When the baby has finished, he should be handled very gently for the succeeding hour. His condition is not unlike that of an uncorked bottle. He should lie or sit quietly without jolting or rocking, much less tumbling or other vigorous manipulations. Lay, him on his right side if he is inclined to eructation; on the left side in diarrhea or intestinal trouble, to open the rectal valves and allow gas to escape.
Between feedings, the baby should be given pure water, 65° to 70° F., at regular intervals, several times a day; or during the night if he cries. It can be given the first month from a sterilized medicine dropper, then from a spoon; the use of a cup may begin at five or six months.
If the water is not perfectly pure, it should be boiled twenty minutes; to remove sediment, strain through several thicknesses of sterilized cheesecloth.
Strained orange juice or prune juice, without sugar, at first diluted one half with water, may be given daily at six months, or earlier if the baby is constipated. Begin with one teaspoonful and gradually increase to four tablespoonfuls at six months. It should be given an hour before feeding time.
At six months a scraped, clean chicken or chop bone (after being cooked) may be given once or twice a day, a quarter hour before feeding, to exercise the jaws (being very careful that it is not dropped on the floor). At ten months this may be replaced once a day by a hard crust to be sucked after feeding, watching that the baby does not break off any pieces, or removing these from his mouth.
No other food should ordinarily be given until nine months, when weaning may usually begin by substituting for one nursing a feeding of milk and strained cereal, given with a spoon or from a cup. The formula should be prescribed by the physician or dietitian. Whether a baby should be completely weaned at nine months or at twelve will depend upon the condition of the baby, quality of the mother’s milk, and the season. The baby and the milk should be examined, and the physician’s or dietitian’s advice followed. Starch is not normally digested under nine months; solid food or lumps may cause convulsions.
Stools. There should be at least one normal movement every day; some babies have two or three.
Begin the second week to establish regularity.
A movement is most likely to follow a feeding in early morning and the afternoon.
Normal stools are yellow, soft, and smooth.