CHAPTER XIII
FORM IV: SENIOR GRADE (Continued)
INFANT FEEDING
This subject is more suitable for older students than for those attending the public and separate schools, but, because of its importance and the fact that many girls never go beyond the Entrance class, it is deemed wise to present, to the pupils of Form IV, the main facts relating to the feeding of infants. Each teacher must however use her judgment in the choice of these facts for her class and in the method of presenting them. The instruction given may include the following ideas:
The natural food of an infant is its mother's milk, and too much stress cannot be placed on the necessity of nursing by the mother.
Even if the mother has but a small supply, the baby should not be weaned; the supply should be supplemented by modified milk. In the rare cases where a mother cannot nurse her baby, a physician should prescribe the food. In such a case the best substitute is cow's milk.
If cow's milk be used, it will have to be changed or "modified" to make it as far as possible like mother's milk. Cow's milk differs in the following respects: It has (1) less water and therefore more solids; (2) a larger proportion of protein and mineral compounds; (3) less sugar; (4) a different combination of fats.
Cow's milk cannot be made like mother's milk, but it is better food for a little baby if cream, milk sugar, and barley water, are added in certain proportions, varying according to the age of the child.
RECIPE FOR MODIFIED MILK
| Milk | 7 ounces |
| Milk sugar | 1/2 ounce |
| Cream (18%) | 1 ounce, if ordinary milk be used or 1/2 ounce if Jersey milk be used. |
| Barley water | Dilute with barley water to make 20 ounces for the first two or three weeks, then reduce to 16 ounces up to about three months of age. The volume may then be reduced to 14 ounces, and at five or six months to 12 ounces. |
Mixed milk, and not one cow's milk, should be used, for the reason that a better average of milk is secured from several cows than from one. The supply should be fresh and clean. To make sure of the latter, scrupulous care should be given to the cleanliness of the cows' bodies and stables, the utensils, and the clothing and hands of the milkers. If there is any doubt of the cleanliness, the milk should be pasteurized. The pasteurization greatly reduces the bacterial life in the milk by a temperature which does not change its composition and digestibility, as is the case in sterilizing it.
DIRECTIONS FOR PASTEURIZING MILK
Sterilize bottles as for canning. Nearly fill the bottles with milk and cork them with absorbent cotton which has been sterilized (by being baked a delicate brown). Place the bottles on a rest in a deep kettle and surround them with cold water as high as the milk. Heat the water gradually to 155 degrees Fahrenheit, or until tiny bubbles show in the milk next the glass. Remove the kettle and contents to where the temperature of the milk will remain the same for half an hour. Then cool the milk quickly by putting the bottles first in lukewarm water and then in cold water. Keep in a cool place and do not remove the cotton until ready to use. Pasteurized milk should not be kept more than a couple of days.
The utmost care and cleanliness should be observed in preparing the infant's food. All utensils which come in contact with the food should be sterilized each time they are used. Bottles with rubber tubes should never be used, as they cannot be thoroughly cleaned. The bottle should be plain and graduated without a neck, and the nipple should admit of being turned inside out.
CARE OF BOTTLES
After the nursing, the bottles should at once be rinsed with cold water. Later, the bottles and nipples should be carefully washed in hot, soapy water, then rinsed in clear, hot water. They should then be sterilized by boiling in water for twenty minutes, after which they may be placed in boric acid solution (1 tsp. to 1 qt. water), or the bottles may be emptied and plugged with sterilized absorbent cotton until again required.
CARE OF FOOD
It saves much time to make sufficient food to last for twenty-four hours. This may be put into a large bottle, or what is better, into the several nursing bottles, and each plugged with sterilized absorbent cotton. After cooling, the bottles should be put on the ice or in some cool place until required. Where there is no refrigerator, an ice-box made on the principle of the home-made fireless cooker will do excellent service. When the food is to be used, it should be warmed slightly above body heat by placing the bottle in warm water.
The following table is taken from The Care and Feeding of Children by L. Emmet Holt, M.D., of New York.
SCHEDULE FOR FEEDING A HEALTHY CHILD
DURING THE FIRST YEAR
| Age | Interval between meals by day | Night feedings (6 p.m. to 6 a.m.) | Number of feedings in 24 hours | Quantity for one feeding | Quantity for 24 hours |
| Hours | Ounces | Ounces | |||
| 2nd to 7th day | 3 | 2 | 7 | 1-2 | 7-14 |
| 2nd and 3rd weeks | 3 | 2 | 7 | 2-3 1/2 | 14-24 |
| 4th to 6th week | 3 | 2 | 7 | 3-4 | 21-28 |
| 7th week to 3 mos. | 3 | 2 | 7 | 3 1/2-5 | 25-35 |
| 3 to 5 months | 3 | 1 | 6 | 4 1/2-6 | 27-36 |
| 5 to 7 months | 3 | 1 | 6 | 5 1/2-6 1/2 | 33-39 |
| 7 to 12 months | 4 | .. | 5 | 7-8 1/2 | 35-43 |