OUR BABIES

Gisborne Times, Volume LXXIII, Issue 11768, 15 October 1932, Page 11

OUR BABIES

(By Sir - Truby King)

General president of the Plvmket Society. FRESH AIR. ITS VALUE AX I) NEED.

Let its begin. hviHi. the new-born baby. The new-born baby needs .special care. Hl cold weather for tjio first few days it. may he necessary to have a. lire in I lie room, hut, unless tor special reasons, this is not advisable. after a week or It) (lays. .Even when thorn is a fin: the room should not he allowed to warm up much, hut must have a .Ihjoo ;thuv of pure air, day and night. See that Ihe baby is sufficiently covered with light, open, fluffy or porous woollen materials, and, if (necessary, lias a hot water hot tie, preferably a rubber one with a woollen, cover. The bottle should he 'sandwiched between the. two .mattresses of baby's bed, the lower one being of hair ami the upper one of chaff. Alake smy limb the stopper .is securely fixed and place I In: stoppered eml awa.v from the. baby. In hot weather a strong, healthy baby may be taken out of doors <m the second or third day. Keep b'aby out ol a direct draught, hut. don't fie frightened ol tip. air being cool. Pure, cool air is invigorating aml prevents baby catching cold. Warm, sUill'y air is poisonous and makes baby Fable to catch cold when taken out into (he open. Remember that Hie new-born babe is very sensitive to light, and 'must he only gradually habituated In it. Protection of lip. eyes from direct light must always tie attended to. What is the value of fresh air? It is the oxygen and the physical properties and purity of fresh air 'hat 'make ir valuable. The living body, cannot exist deprived of oxygen. Ihe air ordering the lungs consists u! about one-filth oxygen amt iour-lilHrs nitrogen. This nitrogen is of no use to ijie hotly and is exhaled unchanged. Our food iniisi lie changed into fluid by the digestive organs amt Hie nutriment' separated irom the waste matter bolero it can lie assimilated ami absorbed imo the blood. SbaJarlv, flic oxygen must be separated from the nitrogen, ami other properties of the air by the respiratory organs. The oxygen enters the blood through innumerable tiny blood vessels m Hie 1 uiigs and is carried to every cell m the body. By a similar process the waste products are removed irom the cells of the body. About half a pint of water is given of! through the lungs in a day. .Minnie quantities of injurious animal mailer are also given oil' in the breath from even the healthiest person, while one with decayed teeth, catarrh, indigestion, or lung trouble gives oil still more <h this material. When, many people ai '° assembled in a badly ventilated room ihe amount oi injurious animal iimiaei in Hie air is much increased and is called "crowd poison. ‘Ac are all familiar with the strong ami stale odour to he met with in a crowded room when w 0 enter it. from the fresh open air. “Air once breathed is impure.” lienee the importance of keeping bahv in the fresh outside air as much as possible. To I'unciion properly iho skin must lie continually cooled ; this is impossible ii the body is surrounded by an overheated moist stagnant atmosphere, the results ol which are that the tone and vitality becomes greatly decreased, pallor is increased, and resistance to disease is lowered. Movement oi air is vitaliv nocossnrv. in froclv moving nit* oxygon is convoy pel to the hiofxl, tjio appetite is stimulated, and there is considerably less likelihood of ini cation. ..Miss Liddiard, matron of Afotliercrai t Training Centre. London, founded by dir '(ruby King in .IblS, in her AloUiercralT Manual says:—

•■.Keep hahv jii tin* open air as much ns possible”; the garden, if there is -one, should he Ilk day nursery, and he should he indoors only when being fed or in wet weather. If there is no garden, or sheltered balcony or verandah, baby should he in a well-von-t Hated room in which the window should he Open top ami hoitnin. In this way fresh air comes in through Ihe opening a 1 ilie hoi tom and the stale iiMd-iip air rises and goes out nt | |,i. top. So many mothers lake ilnor babies out for l.wo or three hours daily, and for Die rest of tho 2-1 hours. Dial is for 21 hours out of the. 21, they are h\ft, in warm, stully rooms. Wind wonder that one sees so many pale-faced, sickly-look* ing infants?’' Mothers are too olden inclined to put hahv out only mi a bright, sunny day. If baby is siriiahlv clad and warmly tucked up >n his cot or pram there is no need to keep him indoors in dull or cloudy 01 even wet days, provided he is adequately protected from wind and rain. At Korilnne-Tlurris Hospital a distinct .improvement is noticed in certain, types of children once they can sleep outside. “.Life in the open air and sunshine, .combined with good nutrition, builds stronger ami healthier men and women than life lived indoors. Many men and women amongst uncivilised people have line, physique, their diet is of ;|to simplest, and they have lew of the amenities of. civilisation, hid lhoy live a natural life in the open air land sunlight. Fresh air and sunlight are. not necessary for the cure of certain diseases, hut are invaluable in the maintenance of good health.