With every single baby we hold, check and adjust we are constantly in awe of the openness a newborn has when it comes to the new world around them. As Bruce Lipton PhD states: “...a system in growth is “open” to the environment in order to assimilate those elements that support its vitality and development.” 

In order for any of us to grow, we must be able to assimilate that which supports our vitality and development. That is, we must be open, receptive and able to incorporate what is being received– love, communication, trust, respect, safety and nutrients (to name a few of the most important things). A newborn baby is the exact definition of “open.” And the beauty of a newborn baby is that they do not need to be taught to be open. They already understand, at a subconscious level that “this is good for my growth and development, and that is not” and “my body knows what it needs to regulate itself, if given the opportunity.” For example, we can not, and do not need to, communicate to a newborn baby that they must eat, they are born with innate reflexes that automatically, without thought, prompt this. The innate intelligence that leads to behaviors wise beyond their years (or beyond their days) simply demonstrates the commitment to vitality and development we all start out with as infants.

“...a system in growth is “open” to the environment in order to assimilate those elements that support its vitality and development.”

While a newborn’s brain is only one-quarter the size of an adult’s, it has over 100 billion neurons. Within the first few years of life an infant’s brain is forming more than 1 million new neural connections per second. By age 2, a child has the most neural connections they will ever have in their life. This is the critical period of openness. It is at this point when the brain is figuring out what synaptic connection, what neurological patterning, to keep, nurture and grow and which to “prune.” Unused synaptic connections are eliminated in a dynamic process that includes both experience-driven and spontaneous pruning. Nerves that fire together wire together so the more a synaptic connection is used, the more essential and useful it becomes which means the brain prioritizes it over one that is not. This is the premise of neuroplasticity–the ability of the brain to change.

Nerves that fire together wire together so the more a synaptic connection is used, the more essential and useful it becomes…

The critical period of openness, the first few years of a child’s life, sets the foundation for the health trajectory, learning outcomes and behavioral tendencies for the rest of their life. This is why during the critical period of openness it is vital and most impactful that we support newborns and infants not only nutritionally but physically and emotionally. 

The first few years of a child’s life sets the foundation for the health trajectory, learning outcomes and behavioral tendencies for the rest of their life.

Immune, digestive, respiratory and cardiovascular function and development is guided by the autonomic nervous system. And the development of the autonomic nervous system begins before birth and continues after birth. The autonomic nervous system has 2 synergistic arms (parasympathetic and sympathetic) that work in tandem with each other, informing our bodies when to stay “open” and when to “close”. The parasympathetic nervous system guides growth, development, healing and calmness. The sympathetic nervous system guides protection, alertness, responses to stress and danger. In contrast to being “open”, systems in protection are “closed” to wall-off a toxic or threatening environment (Bruce Lipton PhD). If the autonomic nervous system perceives a toxic or threatening environment or situation we “close.” We see this so clearly with babies when a parent goes out of sight they perceive themselves as being left alone to their own underdeveloped devices because their safety net is gone. This is perceived as a threat to their survival and to their safety. This is why they cry. They enter into a state of protection and alarm. “Since an organism cannot be open and closed at the same time, it means it cannot be in growth and protection at the same time.” (Bruce Lipton PhD) 

And remember, neuroplasticity is the highest in the first few years of a newborn’s life. So if a child learns to be less “open” and more “closed” during the critical period, the pruning of synaptic connections will reflect this. This gets to the core of sympathetic dominance. 

“…We cannot be in growth and protection at the same time.”

Pediatric chiropractic uses the experience-based approach to restore balance to the “open” and “close” states of a baby’s nervous system. This is the beauty of the critical period after birth–we have openness on our side. Gentle and specific adjustments during the critical period of openness re-establishes and reinforces communication, support and safety to the child’s system, all of which are required for vitality and development. And this is the beauty of pediatric chiropractic.

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