10 months
Ten months: standing tall
Standing while holding on, clapping, copying sounds and understanding more every day.
Many ten-month-olds stand holding on to furniture, clap, and understand simple words like "give" and "bye-bye". Growth is slower, meals look more like family food, and the chatter is constant.
Growth
Weight
8.0–10.8 kg
Length
71–78 cm
Typical range; your paediatrician tracks your baby on a growth chart. Many babies gain only 200–350 g a month now as they move more.
What your baby is learning
- Many babies stand holding on to furniture or your hand, and may let go for a second or two before sitting down with a bump.
- Clapping, waving and copying gestures appear; your baby plays "give and take" games and hands you objects.
- Your baby understands simple words and phrases: "give", "come", "bye-bye", "where is mama?", and may look for the person named.
- Imitation of sounds grows: your baby copies coughs, tongue clicks and the intonation of your speech, and babbles as if telling a story.
- Fine motor skills sharpen: your baby pokes with the index finger, bangs two objects together and tries to put one thing inside another.
Feeding
- Three meals, one or two snacks and breast milk or formula. Soft family food cut into small pieces is ideal: rice without salt or hard pieces, soft meat, steamed vegetables, bread.
- Your baby wants to feed themselves: offer a soft spoon to hold while you feed with another, and expect a mess. Self-feeding builds skills and appetite control.
- Offer water in an open cup or a cup with a spout several times a day; by now many babies manage a few sips with a little help.
- Still no honey, salt, sugar, tea or juice. If you are breastfeeding, continue potassium iodide 200 µg daily.
Sleep
About 12–14 hours with two naps. Waking at night around 8–10 months is common as separation anxiety peaks; a calm, brief response and the same bedtime routine every evening help your baby settle again. Keep sleeping on the back, in a cot of their own.
Check-ups and vaccines
- Ten-month check-up with your paediatrician or patronage nurse: growth, development and a review of food variety. No vaccines are due this month.
- If a blood test showed low haemoglobin, your doctor may prescribe iron drops; give them exactly as advised and go for a repeat test when asked.
- Several teeth are often through: brush twice a day with a soft brush and a thin smear of children's fluoride toothpaste, and avoid sugary drinks and bottles in bed.
Play and everyday tips
- Push toys, sturdy boxes to walk behind and a low shelf of toys to pull up to encourage standing and stepping.
- Picture books with flaps, animal sounds and simple action rhymes; ask "where is the cat?" and wait for your baby to look or point.
- Stacking cups, nesting bowls and putting blocks into a box and tipping them out again are serious work at this age.
- Safety: a baby who stands reaches a new shelf. Move hot drinks, medicines, coins, buttons and batteries higher, secure heavy furniture and keep the kettle cord out of reach.
Call the doctor or 103 if
- Fever of 39 °C or higher, any fever lasting more than three days, or a fever with laboured breathing or a non-blanching rash.
- Signs of dehydration during diarrhoea or vomiting: fewer wet nappies, dry mouth, sunken eyes, drowsiness.
- Refusing all feeds for a day, being very hard to wake, or a seizure.
- Developmental: not sitting without support, not bearing weight on the legs, no babbling with consonants, not responding to their name, or loss of skills already gained. Book a visit to your paediatrician.
- For any urgent sign, call 103 or go to the polyclinic/hospital.
Trust your instinct. If your baby seems unwell to you, call 103 or go to the polyclinic.
Monthly updates in Telegram
Tell the bot your baby's birth date and it will send a development digest every month, with the vaccines due next.
- ✓A short digest every new week
- ✓Countdown to your due date
- ✓Reminders about upcoming checkups
- ✓Kick counter and contraction timer