Better babies and their care

by Anna Steese Richardson

Several crocheted, knitted, or flannel blankets.

Soft material should be used for making the baby’s garments and neither lace nor embroidery should be employed around the necks and sleeves of the little slips, as they may chafe the tender skin and cause eczema. Cleanliness is the one demand for the baby until it has passed safely through the first month of its life, when the mother may give more attention to its raiment.

In this day when cotton materials are highly mercerized and bleached, it is safest to wash the little garments made from them before they are worn by the new-born baby with its delicate skin. Diapers in particular should be washed, and dried, but not ironed. The necks of dresses or slips should be loose and tied with tape; buttons or fancy pins may cause discomfort to the baby.

Every woman knows that efficiency in all branches of home-making depends largely on having the proper tools. This is true in the nursery as well as in the kitchen. There is no more delightful occupation for the last two months before confinement than fitting up a nursery for the little guest. A modern nursery equipped with all the up-to-date appliances is not within the purse or even the house limitations of many mothers, but there is no reason why the new baby should not have its own corner in the house whether this be an entire room or just one end of “mother’s room.”

The expectant mother with a modern house, plenty of rooms, electric light, and running water, at her command, has half of the problem solved for her. She will choose for the nursery a room opening off her own, and convenient to the bathroom. This need not be large, but it should be well ventilated, and, if possible, have a southern exposure in order that it may be flooded with air and sunshine. The walls should be painted, not papered, and the floor should be of hard wood or stained pine, never carpeted. A few rugs that can be washed or cleaned will be sufficient floor covering. It is better not to have a stationary washstand in this room, because, unless the plumbing is above suspicion, the pipes may breed germs.

There are two ways of providing against draughts: one of these is the use of a screen that can be placed around the baby’s bed; the other is a wooden board, about five or six inches high, and long enough to fit the window when the lower sash is raised. The upper sash can then be dropped to let the impure air out, and the clean, pure air will enter the room between the upper and lower sashes.

The windows should have both light and dark shades. Babies stare at the light, and, especially during the first few weeks after birth, the nursery should be kept dark, or at least with only a dim light. The custom of hanging an old shawl or dark curtain over the window is not sanitary. At no time should the young baby’s eyes be exposed to a strong light, either artificial light or sunlight. The crib should be so placed that the baby looks away from the light, not toward it. Protecting the baby’s eyes from glare may mean guarding it from defective vision.

Except for very cold weather an open fireplace is the best possible method of heating the room. When there is no fireplace, hot water heating is best for the nursery; as it is for the entire house. When steam or hot air is used, a pan of water, changed daily, should always be kept in the room to relieve dryness in the atmosphere. Air-tight coal stoves, gas or oil stoves should never be used in the nursery.

For the first week or so after the baby’s birth the nursery should be kept at a temperature of 70° F. by day and 64° F. by night. As the child grows older, the temperature may gradually be reduced at night.

Electric lighting is the best for the nursery. If this is not a part of the equipment of the house, neither gas nor an oil lamp should be allowed to burn in the room at night; a candle or wax night light should be at hand. These can be bought at any house-furnishing store.