7 Month Old Baby Development Milestones

Now that your baby is into his seventh month, this is the time he is really starting to come into his own. So let’s take a look at 7 month old baby development milestones.

In this article:

  1. Physical Development Milestones
  2. Cognitive Development Milestones
  3. Social & Emotional Milestones
  4. Communication Milestones
  5. Teething Milestones
  6. Eating/Feeding Milestones
  7. Advanced Skills
  8. Baby Care for Your Seven Month Old
  9. What You Can Do As Parents?
  10. When to Be Concerned?

Physical Development Milestones

  1. Your baby starts kicking arms and legs rapidly and intentionally.
  2. Pick’s up small toys and moves around with them.

Cognitive Development Milestones

  1. Your little one starts developing memories of events.
  2. Is much sharper now and can recollect from his memory. For instance, if he is unable to find any of his favourite toys, he will go search the places where you hid them in the recent past.

Social & Emotional Milestones

  1. Starts developing personality traits including likes and dislikes.
  2. Cries when he sees other children crying.
  3. Pays attention to loud noises and sounds and reacts with surprise, fear or worry.

Communication Milestones

  1. Makes gurgling sounds often.
  2. Changes the tone of his voice to imitate questions and declarations.
  3. Starts asking or even demanding attention with a sense of purpose.
  4. Says ‘mama’ and ‘dada’ regularly, apart from the many cute little sounds he usually makes.

Teething Milestones

  1. Your baby will drool more than he did earlier.
  2. New teeth emerging from the gums may be visible. The pain and discomfort caused may make him cranky.
  3. May not sleep well at night due to changes in sleep pattern.

Eating/Feeding Milestones

  1. Will get fussier about food in general.
  2. Your baby will have an increased appetite and eat most of the solids you introduce to his diet.

Advanced Skills

  1. Your little one will be able to pull himself up and hold upright with support.
  2. If your baby has already taken first efforts to crawl during the previous weeks, he may start crawling by now.
  3. When you’re holding him by his chest, he may prefer to stand and bounce as much as possible rather than sitting quietly or being cuddled. While this may pain your arms, it can do a lot of good to strengthen his fast developing leg muscles.
  4. As part of the developing motor skills, the Pincer Grip in particular, he will use his thumb and index finger to try and pick up tiny things as little as peas and sweet corn.

Baby Care for Your Seven Month Old

  1. Introduce him to new foods with different tastes and textures.
  2. Take efforts to get better at distracting him with a game or activity whenever he throws a tantrum.
  3. Let your baby crawl as often as he wants to. Maintain general floor hygiene but don’t become too obsessed with it, as crawling and moving around on different surfaces is exactly what helps him build immunity.

What You Can Do as Parents?

  1. Keep certain items out of reach, like medicines, cosmetics, cleaning items and plastic bags/covers.
  2. Introduce and teach him how to drink from a cup.
  3. Talk and sing to your little one more often.
  4. Read from story books with bright and colourful pictures.
  5. Playing peek-a-boo as many times as you can.
  6. Take conscious efforts to let other members of the family babysit once in a while for an hour or two (while you meet and catch up with your friends). This will make him get used to being in the company of others and makes a difference in the long run.

When to Be Concerned?

  1. Doesn’t roll over on either side by now.
  2. If he develops rashes or is in pain due to the emerging tooth/teeth.
  3. Is lethargic in his movements.
  4. If he has very irregular sleep cycles.

There is no special or magic date when you will feel ready to leave your little one for an hour or two while someone in your family babysits him.

You may of course get separation anxiety as much as he does but it is a very constructive step as regards preparing your baby learn and be in his own company.

As a seven month old, your baby will love to expend lots of energy by being active and moving around everywhere. While he will keep you on your toes, it is also an opportunity to see him grow fast under your watchful eyes and cherish this lovely phase you just can’t afford to miss.

Note: Each baby is different and therefore tends to grow at a different pace. Chances are that your little one may have crossed certain milestones already, or is probably a little behind on a few others, which is normal. If you still feel there is something of concern, do speak to your paediatrician/registered professional child healthcare provider.