OUR BABIES

Waipawa Mail, Volume LXVI, Issue 140, 22 August 1938, Page 1

OUR BABIES

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 the top of a precipice than to maintain an ambulance at the bottom. DIFFICULTIES SOMETIMES ASSOCIATED WITH BREASTFEEDING. A PLUNKET NURSE TALKS TO YOUNG MOTHERS. Because breast-feeding sometimes presents difficulties to the nursing ".other, it is right that she should know something of these difficulties so that she may prevent them if possible—“forewarned is forearmed”— or that she will understand how to right these difficulties if they should occur. Failure to breast-feed might be avoided in many cases if mothers had some knowledge along these lines. Nearly all mothers recognise that breast-feeding is best for mother and child, and it is the object of this talk to #*nvinee you that the difficulties you may encounter may be overcome with patience and perseverance. Do you as mothers realise that failure to nurse is almost always due, not to a failure on the part of Nature, but to failure on your part to live in a natural way and to manage the whole process from the beginning with wisdom and knowledge? The mother who is able to nourish her baby before birth is perfectly able to produce milk of quantity and quality to nourish the baby after birth, provided the conditions and management are reasonably good. To understand the management of breast-feeding and difficulties likely to be met it is necessary to know something of the manner in which the breast functions. The cells of the mammary gland abstract certain substances from the blood, from which they manufacture milk. The whole process is governed by, and may be affected by, the nervous system. It is necessary therefore for a mother to have a good supply of pure blood and a sound nervous system. The first difficulty to discuss, then, is a poor blood supply, which is usually due to poor health. We correct the health of the mother by teaching her the rules of heaithy living:— 1. Correct food. 2. Regular habits of evacuation. 3. Daily exercise in fresh air. 4. Ample rest and sleep. 5. Cleanliness. Now we pass on to the next important point, which is management. Wrong handling of baby and mismanagement of details alone may cause great difficulties to arise in breast-feeding a baby. Posture is important. The mother should be comfortable and at ease, both mentally and physically. A low chair with a footstool will be found most suitable. Quietness is necessary, especially with a nervous, over-alert baby. Retire to a quiet room where

you will be free from interruptions. Even the effort of talking will alter the flow of milk, and baby may be unsatisfled. Regularity is essential. Most babies do well with flve feeds a day, at intervals of four hours. Should baby be small or weak he may need six feeds, at intervals of three hours. Absolute regularity establishes a rhythm which stimlates the breasts to function at their best.

Details in handling baby may make all the difference between success and failure. If allowed to suckle too strongly the milk may rush down his throat and half choke him, so that he refuses the breast altogether. In such a case hold the breast back with your hand so that baby has to work harder to "Bn'v’s nos-

trils may be hi ■ ' uv he may not be able to breathe properly. Therefore clean his nostrils with a small twist of material, and hold the breasts away from his nose when.feeding him. See that baby breaks his wind after being fed and before tucking him in his cot, or he may vomit later and lose his feed. Jogging or patting or handling baby too much after a feed may cause him to return at least part of it. This returning of food may become a habit, and baby will not thrive. After baby has flnished and expelled his wind tuck him cosily into his cot at once, and he will settle readily and go to sleep.

There are difficulties due to baby refusing to nurse. If this occurs the cause must be found. He may have a sore mouth due to an infection, such as thrush, which is recognised by adherent white patches that occur on the tongue and cheeks. Thrush should never occur if the nipples and breast coverings are always kept perfectly clean and dry. If thrush is present the mouth must be gently cleaned before and after nursing. Buy a bottle of glycerine and borax from the chemist. Cut strips of boiled linen four inches long and one inch wide, soak a strip in the glycerine and borax, and allow baby to suck vigorously for a few minutes. This treatment must he continued until the mouth is quite clean and healed.

Sometimes baby may refuse the hrpnst for no apparent reason, and -imnlv flvht and strueole as soon as *ho feed is hocun. This is a verv condition, and calls for great -nti„nco a n d perseverance. It is a "cso of contest between the mother md her child, and with patience the mother will win. If necessary the "Mid must be starved to the breast if he is well and healthy. This trouble seldom occurs after the first few weeks of life.

The mother should wisely, gently, and firmly regulate her baby’s habits and conduct, remembering that obedience in infancy is the foundation of all later powers of self-control.