998 The Cornell Reading-Courses 



rich in milk, eggs, well-cooked cereals, vegetables and fruits. Meat should 

 play an unimportant part, unless the mother has been accustomed to a 

 large meat diet. Under these circumstances the withdrawal of this 

 stimulating food may be unwise. Strong vegetables, as onions and turnips, 

 which produce flavors in milk should be avoided. Liberal use may be 

 made of such fruits as apples, which are often better cooked as they are 

 more easily digested, oranges, prunes, ripe peaches and pears. The 

 belief is a mistaken one that fruit in the mother's diet is 'a cause of colic 

 to the baby. Constipation and the general bad condition resulting 

 from a diet deficient in bulk and in the mineral salts provided in fruits and 

 vegetables is much more to be feared. If there is any tendency toward 

 constipation the diet should be a laxative one such as has been previously 

 suggested. 



Weaning. — The age at which a child should be weaned will have to be 

 determined by a number of things, such as the vigor of the child, the rich- 

 ness and quality of the mother's milk, teething conditions, season of the 

 year. Normally the child should be weaned at least within the year, for 

 by this time the average milk has become insufficient to meet all the 

 needs of the growing organism. It is not wise to wean a child just at the 

 beginning of summer or during the hot weather. It should be accomplished 

 earlier or should be held over until fall. Prolonging the period of breast- 

 feeding beyond the normal time may be as bad for the child as any other 

 wrong method of feeding. Weaning should be accomplished gradually 

 unless the child refuses other food as long as it is kept at the breast. Two 

 or three months may be allowed for it, beginning at first with only one 

 modified milk meal a day and gradually increasing the number. The last 

 nursing to be dropped should be the one at night. The change from the 

 breast to cow's milk must be made carefully to avoid any disturbances 

 which may arise from the difference between the two foods. Cow's milk 

 is rarely given at this time without dilution and it must be more diluted 

 than for a child of the same age who has been artificially fed from birth. 

 The milk mixture to be substituted at this time will be considered in the 

 second part of this bulletin under the head of artificial feeding. 



