Dreams In Life

A. Skin Care - careful attention must be given to the delicate skin of the baby. At birth it is covered with sebaceous material. To remove, rub a little oil and wipe gently and quickly as possible. Follow with warm bath.

B. Care of the Navel - After birth the baby's navel or umbilical cord should be covered by a sterile dressing and held in dressing and held in place by a binder. This is necessary to avoid infection. The cord dries up eventually and therefore should be left alone until it drops off. Before it is healed, give the baby only sponge bath.

C. Clothing - Baby's clothing includes diapers, infant shirts, loose clothing for night wear, binders, mittens, socks and small towels. Some important things to consider in selecting baby's garments include the following: soft, comfortable, easy to wash and most of all easy to change. They must be styled in such a way that baby can move freely in it.

D. Feeding - To breast-feed, bottled-feed or mix-feed are the three choices which a mother is confronted with in feeding the baby. Breast-feeding is the most economical, the safest, easy available and nutritious laden method. However, circumstances like when the mother is ill especially with infectious disease and those with inverted nipples or without adequate milk supply forces a mother to bottle-feed or mix-feed the baby. Whichever, the important thing to remember is that the baby must be fed at regular intervals and care must be taken so that all supplies, materials and equipment used are clean and sanitary.

E. Bathing - The steps in bathing a newborn are the following:

1. First, prepare all things needed, preferably in a table.

2. Check if the room is free from drafts and undress the baby as he/she lay on the table and cover with a towel.

3. Clean each with separate cotton balls dipped in lukewarm water the eyes, nose and ears.

4. Clean face with soft washcloth.

5. Shampoo or soap wit soap cloth the head, using circular motion, then the body from the neck down.

6. Raise while supporting the head firmly. Dry gentle with a towel.

F. Immunization - Due to vulnerability of infants to diseases like whooping cough, diptheria, tetanus, poliomyelitis, tuberculosis, measles and others, they should be given immunization as a preventive measure. Health centers usually give immunization to children, or doctors may be resulted as to what and when immunization is appropriate.