STANDARDISING THE BABY.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XXXX, Issue 13103, 17 June 1913, Page 9

STANDARDISING THE BABY.

j A campaign was opened m New York ; a few weeks ago, the purpose of which !is to improve the American race and injcidentally seciiro valuable information J regai'ding childr-n m all parts of the j country, and to ' Landardise statistics i regarding the young." Baby shows on the lines of that held recently m New .| York, where health . before 1 mere beauty was rewarded by prizes, will be held m every Sta.t© m ,the Republic, and information regarding the perfect child and infant liygierio will be .offered free to I every mother. Children's welfare assb'ciations throughout the country are cooperating with municipal health officers •to test the health of 100,000 children. ! Results will be obtained througjh a j series of competitive examinations of • normally healthy children m county, ■ city and State contests. On the scoreI cards furnished by the committee will (be entered the weight, height, physical measurements, condition and mental development, following examinations by physicians. Within a, year,v it is hoped, the standard of America's normally healthy child will be established beyond dispute. Moreover, the medical 'authorities • will have learned valuable facts about pre-natal influences, food, environment, habits and conditions. And rules for development suitable to individual cases will be. provided.. American doctors know something .about infants, and also regarding children of the kindergarten age, but they admit that there is a period between thetwo when, for the most party they have lost track of the child. National examinations will supply the information wanted and enable health officers to formulate standards for general reference. "We are going to be just. as scientific and careful about our children as we . have been about our poultry and kitch«n-gard«n shows," said the president of the National Commiitt&e. "As soon as we have shown the usefulness of our work other countries will follow our example, and thus America will have rendered a •world-wide service."