OUR BABIES.

Otago Witness, Issue 3594, 30 January 1923, Page 58

OUR BABIES.

Br

Hygeia.

Published under the auspice* el the Royal New Zealand Society tor tha Health ol Women and Children. "It Is wiser to put up a fence at the top ol a precipice than to maintain an ambulance at the bottom."

A MOTHER’S QUESTIONS. Question I.—A baby 81b at birth, breastfed for four months, then Humanised Milk graded up, until at six months and two weeks, is taking whole cow’s milk pasteurised. Present weight 121 b. Is that a satisfactory gain, and what is the best spoon food to start with in conjunction with the bottle ? Answer.—Whole cow’s milk by itself is never a suitable food for a child. Cow’s mi 11c is made for the calf, which has to grow throe times as quickly as a baby, and therefore Nature puts nearly three times as much protein (or flesh-forming material) into the milk for the calf than is contained in Human Milk. Our dqty is to follow Nature as closely as possible. We must reduce the protein of cow’s milk to the right proportion for the baby. This we do by diluting the milk with more than an equal proportion of water—adding, say, 17 or 18 ounces of water to 12 or 13 ounces of cow’s milk. But this mixture would contain only about a third of the proportion of sugar and fat found in Human Milk. To adjust this we must add one and a-half ounces of Sugar of Milk and half an ounce or more of Eat. When this has been done we have Humanised Milk —the best substitute for Mother’s Milk. Up to nine months of age a baby ought not to have more than about 15 ounces (threequarters of a pint) of cow’s milk in the 24 hours, diluted with water up to about 35 ounces, and with the necessary sugar and fat added. Mother’s sometimes say: “But why do you allow the baby whole cow’s milk later, if it is calf food?” The reason is that later, in his second year, the baby’s diet should consist largely of starchy materials, such as buttered crusts, porridge, etc., and this needs the addition of whole cow’s milk to make the proportions of sugar, fat, and protein right for the baby —just as we add milk to porridge and butter or dripping to bread for older children and for ourselves. A baby should double his birth weight at six months, so if you are sure he was 81b at birth he should be 161 b at six months, instead of 121 b, as you state. At six months baby should have a bone to gnaw at, and towards nine months he should have a crust of bread, baked in the oven, to chew about 10 minutes before each of his three main meals—viz., at 10 a.m., 2 p.m., and 6 p.m. Always get the exercise of the jaws in before the child has lost the keen edge of his hunger or his gums are tired. When baby is nine months begin to work in a little barley or oat jelly, and increase gradually the quantity and frequency. Say, begin with one tablespoonful at 10 a.m. ; the next week give one tablespoonful and a-half at 10 a.m.; then a tablespoonful' and a-half at 10 a.m. and one tablespoonful at 6 p.m. Before the end of the month he should be getting three ounces oat or barley jelly. Pour a little milk over the jelly, and give it with a spoon before the milk drink. Reduce the milk from, two nints of Humanised Milk a day at nine months to one pint and a-half of Humanised and cow’s milk at 14 months, and to one pint of cow’s milk at two years. This includes what you use for cooking his food. For details see “Feeding and Care of Baby,” page 38. Introduce new foods one at a time, and a little at a time. Never make sudden changes. If the bowels are too relaxed use barley jelly instead of oat jelly, and as the child gets older oradually give more and more of the- porridge (oat jelly) unstrained. For everyday use you should get “Feeding and Oare of Baby.” This book will tell you all you require to know. Question ll.—ls Kepler’s Malt Extract a useful tonio for a growing child? Answer.—Kepler’s Malt Extract is a food, just as Cane Sugar is a food. Children who are properly fed and trained to regular habits should neither require tonics nor opening medicine. Question 111. —What is the best laxative from an economical and useful point of view for young children when fresh fruit is not obtainable or prohibitive in price? Answer —Failing fresh fruit as a laxative, and THIS ALONE is not sufficient, children must have some whole meal bread, porridge, raw vegetables (e.g., lettuce, tomatoes, etc.), and water to drink between meals. Besides suitable food, cold baths in the morning, plenty of exercise in the open air, exercises to tone up the muscles of the trunk (over the bowels), such as bending clown to touch the toes, are essential. This applies to children over two years of age. “Young children” is rather a vague term ; but if you have trouble with baby rub “his stomach,” as shown in the book vve recommend. Give more water between meals, especially in the summer time. He will probably be constipated if on whole cow’s milk, because that has too large a quantity of protein. “Hold him out” regularly at a certain time each day—encourage absolute regularity. The bowel can be encouraged to act if you dip your little finger in oil and gently rub the opening. Prepared Paraffin is also useful as a temporary measure, and does not upset digestion like the addition of Olive Oil. A little spinach, well boiled and rubbed through a fine sieve, is also useful after six months of age. Small quantities should be given at firstsay a teaspoonful daily—increase gradually if required. If the bowel is really constipated, start all the remedies suggested at once, and decrease as the desired effect is obtained. Question IY.—Are Dates (as obtainable at the stores) a useful article of diet for young children? Answer. —Dates are food, but, it is better always to use fresh food, fruit, and vege-

tables, rather than cooked or dried articles. Raw fruit is better than cooked fruit; raw vegetables (such as salad, tomatoes celery, etc.) are better than the same cooked. In fact a raw lettuce is better than a boiled cabbage. The cellulose of vegetables, which is not absorbed by the body, passes through the bowels and acts as a laxative. Question V. —What is the best means of strengthening a chest that is rather liable to branchial colds, besides paying due attention to dry feet, nourishing diet, and wellaired sleeping rooms? Answer.—Gradually harden the child, beginning at once and continuing right through the autumn and winter. All children over six months should have a cool sponge and later a cold sponge every morning. Cold bathing is the best strengthened and children of well-to-do parents get this always in the Old Country. Begin with the feet in warm water, and sponge rapidly with cool water (water with the chill off, but not warm). Gradually decrease the temperature of the water until the child is having a cold bath. Rub up vigorously with a rough towel, dress rapidly, and let the child run round, skip, and jump. This, besides ensuring the warmth and comfort of the child, causes it to breathe deeply and to expand and strengthen the lungs and chest. Don’t overclothe,, else the child will perspire and catch cold. Don’t place flannel over the chest with the idea cf strengthening it. Let the child sleep out of doors if possible, otherwise in a room with plenty of cool, fresh, moving air. Question Vl.—Can Biliousness and Bronchitis be in anyway considered hereditary? Answer.—Neither Biliousness nor Bronchitis is hereditary, but is brought on bv errors of nutrition and errors in hygiene. If a child does not have the right quantity and quality of food his body will not have the power to resist the onslaught of disease, be it Bronchitis, Measles, or Biliousness. If properly grown and developed, he will be able to hold his own against all hostile germs. Question VII. —Is unpolished rice superior in food value to polished? Why, and where is it obtainable in New Zealand? Unpolished rice is superior to polished rice in nutritional value, though not in food or fuel value. In countries where people live almost entirely on rice it is essential that .it should be unpolished, because a certain necssary vital element is contained in the polishings. In New Zealand, where ric ® forms onlv a small fraction of our food, it matters little whether the rice is polished or unpolished. Our mam foodstuff is bread, and if we use a good proportion of wholemeal bread and other substances which contain the necessary “vitamines,’ as they are called, we need not worry about the rice. Unpolished rice can be procured trout a store in Wellington.