Childhood & Adolescence Chapter 5

Front 1

distance curve

Back 1

plots the average size of a sample of children at each age

Front 2

velocity curve

Back 2

plots the average amount of growth at each yearly interval

Front 3

skeletal age

Back 3

a measure of development of bones in the body

Front 4

epiphyses

Back 4

special growth centers in the bones

Front 5

pituitary gland

Back 5

located at the base of the brain near the hypothalamus, secretes the most important hormones for human growth

Front 6

hypothalamus

Back 6

the part of the brain that initiates and regulates pituitary secretions

Front 7

growth hormone (GH)

Back 7

the only pituitary secretion produced continuously throughout life; affects development of all tissues except the central nervous system and the genitals

Front 8

thyroine

Back 8

hormone necessary for brain development and for GH to have its full impact on body size; secreted by the thyroid gland

Front 9

estrogens and androgens

Back 9

sex hormones (men and women both have each)

Front 10

secular trends in physical growth

Back 10

changes in body size and rate of growth from one generation to the next

Front 11

general growth curve

Back 11

rapid growth during infancy, slower gains in early and middle childhood, and rapid growth again during adolescence

Front 12

neurons

Back 12

nerve cells that store and transmit information

Front 13

synapses

Back 13

tiny gaps between neurons

Front 14

neurotransmitters

Back 14

chemicals released by neurons to send messages to one another; cross synapses

Front 15

programmed cell-death

Back 15

death of many surrounding neurons as neural fibers and their synapses increase rapidly, which makes room for these connective structures

Front 16

synaptic pruning

Back 16

neurons that are seldom stimulated lose their synapses

Front 17

myelination

Back 17

the coating of neural fibers with an insulating fatty sheath (called myelin)that improves the efficiency of message transfer

Front 18

lateralization

Back 18

specialization of the two brain hemispheres

Front 19

cerebellum

Back 19

a structure that aids in balance and control of body movement (at the rear and base of the brain)

Front 20

reticular formation

Back 20

a structure in the brain stem that maintains alertness and consciousness

Front 21

corpus callosum

Back 21

a large bundle of fibers that connects the two cortical hemispheres

Front 22

catch-up growth

Back 22

a return to a genetically influenced growth path once conditions improve

Front 23

marasmus

Back 23

a wasted condition of the body caused b a diet low in all essential nutrients; usually appears in the first year of lie when a baby's mother is too malnourished to produce enough breast milk and bottle-feeding is also inadequate

Front 24

kwashiorkor

Back 24

caused by an unbalanced diet very low in protein. The disease usually strikes after weaning, between 1 and 3 years of age

Front 25

obesity

Back 25

a body weight greater than 20% over the average for the child's age, sex, and physical build

Front 26

nonorganic failure to thrive

Back 26

a growth disorder that results from lack of parental love, is usually present by 18 months of age. Infants who have it show all the signs of marasmus- their bodies look wasted, and they are withdrawn and apathetic. But no organic (biological) cause for the baby's failure to grow can be found

Front 27

pyscho-social dwarfism

Back 27

a growth disorder that usually appears between 2 and 15 years of age; extreme emotional deprivation can interfere with the production of GH

Front 28

puberty

Back 28

young people attain an adult-sized body and become capable of producing offspring

Front 29

primary sexual characteristics

Back 29

physical features that involve the reproductive organs

Front 30

secondary sexual characteristics

Back 30

features visible on the outside of the body that serve as signs of sexual maturity but do not involve the reproductve organs (for example, breast development and appearance of pubic and underarm hair)

Front 31

menarche

Back 31

the scientific name for first menstruation

Front 32

spermarche

Back 32

scientific name for first ejaculation

Front 33

body image

Back 33

conception of and attitude toward your physical appearance

Front 34

anorexia nervosa

Back 34

a tragic eating disturbance in which young people starve themselves because of a compulsive fear of getting fat

Front 35

bulimia nervosa

Back 35

young people engage in strict dieting and excessive exercise accompanied by binge eatin, often followed by deliberate vomiting and purging with laxatives