OUR BABIES

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 38, 8 November 1919, Page 5

OUR BABIES

TBT HraiA/l

Published under the auspices of Iho Royal Now Zealand Society for the Health of Women and Ohildron. "It le wiser to put up a fence at the ,top of a precipice than to maintain an ambulance at the bottom."

The following letter to hand calls for an immediate reply:— ~ "I am writing to aalt if you could con ; tradict in the valuable "Baby Column, ptibliehecl in the newspapers, a statement which is being made by "The Opposition hore-namely, that babies fed on humanised milk sooner or later develop anaemia, and that their gums Bhould be watciieu for signs of it. This statement has much upset at least two or three young mothers we know, and doubtless. others of whom we have not heard. Of course, the statement has been contradicted In person by the Plunket Nurso and by mombers of the committee, but an article on the matter in the public Press would carry more weight, and greatly help to restore the confidence and peace of mind of the mothers 10 whom I have referred, loung mothers so easily become panicky, and the babies suffer in consequence;." HEPIiY. Before entering into any explanation of too why and wherefore, we make the clear and definite statement that the iiso of humanised milk, if it is properly prepared! carefully safeguarded, and regularly and intelligently administered, could not cause, anaemia or 'iny other disease.' Bomo fresh fruit juico (such as orange juice) or a small addition if good, fresh, unheated cow's milk (see I-ago 29 "Feeding and Care of Baby Bhould always be given ivheu humanised milk is used, in order to make sure that (here is a sufiicioncy of the vital elements essential for the host' nutrition and growth. On farms where there is a goott clean separator and where there are facilities for keeping milk cool arid clean, humanised milk can be prepared without boating it, and we know of many babies who. unfortunately deprived of their own mother's milk, have had the advantage of l.eing reared on unheated humanised milk. In such eases it is, of course, unnecessary to give fresh fruit juice. Mother's Milk Best. As some people still Eeem to believe that ! the chief function of the Plunket howdy i* to teach mothers to feed their babiCß on humanised milk, we here state most emphatically once again that the mam aim of the society is:To uphold the sacredncss of the hotly and the duty of health; to inculcate a lofty view of tho responsibilities of maternity and the duty of every mother to fit herself for the perfect- fulfilment of tho natural calls of. motherhood, both before and after child-birth, and especially to advocate and promote the breast-feeding of infants. The truo Plunket baby is the breast-fed haby whoso mother attends to all the hygienic needs of her offspring as set forth on pages '. and 2 of the society's book, "Feeding and Care of Baby." The mother who neglects the other essentials for health, even if she suckles her infant, will almost certainly have a. pale, pasty baby showing serious •evidences of poorness of blood or defective vitality. On tho other hand, the mother who, having ! failed to give her baby its natural birth- [ right, tries to make up for this failure by giving the best substitute, for mother's milk (namely, humanised niilM, and who also attends to all the hygienic needs of her infant, will generally have a flourishing baby, firm, healthy, and rosy. Of course, if a baby fed on humanised | milk wore deprived of all the other essentials for health, it, 100, would be pale and pasty, and there would bo no good, O'ich blood coursing through its veins, making it fresh and rosy. But the fact that a mother has sought help with regard to the feeding of her infant tends at the same time to make her follow the advice proffered in other directions, and so the baby is benefited.

■HUMANISED MM THE BEST SUBSTITUTE FOlt MOTHER'S MILK. For each young mammal the Creator hah designed a special milk, and the mill: foreach kind is different in composition— ■tires lioness's milk is hest for haby Hour, (log's milk is best for puppies, cow's milk for calves, and mother's milk for human babies. Somo years ago when a lioness died at the Zoo her cub could not be reared. Later someone bit on Ihc idea of "lionising" milk for baby lions when their mothers died, and thencefoith there was no further difficulty learing the lions' cubi. Recently we mat a lady who tried to rear a puppy on the bottle, hut, not knowing how to "dogiso" the milk, the poor puppy died. It would ho possible to "humanise" the milk of any mammal if we knew its composition; but as cow's milk ie the most readily obtainable it is generally used. Aow cow's milk is made expressly for a calf,.and it must be modified to make it fit for a. human liaby-tkat is, to mako it Approximate as i.early as may be to the composition and fligcstibilitv of mother's mijk-in fact, to "humanioo" It. For further information regarding this matter wo refer our readers to the leaflet, , The Components of Various Milks," whtrh can bo obtained from tho Plunket Nurseß or tiie secretaries of tho branches. Remember that mother's milk is best for the baby and every mother should try to ill herself to be a real mothev to her Inmilt fnfi l r a,ly . r^ so "' tho mother's Sbrtitutß Um,miSCd "'"" ' 9 thc best J! 0 . ""•" '1f sur( l the 3 ' 0ll "S niothero referd to m the above letter, and all others who may have been worried liv any siich •tup* statement, that, provided ttev ™ive their babies in full measure all the'essentials for health, they may confidently andZl ,t ?!? tUcm on humanised mik% the,- !.i IS Vl ey - ar S, now doin S «>« nes thej can for their offspring, seeing they cannot provide them with mother's* milk.