OUR BABIES.

Otago Witness, Issue 4031, 16 June 1931, Page 33

OUR BABIES.

By

Hygeia.

Publi»hed under the auspices of ths 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.”

PLUNKET NURSES. ETC.. DUNEDIN BRANCH. NURSES' SERVICES FREE. Nurses O’Shea (telephone 23-348). Isbister (telephone 10-866), Thomson, Scott, and Ewart (telephone 10-216). and Mathieson (telephone 23-020). Society's Rooms: Jamieson's Buildings. 6 Lower Stuart street (telephone 10-216) Office hours: Daily from 2 to 4 p.m. (except Saturday and Sunday) and 10 a.m. to noon on Tuesdays. Thursdays, and Fridays; 315 King Edward street. South Dunedin. 2 to 4 p.m daily (except Saturday and Sunday) and 10 a.m to noon on Fridays; also 125 Highgate. Roslyn— Monday and Thursday from 2 to 4 p.m.: Gospel Hall. Mailer street. Mornington— Monday and Wednesday 2 to 4 p.m.T Kelsey Yaralla Kindergarten — Monday and Friday from 2 to 4 p.m.; Baptist Sunday School Sunshine—Monday and Wednesday from 2 to 4 p.m.; 211 Mam North road. North-East Valley—Tuesdays. 2 to 4 p.m.; Kindergarten Caversham—Thursdays. 2 to 4 p.m Outstations: Baptist Church. Gordon road. Mosgiel—Tuesday afternoons from 3 to 4 o’clock: Presbyterian Church Hall. Outram—alternate Fridays. 2 to 4 p.m.; Municipal Buildings Port Chalmers— Wednesday afternoons from 2 to 4 o’clock; also Hall. Macandrew’s Bay—Fridaye. 2 to 4 p.m. Administrative Secretary, Miss G. Hoddinott, Jamieson’s Buildings. Stuart street (telephone 10-216) Karitane-Harris Baby Hospital. Anderson’s Bay (telephone 22-985) Matron. Miss Hilditeh Demonstrations given on request every Wednesday afternoon from 2.30 by Plunket Nurses and Karitane Baby Nurses Visiting hours: 2to 4 p.m., Wednesday. Friday and Sunday.

INTRODUCING NEW FOODS. SOME PRACTICAL POINTS FOR MOTHERS. We have been asked to answer some questions regarding the introduction of mixed feeding. Some of these points, in spite of their simplicity, often puzzle or present difficulties to mothers. For the sake of clearness we will set out questions and answers, and hope they may be of use to our readers. Question : What cereal foods are best for baby ? Answer : Plain coarse oatmeal, well cooked and strained, is the best and most nutritious, and should be regarded as the staple cereal. Do not resort to patent groats or other highly refined porridges unless it is really impossible, not merely inconvenient, to cook coarse oatmeal properly. If oatmeal porridge is used for the family breakfast so much the better. All you have to do in that case is to make sure that baby’s portion has had at least an hour’s cooking, and then press it through a wire sieve. The jelly should be fairly stiff, so that when milk is added it does not mix in and make the jelly semi-liquid. One of your objects in giving it is to teach the baby tbe “ feel ” of solid food, and, of course, you defeat this purpose if the jelly is thin and milky. Strain enough for one or two meals, and warm up as required. Barley jelly, made from patent barley, may be used for the first few meals of cereal food, as it is rather more easily digested than oat jelly. Afterwards, it may be given occasionally for variety, or if baby’s motions tend to be a little relaxed for any reason. If the motions are decidedly relaxed rice jelly may be used for a time, this being slightly constipating. On the other hand, if baby is inclined to be constipated, give oat jelly in preference to any other, as it tends to be a little relaxing. Whole wheatmeal may be used in the same way as oatmeal from time to time for variety.

Q.: How much cereal jelly should one give baby at first, and how should one increase it ? A. : Start with a tablespoonful of oat jelly with three or four teaspoonfuls of scalded milk round it. (No sugar is required.) It is usually convenient to start this innovation at the 10 a.m. feeding, immediately before the usual Boz bottle. Have the little spoon-feed ready, nice and warm, and have the bottle ready too. However, it may be advisable at first to keep the latter out of sight until the spoon-feed has been disposed of. Increase the spoon-feed bit by bit until you are giving four tablespoonfuls of cereal and about six teaspoonfuls of milk by 10 months. _ At first follow the spoon-feed by the usual Boz of milk mixture; then, as more cereal is given, decrease the milk drink to 6oz or 7oz at this feed. Between 10 and 11 months increase the allowance of cereal up to a total of 10 or 11 tablespoonfuls at 11 months; divide this between two meals—usually 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. Between 11 and 12 months you can increase the total still further, up to about 15 tablespoonfuls daily at 12 months.

Q.t When can one discontinue straining and give ordinary porridge f A. : One must be guided in this by the individual baby’s digestive powers. In any case the change must be made very gradually. Too rapid introduction of unstrained porridge may cause diarrhoea.

The digestive tract needs to be educated by degrees to deal with the coarser parts of the meal. As a general rule, one starts when baby is about a year old to add a teaspoonful or two of unstrained porridge to the jelly, stirring well in. Every day or so you can add a little more of the unstrained part, until by the time baby is between 15 and 18 months old the whole may be given unstrained. If at any time the motions tend to become relaxed go more slowly for a time. Some babies with a tendency to this condition have to be graded very carefully indeed; others, on the contrary, with a tendency to constipation, can advance much more quickly, taking with advantage half unstrained porridge at about a year and all unstrained at 15 months. Use your discretion, and be guided in every instance by the motions, etc.

Q. : What should one give a baby at the 2 o’clock feed after nine months ? A. : Give ’ first one and later two fingers of twice-baked bread (prepared as described in this column last week). Be prepared to spend 10 minutes or so at feeding time teaching baby how to eat the bread until he becomes expert at it. Usually, if properly trained, he will soon learn to dispose of every crumb in a very businesslike manner. If the gums are sore, softer crusts will have to be given for a time. Follow the crusts with Boz of milk mixture. Q. : Does baby need any other foods between nine and twelve months ? A. : Only orange juice or other fresh uncooked fruit or vegetable juice. This should be given with water between meals as convenient. About one tablespoonful of orange juice or two tablespoonfuls of carrot juice may be given at this stage. If baby has four teeth and has learned to chew, start raw ripe apple under supervision. (See last week’s notes for remarks about the giving of raw apple.) Q. : How much milk does baby need during this period f A. : Between 20oz and 250 z of whole cow’s milk, which must be properly modified by addition of water, sugar, and fat in proper proportions. One cannot lay down absolute rules, but the following mixtures serve as a guide and are suitable for a healthy baby with normal digestion:— Nine to ten months— Milk, 20oz, Increasing to 230 z. Water, 20oz, decreasing to 17oz. Karilae, two tablespoonfuls and one teaspoonful, decreasing to two tablespoonfuls. Kariol, seven teaspoonfuls, decreasing to six teaspoonfuls. Ten to eleven months— Milk, 230 z, increasing to 250 z. Water, 17oz, decreasing to lOoz. Karilae, two tablespoonfuls, decreasing to a tablespoonful and a-half. Kariol, six teaspoonfuls, decreasing to five teaspoonfuls. Eleven to twelve months— Milk, 250 z, decreasing to 220 z. Water, lOoz, decreasing to Boz. Karilae, one tablespoonful and a-half, decreasing to one tablespoonful. Kariol, five teaspoontuls, decreasing to three teaspoonfuls. Q. : How often should baby be fed f A. : Give five feeds daily as a general rule, discontinuing the 10 p.m. feeding in the twelfth month. Some babies tend to drop the 10 p.m. feeding earlier. This is only allowable if sufficient milk mixture is taken at the other four meals and the baby continues to gain weight satisfactorily. Give baby Boz of milk mixture on waking, say about 6 a.m. At the breakfast meal (9 to 10 a.m.) give cereal jelly, followed by 6oz to Boz of milk mixture. At the dinner meal (1 to 2 p.m.) give twice-baked bread or crusts, followed by Boz milk mixture. At the tea meal .(5 to 6 p.m.) give cereal, followed by 6oz to Boz milk mixture. At 9 to 10 p.m. give 6oz to Boz of milk mixture. Increase the twice-baked bread by giving it about 10 minutes before breakfast and tea as well as at the middle meal. Give fruit juice between meals and raw apple once a day when baby has learnt to chew.

Q. : When should the bottle be given up f A. : Baby should be completely weaned from the bottle by a year of age —earlier if he takes sufficient milk by spoon and cup feeding. Learning to drink from a cup is an important part of the child’s education during this period. Children vary greatly in the readiness with which they accept changes, both as regards new flavours or textures in food and new methods of feeding. Some, naturally conservative in this respect, need tactful handling to avoid the development of an active refusal of all new foods or new methods. It is advisable to take steps in advance to accustom every bottle-fed baby to the transition from, bottle to cup and spoon feeding, just in the same way as it is always advisable to accustom the breast-fed baby to the use of the bottle from an early stage by giving water in this way. With the bottle-fed baby give orange juice by spoon from the beginning, and from about six months teach him to drink . water from a cup. By nine months he should in this way be able to drink quite neatly, and (which is even more important) be prepared to accept milk from a cup without a struggle. Discontinue the bottle by degrees—first for a few ounces at one feeding, then for one whole feeding, then two, and so on. The 6 a.m, bottle may be discontinued last for convenience sake. Introduce each new food in very small quantities and increase slowly. It is far better to let baby want more than he gets for a time than to force a given amount on him. The former stimulates appetite, whilst the latter method mayset up a troublesome refusal of the new food. Next week we will discuss the period between 12 and 15 months along the same lines.