Definition: If you touch your baby’s feet and his toes curl inward, that’s the Grasping Reflex at work. If you stroke your baby’s foot firmly from heel to toe, however, his toes will fan out and flare upward and the foot will turn inward. This is the Plantar Reflex and it will disappear sometime before your child’s second birthday. This same response in older children or adults can be a sign of a neurological problem.
Also Known As: Babinski’s Reflex (after French Neurologist Joseph Babinski).
Common Misspellings: planter reflex
