Why do babies become flexible?

Babies are born with around 300 bones. That’s 94 more than adults have. For a baby to be born, the whole skeleton has to be squashy, so many of the bones are joined with flexible cartilage. After birth, those bones start to fuse together, a process that doesn’t stop until young adulthood.

Why are newborns so much more flexible than adults?

The process of bone development is called ossification. It actually begins around the eighth week of embryonic development — pretty incredible! Even so, at birth, many of your baby’s bones are made entirely of cartilage, a type of connective tissue that is tough, but flexible.

Why are younger kids more flexible?

Children are also more flexible than adults. Some children have a slow growth spurt, while others grow so fast they need a speeding ticket. Essentially, their bones are growing more quickly than their muscles and tendons can stretch to keep up.

Why are kids naturally flexible?

Why are kids more flexible? There are many factors to this flexibility. When kids are very young, a contributing factor is that many of their bones are made of a flexible cartilage that is softer than bone, rather than bone itself. Don’t worry about that one – the bones will harden naturally over time!

Are babies supposed to be flexible?

Children, whose muscles stretch more easily than those of adults, tend to be fairly flexible. As anyone who has played with an infant knows, babies are astonishingly flexible and are able to stretch their bodies in ways that seem impossible to adults.

Are babies bones bendable?

An adult’s bones are harder, more brittle and more likely to break than bend. A child’s bones are more flexible because their chemical composition is different from that of adult bones. This means a kid’s bone might bend or “bow” instead of breaking.

Are babies born flexible?

When babies are first born, some of their “bones” are actually made up of a flexible cartilage (a firm tissue softer than bone). As the child grows, some of the cartilage hardens and turns to bone, and some bones fuse together. Your child’s bones won’t stop growing until her late teens or early 20s.

Are babies extra flexible?

There are a number of ‘markers’ that might indicate your child has joint hyper-mobility, remembering that almost all babies will have very flexible joints in the ankles, wrists and fingers, and therefore usually not a cause for concern.

Are babies very flexible?

When we are babies we are very flexible–which is perfectly normal–and this flexibility usually reduces as we age. Some children as are also “double-jointed” but if there is no pain associated with this, then there is no issue.

Why are children’s bones more flexible than adults?

A child’s bones are more flexible because their chemical composition is different from that of adult bones. This means a kid’s bone might bend or “bow” instead of breaking. Bent bones can actually be harder to treat than broken bones, but pediatric orthopedic specialists are trained to treat this type of bone injury, too.

Why can’t adults gain flexibility like kids?

Kids bones are partially cartilage. As they reach maturity, the bones harden up. Adults can improve flexibility but cannot re-gain their “kid-like” flexibility. At 11, I could lay on my belly and close my eyes with my toes. At 13 I couldn’t even get within 18 inches of doing that.

Why are some people more flexible than others?

If you mean mentally flexible, it can be because adults have learned more, and might have trouble coping with the unusual or uncommon, while children , might not know what the ‘usual’ is, yet. An example is a reaction to an unusual name. My first junior school, was a new one.

Is your child’s flexibility slowing down?

But as usual, many good things must come to an end or just slow down. During the rapid growth of puberty, kids often become temporarily less flexible than they were prior to puberty. Let me paint a visual for you here. Some children have a slow growth spurt, while others grow so fast they need a speeding ticket.