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Infant and Toddler Health
Learn about infant and toddler health
Babies are a joy. They can also be a little overwhelming at times. When is a fever something to worry about? What's the difference between colic and normal crying? What immunizations does your toddler need? Our topics can help you find the answers to these and other common parenting questions.
Get help making decisions or find how-to tips in our Growth and Development topics and topics such as:
- Abdominal Pain, Age 11 and Younger
- Abuse: Signs of Abuse-Related Injuries
- Abusive Head Trauma
- Acetaminophen Use in Young Children
- Amblyopia
- Ashkenazi Jewish Genetic Panel (AJGP)
- Asthma in Children
- Asthma: Overuse of Quick-Relief Medicines
- Autism and Vaccines
- Babies and Older Adults Have an Increased Risk of Cold Injury
- Baby's Daily Needs: What to Expect
- Baby's Sleep Position and Sudden Infant Death Syndrome
- Barking Coughs in Children
- Basic Dental Care
- Basic Dental Care From Birth to 16 Years
- Belly (Abdominal) Gas in Babies
- Birthmarks
- Biting
- Blocked Tear Ducts
- Bonding With Your Baby
- Bonding With Your Newborn
- Bottle-Feeding
- Bottle-Feeding: Disadvantages for Babies
- Bottle-Feeding: Weaning a Baby
- Bottle-Feeding: When Baby Doesn't Want to Stop
- Bowel Movements in Babies
- Breastfeeding
- Breastfeeding a Sick Baby
- Breastfeeding After a C-Section
- Breastfeeding After Breast Surgery
- Breastfeeding and Your Milk Supply
- Breastfeeding at Work
- Breastfeeding During Pregnancy
- Breastfeeding Multiple Infants
- Breastfeeding Positions
- Breastfeeding When You Have Diabetes
- Breastfeeding Your Newborn and an Older Child
- Breastfeeding: Baby's Poor Weight Gain
- Breastfeeding: Choosing a Breast Pump
- Breastfeeding: How to Use a Breast Pump
- Breastfeeding: Tobacco, Alcohol, and Drugs
- Breastfeeding: Using Medicines Safely
- Breastfeeding: Waking Your Baby
- Breastfeeding: Weaning a Baby
- Breastfeeding: When Baby Doesn't Want to Stop
- Breath-Holding Spells
- Breath-Holding Spells: Keeping a Record
- Bronchiolitis
- Brushing and Flossing a Child's Teeth
- Burping a Baby
- Caring for a Baby's Nails
- Caring for More Than One Baby
- Cataracts in Children
- Cerebral Palsy
- Chickenpox (Varicella)
- Chickenpox: Preventing Skin Infections
- Child Abuse and Neglect
- Child Car Seats
- Child Safety: Air Pollution
- Child Safety: Bathing
- Child Safety: Bicycles and Tricycles
- Child Safety: Drowning Prevention in Pools and Hot Tubs
- Child Safety: Guns and Firearms
- Child Safety: Pets
- Child Safety: Preventing Burns
- Child Safety: Preventing Drowning
- Child Safety: Preventing Falls
- Child Safety: Streets and Motor Vehicles
- Child Safety: Strollers and Shopping Carts
- Child Safety: Washing Toys to Prevent Germs
- Childhood Immunization Record
- Childhood Immunization Schedule: Ages 0 to 6 Years
- Children's Growth Chart
- Choking Rescue for Babies
- Choking Rescue Procedure: Heimlich Maneuver
- Choosing Baby Bottles and Nipples
- Choosing Child Care
- Chronic Lung Disease in Infants
- Circumcision
- Cleaning Your Young Child's Natural (Uncircumcised) Penis
- Cleft Lip
- Cleft Palate
- Cleft Palate: Feeding Your Baby
- Clubfoot
- Cognitive Development, Ages 1 to 12 Months
- Cognitive Development, Ages 12 to 24 Months
- Cognitive Growth in Newborns
- Colds
- Colic
- Colic Diary
- Colic: Harmful Treatments
- Combining Breastfeeding and Bottle-Feeding
- Common Types of Birthmarks
- Complications of Ear Infections
- Congenital Heart Disease in Children
- Congenital Hydrocele
- Congenital Hydrocephalus
- Congenital Syphilis
- Congenital Torticollis
- Constipation in Children
- Constipation, Age 11 and Younger
- Coping Strategies to Avoid Harming a Baby
- Corporal Punishment
- Cough Symptoms in Children
- Coughs, Age 11 and Younger
- COVID-19 Vaccine for Children
- Cow's Milk Protein Allergy in Babies
- Cradle Cap
- Craniosynostosis
- Crib Safety
- Croup
- Crying Child and Possible Abuse
- Crying Child Who Is Not Acting Normally
- Crying, Age 3 and Younger
- Crying: Helping a Tired or Overstimulated Child
- Cup-Feeding Baby With Breast Milk or Formula
- Cystic Fibrosis
- Dealing With Emergencies
- Dehydration: Drinking Enough Fluids (Babies and Young Children)
- Dental Checkups for Children and Adults
- Developmental Dysplasia of the Hip
- Developmental Problems: Testing
- Diaper Rash
- Diarrhea, Age 11 and Younger
- Diet, Breastfeeding, and Colic
- Domestic Violence
- Down Syndrome
- Down Syndrome, Ages 1 Month to 1 Year
- Down Syndrome, Ages 1 to 5
- Down Syndrome, Ages Birth to 1 Month
- Down Syndrome: Helping Your Child Eat Independently
- Down Syndrome: Helping Your Child Learn to Communicate
- Down Syndrome: Helping Your Child Learn to Walk and Use Other Motor Skills
- Drug Withdrawal in Newborns (Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome)
- DTaP (Diphtheria, Tetanus, Pertussis) Vaccine: What You Need to Know
- Ear Infections
- Ear Problems and Injuries, Age 11 and Younger
- Ear Tube Surgery
- Ebola Vaccine: What You Need to Know
- Eczema (Atopic Dermatitis)
- Emotional and Social Development, Ages 1 to 12 Months
- Emotional and Social Development, Ages 12 to 24 Months
- Emotional and Social Growth in Newborns
- Enterovirus D68 (EV-D68)
- Evaluating Pain in a Child
- Failure to Thrive
- Feeding Schedule for Babies
- Feeding Your Child Using Division of Responsibility
- Feeding Your Premature Infant
- Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD)
- Fever or Chills, Age 11 and Younger
- Fever Seizures
- Fever Temperatures: Accuracy and Comparison
- Fifth Disease
- Gastroesophageal Reflux in Babies and Children
- Genetics
- Goniotomy for Childhood Glaucoma
- Group B Streptococcal Infections in Newborns
- Growing Pains
- Growth and Development Milestones
- Growth and Development, Ages 1 to 12 Months
- Growth and Development, Ages 12 to 24 Months
- Growth and Development, Ages 2 to 5 Years
- Growth and Development, Newborn
- Gynecomastia
- Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) Vaccine: What You Need to Know
- Hand-Foot-and-Mouth Disease
- Head Injuries in Children: Problems to Watch For
- Head Injury, Age 3 and Younger
- Health and Safety, Ages 2 to 5 Years
- Health and Safety, Birth to 2 Years
- Health Screening: Finding Health Problems Early
- Healthy Eating for Children
- Healthy Habits for Kids
- Hearing Loss in Babies, Ages 4 to 6 Months
- Hearing Loss in Babies, Ages 7 Months to 1 Year
- Hearing Loss in Babies, Newborn to Age 3 Months
- Hearing Loss in Children, Ages 1 to 2 Years
- Hearing Loss in Children, Ages 2 to 4 Years
- Heat Rash
- Heatstroke Prevention: What to Wear
- Helping Children During Immunizations
- Helping Your Newborn Learn
- High Blood Pressure in Children and Teens
- Hip Injuries, Age 11 and Younger
- Hip Problems, Age 11 and Younger
- Hirschsprung Disease
- HIV Treatment in Children
- Home Ear Examination
- Hospital Policies and Breastfeeding
- How Asthma Develops in Children
- How Reading Helps Language Development
- Hypospadias
- Ibuprofen Use in Young Children
- Immunization Schedules
- Immunizations for Premature Infants
- Immunizations That May Cause Fever
- Immunizations: Questions Parents Ask
- Impetigo
- Importance of Immunizations
- Infant Crying
- Infant Formulas
- Infant Massage
- Infantile Spasms (West Syndrome)
- Introducing Foods to Your Baby
- Intussusception
- Iron Toxicity
- Jaundice in Newborns (Hyperbilirubinemia)
- Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis
- Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: Inflammatory Eye Disease
- Kawasaki Disease
- Kernicterus
- Language Development Between 12 and 24 Months of Age
- Language Development in Newborns
- Lead Poisoning
- Managing Your Toddler's Frustrating Behaviors
- Measles (Rubeola)
- Meningitis
- Meningococcal ACWY Vaccine: What You Need to Know
- Milestones for 2-Year-Olds
- Milestones for 3-Year-Olds
- Milestones for a 1-Year-Old
- Milestones for an 18-Month-Old Child
- MMR Vaccine (Measles, Mumps, and Rubella): What You Need to Know
- MMRV Vaccine (Measles, Mumps, Rubella, and Varicella): What You Need to Know
- Molluscum Contagiosum
- Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C)
- Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy (MSBP)
- Nausea and Vomiting, Age 11 and Younger
- Necrotizing Enterocolitis
- Nephrotic Syndrome
- Newborn Rashes and Skin Conditions
- NICU: Communicating With the Staff
- Nightmares and Other Sleep Problems in Children
- Nipple Shields for Breastfeeding Problems
- Nursemaid's Elbow
- Object Stuck in a Child's Airway
- Oral Rehydration Solutions for Children
- Orchiopexy for Undescended Testicle
- Orthopedic Surgery for Cerebral Palsy
- Overfeeding a Baby
- Pediatric Preparation for Medical Tests
- Phenylketonuria (PKU)
- Physical Development, Ages 1 to 12 Months
- Physical Development, Ages 12 to 24 Months
- Physical Growth in Newborns
- Playground Safety
- Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine: What You Need to Know
- Polio Vaccine: What You Need to Know
- Positional Plagiocephaly (Flattened Head)
- Premature (Preterm) Infant
- Premature Infant: Safe Travel With Your Baby
- Preventing Breath-Holding Spells in Children
- Preventing Choking
- Preventing Tooth Decay in Young Children
- Protecting Your Child From Infections
- Pyloric Stenosis
- Quick Tips: Babyproofing Your Home
- Quick Tips: Getting Baby to Sleep
- Quick Tips: Helping Children Take Medicine
- Quick Tips: Safely Giving Over-the-Counter Medicines to Children
- Quick Tips: Successful Breastfeeding
- Rash, Age 11 and Younger
- Recurrent Abdominal Pain (RAP)
- Recurrent Ear Infections and Persistent Effusion
- Reducing Biting in Teething Babies
- Respiratory Problems, Age 11 and Younger
- Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) Infection
- Reye Syndrome
- Roseola
- Rotavirus
- Rotavirus Vaccine: What You Need to Know
- Rubber Bulbs
- Safe Water for Mixing Infant Formula
- Safety Plan: Preparing to Leave a Violent Relationship
- Screening for Hearing Problems
- Sensory and Motor Development, Ages 1 to 12 Months
- Sensory and Motor Development, Ages 12 to 24 Months
- Sensory and Motor Growth in Newborns
- Separation Anxiety: Helping Your Child
- Sickle Cell Disease: Splenic Sequestration
- Signs That Your Baby Is Getting Enough to Eat
- Speech and Language Delays: Common Misconceptions
- Speech and Language Development
- Speech and Language Development: Helping Your 1- to 2-Year-Old
- Speech and Language Development: Signs of Possible Problems
- Speech and Language Milestones, Ages 1 to 3 Years
- Speech and Language Milestones, Ages 3 to 5 Years
- Speech and Language Milestones, Birth to 1 Year
- Spina Bifida
- Spitting Up
- Sponge Bath for a Child's Fever
- Staying Safe: After You Leave a Violent Relationship
- Stimulate Your Baby's Learning
- Storing Breast Milk
- Strabismus
- Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS)
- Swallowed Air
- Swallowed Button Disc Battery, Magnet, or Object With Lead
- Taking Care of Yourself When Your Baby Is Fussy
- Tay-Sachs Disease
- Teething
- Teething Products
- Teething: Common Concerns
- Temper Tantrums
- Temper Tantrums: Keeping a Record
- Thinking About Child Safety
- Thrush
- Thumb-Sucking
- Thumb-Sucking Versus Pacifier Use
- Toilet Training
- Toilet Training: Knowing When Your Child Is Ready
- Tongue-Tie
- Tooth Development in Children
- Trabeculotomy for Childhood Glaucoma
- Treating Asthma in Babies and Younger Children
- Type 1 Diabetes in Children
- Umbilical Cord Care
- Umbilical Hernia in Children
- Undescended Testicle
- Urinary Problems and Injuries, Age 11 and Younger
- Urinary Symptoms After an Injury in Children
- Urinary Tract Infections in Children
- Using Vaporizers and Humidifiers
- Vaccine Information Statements
- Vaccine Safety
- Varicella (Chickenpox) Vaccine: What You Need to Know
- Vital Signs in Children
- Ways to Comfort a Baby in the Hospital
- Ways to Comfort a Crying Baby
- Weaning
- Weaning: Signs That Baby Is Ready
- Well-Child Visits
- What to Expect When You Have an Extremely Premature Infant
- Whooping Cough (Pertussis)
- Your Child and the Dentist
- Your Child's First Vaccines: What You Need to Know
- Your Toddler: Nutritious Meals for Picky Eaters
- Your Toddler: Safe Ways to Explore
- Amblyopia: Wearing an Eye Patch
- Breastfeeding: Planning Ahead
- Breathing Problems: Helping a Child Use a Metered-Dose Inhaler and Mask Spacer
- Croup: Managing a Croup Attack
- Cystic Fibrosis: Helping Your Child Cough Up Mucus
- Feeding Your Infant
- Nutrition While Breastfeeding
- Preventing Choking in Small Children
- Preventing Poisoning in Young Children
- Sibling Rivalry: Reducing Conflict and Jealousy
- Sleep: Helping Your Children—and Yourself—Sleep Well
- Stress Management: Helping Your Child With Stress
Current as of: October 24, 2023
Author: Healthwise Staff
Clinical Review Board
All Healthwise education is reviewed by a team that includes physicians, nurses, advanced practitioners, registered dieticians, and other healthcare professionals.