OUR BABIES

Sun (Auckland), Volume I, Issue 310, 22 March 1928, Page 4

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 the top of a precipice than to maintain an ambulance at the bottom.”

THE NORMAL CH I LD— (Continued

Last week we printed part of a talk given to mothers by a Plunket nurse. She asked whether the “normal baby” is so “just by accident.” “Is lie just one of the lucky ones?” —and then referring to the poster showing the “12 essentials," forming a complete circle round the baby, she went on:

“I must tell you that our normal baby is the centre of ci magic circle, which, so long as it remains unbroken and no enemies are lying hidden within, will protect him from all harm. The circle is kept by 12 good fairies, and every baby, rich or poor, in town or country may have these guardians if only his mother wills and works for them We •all know that the centre of a circle is the safest place if one has to be constantly on guard against attack. We are familiar with pictures of fortified towns in the Middle Ages and fortified pas of old Maoris days. Provided the circling walls remained intact, and no traitors arose from within, the inhabitants were safe from their foes, but one breach in the walls or treachery within and the enemy had direct access. The same with our baby here in his circle. The influence of his forefathers and liis father’s life and his mother’s own life during the nine months prior to his birth may have handicapped him with weak spots within. The past we cannot alter, bui here in the present lies our golden opportunity. And the baby with a handicap needs the 12 good fairies even more than his stronger brother. “1. Essential No. 1 is Air. We may continue to exist for some weeks without food, but without air we can live for three minutes only. Fresh air is ; one of the greatest of Nature's bounties, ; but, being invisible, intangible, free. | it is unappreciated. The great preven- | tives of coughs and colds and bron- I chitis are fresh air, cool air, moving air. “2r. Essential No. 2 is Water, which like air, we don’t appreciate because we have it in abundance. The chief point to emphasise with regard to baby’s supply is to ensure its purity, i His inside is more vulnerable than his j outside, so his drinking water is boiled, i The fact that more than two-thirds of baby’s body consists of water may help us to realise that he may be grateful for a drink of water more often than we think. “3. Food.—Dur baby’s natural food, his own mother’s milk, is his birthright Nothing can ever completely replace it. If he cannot have the best, he is entitled to the next best thing, properly made and graded humanised milk; and in his second and third years and onwards good sensible food with plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables; three meals a day and no pieces. “4. Clothing conies next, and should be light, as well as warm and nonirritating. “5. Bathing.—The fairy knight ot the bath is usually a great favourite. He stands in a cosy corner, well equipped with soap, towels, warm clothes, etc. We should not be tempted to prolong baby’s ceremonies unduly, lest he catch cold. “6. Muscular Exercise and Sensory Stimulation.—These are powerful allies. Baby’s first act, that of crying, is exercise, which expands his lungs and brings many muscles into play. Since baby cmnnot at once a*spire to ‘a daily dozen,’don’t begrudge him 15 to 20 minutes’ hearty howling. Within a few days of birth he begins to take pleasure in stretching in the freedom of his bath, and as his mind develops his activities increase until his little body is a hive of industry. The law of exercise applies to man and all members of the animal kingdom. Every part of the body and the mind is strengthened by exercise and weakened by inactivity. Exercise means progress. The daily exercise of a five of six-months-old baby should include at least an hour’s vigorous muscular work in the form of kicking (say, anything up to two hours in a ‘kicking pen’ or other safe place), 15 or 20 minutes’ vigorous suckling every four hours, with the rubbing and handling given almost unconsciously by his mother, exposure to open moving air and sunlight, wonderful discoveries such as the fact that pieces of paper make a fascinating noise but don’t appeal as food, and the feel of his own 10 toes.

“7. Warmth comes next more helpful at the feet than at the head—a good thing of which we may have too much. “8. Regularity of all habits is a very important factor in our normal baby’s life from his very first day. What a difference good healthy habits can make! And with an infant we start with a clean sheet and no old bad habits to overcome. So important is the value of all early training in good habits that one might almost say, ‘Take care of the first two years, and the rest will take care of themselves.’

“9. Cleanliness in everything protects baby from many dangers. “10-11. Mothering and Management. Does it seem superfluous to mention this to mothers? All of us love babies, but through our very love and care we may cause them to suffer in the end, for ‘spoiling* a child is a serious thing. But if management is combined with mothering -the home is happy. To many, correct mothering and managing savours of Spartan treatment, but how many mothers are heard to vow that Baby No. 2 is destined to receive stricter training than Baby No. 1. “12. Rest and Sleep follow naturally in the cycle. They are of vital importance. Why does baby need so much sleep? Because his machinery runs at high pressure. All engines made by man are finished before they are used, but the human body is worked while it is growing. At first baby should sleep nine-tenths of his time. At six months he needs 16 to 18 hours out of 24, at a year he needs 15 hours, and at four years old 12 or 13 hours. The human baby is the most complex, delicate, and marvellous of all creatur'es. Rest and sleep in abundance are vitally necessary to preserve health. “Rest” includes leaving baby to play by himself and to amuse himself, and avoiding over-stimulation in all its forms. It is terrible to read that grave adult diseases such as insomnia, hysteria, and insanity can be traced back to overstimulation and lack of rest in infancy “This completes the survey of baby’s visible and invisible essentials. Now is our opportunity to teach the child their value. Then, as we have commenced we should go on—kindergartens, schools and colleges, as well as homes, all aiming to produce sound, capable minds in sound, enduring bodies. “Socrates said: ‘ln every work the beginning is the most important part, especially in dealing with anything young and tender.’ Healthy manhood and healthy womanhood are the purest and best wealth of the world, and it is only possibre to produce them from healthy babyhood and healthy childhood.”