The premature baby is very susceptible to infection and strongly predisposed to pneumonia. Infection in general is guarded against by having everything that comes in contact with the baby scrupulously clean; protecting him from drafts, chilling and dust; allowing no one with a suspicion of a cold to come near him and by the nurse’s wearing a clean gown and protecting her nose and mouth with a gauze mask while attending him.
CARE OF THE BABY DURING THE SUMMER
The dangers of infancy are greatly increased in summer, more babies dying during the hot months than any other time during the year. The cause of these deaths is variously termed summer complaint, summer diarrhea, acute gastro-enteritis and cholera infantum, and is due to infected or decomposing food or both.
Clearly this malady is practically preventable through care.
Although such care as has been described in the preceding pages largely constitutes the prevention of the much-to-be-dreaded summer diarrhea, there are a few extra precautions and safeguards with which the nurse must surround her little patient during the warm weather.
She must bear in mind the character of the illness to be avoided: indigestion associated with infection.
It becomes almost a matter of life or death, then, to give the baby clean, suitable food and avoid deranging his digestion.
Babies suffer from the heat more than adults do and are often excessively irritated and exhausted on warm days. And this overheating, exhaustion and restlessness are of themselves enough to affect his digestion.
Accordingly the scourge of summer diarrhea is prevented by giving the baby proper food and keeping him clean, cool and quiet.
The baby should have maternal nursing if possible, for breast-fed babies fall victim to summer diarrhea much less frequently than bottle-fed babies. He should be fed with absolute regularity, and as a rule, no matter what the nature of his food, it is reduced one-quarter to one-third in amount during very warm weather and he is given an increased amount of cool boiled water to drink. His weight may increase very slightly, or even stand still for a short time, as a result of his decreased food, but this is not usually deplored, if he keeps well, for the important thing is to avoid digestive disturbances while the weather is warm.