WHEN BED-TIME COMES.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 18189, 23 June 1927, Page 12

WHEN BED-TIME COMES.

Conducted by Matron of the Mothercraft Training Society. The new-born babe who has to face wintry nights from the very first needs all the help we can give him. Baby’s cot and bedding should never be chosen lightly, but real care and common sense exercised in their choice. Not so very long ago almost any season baby, and certainly a winter one. would be kept under the mother's bedclothes for the first week or so of his life. We know better now, and baby goes straight to his own w’ee bed from the very first—impure air being just as dangerous as cold. In our zeal for fresh air, however, we must not forget that cold is a real enemy of young life; while, in our zeal to keep baby warm and cosy, we must never overlook the fact that he cannot thrive if he gets little or no oxygen. Keeping Baby Warm. A cradle whose sides are non-porous cannot be ideal. The air round baby should be in constant, if gentle, motion; and non-ventilated sides form far too effective a screen. Yet, while the changing air should thus get freely to the lungs through the nose, the little body must be helped to maintain heat through long nights, when possibly the temperature of the room, with its wide open windows, will drop very low indeed. To start fires in the nursery at night is a great mistake, except in the case of illness, and baby will soon learn to generate his own heat and thus help his circulation to function well if his bed is properly made. Sleeping Sacks! Taking a leaf from the book of Arctic explorers, it seems obvious that the sleeping-sack is the ideal method of keeping warm, so that cold air cannot get to him if he turns and tosses in bed. Yet a real sleeping-sack is not very practical for long stretches of time, as baby is likely to dampen or soil it. To overcome this difficulty a large blanket may be used as a sack, the bottom part coming right under the mattress and thus never getting touched at all. Put such a blanket on the floor of the cot (70 by 44ins. is a good size), letting more overlap on one side than the other; lay the mattress on it; protect this well by chaff overlay, old flannel blanket, mackintosh sheet and drawsheet; put pillow in place, lay baby down, and cover him loosely with a nestling blanket or shawl, not tucked in. Finishing the Bed. Now bring across the shorter side of the enveloping blanket as far as it will go, and tuck in securely; then bring across the other side, and pin in place, tucking in superfluous material at the foot. Arrange the foot as an envelope flap and also pin in place. This should be done firmly, but not too tightly, and a hand should be inserted to make sure ba,by has plenty of freedom. The nestling shawl will keep him cosy, the enveloping blanket it impossible, for him to throw Ins bed clothes off him, and a third blanket or shawl, laid lightly on top, can lie added, if necessary, for extra warmth, but this is very rarely needed. Fluffy Blankets. Remember that new, light, fluffy blankets and shawls are far warmer than washed, thick, felted ones, and baby does not want to feel oppressed by his coverings, so the lighter these can be kept the better. A coverlet should always be extremely porous, and then baby will sleep soundly without any bad dreams. Protecting baby's bed is a real problem, and this is how we manage at the Alothercraft Training Centre. Wc make little chaff overlays to fit the cot. That is, we make strong calico covers of a suitable size, and nearly half fill them with fine bed chaff, which has been carefully picked over for scratchy pieces and baked n the oven. If such an overlay did get soiled, it would be a simple matter to renew the chaff and boil the cover; while, if the hair mattress gets soiled, it is an expensive matter to get it re-purified, and one which many mothers could not afford.