The date of the closing of the soft spot on the baby's head should be noted, and if it is still open, when it should be closed, it might mean that the child has a serious brain condition. The soft spot should close between the eighteenth and twenty-fourth months. The family physician should be notified if the soft spot is open later than the second year, as he may want to investigate the cause.
Should the child be unusually backward in walking, and when it does so should limp and feel pain in the knees, it should be examined for any symptom of hip joint disease, of which these are the earliest signs.
If the child complains of so-called "growing pains," keep in mind that these are rheumatic and may need attention. There are no such pains as actual "growing pains," that is, pains caused by the child growing.
CHAPTER XVII
BABY'S FEEDING HABITS
Overfeeding Baby—Intervals of Feeding—How Long Should a Baby Stay at the Breast—Vomiting Between Feedings—Regularity of Feeding—Why is Regularity of Feeding Important—"A Baby Never Vomits"—What is the Significance of So-called Vomiting After Feedings—Mothers Milk That is Unfit for Baby—Fresh Air for Baby—Air Baths for Baby.
Overfeeding Baby.—Every nursing mother should have printed and hung up, so she may read it every time she nurses her child, the following motto: "DON'T OVERFEED BABY." Few, if any, babies die of willful starvation: many die as a result of overfeeding. Mistaken kindness and lack of judgment are responsible for one-half of all the troubles of infancy. Babies require much less than is constantly given them. The stomach of a baby at birth will not hold more than one ounce, which is two tablespoonfuls; and at two months it will not hold more than three tablespoonfuls; and at six months, six or seven tablespoonfuls. Read these quantities once again carefully and try to realize the significance of the smallness of them. A baby is just like a little pig; it will go on feeding as long as it is allowed. The baby does not reason; it has no judgment; it depends upon its mother's judgment. If the mother is false to the trust the baby overloads its stomach. A swollen, distended, overloaded stomach causes indigestion. A baby with indigestion is a colicky, fretty, sick baby. Overfeeding, therefore, is the beginning of lots of trouble to the mother, and needless pain and suffering and sickness to the baby. A simple matter, but it is one of the most difficult lessons nursing mothers have to learn.
Overfeeding is most apt to occur at night. Many mothers put the child to the nipple for its regular feeding and fall asleep; the child keeps on nursing at intervals until twice the proper quantity is taken; or she gives it the nipple or the bottle if it cries, without regard to whether it is the proper feeding time or not. The habit of overfeeding is very common in infants who are suffering from indigestion. They cry frequently, and are irritable most of the time; nothing seems to satisfy them but the nipple. Taking the warm milk into the stomach seems to allay the distress for the time being, so mothers get into the habit of quieting them in this way. The cry of the drinking man, whom we try to sober up, is: "Just one more drink and I'll quit." You give the drink and in a little while the demand is repeated. If the mother understood the seriousness of this practice of giving the child the nipple or bottle at irregular times, she would not do it.