OUR BABIES.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 1866, 27 September 1913, Page 5

OUR BABIES.

[Bt Hioru.l Published under the auspices of tlio Society for tho Health of Women and Children. * "It is wiser to put up a fence at tho top of «. precipice than to maintain an ambu. (xdcq a.t tho bottom." NOTE.—The Society etrongly disapproves of the use of artificial foods as a substitute for mothers' or humanised milk. Full direction# for tho preparation of tho latter are contained in the Society's pamphlet entitled "What Baby Needs." SOME IMPORTANT QUESTIONS. To "Hygeia," Dear Madame,—Having followed with great interest from the beginning the splendid work done by the Society for Health of Women and Children, it occurrcd to mc that perhaps yo*i would be kind enough to enlighten ne «,« one or two points connected with tho bringing-up of children, on which 1 am not quite clear, as to the attitude the authorities of the society would take up. ~ In tho case of a baby who has been fed on a patent food, do you advise changing at once to humanised milk in a suitably weak form, or is it sometimes better to give, say, half the patent food and half humanised milk to begin' with, and to decrease the former and increase tho (atter as quickly as possible, till the patent food is got rid of entirely ■ J One knows that at the Karitane Home, where no patent foods of any sort are allowed, every baby is put on to humanised milk of one strength or another at once (leaving out of account those whose state demands whey or 1 only boiled water for a time), but in the work among the homes olio sometimes hears of a baby beim; started by a Plunkct nurse on the other method —that is, by giving the patent food in decreasing quantities along with humanised milk. The advantage oi this seems to'be that a stronger grade or milk can be given to begin with, so that

by tho time the patent food is worked out tho baby, may be almost 011 fullstrength humanised milk. I should be very glad to know what circumstances would determine you in choosing, which of these methods to follow. The other point on which I should be glad of advice is tho question of children's pets. One knows that there are certain great dangers, especially in keeping dogs and cats; on the other hand, a child who has never had pets loses a good deal of pleasure, and a great deal of useful training besides. It might, perhaps, be of interest to others besides myself- to hear the society's views on this matter, as it alfccts almost all children, whether their, parents and guardians havo actually considered the question or not. Wishing your exceiiwit work all success in the future, —I am, etc., INTERESTED INQUIRER, THE REPLY. The general rule is that no food should bo changed suddenly. Take the case of a child well established on a patent food, and doing apparently well. One would certainly do everything in one's pow r er to induce the people gradually to change to humanised milk, it being the food that undoubtedly approaches most nearly to Nature's. In this case one might well pursue the method indicated —i.e., that of giving the patent food in decreasing and the humanised milk in gradually increasing quantities. One would bring about the change as quickly as was consistent with the child's (ligation. 'I he case, of a baby at ICaritane-Harris Hospital is obviously quite different. TIIO fact of its going there implies that it is ill,and that tho patent .food used has disagreed, aud consequently should bo discontinued at once. The course then is clear —to take the baby off tho patent food and to put it on a weakened form of. humanised milk; or, if it be very ill, 011 sugar solution or albumen water or whey, as the case may be, and very gradually to work it 011 to humanised milk. DR. TRUDY KINO'S ADVICE. In this connection Dr. Trubv King wrjtes as follows:— If baby is delicate, or if he has been fed with patent foods or condensed milk, begin with one part humanised milk to two of boiled water. Say baby has reached the end of three months, and would need for full sustenance (if of normal weight and development) about 30oz. (lj pints) of mother's milk or of humanised milk, we might begin with lOoz. humanised milk and 20oz. boiled water, allowing of this mixture six feedings of ooz. each in 24 hours.

This gives baby only a third of tlio proper allowance of food for sustaining normal growth and development. However, tho main point at first is to get the digestive organs into proper working order. Increase tho proportion of humanised milk and correspondingly diminish the boiled water fairly quickly at first, to prevent keeping baby long on very weak food (below liaTf-strengtlii. Then go more slowly, watching carefully tlio effect of the food, and thus minimising tlie risk _of overstepping the digestive power—judging by appearance and number of motions, comfort, disconifoit, sleep, etc.

KEEPING PETS. With regard to the oilier, question', as to the advisability or otherwise of children keeping pets, I add the opinion, obtained from an eminent medical authority:— "Interested Inquirer" is no doubt quite right in saving that a child who has never had animal pets loses a great deal of pleasure, and a great deal of useful training besides; but there is another side, and a very important one, to this question. We think it would be best for all practical purposes to limit the discussion, at any rate in the meantime, to tho subject of dogs and cats, which are, of course, the commonest of children's pets. Now, dogs will be dogs and cats will be eats, and they all have certain objectionable characteristics which no amount of training can completely eliminate. Dogs are particularly liable to harbour parasites, especially tapeworms, and one tiny variety of tapeworm in the dog, especially prevalent iu New Zealand and other sheep-raising countries, is responsible for the spread of hydatid disease in human, beings and in stock animals. The eggs or tho hydatid tape-worm aro passed in the excrement of the dog and become distributed over the surface of the land and into the streams and ponds, whoreby sheep, cattlo, pigs, horses, and human beings may become infected from swallowing their eggs. In houses where dogs are made pets of and allowed perhaps to lick the hands and faces of children, it is obvious how infection may easily bo transmitted, thousands of animals and hundreds of human beings aro every year affected by hydatid disease in this country, and remember that it is in tho dog, and the dog only, that the hydatid tape-worm originates. It might be asked, Where do dogs get tho tape-worm from; and tho answer is, From eating the raw flesh of animals such as the liver and' lights of slieep infected with hydatid disease. In the dog, and tho dog only, hydatid tape-worm grows; in other animals hydatid disease takes the form of tho growth of bladders called cysts in different parts of tho body, especially £he liver and lungs. The raw cysts when eaten by tho dog produce the tapeworm iu that animal;, the tape-worm eggs passed in tho motions of the dogs produce the bladdor-liko . growths in man and stock animals, and thus a vicious circle is established. It is now generally known that there is a risk of catching hydatid disease from drinking unboiled or unfiltered water from streams, pools, and reservoirs that have been open to pollution by dogs, and oven pet dogs are a possible source of danger in this respect. Dogs frequently suffer from mange, and the ringworm of children is oiteu traceable to infection from this source. Cats, too, are sometimes mangy, and cats are known to suffer from diphllieria, which is, of course, highly infectious to human beings, cspecially ehildren. Both cats and dogs Harbour fleas and other similar parasites, whinh may cause trouble by migrating to tho tender bodies ol children.

Enough, has been said to show that if children are' to bo allowed to make pets of dogs or cats scrupulous care must bo taken to see that these animals are kept as clean as possible in body and in habits, but that even with the greatest care a certain amount of risk, not very serious, perhaps, must be run, in regard to infection from hydatid dis-. ease, ringworm, diphtheria, fleas, and other skill parasites. It is very doubtful whether the advantages to' children of more or less intimato association with these animals will counter-balance the risks enumerated.

As many inquiries are being made as to tho vaiuo of "Glaxo" as a food for infants, I think it advisable to reprint the "Glaxo articles" which have appeared in this column, and wihch deal exhaustively with the subject. Tho soojety strongly disapproves of the uso of artificial foods as a substitute for mother's or humanised milk. Full directions for tho preparation of the latter is contained in the society's published pamphlet entitled "What Baby Needs." Glaxo Builds Bonny Babies.—Advt.