OUR BABIES.

King Country Chronicle, Volume VII, Issue 535, 22 January 1913, Page 6

OUR BABIES.

(By Hygeia)

Published under the auspices of the Society for the Health of Women and Children. "It is wiser to put up a fence at the top of a precipice than to maintain an ambulance at the bottom." "

SUMMER DIARRHOEA.

Last week', when dealing with this subject, we pointed out that summer diarrhuea'rarely attacks babies unless they have been" a.little "out of sorts," or actually failing in health beforehand. ■ We now enumerate some of the dangers to be avoided and the precautions to be taken. KEEP BAIBY GERM-PROOF. When will mothers and nurses realise that a child who- has apparent ly thriven for months, in spite of wrong treatment, may suddenly fall a victim to some malady against which lis system would have been quite proof bad he been kept in a state of perfect health and fitness bv paying a due attention to, all the simple laws of life and primary needs of infancy. A baby may hold out against almost any form of inattention or carelessness during spring, and yet succumb to the first drink of tainted milk given to him on a warm summer's day. The effect of such food on a perfectly healthy baby might be merely to bring on passing col>c, or to cause one or more green motions; but if the system had been insidiously undermined .previously (though there might have been nothing apparently wrong with the baby) the effect of a single feeding with risky food might be an at tack of acute diarrhoea, ending fatally, simply because the child- had not acquired enough stamina to put up a good fight.

If a baby is fed artificially, and there is no means of keeping prepared foodmilk below b'Odeg , Fahr,, the mother:should beat up to Issdeg. any residue left over at the end of 12 deg.; hours after preparation, and then cool it down rapidly as directed on page 24 "Feeding and Care of Baby," and page,s "What Baby JSieeds," and keep it cool. If there is no thermometer in the house the milk may, be mildly scalded as follow: —' HOW TO SCALD MILK.

Place the jug of milk in a saucepan of hot water, heat until the water boils, and keep boiling for ten minutes. Then cool rapidly in running water, etc., keeping covered as .directed; in the Society's book. « EPIDEMIC DIARRHOEA.

Uhder the above heading Dr Ralph Vincent, seni,or.'physician' to tbe nfants' Hospital, Westminster; makes the following remarks on the disease more commonly' known as. "summer diarrhoea of infants"This d sease is peculiarly liable to appear at certain times of the year, and is practically absent in other portions of the year. -'The conditions in which the arises occur during hbt weather, and; especially during a hot summer. The characteristic of the disease in regard to the date of its. appearance is. that lit appears mostly towards the latter end of summer, when the heat has continued for some considerable time. (Memo, bj Hygeia: The worst months in New Zealand are January, February, and March). THE MOST FATAL DISEASE.

As a mortal disease affecting babies, epidemic diarrhoea is the most cerious of all. The number of ; deaths depends on the temperature." If it is a cool summer the number of deaths is comparatively low; if it is a hot summer the number of . deaths is very hieb indeed • ■ (Naturally the hotter the summer the more the germs grow and flourish in The. year 1904 afforded a sad illustration in England. The summer of that year ■was very hot, and in niany towns throughout the country nearly half the babies under twevle months old died in the babies under twelve months old died in the three months July,.August, and September. These infants died 'because' they were poisoned. (Poisoned "as Dr Vincent proceeds to show, mainly by the microbes contained in tainted milk, acting on babies; .who had '.not been kept in suchr'a >state of first-rate health and condition as to enable them to resist the attacks of germs. —Hygiea.) , ' -1 Dr Vincent emphasises the fact that the name "Epidemic Diarrhoea" is liable to be somewhat misleading, ; because, although all epidemic eases tend to attack the bodily "unfit." rather than-the "fit," yet people ; who are quite ,we4L may fall victims., In tjie case of so called epidemic; diarrhoea of infants, however, the,; disease is strictly avoidable. It can; be avoided by taking "the following; very simple precautions —namely : —,,'i 1. By always supplying "What; Every Baby Needs. Whether Wiell orf 111" (See the Society's book, piages I; and 2). . Don't invite the microbes to estab-; lish themselves in the interior of the; baby x by keeping the soil ready pre-j pared for their growth. A stitch In time saves /nine. Don't be careless about the baby's health merely be-' cause i the season happens to be good #nd/he appears to be flourishing and seemingly in no need of special at tention. bori't omit anything that he is rightly entitled to have and that tends to keep him always at -the high-i est pitch of health and fitness. 2. By not feeding him with geriii- ' laden, poisoned milk or any other ijp4 proper food. iT