996 The Cornell Reading-Courses 



If the milk is slow in coming, the following mixture may be given after 

 the third day every four hours, alternating it with the breast: Whey, 2 

 teaspoonf uls ; water, 2 teaspoonfuls ; milk sugar, j teaspoonful. This 

 should be stopped as soon as the milk supply begins. 



Water. — As soon as the child's eyes and nostrils have been cleansed it 

 should be given a teaspoonful or two of warm sterilized water either from 

 a spoon or a nursing bottle. A little warm water should be given at 

 intervals during the day all during the nursing period. Babies frequently 

 suffer grievously from thirst and are given an irregular meal to supply 

 this demand. The child needs plenty of clean, sterile, warm water given 

 between feedings to keep the kidneys active and the body in good con- 

 dition. Yet many mothers never think of giving the baby so simple a 

 remedy as a drink. 



Regularity of meal hours. — From the day the baby is born it should be 

 fed at regular hours and at regular intervals. Time should be given 

 after each meal for the food to digest and the stomach to rest. It is a 

 common sight to see little babies of a few weeks or a few months old, 

 fed at all hours and at all times. The child cries and the mother has 

 learned that feeding it will cause temporary relief. It is a very fatal 

 mistake. The child is, as a rule, not crying because it is hungry, but 

 because it is thirsty, or because irregular meal hours and constant feeding 

 have upset its digestion and colic has resulted, or because it is sick or 

 uncomfortable. First determine the cause of the irritation. Find out 

 whether it is due to colic, to indigestion, to thirst, to uncomfortable 

 clothing, chafing, pins, cold or heat, or the beginning of some illness. Do 

 not make things worse by feeding the child. If the trouble is due to 

 indigestion, the amount of food is to be decreased and not increased and 

 a longer time must elapse between feedings. A drink of wann water 

 will often relieve the irritation. If the trouble continues, a good physician 

 should be constilted who will be able to judge whether or not medicines 

 should be given. 



Time for feeding. — For the first six weeks the baby should be put at 

 the breast every two hours in the daytime from five a. m. until eleven 

 p. m. It should then remain quiet until the following morning, allowing 

 six hours of undisturbed rest for both mother and child. For the first 

 few days another night feeding may be necessary until the child learns to 

 rest quietly without the extra food, but this should be discontinued as 

 soon as possible. Gradual lessening of the amount of food given at this 

 extra feeding and a little patience will quickly accustom the child to adjust 

 itself to this schedule. Common sense must always govern the 

 planning of any schedule. In some cases where the child is robust and 

 the mother's milk is rich, these intervals are too short and the number of 



