The Wow
and the How:
A SERIES TO UNLOCK DEVELOPMENT IN DAILY LIFE
Development isn’t a race.
It’s a flow.
Parenting is hard. Especially now. We’re parents who have faced real challenges, found solutions from experts with the longest waitlists, and then we decided to do something big:
demystify development.

We’re here to help you make the most of this incredible window of opportunity for your baby’s brain development. In the first 3 years of life, your baby’s brain is making 1 million or more neural connections per second.

Our Mission is to protect and enrich the full potential of every child…and support you along the way.
So, we created a stage-based development series with activities to serve as inspiration that pair with our suite of Healthybaby essentials for those prime moments of connection in your daily routine. It's called The Wow and The How: A Series To Unlock Development in Daily Life. It will help you take advantage of the science that makes this wonderful time so impactful. You will be empowered and mindful at every stage, so you can shape your child's development.
THESE 5 FOUNDATIONAL CONCEPTS SET THE STAGE FOR
THE CORE IDEAS BEHIND THE HEALTHYBABY WOW AND HOW
SERIES ACTIVITIES:
01 — Epigenetics
Environment + experiences shape baby’s brain.

We can’t control the genes that we inherit, but we can, to a certain degree, control the environment and experiences we have. Epigenetics is the study of how our behavior and environment change the expression of our DNA. We now know that the answer to the ‘nature vs nurture’ debate is actually both—we are truly intertwined with our environments. By taking the steps to ensure a secure, clean, and enriching environment, we can mitigate vulnerabilities and shape outcomes.

Epigenetics
02 — Neuroplasticity
Our brains can change!

Neuro = brain. Plastic = changeable. Our brains are malleable and shaped on an ongoing basis by our experiences, and this is true for both babies and adults.  Our brains are like muscles, the more we use them the stronger they become, and the ways in which we choose to use them determines the ways they wire together.

03 — Critical Windows
Months 0-36 are the biggest window of opportunity for brain development.

The window of neuroplasticity is widest and most flexible between the ages of 0 to 3, but the window never truly closes. The brain is always neuro-flexible, and during this supercharged special window of baby’s growth there are so many opportunities to optimize cognitive and emotional growth. Remember that raising a baby is such a forgiving process and you don’t have to get it right from the first time, or the second, or the third - you’ll get countless opportunities along the journey.

Critical Windows
04 — Repetition
Every thought, emotion, and action we repeat deepens neural pathways.

Baby’s brain is a network of pathways made up of neurons. When thoughts, emotions, and actions are experienced, your baby’s brain fires a neural pathway. As experiences are repeated, their brains make that pathway deeper and stronger. Neuroscientists like to say, “what fires together, wires together.” <br><br>

And if you haven’t already, you may begin to notice that babies love to repeat things. This is because their brains want to create long, efficient pathways. Exciting research also shows us that babies actually learn more effectively when something is repeated.

05 — Routine
Brains grow in the safety of routine.

Because the developing brain craves repetition and predictability, your day-to-day routine is the best framework for engaging in brain-building connected moments, because this is the time that their nervous system is most calm and they are open to novel experiences. In a baby's early days, creating a predictable routine means responding to their needs in a loving and timely manner. As your baby grows, predictability and routine can also be built with an understanding of  their temperament and your parenting style.

Proactive
Enrichment
Proactive Enrichment is the process of enhancing everyday experience with novelty to foster deeper learning.

This creates a more connected brain. Baby’s early development is focused on integrating and honing their sensory systems for life outside the womb; it’s through the senses that we can most shape brain development. By creating a sensory-rich environment for baby to experience novelty, we can help build deep neural connections that underlie an organized, well-connected, resilient brain.
“Babies need to be given the chance to challenge their brain to do something new every day. Environmental enrichment presents the brain with novelty, and this novelty allows the brain to challenge itself. In turn, this stimulates what we call ‘neuroplasticity’, which is the brain's way of developing new ways of encounter and deal with the world.”
—DR. MICHAEL LEON
FROM EPISODE 6 OF
‘THE HEALTHY BABY PODCAST’
Our
Wow and How
Series
The Healthybaby Wow and How Series is a monthly system of essentials and content designed to help you make the most of this brain-development-rich time through authentic connection, curiosity, and confidence.

Rather than a race to be won, at Healthybaby, we see development as a dynamic flow that gently ferries baby towards each milestone, with each big ‘WOW’ moment connecting to the next. It's not a sprint, it's more like a marathon.

The Wow and The How Series was designed with renowned Developmental Pediatrician Dr. Stephen Cowan to distill a tidal wave of knowledge into a gentle, development-specific flow that’s dropped monthly into your inbox to coincide with your monthly Healthybaby diaper subscription box—so you can navigate development at your own pace, in a way that’s unique to you and your baby.
Browse by Stage
Browse by Stage
Meet
the Master

Dr. Stephen Cowan


Developmental Pediatrician + developmental authority behind
the Healthybaby Wow and How Series.


Dr. Cowan is a pediatrician with over 35 years of clinical experience working with children, starting with babies in the NICU to then practice the now saught-after specialty in Developmental Pediatrics. He is a fellow in the American Academy of Pediatrics, serving as a member of the section on Development. Dr. Cowan has treated founder Shazi Visram’s son Zane and thousands of other children whose development has been atypical. As a result he's become a guide for hundreds of parents who reach out to him proactively to ensure their babies trajectory of development is going in the right direction. He's been there for Shazi for 10 years and has been instrumental in the healthy development of thousands of children.

Using
Our Series
Each monthly installment is organized around the ‘WOW’ and the ‘HOW’.
  • • The Wow - Provides a glimpse into key concepts around baby’s development, milestones, and transitions based on their age, giving you the context you need to understand your child’s growth and connection.
  • • The How - Interactive exercises built into everyday routines. They are meant to be simple, novel, and stimulating in a "just right" kind of way when your baby feels safe and secure. Feeling safe helps baby's brain create deeper neural connections while they are connected with you. This is a proactive way to approach development, encouraging you and baby to connect in a meaningful way that builds critical skills and a sense of self confidence that can last a lifetime. Each activity is also paired with a “Why?” to explain the concept and how awesome this time in diapers really is! 
  • • Support For You - Specific caregiver topics that relate to experiences you are having at that point in baby’s development. Encourages you to map your own journey and seek help with our dedicated 1:1 parenting support as needed.
  • • The Wow Ahead - provides a glimpse into the next developmental stage/transition in your baby’s flow.

For each monthly HOW, we created cues for these prime connection moments that pair with the Healthybaby suite of essentials. You may see one, two, or three cues for any given activity, reminding you to try the activities during these moments of your routine. 
Here are the cues you’ll see along the way:

Here's an example:

Our
Story
OUR FOUNDER’S STORY
“After my first child was diagnosed with a developmental disorder, I became obsessed with doing everything I could to help him - biomedically, therapeutically, and environmentally. Through the process I’ve become aware of key developmental insights that I don’t think I would have been exposed to otherwise. On top of that I wanted to do everything I could to ensure the neurological heath of my next child. Because we had sought out the best therapies and doctors, we had special access to what could promote optimal health and development. This experience has been life changing and everything I’ve learned from pregnancy through the early years really makes all the difference, and my daughter is living proof as a connected, clever 5-year-old that's benefited from this knowledge. The Healthy Baby Show features conversations with these brilliant minds I’ve met along the way. In today's world, every parent should have access to developmental guidance proactively. So we created our Healthybaby The Wow and The How Series with the master, Dr Cowan, to share as a developmental expert/companion to your life for the next few years.”
Subscribe to our monthly diaper bundle to receive your baby’s personalized ‘Wow and How’ Series delivered to your inbox with a 1-1 coach accessible to you.