OUR BABIES

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2770, 13 May 1916, Page 5

OUR BABIES

fBT HYGI3U.I Published under uhe cnspices of the Koyoi New Zeulnnfl llealtli i>ociely for the Health of Woiuc-n and Children. / "It is,wiser to put up a .fence at the top ■ of a precipice thw.ii to maintain an ambulance' at the bottom.". ' Babies Slcepinfl in Bed with their toothers. At the last monthly meeting uf tho DunI'dui liranch ot Me hociety tUe Plunket ftiirse reporttil tUiit in some instances babies still slept in bed with their parents. ... it seems almost incredible that such a gross injustice can be meted out to helpless infants utter the dangers to life and health which result irom the practice hiu'u be-on <;xplaiu£d ami brought before the public so irequcntij;, not oniy in i\e\v Zealand, 4 but throughout Uio entire civilised world./' S Uiliy. a . iew years ago- several • healthy ■ Imbiea in the-Dujiedia district were killed by ueing overlain, and at. one of tho inll"ests tho Coroner hiked the mother if she had not read in the papers of the dangers of taking, a baby into bed, ami the explained tliatj tho nurse had recommended her. to ..do so because the unikl was not sufficiently warm by itself. Tho verdiet was. that the child was accktonhally• su {located, throuyli. b&iuy over* laiu by tho • mother ( durhig sleep. The' Cruelty of Ignorance. Seeing how great a wrong is done to every cliild who is -allowed to breathe the wanii, daiiip, vitiated air of the parents' baci, it is iunaziiiij tout any niotuer can now be lound iii.uur midst «o callous and so indifferent to her child's health and f'-tnesi as to indulge Iter own mere whim or inclination iii this direction. But besides the inevitable niglitly half-sufFoca-toil, one must take into account also the risk of. complete stilling and the sudden violent doatli Of tho infant; Question. How is it that the. vice of taking the baby into bed beside the parents still persists in spito of modern facilities ioi' cue tliti'usi'jn of knowledge and tho dispelling ox prejudice and ignorance? Answer. , 1. Many adults are well-nigh unteaclinble, ana are so prejudiced und selfsatisfied that uotuiiTg will induce them to abandon me. errors of ..the. past. Ona hears daily the same unreasoning; "What was good euoug.i ior our mothers is good enougu for us!"" A primary necessity of our education ■system is to ingrain thoroughly into the eniJdron in" the school the need of plenty uf pure, cool, fresh air day and night, and the iact that there is no harm "jilt infinite good in puro air, however cool it may oe, if only proper clothing be suppiied.

'l. Sumo - monthly nurses (even mora prej uiiicc'd than the mothers tnemsolves), speaking 113 jf with authority, are most awl misguiding in tho matter ui lresh »ir. f»ud actually toll the mother to keep her baby in bed with iter in cold weather, There can be 110 doubt whatever on this point. The evidence of parents is too clear to admit of any doubt, and bears out what was said by the mother in regard to'the killing of th-j infant 'ret'erred to . above, 'i'ho mother acted 011 the nurse's advice, and the uursa was the mors yuilty of tho two. i\oxt week I shall publish details of'tho ease' of a baby v.'bo was s?nt to tho Karitane Harris Hospital iu which precisely similar advice had been given by tlm nurso—namely, that as it was winter time tho baby should'bo kept in bed alongside lite mother for the sake of warmth.

Why on earth should a baby, used the animal warmth of tho. mother for eijjlit hours when it must do without it for tho other i(S? Ol' course, suck advice is sheer, nonsense. What is Vice? If any question should arise as to tho us 3 of the lonu "vice" or "vicious" as applied to persons who practise or countenance the taking of babies into bed with adults, we have only to remind the reader thai: tiie word "vice" means the indulgence of the whim, caprine, or inclination oi' tho moment, regardless of future pains ami penalties that may lis eipactwl to outweigh'entirely the pleasure or satisfaction derived from the immediate indulgence. Jll the ease we are considering, the mother not only yields to a tempting vice herself, but she imposes u vicious habit on the saered charge entrusted to her care, inevitably damaging her baby's present and future health and strength, while at the same time taking upon herself the risk of killing it outright. It' this is not "vice," what, is? If such people nre not vicious, who are? It the plea of "nci: knowing any better" and "good intentions" be set up, we can only reply that half tiic vice of the world is the outcome of ignorance; tlit rest is mainly tho outcome of illhealth—bodily, mental, mid moral, lij any case there is a "Duty of Inquiry" regarding the needs of babyhood before the responsibility ot' parenthood is undertaken. As fo'r the "good intentions" road, we all know where that leads to.