OUR BABIES.

Manawatu Standard, Volume LIII, Issue 261, 2 October 1933, Page 9

OUR BABIES.

(By Hygeia.) THE DANGERS OF TRADITION IN THE NURSERY. This week we purpose continuing with extracts from Sir Bruce Porter’s lecture on this subject: THE REQUIREAIENTS OF THE BODY. I often take the requirements of a city as my text when talking of the requirements of the body. Just as the character of the city will depend on the care taken in its early days, so will that of the body. The four main needs of the city are identical with those of the body. They are : (1) Fresh air; (2) fresh water; (3) fresh food; (4) a good drainage system. THE FALLACY OF CODDLING. The commonest evil tradition in the nursery is that the child must be protected from draughts and kept warm. There is no greater fallacy. The windows of the nursery should be kept open day and night, for the worst air of all is that contaminated by human use. Colds are caused by germs which gain a footing when the child’s vitality has been lowered by lack of fresh air. In this connection I will .tell you of a four-year-old who came with his mother to one of our children’s aid institutions. There is a doll’s house in the room for children to play with while their mothers are interviewing the officials. This particular small .boy, being a delicate child, had spent nearly all his life in various openair establishments. When his mother came to take him away she noticed that the first thing the child had done with the doll’s house was to taken all the beds out of the rooms and put them in a row on the verandah. He explained to his mother that rooms were not at all the right places to sleep in. This illustrates my saying that children learn habits at that age very quickly and thoroughly. The most recent experiments in bacteriology prove that germs cannot affect the human body unless the tissues are in some way damaged. This explains why some people pick up infection and others do not. I do not suggest that a child should be exposed to a draught, for if the skin is moist this would tend to lower the temperature. But open windows do not mean the wind blowing in directly on to the child. The air in the room can be changed with no risks of draughts if the windows are opened wide enough. Draughts are caused by the air forcing its way through narrow openings. Alany people do not understand the first principles of ventilation. To avoid draughts the windows should be opened wide on the side exposed to the wind, for the room when filled with air forms an air-lock, and the escaping air goes out slowly through the narrower opening on the other side. OVERCLOTHING.

Having got the fresh air into the room, it must then be allowed to circulate over the child’s skin. Overclothing not only prevents this, but also restricts that free movement of the limbs so essential to muscular development. Evaporation of the waste products given off by the skin is absolutely necessary to health, but this cannot take place through thick garments. Moreover, cold air circulating about the skin puts up the basal metabolism 100 per cent., as Sir Henry Gauvain demonstrated at Alton and Hay ling Island. I often see children in Hyde Bark suffering grievously from injury to their health because their parents have too much money to spend on clothing. It is a common sight in winter and spring to see leather leggings, woolly suits and caps so enveloping the child that only a small portion of the face is exposed to the light and air. The 1 value of sunlight in the prevention and cure of rickets is being rediscovered. And it must be realised that remedies like sunshine and air, which are used in large quantities to cure disease like tubercle of the glands and bones, would have prevented these diseases if they had been used in much smaller doses in the early days. Exposure of the skin to the air produces the same effect as scientific massage, as may be seen at such places as Treloar’s Home at Alton, the Hermitage Crafts School at Chailey, or the branch of Dr. Barnardo’s Home at Folkestone which bears my name. THE AIISTAKE OF DARKENING ROOAIS. Darkening the room where children sleep is quite unnecessary. A screen can be placed'to keep bright direct light out of their eyes. It is not possible to make an ordinary room dark without sacrificing the ventilation, and, moreover, children accustomed to sleep only in darkness are slaves to this ' habit all their lives. It is also a mistake to keep the nursery absolutely quiet. A child will learn to sleep quite happily with the ordinary noises of life going on. Bedclothes should be as light as possible. GETTING AIR INTO THE BODY. The next point is to get air into the body, having got it around it. Tight binders should never constrict a baby’s chest. Like all other young animals, a healthy baby is never at rest when awake, and constant movement helps it to grow and develop. So never swaddle it in layers of flannel, and see that its clothes leave its limbs free. . We all know that we must “use or

we will lose,” and in no case is this more true than concerning the air passages. The child must be taught to breathe through the nose or that passage will become blocked with adenoids, with all their attendant risks of deafness and narrow chest that accompany such troubles. There is no means at present of removing a child from all risks and infection from the tubercle bacillus — the disease is too prevalent. But we can see to it that the child is brought up in healthy conditions, and give it strength to fight any stray gernisitmay pick up. Given a good circulation and a good chest expansion, the child should be safe. Children should never share sleeping places with anyone else. Apai't from the risk of overlying, it is unhealthy for them to breathe the air already breathed by parent or nurse. (To be continued.)