As a new parent, you've got a lot going on. The newest member of your family is always a welcome joy and the last thing you need to worry about is the health of the child.

Making regular visits to your pediatrician is a crucial component of monitoring your child's health, and the younger the child, the more often you will need to make such appointments, called well visits.

If you're a first-time parent, you'll want to choose and meet your pediatrician before welcoming your child into the world, and you will bring the baby to the doctor within a few days of leaving the hospital. At first, you'll visit your pediatrician frequently — probably six well visits in the first year, in addition to any visits for illnesses and any other issues that might pop up. As the child grows, he or she can go longer between check-ups. By the time you have a teenager, he or she will probably only need to make an annual visit.

The American Academy of Pediatrics has a general timeline for pediatrician visits, listed by the child's age. Schedule a visit by the time your child is one month old, and plan on check-ups at two, four, six and nine months. You'll go in for a 1-year appointment, but well visits become less frequent at this point, coming in at 15 and 18 months. The next well visit is the 2-year appointment, followed by a 30-month check-up. From 3 to 21 years, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends annual well visits.

That's not to say you shouldn't make an appointment with your pediatrician just because your next check-up date isn't for a few weeks or months, and parents in the Edison and Woodbridge, NJ, areas can count on Edison Pediatrics as a resource for their children's medical needs.

If ever you're concerned about your child's health or behavior, a call to a pediatrician can help you decide whether or not whatever is going on requires prompt medical attention.