Infant: Difference between revisions

Infants are [[Precociality and altriciality|altricial]] and are fully dependent on their mothers or an adult caretaker for an extended period of time.<ref>https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8455097/#:~:text=Human%20infants%20are%20altricial%2C%20born,an%20extended%20period%20of%20time.</ref> [[Breastfeeding]] is the recommended method of feeding by all major infant health organizations.<ref name="AAP_Policy">{{cite journal |vauthors=Gartner LM, Morton J, Lawrence RA, Naylor AJ, O'Hare D, Schanler RJ, Eidelman AI | title = Breastfeeding and the Use of Human Milk | journal = Pediatrics | volume = 115 | issue = 2 | pages = 496–506 | date = February 2005 | pmid = 15687461 | doi = 10.1542/peds.2004-2491 | doi-access = free }}</ref> If breastfeeding is not possible or desired, bottle feeding is done with expressed breast-milk or with [[infant formula]]. Infants are born with a sucking reflex allowing them to extract the milk from the [[nipple]]s of the breasts or the nipple of the [[baby bottle]], as well as an instinctive behavior known as ''rooting'' with which they seek out the nipple. Sometimes a [[wet nurse]] is hired to feed the infant, although this is rare, especially in developed countries.