What reflex causes the babies to turn their head towards the check being touched and open their mouths wide?

Reviewed by: Mary L. Gavin, MD

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Babies are born with newborn reflexes. These are involuntary movements that are a normal part of infant development. For example, if you put your finger in your newborn's hand, the baby will take hold of it.

How Is My Baby Moving?

Newborn reflexes show up soon after birth. They include:

• Rooting and sucking reflex. This reflex helps a newborn get nourishment. Rooting prompts an infant to automatically turn in the direction of a food source, whether that's a breast or a bottle. You can see this response if you gently stroke your newborn's cheek near their mouth with your hand. Your infant will turn in that direction, mouth open, ready to suck. When a breast or a bottle nipple is placed in the baby's mouth, the baby will reflexively begin to suck.
• Moro reflex. Your baby’s startle response is called the Moro reflex. A baby who is startled (for example, by a loud noise) or abruptly moved may respond by throwing out their arms and legs and curling them in again.
• Grasp reflex. Your baby will show a grasp reflex by taking hold of your finger when you place it in their palm. If you touch the sole of your newborn's foot, it will flex and the toes will curl.
• The tonic neck reflex. Also called the fencer's pose, this happens when a newborn's head is turned to one side. The infant automatically straightens the arm on that side of the body while bending the opposite arm.

These early reflexes gradually disappear as babies mature, usually by the time they are 3–6 months old.

How Can I Encourage My Baby?

Give your baby space to stretch and move the arms and legs. Let your baby get some tummy time when awake and alert to help strengthen back and neck muscles. Always stay with your baby during tummy time.

As your baby grows, these reflexes will become less noticeable and more purposeful movements will develop.

When Should I Call the Doctor?

The doctor will check newborn reflexes as part of your baby's routine checkups, making sure they're the same on both sides, and taking note of when they disappear. Be sure to tell your doctor if you have any questions or concerns about your baby's movements.

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Reflexes are involuntary movements or actions. Some movements are spontaneous, occurring as part of the baby's usual activity. Others are responses to certain actions. Reflexes help identify normal brain and nerve activity. Some reflexes occur only in specific periods of development. The following are some of the normal reflexes seen in newborn babies:

This reflex begins when the corner of the baby's mouth is stroked or touched. The baby will turn his or her head and open his or her mouth to follow and "root" in the direction of the stroking. This helps the baby find the breast or bottle to begin feeding.

Rooting helps the baby become ready to suck. When the roof of the baby's mouth is touched, the baby will begin to suck. This reflex does not begin until about the 32nd week of pregnancy and is not fully developed until about 36 weeks. Premature babies may have a weak or immature sucking ability because of this. Babies also have a hand-to-mouth reflex that goes with rooting and sucking and may suck on fingers or hands.

The Moro reflex is often called a startle reflex because it usually occurs when a baby is startled by a loud sound or movement. In response to the sound, the baby throws back his or her head, extends out the arms and legs, cries, then pulls the arms and legs back in. A baby's own cry can startle him or her and trigger this reflex. This reflex lasts about 5 to 6 months.

When a baby's head is turned to one side, the arm on that side stretches out and the opposite arm bends up at the elbow. This is often called the "fencing" position. The tonic neck reflex lasts about 6 to 7 months.

Stroking the palm of a baby's hand causes the baby to close his or her fingers in a grasp. The grasp reflex lasts until about 5 to 6 months of age.

When the sole of the foot is firmly stroked, the big toe bends back toward the top of the foot and the other toes fan out. This is a normal reflex up to about 2 years of age.

This reflex is also called the walking or dance reflex because a baby appears to take steps or dance when held upright with his or her feet touching a solid surface.

Introduction[edit | edit source]

The rooting reflex is an innate response of the head due to the stimulation of the face, mouth, or cheek by touching/stroking (the head is turned towards the side of the stimulus).[1] It is a brainstem mediated primitive motor reflex also called the frontal release reflex.

This reflex has also been observed in the apes and other mammals.[1]

The presence of the Rooting reflex has also been linked to altriciality-meaning that the newborns are unable to feed themselves (unable to source for food) with the help of locomotion. Therefore in response, the caregiver feeds the young one taking the reflex as a cue.[2]

Stimulus[edit | edit source]

The reflex commences when the corner of an infant’s mouth is stimulated by touching/stroking. [3]

Response[edit | edit source]

The newborn will turn their head towards the stimulus(finger or nipple) and open the mouth wide with tongue thrusting (tongue sits too forward in the mouth).[3]

Duration[edit | edit source]

The rooting reflex is present at birth (around 28 weeks of gestation) and disintegrates about 4 to 6 months (until the frontal lobe of the cerebral cortex matures.)[3]

[4]

The healthcare provider strokes the corner of the mouth of the baby and the infant turns their head towards the stimulated side. For eg., if the right side of the corner of the mouth is stimulated then the baby turns its head to the right side.

Difference between Sucking and Rooting Reflex[edit | edit source]

• It's critical to differentiate between the rooting reflex and the sucking reflex, as the latter is also involved in the nourishment intake of the infant. [5]
• The major difference in both reflexes is that the rooting reflex occurs when the corner of a baby’s mouth is stimulated, while the sucking reflex initiates when the roof of their mouth is stimulated.[5]
• The sucking reflex is usually observed around 30 to 35 weeks and is in charge of the regulation of breathing with the swallowing mechanism, which starts to emerge around 37 weeks[5]

Clinical Significance[edit | edit source]

• The reflex is impertinent for the survival and growth of the babies, as it helps the newborn find the origin of food (either nipple or bottle) and also initiates breastfeeding.[6]
• If the rooting reflex is preserved beyond the disintegration time, the infant may have excessive salivation and a tongue that sits too forward in the mouth(tongue thrusting). The child will struggle to perform swallowing and chewing functions because of the dysfunctional tongue. Other clinical symptoms include hypotonic or hypertonic muscle tone, asymmetric posture and gait, and delayed developmental milestones.[7] [8][9]
• The trigeminal cranial nerve , which helps in the sensation of the face, is also involved in the functioning of the rooting reflex. An infant with an intact trigeminal nerve will have a normal response but if the infant has nerve dysfunction, there is no response observed.[3]
• Rooting reflexes are observed in adult patients with frontal lobe pathology. They often present with other primitive reflexes that are normally disintegrated due to maturation of the frontal lobe of the cerebral cortex. [3]
• It's also considered a sign of hunger in babies.[6]
• If the infant is forced-fed during crying then the rooting reflex might get disturbed.[10]

References[edit | edit source]

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Kreutzer J. In F.-A.-S. Test, Kreutzer JS, DeLuca J, Caplan B. eds. Encyclopedia of clinical neuropsychology. New York, NY ; Heidelberg : Springer, 2011.
2. ↑ Dunsworth HM, Warrener AG, Deacon T, Ellison PT, Pontzer H. Metabolic hypothesis for human altriciality. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 2012 Sep 18;109(38):15212-6.
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Yoo H, Mihaila DM. Rooting Reflex. InStatPearls [Internet] 2021 May 1. StatPearls Publishing.
4. ↑ betapicts. Baby Rooting Reflex / Reaction. Available from //www.youtube.com/watch?v=b0CLcNtOOEQ&t=9s
5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Sohn M, Ahn Y, Lee S. Assessment of primitive reflexes in high-risk newborns. Journal of clinical medicine research. 2011 Dec;3(6):285.
6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Glodowski KR, Thompson RH, Martel L. The rooting reflex as an infant feeding cue. Journal of applied behavior analysis. 2019 Feb;52(1):17-27.
7. ↑ Agarwal A, Verma I. Cerebral palsy in children: An overview. Journal of clinical orthopaedics and trauma. 2012 Dec 1;3(2):77-81.
8. ↑ Panteliadis CP, Hagel C, Karch D, Heinemann K. Cerebral palsy: a lifelong challenge asks for early intervention. The open neurology journal. 2015;9:45.
9. ↑ Chinello A, Di Gangi V, Valenza E. Persistent primary reflexes affect motor acts: Potential implications for autism spectrum disorder. Research in developmental disabilities. 2018 Dec 1;83:287-95.
10. ↑ Widström AM, Thingström‐Paulsson J. The position of the tongue during rooting reflexes elicited in newborn infants before the first suckle. Acta paediatrica. 1993 Mar;82(3):281-3.