HEALTHYKIDSHOME

  The first few years are important in every child’s life in terms of growth and development. The term, "you are what you eat", is also true because what goes into your baby’s tummy can set the stage for adequate growth and development or poor growth and delayed development. Exclusive breastfeeding is recommended in the first 6months of life because the benefits are enormous. There are benefits such as a healthy gut enriched with probiotics that protect against diarrhoea, allergic conditions, obesity, diabetes etc. Breast milk contains all the nutrients needed in the first 6 months of life. It also provides adequate water. Breast milk is also gentle on the infant’s maturing intestines. Water is therefore not needed if the infant is being exclusively breastfed because the baby will get all the water he needs from the breast milk. Giving water also makes the baby prone to infections because the water can be contaminated. Babies under 6 months who for some reason can...

  Breast milk is the best form of nutrition for neonates and infants. It is important for brain, immune system and gut development. The hormone prolactin helps in milk production while oxytocin helps in milk ejection. Oxytocin is released when the baby starts to suckle. Contrary to the popular perception of some mothers that their breastmilk production is inadequate, the truth is that most mothers can produce more breastmilk than their infants require. The more a mother allows her baby to suckle, the more breastmilk production occurs.   It is important to breastfeed at least 8-12 times during the first few days following delivery to increase milk production. During breastfeeding, it is important to empty one breast fully, before moving the baby to the other breast. When that happens, the baby gets both fore and hind milk. The fore milk contains a lot of water and lactose. The hind milk contains a lot fat. Babies who get a lot of foremilk and hence lactose will grow well ...

        When a baby is born preterm/prematurely, you need to monitor his development. The development of that baby is not assessed with the chronological age. That is, the number of months or years spent on earth. We use the corrected age to assess the child. This is done in order to compensate for the baby being born prematurely.       This is how to calculate the corrected age.       Subtract the number of months the baby spent in the uterus from 9 months. You can also subtract the number of weeks the baby spent in the uterus from 40 weeks. The figure you get is subtracted from the baby’s chronological age: that is, the weeks or months spent after birth. This will give you the corrected age which will be used to assess the baby’s development.      For example, for a baby born prematurely at 7 months, who is now 10 months old. You subtract 7 months from 9 months. This gives you 2 months. You...

  At 3 Months , start putting your baby on his belly when he is awake. Take some colourful toys and put them in front of him at his eye level. This will help him to learn how to lift his head up and subsequently support his body on his arms.  As you move the toys from one side to the other, he will also turn his neck. This helps in strengthening the neck muscles. Do this for a few minutes and then turn him on his back again. This can be done several times in the day. Do not leave your baby alone in this position. If he sleeps while lying on his belly, place him on his back in a safe sleeping area. Do not prolong the exercise if the baby feels tired or is uncomfortable. It should be an enjoyable moment for both baby and parent. At 4 months , give your baby safe toys to play with. You can use rattles that       are easy to hold. If your baby is in a baby seat, hand toys in front of him so he reaches out for them and learns to play with them.   Do no...

These are teeth that are present at the time of birth. The lower (mandibular) centrals are most commonly affected. They can erupt in other parts too as the teeth may appear. It is rare to see more than two teeth erupting. The incidence is equal in male and female babies.  Some are firmly attached to the gum while others are loosely attached. Generally no treatment is required for the ones that are firmly attached if they are not causing problems unless they interfere with breastfeeding. Tooth extraction is indicated if they are too many, loose or interfere with breastfeeding. The loose ones can be dislodged and result in aspiration. In the early newborn periods, it is advisable that vitamin K be given prior to extraction to prevent abnormal bleeding. Vitamin K production is done by the commensals in the gut. The newborn’s gut is sterile and requires days for it to be inhabited by commensals for vitamin K production to begin. Vitamin K plays a vital role in clotting hence the need ...