A reflex is an automatic motor response that happens as a result of a sensory input. We are all familiar with the reflex that occurs when a doctor or other professional uses a small hammer to tap just below the kneecap: involuntarily, the lower portion of your leg kicks outward.  It’s automatic and impossible to control. 

As infants we are miraculously equipped with a whole host of reflexes that assist in the birth process, breathing, sucking, hearing, vision, and overall motor development. Some of these are lifelong and some, called “primitive or primary reflexes”, begin in the womb and infancy and are supposed to become integrated into our system during infancy and toddlerhood.  An integrated childhood reflex does not spontaneously occur as a result of its sensory trigger and is no longer “active”.   

WHY ARE REFLEXES IMPORTANT? 

• They are foundational to volitional movement.   Like a solid foundation is essential for the structural integrity of a house, they set up the nervous system for optimal development. 

• They begin in the brain stem, which is our center of survival-where our reactions for fight or flight originate.  If a reflex is unintegrated, our brain is continually stimulated and triggered into “survival mode”.  When we are in this state, we are less able to access the areas of our brain that we use for thinking and learning 

• This constant state of fight or flight, contributes to chronic stress 

• Active reflexes make it more difficult for us to move freely and independently, causing poor coordination, poor attention, fidgety behaviors 

WHY WOULD A REFLEX REMAIN UNINTEGRATED? 

• Poor opportunity for movement in infancy.  This can be due to a number of factors: containers, swings, jumpers, car seats, muscle/fascial tension, tongue tie 

• Birth trauma, C-section birth, breech birth,  

• Illness, injury, chronic stress 

 
A FEW KEY CHILDHOOD REFLEXES (list NOT exhaustive!)  

Asymmetrical Tonic Neck Reflex (ATNR) 

• links head and neck movement to one-sided movement (head turn and same side arm/leg extend, opposite flex) 

• Assists in birth process 

• Provides stimulation for developing muscle tone and the vestibular system (the system that helps us know where we are in space and provides for good body awareness) 

• Provides training in hand-eye coordination 

• Sets baby up for volitional rolling 

• If it remains active, can cause significant learning, reading, attention, and balance difficulties 

Spinal Galant Reflex 

• Aids in passage down the birth canal 

• Causes spontaneous lateral bending of the same side of the spine along which the back is touched 

• Helps balance coordination for belly crawling and hands/knees crawling 

• Connected to bladder function 

• Unintegrated: can contribute to bedwetting, poor posture, difficulty sitting still, scoliosis, poor concentration 

Moro Reflex 

• Change in head position causes arms/legs to extend and body to inhale (gasp for air), then move quickly into flexion (or a protective posture) 

• Seen at birth as the baby passes through the vaginal canal 

• Responsible for the first breath 

• Unintegrated: sleep disturbances, easily triggered anger/emotional outbursts, poor balance/coordination, hypersensitivity to light, movement, sounds, touch and smell, difficulty adapting to change 

Symmetrical Tonic Neck Reflex (STNR) 

• Helps baby lift and control the head for far-distance focusing 

• Links head upright movement to movement of arms and legs (arms extend, legs flex) 

• Prepares baby for crawling 

• If unintegrated, up-and-down head movements cause underlying arm and leg movements: squirming/fidgeting; poor posture/slouching, headaches from muscle tension, difficulty writing and reading, vision disorders, trouble staying on task, clumsy/messy eating 

Landau 

• Baby placed in prone (or face down) position and supported in the air, head, back and hips will all extend 

• Breaks up total flexion pattern seen at birth 

• Unintegrated, children may experience short-term memory problems, low muscle tone, poor motor coordination 

If your child has any of the above symptoms of unintegrated reflexes, or if you have a baby who is presenting with difficulties using both sides of his/her body equally, please give our office a call!  Together we can help your child to THRIVE!