OUR BABIES.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 11478, 28 August 1915, Page 3

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." FOOD (Continued.!. I We hope that after what has been said in the preceding articles on milk ; none of our readers will have any doubt j as to the best food for the rearing of young babies. No other form of nourishment can compare with milk drawn ' iresh and pure direct from the mother's ■ breast | We showed how the milk of each i mammal is spec : ally designed for the young'of the particular species; and if ; a baby has the misfortune to be deprived of its birthright, the milk u ed afa substitute ought to be so modified that it \rll approach as nearly as possible to human milk. The recipes for modifying cow's milk, to make it suitable for a baby, are giv?n in the Government pamphlet, j "Baby's First Month," and also in the 1 scivety's book, "Feeding and Care of Baby" (pages 23 and 25); therefore , they need not be repeated here. Advice and instructions with regard to natural and artificial feeding are given in " Feeding and Care of Baby." 1 Tli's book should be in the hands of all those who are entrusted with the care of '"nfants. We have been asked to draw up a short summary with regard to the feeding of a normal, healthy child in the first two years of lire. I give the following merely to remind the mother of s:iae addition or change which ought to bs made at a particular month. She is supposed to have read and .studied the society's book, and we shall refer to the page> dealing with the various points so that she mav be able to look th.m up without trouble. All references in the summary are to the bock, " Feeding and Care of Baby." ; | SUMMARY, j First Few Days.'—Follow carefully ■ and intel.igently the instructions on j j pases 6 and 7 and 29. ( I From Third Day on.—Mother's milk lor properly adjusted and graded hu- | manised milk every three hours in the , i day time. Give no night feeding, and | sis feedings only in the twenty-four I hours. (See pages 34 and 35). At Three or Four Months. —If baby ; is artificially fed, a change may bo made !to humanised milk No. 11. (See page 25). artificially-fcd baby should receive some freoh fruit juice daily. (Page 40). At Four Months. —Commence fourhourly feeding—i.e., feed five times ii. twenty-four hours. (Page 34). At Six Months.—Baby should be j given a bone to gnaw at, in order to j give exercise to mouth, jaw.3, tongue and developing teeth. (Page 38). At iN'nie Months. - Give baby crust or toast, or '* pulLd bread,'' which has been slowly crisped in tho oven, before giving milk. Give this first at one. and later at two or more feedings. This must form part of the meal, but a reasonable time should be allowed so that baby may take it slowly, say, ten or fifteen minutest. On the other hand, it is a great mistake to get baby into the bad habit of dawdling unduly; and the mother must be warned against ever allowing any form of food except at tho appointed time. Never feaJ between meals. If baby is artificially fed, 3oz of oat jelly or barley jelly may now be mixed with the day's supply of food; or loz may be given plain by spoon, first at one feed.ng and later at two of the feedings at which no bread is given—tho remainder of the jelly being mixed with the milk. (Page 38). If baby is fed naturally, the same j quantity of oat or barley jelly should be introduced at this time, and baby I ought to be gradualiv weaned. (Page i 15) At ten months—The feeding should be somewhat as follows: Mix 30oz of humanised milk No. TI and lOoz of cow's milk. At 6 a.m.—Give fcoss of the milk, with which 2oz of oat jelly has been blended. At 10 a.m. —Give a crust about ten r minutes before feeding time, and Boz | of the mixed milk. | At 2 p.m.—Give crust, ten minutef before t'io hour, then loz of oat jelly !>3* spoon, and Soz of milk. At 6 p.m.—Same as 10 a.m.' At 10 p.m.-—Same as 6 a.m. This is only approximate. Some babies may bo nble to get more food from t.. a erupts than others,-and the' they vi'oolo T,ot need qune so milk or oat jelly, while others would ; noed more. | I'l'b following table shows approxi | -'rifely the quantities of Humanise?' j Milk, cow's milk, and cereal jelly re j .juired from nine to eighteen months ' I j Rnm«T7s»*4 or Sun.'ati | Wiik. Nrv Purl 9."- o{ j | Moft'h. . i Oz. Ox. !_)■/.. ; j Tenth . ,> .1 fi . Kfevpnth -o s, ! IWtrh .2* ? , 7 • f Fh :r'dentil . 15 ' j ''"iMpcntb , M'l f, j J Eighteenth... 0 ;;s 4 i j Warniin?;. -A* the baby conic:- te I take more starchy or cereal food, don't j j fail to replace more and more of the I humanised milk with pure oow's milk, las shown in the table. Mothers and | even nurses have been known to keep j j »n using only humanised milk at this ! I stage, snd by so doing have deprived | the baby of its due proportion of fleshj forming material. After E even Months.-—A thin scrapj ing of butter may he spread on bread or toast nnd given instead of the j crust. I> baby will not take, | dry food the meal may bo oompictoiJ by bread or tosM. over which some