OUR BABIES.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 18941, 11 December 1929, Page 13

OUR BABIES.

(By lIYGEIA). . under the auspices of tne Boyal New Zealand Society for "L® Health of Women and Children (Plunket Society). .. is wiser to put up a fence at xne top of a precipice than to maintain an ambulance at the bottom.” INFANTILE DIARRHOEA. Y ear after year the Plunket Society has published articles emphasising the important points in this matter—points with which all parents should be familiar. Year after year the Plunket nurses lay stress on the same fundamentals—the supreme importance of natural feeding in the prevention of this scourge; the simple essentials for keeping baby pretty well “germproof” ; the necessity for extra scrupulous cleanliness and care in the keeping of milk and all things pertaining to the feeding of the baby in the summer months; the significance of early signs of trouble and the importance of prompt treatment; also practical advice as to the best simple or emergency treatment.

Statistics show that the average death rate from infantile diarrhoea for the whole of New Zealand, varies from one-tenth to one-twentieth of the average for the rest of the civilised world, and has fallen to two-thirds of what it averaged only a few years ago—eloquent testimony to the high standard of infant care and mothercraft knowledge. Be Prepared. However, we must not let these reassuring statistics lull us into a sense of false security. In the course of the next few weeks we shall again put forth our explanation, warning, and instructions, so that they may come before those parents who have not so far realised the importance of the subject, and be fresh in the minds of the mothers of this summer’s babies. As a disease affecting babies, summer diarrhoea is a most serious and deadly scourge. In New Zealand it occurs mainly from Christmas to the middle or end of March, the number of cases depending on the temperature. Why Is This? Why should summer not be the safest instead of the most dangerous time of the year for infants? The reason is simple. Most babies are fed on liquid food, which is specially liable to ferment in hot weather. Milk becomes infested with germs—in other words, goes bad and becomes poisonous, more readily than any other food. The hotter the weather the more the germs grow and flourish in milk, and if we are not careful in the selection of a milkman, the cleansing of billies and jugs, and the place where the milk is kept it may go bad in hot weather, even before we are ready to use it.

Tainted pasteurised milk is even more dangerous than unheated milk which has gone sour in the ordinary -way. Therefore we must be just as careful to keep bottled city milk cool and loosely covered (not capped and sealed from access of air), as we are with ordinary dairyman’s milk. Babies who die from summer diarrhoea die because they are poisoned—mainly by germs contained in tainted milk acting on babies who have not been kept in such a state of first-rate health and condition as will enable them to resist the attacks of germs. All epidemic diseases, including summer diarrhoea, tend to attack the bodily “unfit” rather than the “fit”; but babies who are perfectly well may fall victims. Why does Nature single out babies and calves ?

In warm weather the young of horses, pigs, dogs, and cats are almost uniformly healthy, while calves are the victims of “scouring,” and babies still suffer or die from the same scourge under the name of “summer diarrhoea.” Why? Calves are sacrificed because man takes the cow’s milk for himself and feeds the calf out of the bucket. The baby is sacrificed because the mother’s breast is denied **to it, and improper food, contaminated with germs, is substituted for the pure, perfect, blood-warm vital stream direct from the proper source. Are ill-health and diarrhoea inevitable during summer time for calves and babies who cannot be suckled?

Certainly not! In both cases the trouble arises, not from the mere fact of artificial feeding in itself, but because proper care is not taken to secure suitable food and to prevent the growth of germs. For babies, properly prepared humanised milk supplies by far the nearest approach to the mother’s milk, and if kept coo! and clean and given according to the directions issued by the Society, there is little risk of trouble. Even breast-fed babies may contract the disease, but immediate suitable treatment of such, or of those who have been judiciously fed by artificial means, soon brings about complete recovery in the great majority of cases. On the other hand, among babies who have been improperly fed the risk of death is very great indeed, and lasting weakness and debility is often the result even if the baby does not die. This is a point which should never be forgotten. Infantile ailments leave lasting ill-effects, even if they are not fatal. We cannot afford to expose our babies to the risk. The Plunket Nurses. The Plunket nurses’ services are free to all. They are glad to see mothers and babies at the Society’s rooms in the various districts throughout the Dominion. If you are travelling or away from your usual place of residence, do not hesitate to take baby to see the Plunket nurse in whatever district you happen to be. She will help and advise you on exactly the same lines as your own Plunket nurse does. If you are out of reach of a nurse, write to the nearest one, or to the nurse with whom you have previously been in touch. Of course, if baby has more than a passing upset, or you are in any doubt, always consult a doctor do not lose valuable time before getting advice.

Prevention and Treatment. Do not miss the next articles to be published in this column. We shall deal further with the prevention and simple treatment of diarrhoea.