OUR BABIES.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 18577, 27 September 1928, Page 14

OUR BABIES.

By

HYGEIA.

Published under the auspices of the Royal New Zealand Society tor the Health of Women-and Children (Plunket Society). “ It is wiser to put up a fence at the top of a precipice than to xnaintain an ambulance at the bottom. ” CONSTIPATION. A PLUNKET NURSE’S TALK TO MOTHERS. (Continued from our Last Issue.) For the Baby. Sometimes illness or other unavoidable circumstances break the good habits of early days, or for some Reason a habe becomes constipated. Boiled water given between feeds may be all he will require, or at most regular abdominal massage for a few days. Prune juice, prune pulp, spinach (cooked and sieved), apple juice, or pulp are all mild natural laxatives. The Plunket nurse will examine his diet, correct it if necessary, and explain the amounts of prime juice or other laxative to give. Be faithful, regular, and persistent in following her directions, otherwise you cannot expect really go>l results. For the older children introduce the coarse meals and all vegetables going slowly, and teach them to chew’. The always ready apple, ripe and raw', must be part of their daily diet. Abdominal Massage. In cases of long-standing or neglected constipation some other help is needed. In baby’s case massage of the abdomen is most useful to stimulate the lazy bowel to the necessary strong wave-like movements. Place baby on the table, not on your knee; with warm oiled fingers commence lightly, so as not to frighten baby and keep him amused. The desired result is lost if he cries and tightens the muscle wall that covers the bowel beneath. Press evenly and deeply, following the course of the bowel. You cannot injure any organ or hurt baby. Also bend the legs on to the abdomen, each in turn and then together half a dozen times. After, say, five minutes of this treatment hold baby out; if necessary stimulate the bowel opening with an oiled finger, thus suggesting what is desired. This should be done morning and evening until a regular habit is established, and should always be resorted to as a first aid measure if help is required at any time to procure a bow’el movement.

The Enema. In urgent cases—that is, if baby has gone more than twenty-four hours without a motion and the above treatment has had no result—it may be necessary to give, an enema. A small bulb, or Plunket syringe, is the only necessary article. Use salt and water in the proportion of one teaspoonful of salt to a pint of boiling water. Give the injection at a temperature not hotter than blood heat (i.e., about lOOdeg. Fahr.). A small amount say, one bulbful, given slowly, will cause baby to expel the water and with it the motion. Oftentimes the mere introduction of the oiled tip of the syringe will be sufficient without any injection, and it is a good plan to try this first. Guard against giving large enemas; they only increase the difficulty by over-stretching the elastic-like bowel walls. If baby is badly constipated, inject a large tablespoonfui of warm olive oil in the same manner. Then press the buttocks together firmly to help him to retain the oil- This softens an obstinate, hard motion so that it will come away easier. Try this at night, and then give a salt and water injection in the morning if necessary. • Never use soapy water for enemas. They irritate and damage the bowel wall, whereas salt and water tones it up. If, howevar, in emergency, no other means are at hand to bring about a motion, one may use a soap stick made of Castile or similar soap. Cut it in the shape of a torpedo, and soften the surface with warm water before pushing it gently, about one-inch, Into the bowel opening. Medicines. You may notice that the usual remedies for constipatiou have been given last place. Emphatically medicines do not cure constipation. Usually they increase it by making the bowel more sluggish. Most particularly is this so with castor oil. Never give or take castor oil to secure a bowel action. The only exception is in cases of diarrhoea, when its drastic sweeping action is used to remove the irritating cause of the diarrhoea and to give the bowel rest afterwards. Castor oil given to a newborn baby to empty the bowel of the tarry substance there at birth is one of the surest ways of establishing constipation. That tarry substance is a natural laxative and educating medium for the baby’s bowels. Nature never makes mistakes; hence we strive to keep to natural means. Avoid purgatives. Liquid extract of cascara. in small doses tor the adult l& beneficial. It is certainly the best Laxative for the nursing and expecant mother. Ten drops three times daily, decreasing gradually as improvement takes place, is usually sufficient. Cascara has a special tonic action on the muscle of the bowel.

I Summary. Now let me summarise the essentials for the prevention and cure of constipation : Exercise in the open air; special exercises if necessary; abdominal massage. ■ Bathing: Cool or cold. Fresh air and sunshine in abundance. Proper food for baby and adult, including the natural laxative foods. Ample water to drink.Regularity of all habits, . especially the habit of daily evacuation, established early. Patience and perseverance. In other words —right living. Disease and disordered functioning of the body should be a rarity in the life of a baby, and would be in the life of the adult, if these simple and inexpensive measures were the mother's golden rides. No one need be in ignorance of any . of these methods, nor are they difii- : cult to carry out. Printed instructions for the exercises I have described and . recipes and diet suggestions with special menus will all be given by your nearest Plunket nurse gladly, and she is always ready to help if she can in any of your difficulties. It lies within the mother’s power to endow young lives with the most priceless heritage of good health. Remember: Health is made or marred during the growing period. Health means happiness. Health means economy Health is every child’s natural birthright.