BABY'S BED
The Proper Way to Lay Baby in Its Bed.—The baby should be accustomed to sleep by itself from the day of its birth. Mothers have been known to smother their babies during sleep. The mother may pull the bed-clothing over the baby's head during the night and thus deprive it fresh air. A mother is much more apt to nurse her baby regularly and to do it more efficiently, if she is compelled to get up to do it. If she occupies the same bed with baby, she may fall asleep while nursing him; the baby consequently nurses too long, fills his stomach too full, and soon develops indigestion and colic in addition to acquiring a very bad habit.
For the first few weeks an ordinary basket arrangement is all that is necessary. As soon as the baby begins to move around it should have a regular baby crib, so that possible accidents may be avoided.
When the baby is placed in bed after a feeding, it should be laid upon its back, being tilted slightly toward its right side. By placing a soft, small pillow, under its left side, the baby will rest more on its right side, which is the proper position. The reason of this is because the liver of a child grows quicker and larger than any other organ, and it is on the right side. By placing the child on this side, it prevents the heavy liver from sagging over on the little full stomach. If the child were laid on its left side, the liver would crowd the full stomach and embarrass the heart, and cause pain and restlessness. Frequently a change of position fully to the right side, when a child has been restless or crying, and especially if it has been lying on its back, will at once relieve it and allow it to go to sleep again. It is the knowledge of these little things that count in babyhood.
How Long Should a Baby Sleep?—A perfectly healthy baby should sleep, while very young, eighteen or twenty hours out of the twenty-four. As it grows older it will sleep less. It should have, and nothing should interfere with its having, two sound naps every day,—one in the forenoon after its bath, and the other in the afternoon. When four or five months old, it should also sleep from 7 p. m. until 10 p. m., then it should be fed and allowed to sleep until morning. It has been aptly said, that, "a child might easily overeat, but he practically never oversleeps." During the second year a child should sleep twelve hours at night, and about two hours during the day. The twelve-hour night rest should be continued until the child is six years of age. The practice of taking a nap at noon is a very good one, and it should be encouraged as long as possible. It can usually be kept up until the child begins school life. The strenuous activity of childhood, makes some such rest highly desirable, and the result will necessarily be a stronger body, a better disposition, and firmer nerves than otherwise. The practice of retiring early should be strictly enforced during childhood. Children of two years of age, should retire at 6:30 p. m., or at latest at 7 p. m., those from three to five years, may remain up an additional hour. At thirteen or fourteen the regular bedtime should be at 8:30 p. m. There is no justification for the late hours which growing children are allowed to keep, especially in large cities.
Regular sleep is largely a matter of habit, and if the infant is started right, with suitable feedings, given at definite times, followed by the proper periods of sleep, but little trouble will be experienced with sleeplessness. When sleep is disturbed and broken, it means bad habits, unsuitable food, minor forms of indigestion, or positive illness of some kind. Sleep is absolutely essential in infancy and all through childhood for purposes of growth. It is wrong to permit a child to sleep too much during the day; it will become a habit, and it will not sleep well during the night as a consequence. In order to prevent or break this habit, the child should be kept in a well-lighted room and should be amused and entertained so as to keep it awake. The nap during the middle of the day is an exceedingly important factor in keeping the average child in good physical condition. It is a valuable adjunct in preventing, and in treating, nervousness in children. Children who are anemic should be encouraged to sleep long and freely in well-aired rooms.
Why a Baby Cries.—As has been stated, every healthy baby should cry for half an hour each day. Nature suggests, demands this as an essential exercise. Muscular movements involving a greater part of the whole body accompany the act of crying and furnish this necessary exercise. It is of great importance to an adequate and uniform development of the lungs; deep breathing is necessary to lusty crying, hence the lungs are expanded and the blood renewed and oxygenated. Crying is also of material aid in moving the baby's bowels. Babies in perfect health will, however, cry under any of the following circumstances, and doubtless under circumstances of lesser importance and frequency when frightened or uncomfortable from hunger or position, soiled napkins, inflamed buttocks, earache, pain, from heat or cold, unsuitable clothing, and during difficult bowel movement, when displeased or angry. Children slightly but painfully ill may cry incessantly for an hour or two. Thus, with intestinal colic, when the cry is loud and continuous until the child is relieved or until he falls asleep from exhaustion.
The healthy, well trained child seldom causes trouble; it is the rule for it to be happy and good natured in its own way.
The Habitual Crier.—If a child becomes a habitual crier, it is because it is uncomfortable and unhappy. There are restless, often vigorous, crying, whining infants, and the trouble, as a rule, is in the intestinal tract. Badly managed, "spoiled babies" cry from inattention, and when left alone. If they are taken up and talked to, the crying ceases, thus proving that it was not pain or discomfort that was causing the crying. In the case of the habitual crier we try to find out the cause of the bowel trouble and cure it; the spoiled infant we discipline rigidly, or leave it alone if its parents prefer that kind of baby.
The Habit of Feeding Baby Every Time It Cries.—The habit of regular feeding will, if persisted in and successfully established, render advice on this subject unnecessary. So also will the explanation of the evil of overfeeding have its effect on mothers. Apart from these reasons, however, the habit of feeding baby every time it cries is a pernicious one, and no doubt the mother, who will be striving to faithfully follow instructions, will have to overcome the advice of meddling friends who will regard it as a cruelty to allow the baby to cry. Do not give in to these busy-bodies; insist on attending to your own affairs, but be absolutely sure baby is not crying for a just cause. A child can only cry; that is its only language, but it cries for many things other than the nipple or the bottle. Examine it carefully,—a wet diaper a pin, an uncomfortable position, a drink of water, any of these may be the cause.
It is just as essential that a child should cry as that it should sleep. Every healthy child should cry for twenty or thirty minutes every twenty-four hours. Nature calls for this as an exercise in order to develop the lungs; therefore, if there is no just cause for the crying you must regard it as a necessary evil, even if you look upon it as a domestic affliction.
The Habit of Walking the Floor With Baby Every Time It Cries.—This is another habit that is indulged in to the sorrow and ridicule of the race. If you are a victim of this habit, you have yourself to blame. It is a matter of education, or habit, pure and simple, and, like all bad habits, it is difficult to break away from. In the preceding paragraph, you have been told that when baby wants something, or is uncomfortable, it employs the language nature gave it,—it cries. No child ever cried to be walked up and down the floor in the dead of the night. Begin at the beginning, when it first cries, find out why it is crying. Offer it a little water if it is not feeding time. Examine its diaper and if soiled change it. It may be overdressed and consequently hot, perspiring, and uncomfortable; change its position. Find out if any pin is open and hurting it; loosen the binder so it can breathe easily. If it is a colicky child follow the instructions given in the treatment of colic. Be patient the first few nights, and be thorough, because you may discover why it cries and each discovery will help you next time. If you discover something wrong, some reasonable excuse for the crying, does it not prove the folly of walking the floor? If it wants a drink of water, or if its diaper is wet, how is walking the floor going to cure it, or how can you expect the baby to stop crying when you so unjustly construe its reasonable and its only way of asking a favor? If walking the floor stops its crying, it stops it by exhausting the child, not by relieving it of its little ailment.
Jouncing or Hobbling Baby.—This is another habit that should be frowned upon. So many persons are addicted to this form of baby torture, that it is astonishing more immediate harm does not result from it. Be particularly careful not to indulge in it, or permit anyone else to do it immediately after feeding. If you form the habit of putting baby down at once after each feeding, as you have been instructed to do, the opportunity to jounce it will not exist. A little reasoning will clearly convince you that to subject a baby to violent exercise when its stomach is full would interrupt digestion and so shake the full stomach hat it would distend it and cause indigestion. You would not think of exercising yourself after a meal; why exercise a baby?
Baby Needs Water to Drink.—Boil a quantity of water each morning, put in a clean bottle, and keep in a cool place. Give the baby some, three or four times daily between feedings. One teaspoonful is enough to begin with, and as it grows older it will take more. It may not always take the water but it will take what it wants, and it needs some every day; it is therefore your duty, inasmuch as baby cannot ask for it, to offer it regularly each day as part of your daily routine.