OUR BABIES.

Star (Christchurch), Volume XLIV, Issue 683, 9 February 1933, Page 14

OUR BABIES.

By HYGEIA.

Published under the auspices of the Royal New Zealand Society for the Health of Women and Children (Plunket Society). ” It is wiser to put up a fence at I the top of a precipice than to niainI tain an ambulance at the bottom.” NATURAL FEEDING. I During the nine months before birth j the mother is building the early foundations of the tiny body which is in the ordinary course of Nature one day to grow into a man or woman. From the mother's blood the first cells are formed, and these grow and multiply until the normal infant at full term weighs from 71b to 81b. The importance of the mother’s health has been stressed in the previous articles, and now we follow on the path of baby’s progress. With his first cry an entirely new circulation is established. The oxygen is now obtained from the air instead of through the mother’s blood, and so, as it were, with his first breath he begins to be self-supporting'. I-le learns to do his own work of digestion, and gets rid of all waste products through the excretory organs. Nearly all babies are born healthy, and it is within every mother’s power to keep them healthy. Why, then, is is that at a few months of age we so often see these same infants fretful, puny little things, and sometimes even below birth-weight? In nine cases out of ten it is the result of wrong feeding because of the failure or unwillingness of the mother to nurse her offspring. At least 95 per cent of our present-day mothers can either fully or partially breast-feed their infants. Before birth the baby obtains all food from the mother’s blood stream, and the stomach takes no part in the process. After birth the food is taken in through the mouth, passes into the stomach and intestines, whence it is absorbed into the blood stream, and the waste matter is eliminated through the bowels and kidneys. Nature has evolved a wonderful plan whereby the stomach is slowly educated to digest normal food. For the first few days there is found in the breasts a thin watery-looking fluid called colostrum—a most valuable food, containing a large percentage of protein of the same nature as that found in actual blood. Thus it can be absorbed with practically no effort on the part of the stomach and digestive juices. Gradually this, fluid is changed into true milk, and thus Nature provides a perfect transitional food for the baby, educating- the digestive system to perform its work efficiently. What a difference, then, from the unfortunate child who is denied his birthright—his own mother’s milk. A few hours or days after birth an entirely strange milk is passed into his stomach for his digestive system to deal with. However we dilute and alter cow’s milk, it can never be made anything really approaching human milk. Even the exercise of sucking from the breast is of | great benefit to the baby. This proj motes a good supply of blood to the jaws, producing well-formed jaws, having plenty of room for the spacing of good teeth, and there is less likelihood of developing tonsils and adenoids. Almost without exception the mother who happily and successfully nurses her infant benefits her own health as well. She is doing a natural thing, and not drying up a natural outlet. Much can be done before the birth of baby towards successful nursing. Many failures are caused by cracked and painful nipples, which sometimes lead to breast abscesses. The following treatment improves the general tone of the breast and hardens the nipple naturally so that when the infant sucks it does not crack or feel sore: The nipple should be scrubbed with a soft mulbrush, or a soft toothbrush (kept for the purpose) would do as well. Tf depressed they should be pulled out daily and rubbed between an oiled finger and thumb. If it is impossible to get the nipple out a breast pump may be tried. Daily laving of the breasts with cold water, or using cold and’hot water alternately (always finishing with cold), also helps in toning up the mammary glands. In next week’s article we will deal with the establishment of lactation.