In 2021, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) no longer considers crawling an official milestone. The main reason is they were unable to accurately determine when 75% of babies should begin crawling. As a pediatric<\/a> physical therapist<\/a><\/strong> for over 20 years, I am outraged over this and could not disagree more.<\/p>\n Through focused and committed research, a range of ages could have been determined. Instead, the lack of commitment and focus resulted in the removal of this important milestone from their checklist.<\/p>\n Another main reason the AAP and CDC removed the crawling milestone is societal change (Back to Sleep program, \u201ccontainer syndrome\u201d, technology). Should we accept this? The answer is clear \u2013 NO!! Physical therapists<\/a><\/strong>, occupational therapists<\/a><\/strong>, developmental specialists, and pediatricians should be outraged, and here is why.<\/p>\n Crawling is not only important but also essential!<\/strong> Babies learn through exploration and what better way to explore than crawling on all fours? Crawling is considered the first type of independent locomotion and is vital for the development<\/a><\/strong> of the vestibular, balance, and sensory systems. The benefits are countless and include, but are in no way limited to:<\/p>\n \n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/blogcontent.summit-education.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/KD-1.png\")
<\/a>Has anything changed in the human body since our inception? People are living longer, yes, but our physiological form has, for the most part, remained intact and unchanged. So why are doctors saying it\u2019s okay if babies skip crawling? Many people may not know but doctors removed crawling off the developmental milestone checklist. When and why did this happen?<\/p>\n\n