OUR BABIES.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 16243, 28 November 1914, Page 13

OUR BABIES.

By HygeiaPotiUahed wider the auspices o! the Sooiety for tho Health ol Women aaa Children. ... " It is wiser to put op » fence at tne top ot a precipice than to maintain an ambulaDoe at the bottom." DANGERS OF HOT WEATHER. Last week 1 gave some extracts from an important article by Dr Schereschewsky, ot Washington, dealing with the directly injurious effects of hot weather on tho baby. I shali now give some further extracts, because they are of groat practical importance to mothers in safeguarding their babies irom the risks to which they are bound to be subjected more or less when they have to face the extreme ot mimmw of a chance " nor'-wester day at any time. Dr Schereschewsky points out tho need of freo ventilation ot houses, and xtyv: Clbculation of Ara. iJre of air is of great assistance in eliminating heat from the body by accelerating evaporation. Recent experiments show that in stagnant air harmlul heat symptoms make their appearance at temperatures between 70deg and 80deg Fahr., but these disappear when tho air is set in motion by* a fan. Seeing that heat is a direct factor in the causation o£ summer infant mortality, we should expect to find an increased number of deaths of infants in houses and in sections of cities where conditions are unfavourable to the circulation of air. Such, we find, is the case. Ballard, in his extensive investigations of summer mortality in England, noted that when the wind had free access to houses the summer infant mortality was low, while it was high in those cities, or sections of cities, where, from the disposition of the streets or houses, they OQuld not be swept by the prevailing winds in summer. Meinert, to whom belongs tho credit of being the first to investigate, in Dresden, tho relation of housing conditions to the summer mortality of infants, found that in the case of 580 infants dying in the 11 summer weeks the conditions wero almost invariably such as to prevent the free circulation of air in the rooms in which these children had lived. In only one instance did any of these infants dio in a house exposed freely on all sides to tho wind. The infants died in those dwellings which, from their low-lying situation or their location in the rear of other dwellings, etc., were denied the access of cooling breezes; or they die in houses ■where, from the disposition of the windows, " cross ventilation " was impossible. A dwelling was regarded as susceptible of "crosa ventilation" when it possessed windows in opposite walls, as partially so when' the windows were in walls at right angles to each other, and as not susceptible to "cross ventilation" when win dows in one wall only were found. Speaking of the prevailing conditions indoors in hot weather, Dr Schereschewsky •ays: It is clear that infants kept indoors are often obliged to endure, for considerable periods, temperatures which are greatly in excess of those of the external air. Moreover, the effect of these temperatures is often enhanced by excessive clothing. It is a too frequent- experience to find the busy mother keeping the baby in the kitchen, often near the stove, in order to have it close at hand. EFFECTS OF HEAT IN CAUSING DEATH. It mast be clear from the foregoing that ihe greater. the summer heat the greater the number of infant deaths, and that it is an indoor and not an outdoor climate to which infants are mainly exposed. Dr Schereschewsky continues: The action of heat as a direct cause of summer mortality of infants has been greatly underestimate d in the last 25 years. In future much more weight should be given to its influence. If we are to prevent summer diarrhoea we must improve the housing and indoor conditions, and there must be free ventilation, day and night. Mothers must be told how harmful undue heat is (especially indoor heat), and that when hot weather is present special efforts must be made to prevent overheating and overfeeding of babies by use of lighter clothing, plenty of fresh air, increase in the amount of water given and reduction in the amount of food. This last is best attained by diluting the food on very sultry days if a baby is artificially fed. If a baby is breast fed he naturally tends to suck less and draws off only the thinner, weaker milk. In spite of all that has been said, Dr Schereschewsky concludes with the remark: " Breast feeding -must still be regarded as a most, if not the most, important preventive of the summer mortality of infants." However, cool, fresh air is essential to health and safety. KEEP THE AIR DRY AND COOL. If there is much moisture present in tho air the injurious effects of hot weather are greatly increased; therefore a baby kept indoors in a stuffy, poorly-ventilated room, where the moisture of the breath accumulates, is bound to suffer. From what Dr Schereschewsky says, American physicians do not seem to have thoroughly investigated this point as regards 6he baby. However, no one who atl taded the lectures given last year by Dr Barrett, of Melbourne, and heard his references to the extensive scientific observations made in Australia regarding: the healthiness of hot, dry air and the deadly effects of warm, moist air can doubt the extreme importance to mother and child of keeping the indoor air as dry and cool as possible in summer time by means of the freest ventilation—wide-open doors and windows. The mother need never be afraid V the natural dampness of the pure open air, whether in town or country—she can let the outeide air into her house freely at all times. It is the breath-laden dampness that she should be warned against. A MOTHER'S LETTER. PUBOHABE OF HUMANISED MILK. The following letter has just been received:— Could you please tell me (through "Our Babies" Column) if I could buy Humanjsed Milk (already prepared) at any place in Dunedin? If so, where? I am expecting to go to Dunedin for Show Week, and it is rather awkward to carry the articles required to make the Humanised Milk, so that I would rather buy it ready for use than have to bother buying milk and making it myself, if I could do so. My baby is now five months old, and is doing well, so I would not like to use just ordinary milk and water while I am away, as it would upset him. What do you think would be the best? Hoping I am not putting you to too much trouble, and thanking you in anticipation,—l am, A Wobried Mother. Reply. You can purchase Humanised Milk from the Taieri and Peninsula Milk Supply Company, King street, Dunedin. The company sends out the milk cooled down, and all you have to do is to keep it cool. If you have a box with sawdust or chaff and embed the bottles of milk in it up to the necks the milk will remain fresh and 0001. Of course, you must keep the box in a cool place. (See " How to Keep Cooled Milk Cool," page 27 ".Feeding and Care of Baby.") You should write to the Milk Supply Company beforehand (to the Humanised Milk department) and give them your address and tho date. on which you want the milk to reach you. I suppose you are giving baby ordinary Humanised Milk. If there is any modification which you make, tho Dairy Company will prepare the milk specially as you require without making any extra charge. If you have time when in Dunedin vou ought _to take a tram to Anderson's "Bay and visit the Baby Hospital. The matron and nurses are always glad to see mothers *nd to give them any help they can. DUNEDIN PHOTOGRAPHIC SOCIETY. The following are the results of the competitions in connection with the society's annual exhibition, which was held recently in conjunction with the Otago Art Society's Exhibition, Mr R. Hawcridge acting as judge:— Landscape.—P. Bcck (" The Harvest Field") 1, S. H. Rawson (" A Landscape "I and C. F. Goodridge (" Dunedin by Night") equal 2. Marine.—A. Dickson (" Morning Mists ") 1, S. Harland ("Summer") 2. Portrait.—-R. A. Edwards (" A Study ") 1, A. Dickison (" In Pensive Mood "j 2, Miss F. Walmsley ("Youth") 3. General Class.—S. Earland (" Autumn ") 1, A. Dickson f" A Village Forge") 2. Best Picture in Kxlrbition.—A. Dickson (" The Sunlit Portico ") 1. — With the aid of searchlights it is possible to see 30 miles out to sea from a fort. Any ship can be recognised far away by her silhouette, and her name ascertained by conenltintr a book.

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