, would advise that the consumption of fat be reduced.


Answer 2:
Overweight children in HK? Absolutely! I have lived in HK for 14 years and I can see a 'huge' difference (pardon the word choice). Kids are bigger. I think we can thank the west for that...McDonalds culture. Sad but true. It is cheap, hot, fast and easy. I also think, I know we talked about play before, but I think kids don't have time for regular sporting activities, to burn those calories off. For many it is a sedentary life.

Answer 3:
From my experience in HK, it isn't uncommon to have someone say, "wow you are getting fat" or "you gained some weight." In the west, we may think it but wouldn't say it unless we were really really close to that person, and even then (although it may be true) we wouldn't say it. So for me, I wouldn't say anything. However, I would be more inclined to invite them for a swim or invite them to join us for some physical activities.

Also, didn't we read girls have more fatty tissue and boys more muscle tissue.


Answer 4:
There is a big cultural difference between the East and West in what we perceive as socially appropriate comments to others. I personally would not directly make comment on how fat a kid gets. It is not only rude in my opinion, but it will affect children's self esteem as they are being criticized on they physical features.

Instead I will talk to the parents about the importance of keeping their kids' weight in check. However it is a deep-rooted Chinese culture that fat babies/ kids is good omen. It originates from many years back when only rich families can afford good, nutritious food thus being fat is a symbol of your wealth. On the contrary, being thin is a symbol of peasantry, because only kids of farmers will need to work everyday, thus have more muscles than fat. You will be surprised how some parents nowadays still hold this value.


Question for thought:
Do parents really think that it is a good thing for their 10 year old to be heavy?