The increase in the size and

the weight of the child is not

due to the development of
the bones, muscles, or fatty
tissue alone, but it is also
due to the growing of
different internal organs,
connected with respiration,
circulation, and digestion.
 
• Respiratory System
The lungs at birth are small, as
may be seen by the fact that the
chest circumference at that age
is smaller than the head
circumference.
Throughout the adolescent
years, the lungs increase in
volume and weight.
• Circulatory System
The heart at birth is higher in the
chest, more horizontal in position,
heavier and larger than at any other
time in life. The heart at birth is
small.
Changes in the heart and blood
vessels throughout the years of
growth result in changes in blood
pressure, pulse rate, and body
temperature.
• The blood pressure in childhood is low
but it increases at puberty due to the
increase in the ratio of heart volume to
the size of the aorta.
The pulse rate ranges between 120 and
140 in the early ages of life as
contrasted with the normal rate of 72 in
adults. At birth, the pulse rate of girls is
higher than the boys. But as they grow
the reverse is true.
Among young children, body
temperature is variable. It is usually
lower in the early morning than in the
afternoon.
•
Digestive System
Baby’s stomach is tubular in shape,
lies transversely in the body. That is
why food empties quickly. The
adult’s stomach is baglike in shape,
the food empties slowly.
Metabolism is more rapid in children
than in adults.
• Good health in childhood is essential
not only to normal growth but also to
normal activity. Once a child has
poor health, this affects his physical
growth and his mental growth.
• Illness that leaves a damaging
effect on the child’s body likewise
leaves scars on his personality.
Good Health
Characteristics of a healthy child:
Mucous membranes, especially of
the lips, are definitely pink.
• Facial expression is happy, often
radiant.
Smiling is frequent.
Eyes are bright and responsive.
Skin is smooth and elastic.
Limbs are rounded, because of
sufficient subcutaneous fat.
• Muscles are well formed and their
tonus is good.
The stance is well balanced, erect and
graceful.
The limb muscles are almost straight.
The spine is erect.
The shoulder girdles do not drop.
The archers of the feet are well formed.
Movements of the limbs and body in
walking and running are characterized
by elasticity, vigor and poise.
• Periods of Susceptibility
Susceptibility to disease is marked from
three to six or eight years of age.
Common causes of death during the
first year of life:
A: Respiratory Illness
B: Gastro-intestinal disturbances
Common causes of death among
children of school age:
A: Cardiovascular diseases
B: Cancer
• Common Childhood Illnesses
Some common childhood illnesses
are:
Colds and upper respiratory
infections are most common at all
ages.
Measles and chicken pox are
common in the elementary school
years.
Allergic reactions such as milk rash,
• Diseased tonsils and adenoids are
frequent in childhood.
Girls have more diseases than boys.
First-born children do not have more
diseases than do the later-born
children, but the first-born children
suffer more from gastro-intestinal
upsets, feeding disorders, constipation,
stomach disorders, allergies and
asthma due to the tensions of
overanxious parents.
• Imaginary Illness
Children at sometime or another
complain of “not Felling well” as an
escape from some unpleasant duty or
to avoid punishment they justly
deserve.
Effects of Illness
The effect of illnesses on children
depends upon the severity, the length,
and the nature of the illness.
• Effects of illness:
Loss of weight
Decline in growth in height
Modification in the growth of bones
Scars appear on the bones, and the
rates of growth both in size and
maturity of the skeleton may be
affected
• Deformities of the bones usually
follow rickets and poliomyelitis
The muscles lose some of their tone,
become flabby, and are easily
fatigued
• Diseased tonsils and malnutrition
have the most pronounced effect on
school work
Illness may be the starting point for
behavior difficulties and personality
disturbances
• Personality changes follow diseases
where there is secondary
involvement of the central nervous
system, such as pneumonia, malaria,
pernicious anemia, diabetes, or
poliomyelitis
Children suffering from asthma show
fears of separation from their
mothers
Unfavorable social attitudes and the