Baby Care

Archive for the ‘Baby Health Care’ Category

Sticking to a good schedule for your baby is one of the first thing you learn in baby care. Being a parent is tough work and it’s never easy when you make the transition to parenthood. From day one when you’re baby needs to feed every 3 hours to having a proper baby care nap and feeding schedule is very important in making your life easier as a parent and making your baby more happy overall. Babies thrive on schedules and as long as they are giving their essentials such as food, milk, sleep, they should return you with smiles and tons of love and not throw as many tantrums. Try to develop a schedule and routine for your baby and stick to it as much as possible. If so, you will see the rewards ten fold and anyone who takes care of your baby will enjoy it as well such as a babysitter, friends, family member, grandparent, or others. Babies and Toddlers should be in bed by around 8 pm at the latest, so taking you’re baby out to the movies or a late night dinner so you can get out is not a good idea. You better idea is to get a baby sitter and put your baby to bed at the same time each night.

In the beginning at the newborn stage, this schedule plays a big factor into their well being as many newborns and infants confuse day and night and you will have a baby that sleeps all day and wants to be up all night. This is not good for your health and the health of your relationship in the house so keeping that firm schedule will help introduce sleeptime for your baby and help them discern the difference between day and night.

Another important item in baby care regarding a schedule is trying to have your baby sleep on their own in the crib. If you let your baby sleep in bed with you each night, it’s going to be a tough habit to break so in addition to their schedule, try to create some independence when sleeping on their own and you may find longer and more well rested sleeps for your baby when they are by themselves and not in your bed with you.

Also in the beginning stages of life for your baby, the swaddle can help your baby from startling themselves and hitting themselves with their hands. This may keep them asleep long and let them adjust better to a sleep schedule. However, be sure to not swaddle for long as it’s just a temporary fix in the beginning stages of life and can cause problems if used to long.

No one or parent is perfect and you can always stick to a schedule or routine, however, do your best to be consistent as it will only help you in the long run and make for a more well rested, happy, and fun baby to be around.

If you’re baby is coughing in a low tone seal sounding tone and it’s been going on for a few days, you’re baby may have the croup cough. This cough can be a very scary thing to hear as a parent when you’re baby is coughing and it usually acts up in the morning and at night. Doctors have said to stay calm and not be overly alarmed with the croup cough, but be sure to care for your baby and give them extra love during this time. However, it is always good to get your baby checked out by a doctor to listen to their lungs and chest, and check their throat for other symptoms. Typically croup cough will go away after a few days and cough will make your babies vocal chords soar and give them a lower tone of voice. If you’re babies cough sounds more like wheezing and you’re baby is have trouble breathing, then consult a doctor as soon as possible.

Some remedies when caring for the croup cough can be to make sure you get a cool mist humidifier and put it on each night and during nap time for your baby. It may help loosen the cough and soothe your baby. Some people put their baby in the mist of the warm shower and let the steam help them deal with the cough as well. Other parents have dress their baby warm and allow for the cool nights air to help your baby as opposed to air conditioned living rooms or bedrooms. All in all, give your baby a lot of fluids to get them through this period and try to get vitamin c apple juice or oranges and clementines and tons of water as if you would try to do with yourself if you had a cold.

The croup cough coughing can get bad at night and it also can be contagious for other babies so be sure to keep you’re baby away from other babies especially if they have a fever. Also, it can the parents or friends and family with a cold so be sure to wash your hands and take care of yourself in addition to your baby during this period of time.

It can be a tough time in the raising of your child when your baby is teething. Sometimes it’s hard to tell when you’re baby is teething and you need to keep an eye out for signs of teething and help your child through his or her first teeth in their life. Teething can be painful for some kids and other kids don’t complain at all. Some signs that your baby is teething can include waking up at night crying, constantly biting on things and putting their fingers in the babies mouth, pulling on ears, potential for fever, acid in the stools, and others. It’s ok to give your child some infant tylenol to help them sleep through the night when their teething. Many believe babies have other things when it’s really just teething as teething is so common to cause many pains and discomforts for your baby.

We decided to be extra loving with our babies during the times of teething and help them through this short and sour period of overcoming the growing of new teeth. Brushing your babies teeth is always recommended and it can tough sometimes as you’re baby will fight it, but introducing your baby to brushing at an early age and starting a routine for brushing your child’s teeth is a good idea.

Baby Proofing your house and home can be a tough task. Start early with baby care and child safety by getting baby gates to baby proof your house. Invest in baby gates before your baby is one year old to stop your baby from getting up the stairs, down the stairs, into the kitchen, and any other area or place of the house that needs baby care safety and child proof baby gates. For example, you may want to surround an office desk with baby gates so your child can’t get into the wires and computer outlets. Ensuring that you add baby gates is the first step towards baby proofing your house.

The most important item to think about when baby proofing the house is too first attack the items that can cause the most harm to your baby. There has been a number of infant deaths from tv’s, hdtvs, or flatscreens falling down on an infant and baby proofing large items that can fall such as a TV is very important from an early age. It’s also important to remove book shelfs or anything large that is not sturdy and can fall down. Your baby will start standing against objects, pulling at them, and can ultimately knock them down on themselves. Ensuring these objects are child proofed are crucial to your babies care and safety.

A very hazardous place in your house is your kitchen and cabinets, therefore, be sure to place a baby gate around your kitchen and also child proof the drawers and cabinets keeping your baby out of all silverware, knives, or any sharp objects that can harm your baby. There are thousands of different kinds of child locks and devices to keep your baby away from the kitchen and out of the cabinets.

Another place to baby proof is the fireplace. Be sure to close off the fireplace from your baby and keep them away from all fireplaces and firewood.

After you’ve child proofed most of the major items and added baby gates, you should get outlet covers for all your outlets and also remove any hard objects from the babies play area. A sharp or glass coffee table is something that you may put away and replace for a leather or soft ottoman coffee table that’s safe and can’t cause harm for your baby.

While child proofing your home can be a daunting and lenghy task, it’s important to start early to ensure your baby’s safety in the comfort of your home.

Taking great care of your baby can be easy at times and also very tough at times. It’s important to stay level headed and know there will be ups and downs to being a parent. It will never be perfect, so all you can do is try your best and ensure the safety, healthiness, and happiness of your baby and your family.

Here are some baby care tips for a healthy and happy baby.

• Ensure your baby is properly fed. It’s good that your baby feels he/she is eating enough food, milk, or formula so your baby is not fussy through out the day. Overfeeding your baby may cause gas and upset stomachs so getting know your baby’s que’s for when they are full or when they are finished with their bottle will be important to keeping their gas levels down. If you do have a gassy baby, always properly burp your baby and make sure to get a good burp from your baby especially before putting them down to sleep. If not, your baby may be uncomfortably when sleeping and tend to spit up more often.
• Ensure your baby has proper sleep. Sleep training can be one of the toughest moments of your babies first year of life, so prepare for some good nights and some bad ones. When your baby has proper sleep, he will also tend to be less fussy and a more happy baby overall. Try the sleep train methods with letting your baby cry for a little and then stopping in to them know your there. Then, let your baby cry a few more minutes longer and stop back in again. Try to leave your baby in the crib and soothe them there… If your baby can learn to self-soothe in the crib, then the baby won’t really on your to pick them up all the time. Therefore, leaving the baby in the crib and trying to put back to bed there can help your baby. Another good time for nap time is put your baby to nap in the crib as opposed to a bouncer or a pack and play. Getting the baby used to sleeping in the crib will make them more comfortable in the crib. If your baby takes short naps, sometimes let your baby wake up and do their thing in the crib and then see if they put themselves back to sleep on their own before you step back in.
• Ensure there is proper playtime and activity. Keeping your baby stimulated is a very important part to your baby care development. If you let your baby lounge around all day and never take them anywhere, they will tend to get more fussy, but enrolling your baby in classes such as swim classes, music classes, baby gym, and more classes to interact with teachers and other babies will keep your baby stimulated and make them more happy during the day and also make your ques for sleep much more visible. If your baby is overly tired from a swim class, you will definitely know it, but if you are home all day with no activity for the baby, you may mistake a tiredness at home for being hungry.

Good luck and hope these baby care tips will help you maintain a happy and healthy baby!

Below are some great baby care tips for traveling with your newborn baby! First, let us note that it’s never an easy feat to travel with a new baby. Babies are creatures of habit and traveling takes them out of their environment into new places that babies are not used to seeing. However, it’s important that parents don’t give up their lives and continue to travel as needed, but in doing so, take proper care of their baby to ensure the best trip for them and their baby.

One of the toughest travel items to deal with when bringing your baby along is not having

Baby Care Tips for traveling on the plane.
• Bring enough baby food on the plane in case the plane gets delayed. The most important baby care tip and primary care item is ensure you have enough food to get through the entire flight. You should also remember to bring extra food in case your plane gets stuck on the runway or the trip takes longer than expected and you may not have access to baby food.
• As your ears will pop on the plane, you can imagine the pressure your baby might feel in their ears on the plane. Therefore, it’s important to let your baby suck on something to help ease the pressure in their ears. We have seen good progress with feeding the baby on the way up and also start to feed your baby again as you descend. If you are not able to feed your baby, or it’s not the right feeding schedule for your baby, then you can let them suck on a pacifier or anything to get them sucking and ease the pressure of ascending and descending on the plane.
• Many parents will sit with their baby in their lap and this is fine as you can save money of having to buy another seat. However, having the baby in their own seat will make the flight much more easy for you and your baby, especially for longer flights. A good baby care tip could be to bring the car seat on the plane and put the baby in the car seat next to you in the seat you have for the baby. Your baby is used to the car seat and the movement on the plane may relax them as does the car, and in turn the baby may sleep throughout the entire plane ride. If your baby doesn’t normally sleep in your arms, then it may be tough for your baby to adjust and fall asleep in your arms on the plane. They may scream and get upset as your baby wants to be comfortable too, and missing their normal sleep routine location may cause problems for your baby and make for a more restless flight. If you don’t have your own seat for your baby, then you can always ask the flight crew or flight attendant if they can shift some people around to open up a seat next to you for your baby. While this doesn’t always work, you might be surprised how often it does as the passenger sitting next to you may rather sit in a different location, then potentially deal with an unhappy baby next to them during the flight

Hope you enjoyed these baby care travel tips and good luck flying on a plane and traveling with your newborn baby!

Your child’s feet will continue to develop right up until their mid to late teens. Newborn babies’ feet don’t even have the full complement of bones they will have in later life (26), and the arch of the foot won’t develop until around the age of 2. It is essential that you ensure that their feet get the right support and protection throughout childhood to enable them to grow and develop in a healthy way.

Choosing footwear

New babies: Until your baby starts to crawl and move around, experts recommend bare feet to ensure healthy development. Socks and booties are fine for protecting against the cold when you are outside, but make sure that they don’t restrict your baby’s feet. Even jumpsuits that are too short can result in claw, retracted or hammer toes, so you may decide to opt for ones without feet.

Crawling babies: Soft, slip-on “pre-walking” shoes help protect the feet of crawling babies, and you may want to invest in at least one pair with a rubber toe-protector. However, make sure you continue to give your baby the chance, where safe, to practice crawling and standing on bare feet.

Toddlers: Once your child is walking confidently, you will need to buy some proper shoes that support and protect their feet. Experts still recommend letting your child walk around without shoes as much as possible, where it is safe to do so, as this promotes healthy foot development.

When buying shoes, it’s always best to go to a good shoe shop where you can have your child’s feet measured by staff on a machine which will accurately measure the length and width of their feet. This will ensure that the shoes you buy will be a proper fit. Outdoor shoes need to be well made and sturdy, preferably made of leather and with a flexible, non-slip sole. The toes of your child’s shoes should be wide and allow the toes inside to spread out, and high enough so that the top of the shoe doesn’t press down on the toenails.

Toddlers generally need to have their feet re-measured every 6-8 weeks, and older children every 3-4 months.

Caring for your child’s feet

Keeping your baby’s feet clean and the nails short is essential to healthy foot development. Remember that babies’ feet tend to sweat more than adults’, and their toenails tend to grow faster too, so it is a good idea to use bath time as an opportunity to check feet on a regular basis. Look out for red patches and blisters, which may indicate that your child’s shoes are not fitting properly. Don’t burst blisters, however tempting this may be, as you run the risk of opening up the irritated patch to infection.

Children can be very sensitive about having their feet inspected or their toenails cut, so it is a good idea to try and do this while they are asleep if you can. For example, if you are taking a long car journey and you suspect your child may fall asleep in the car, remove their shoes and socks before setting off so that you can have a few undisturbed minutes to indulge in a bit of foot-care while they are blissfully unaware.

Some common minor problems

In-toeing and out-toeing: Some children when they start walking exhibit an “in-toed” or “out-toed” gait, meaning that one or both of their feet turn inwards or outwards. This usually corrects itself without any intervention, but if you are concerned, or if the problem persists past toddler hood, consult your doctor or health visitor.

In growing toenails: Red or swollen skin at the side of your child’s toenail may indicate an in growing toenail. To avoid these, cut your child’s toenails straight across and try to file off any sharp edges. If your child is experiencing persistent discomfort from in growing toenails, consult your doctor.

Hand, foot and mouth disease: Not related in any way to the foot and mouth disease that affects livestock, this is a common viral infection which causes blisters in the mouth, palms of the hands and soles of the feet. It is contagious and most nurseries will insist that children stay home as long as they have blisters. Hand, foot and mouth may be accompanied by a light fever, but will generally clear up quickly and without treatment after a few days.

Baby’s nails surely grow fast. Although it is smoother and thinner than adult’s nails, but it is sharp enough to make a scratch on baby’s face or on yours while she is breastfeeding. Therefore, parents must trim baby’s nails routinely, at least once in a week. For new parents, to trim baby’s nails can be dilemma, they will think that if it is not trim it surely can hurt their baby’s face, but if it is trim parents will feel worried that they can hurt baby’s fingers.
So, how to successfully trim baby’s nails without make any harm to their fingers? Maybe these things can be considered:

When?

• After bathing, why should after taking a bath? It is known that right after baby taking bath, their nails are still softer than usual. Cheer your baby out while you trim their nails, or you can ask your husband to do that. Try to shift their attention so that your baby will not pull their hands out.
• While baby’s sleeping. Of course, you can success trim their nails if only they are slept tight. If they are not, they might will be awaken or spontaneously pull their hands out.

Here are some tips to successfully trim baby’s nails:

• Use special baby nail-nippers, usually it is signed by circular tip and also not too sharp to be potentiated harm baby’s fingers.
• Push their meal under the nails, so it won’t be also trim, you should extra careful.
• Talk to your baby while you trim their nails, it makes both of you to not feel intense.
• If you hurt baby’s fingers, don’t be panic. Sometimes people feel nervous, so do you. To stop their bleeding, push the bleed-side by using cotton. In about one or two minutes, bleeding will stop. It doesn’t need to put in cast since it could postpone the healing process.

It is important to always pay attention to your baby’s nails,trim it if you find the nails have grown longer. Do not let your baby harm themselves by scratching their face using their nails. Hopefully these tips on trimming baby’s nails could be useful for you.

Nappy rash happens when urine is left too long on your baby’s skin and becomes ammonia when mixed with bacteria from your baby’s stools. It usually appears as a red rash around the bottom or genital  area, but can become inflamed with pus-filled spots in extreme cases.

Most babies experience some form of nappy rash over the first two years. The key is trying to prevent it from happening:

- Change your baby’s nappy more frequently
- Let her have a naked kick around without her nappy on twice a day.
- Don’t wash your baby’s skin with soaps or scented lotions as they break down the skins natural barriers.
- Don’t use talcum powder on your baby’s skin
- Use a barrier cream if there is a small rash, but avoid it if the skin has broken
- Dry the nappy area thoroughly after washing
- Use a non biological washing power when laundering reusable nappies

If your baby does experience nappy rash:

- Make sure her skin is aired for about 15 minutes between nappy changes
- Check the absorbency of your baby’s nappy, you may need to switch to a higher absorbency nappy at night
- If the nappy rash does not seem to be clearing up, make an appointment with your GP to rule out anything more serious.

Winter can be a very harsh time for an adult’s skin but for babies it can be extra harsh.

Your baby’s skin is very sensitive and you will need to take extra care for your baby if you live in a cold environment.

Winter time weather could cause irritation and your baby’s skin to dry out. It is easy for the moisture in their soft skin to disappear.

Cold wind has a way of depleting skin of its moisture and elasticity. There are certain things that you will want to do to prevent this from happening.

Baby bathing and Moisturizing during Winter Months - You will not want to take your baby out into the cold weather directly after giving them their bath. This can chaff their skin. Make sure that you apply enough moisturizer after their bath to keep the moisture in your baby’s skin.

Baby lotion is a good moisturizer to use and it will make your baby smell extra good, too. You will want to moisturize from head to toe without getting lotion in their mouth or eyes.

Ask your physician to recommend a good type of moisturizer if what you are using does not seem to moisturize good enough.

Winter Clothing for Baby – It is a good idea to have the proper clothing for your baby during the winter months. He or she will need a warm coat, hat, and gloves but not so warm that your baby will sweat.

Soft clothing is always best for a baby’s skin because it is so tender especially in the winter months. If you have a little girl make sure you put tights under her little dresses to prevent her legs from becoming dry and chaffed.

Little boys usually wear pants in the winter so this should keep their legs warm and away from the cold.

Socks should always be worn under your little boy’s pants though for extra warmth and protection. If it is snowing you can always bundle them up in a snow suit made especially for babies to protect their skin.

Tips for Prevention:

Try products that are rich in vitamins A and also D to soothe your baby’s skin if it is chapped or red looking. You should use products that are formulated for babies not adults. These products can come in lotions, creams, or ointments.

Also to stop your baby’s face from chapping you may need to cover your baby’s carrier when you go out with a loosely weaved thin blanket.

Make sure that it is loose over your baby’s carrier and that your baby is able to breath through the light blanket. This is very important! To keep moisture in your baby’s room you may want to run a humidifier during the winter months. This will not only help to keep moisture in your baby’s skin but will also help your baby if he or she has a cold and the skin under their nose is chapped from constantly wiping or blowing.

With a little preventive help your baby should have a very comfortable and enjoyable winter.