"THE NEGLECTED AGE."

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIII, Issue 19470, 28 October 1926, Page 12

"THE NEGLECTED AGE."

NEEDS OF THE YOUNG CHILD, FOOD, CLOTHES AND HABITS. CLAIMS OF THE EX-BABY. Tho welfare of children between baby- , hood and si* years of aga does not reI ceive so much attention as it deserves, ■ though that period of life is most impor- , tant and presents peculiar difficulties. In I un address to the Child Welfare Conference yesterday Dr. G. Bruton Sweet put - forward some of the "ex-baby's" claims • to what he termed " a square deal." | The pre-school age, said Dr. Sweet, 1 had been called "tho neglected age"— ■ a public health term signifying that the 1 child of that age was the business of ■ nobody but its parents. A baby was the j subject of solicitude from infant welfare ■ organisations. A school child came under 1 the care of school doctors and dentists. 5 Between those stages there was a gap. In the home the child of two or three " often might not receive its due. The ■ glamour of its infantile helplessness bad 1 worn off, it had become a very active • and perhaps mischievous little creature, and was regarded rather as a nuisaac® ' than a joy. Perhaps another little one ' had arrived to claim attention. The cider I child, if it did not get a square deal, suffered physical and mental harm. Prevalent Ignorance. There was little actual want in New Zealand, but neglect and ill-health 'rawj children; largely the result of ignoraue*, were all too common. A child's principle needs came under the heads of diet, clo:h ing and general management. It was often difficult to determine what was a suitable and sufficient diet f;ir a child between the ages of one and three. The child needed variety in its food, but tho solution was not to give it a little of everything on its parents' table. Jt should have three meals a day and Milling whatever in between. Lack of appoi tite in a small child was the most coirmon sign of dyspepsia. A child >hj'ili ■ not bo coaxed to eat in such a case. The principal meal of the day should ' be at noon. Tho child should be given , a plain and not specially attractive meal i at five o'clock and put to bed before tho I family dinner. Pastry, ice-cream, sweets I and chocolate were poisonous to a child > and should be banned, and uncles, aunts i and other peoplo who were the chief 3 offenders in this respect must be restrained. Dr. Sweet considered that oatmeal por- - ridge was not suited to children in mild • climates, being not particularly nourishing or easy to digest. Raw fruit should i be given only at meals, and not unless i it was certain that the child could and did masticate it. Milk was much ovcrdone. It was a highly concentrated food i and when given to children above the - infant age it should be well diluted The I copious drinking of water between meals 5 should bo discouraged. Wholemeal bread was preferable to white. JSo bread less than 24 hours old should be given to young children, and then preferably browned by toasting or baking. Fats should be given sparingly, especially in summer. They provided fuel only, and no great quantity o£ them was needed in a warm, climate. Children had a natural dislike for the fat of meat. Coddling a Mistake. Speaking of clothing, Dr. Sweet condemned the "bloomers" commonly worn by young children of both sexes. iio said that tho elastic bands round waist and thighs interfered with circulation and left red marks on the skin. The waistband pressed upon the internal organs. ' Garments should be free and should hang from the shoulders. Contrary to tradi- ] tion, in cases of doubt, small children should be under-clothed rather than overclothed. Above all, they should not be coddled. So far as general management was coni cerned, it was necessary that tho psychology of children should bo understood ' and that thoy should be treated with 1 patience, sympathy and understanding. , i'heir instinctive actions, such as seizing new objects and putting them in the mouth, continually moving about, and so forth, ought to be regarded as normal and provided for in the family arrangements, not checked or punished. A daily programme of simple things, varied from time to time and wisely carried out, made for the happiness of both parent and child. ! Sir Truby King, who was present in : the audience, said he did not entirely agree with Dr. Sweet's condemnation of raw fruit. He had never advocated it • for children one year old, but there was a large body of medical opinion strongly in favour of its use, provided the child ' was taught to chew it properJy. Whole- ' meal bread caused indigestion in somo cases and was not invariably to be recommended.