HOME HEALTH GUIDE

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 10, Issue 5, 31 July 1946, Page 8

HOME HEALTH GUIDE

COLDS IN BABIES (By the Department of Health) One of a mother's duties is to shield her baby from a cold. Colds can be hard on a baby, not in themselves so much as by reason of their complications bronchitis, pneumonia and ear infections. Apart from these dangers to life, the socalled “harmless” cold will stop baby’s progress—he’ll lose weight, be off his food and irritable.

Colds are better prevented than cured. There is some immunity to colds passed on from the mother to baby that lasts a while after birth usually. This is helped by breast feeding. When mother has a cold herself and is breast feeding baby, she should continue to do so, but wear a mask. A home-made mask will do. It should be washed and boiled before re-use. Mother should wear the mask while the cold is in its infectious stages each time she handles baby. Everyone else with colds or sick in any way should be kept away from baby. Be sure baby is getting adequate amounts of fish liver oil, for if there’s shortage in vitamins A and D the tendency to catch cold is greater. Sunbathe baby every chance you get; even in winter on sunny days, in a sheltered spot, let the sun get to his skin. When a baby does catch a cold in spite of every care, you’ll find he’ll be “heavy” and want to sleep more. Let him be in bed as much as possible. Be very careful, at bath-time, to avoid chilling, and at any other time of changing of clothes. He’ll be off his food. Well don’t force him. Reduced feeds with a cold will be all to the good. But see that he has plenty of fruit" drinks such as orange juice, or tomato juice and water, or rose hip syrup drink. Don’t use any nose drops, especially oily ones, in the baby’s nose, but clear it by the ordinary match stick swab method before feeds. In father, mother, uncles or aunts, or visitors a small cold seems little to guard baby against; but what a big cold that tiny adult one can make in a baby!