[ALL ABOUT BABY 549]
How to take care of a sore navel.—If it looks red or has a thin discharge coming from it, wash it carefully twice a day with saturated solution of boric acid; or if pus is there use a 1-5000 solution of bichloride of mercury. Use for a dusting powder one part of salicylic acid and nineteen parts of starch on it. It needs a physician's attention if it does not soon heal.
Do any physicians advocate a daily bath before the cord drops off? Yes; but not a full tub bath.
When does the cord drop off? In from five to ten days.
Does soap hurt a baby's skin? Some doctors claim it does.
Is it necessary to use a powder after the bath? No, if all moisture is removed, there is no need of powder. The skin can be kept cleaner and healthier without it.
GENITAL ORGANS.
When is circumcision needed? Usually when the foreskin is very long and very tight, so that one must use force to push it back, and always if it produces local irritation.
How should you clean the genitals of a female child? Use good absorbent cotton and warm water, with a solution of boric acid if necessary, about two teaspoonfuls to a pint of warm water. This should be done once a day.
Is the hood of the clitoris ever too tight? Yes, and it needs to be loosened and kept so, or it will produce irritation and sometimes convulsions.