Cheraw gazette. [volume] (Cheraw, S.C.) 1835-1838, 1836-12-13

| tween us SlOIldcn anu Tie quallIy Ol tnC
milk is DESTROYED. and the infant suffers from
the oppression Of food, being too heavy for
its powers. If, again, an infant Of five or
six months old be transferred to a nurse
recently delivered, the aliment which it re-
ceives is too watery for its support, and its
health in consequence gives way.
/ In like manner, if the parent be of mature
age, her own milk, or that Of a healthy
nurse of a nearly similar age, will be more
suitable to the infant than the milk of a much
younger woman; because the constitution
Of the offspring always bears relation to
that of the mother, and is adapted to the
quality Of the fluid which nature has provi-
dcd for it. speak, Of course, only Of the
healthy state; for in cases Of disease, the
mother may be, and ofcn is, the most unfit
nurse that can bc found for her own child.
But as, in such instances, the parents are
always guided in their conduct by medical
advice, and this is not the place 10 discuss
1.-THE treatment of disease, need not now en-.
tlargc upon it.
The leading error in the rearing of the
young, must again repeat, is orer:teedtng
an error serious in itself, but which may
easily be avoided by the parent yielding
only to the indications of appetite, and ad-
ministering food slowl y and in small guam
titles at time. BY no other means can
the COLES and bowel-complants, and irrlta-
bility of the nervous system, so common IN
infancy, be cfFectually prevented, & strength
and healthy nutrition be secured. Nature
never meant the infant stomach to be con-
verted into a receptacle for laxativcs, car
minatives, an>acds, spicy s.imulants, and
asringents and when these become ne
cessary, we may rest assured that there is
something faulty in Oar management, how
ever perfect it may seem TO ourselves. The
only exception is where the child is defec-
tivclv constituted, and then, Of course, 1t
NAV fail to thrive under the best measures
which can be devised for its relief.
Another cause of infantc Indigestion,
and which is too much overlooked through
ignorance Of its importance, is rittatlon Of
the quality ofths mill, caused by imprudence,
neg clcct, or anxiety on the part Of the moth
or. The extent to which this cause ope-
rates in inducing irritation and suffering in
the child, is not generally understood: and
accordingly, it is not unusual for mothers
TO displav as much indifference TO health,
regimen, and tranquility Of mind during
nursing, as if the milky secretion, and all
other bodily functions, were independent OF
every external and corporeal influence.
Healthy, nourishing, and digcstiblc milk can
procecd only from healthy and well con-
stitutcd parent; and 1t is against nature 10
expect that, ifthe mother impairs her health
and digestion by improper diet, neglect OF
exercise, impure air, or unruly passion, she
can nevertheless provide wholesome and
uncontamnatcd fluid, as ifshe were cxem-
piary in her observance Of all the laws Of
health.
1t no new or uncertain doctrine that
the quality oft the mothers milk is affected
by her own health and conduct, and that. in
its turn, it directly affects the health of the
nursing. Even medicines G iven to the pa
rent act upon the child through the medium
ofthe milk; and sudden fit Of anger, or
other violent mental emotion has not un-
frequently been observed TO change the
quality of the fluid, so much as to produce
purging and gripes in the child. Care and
anxiery, in like manner, exert a most per-
nicious influence, and not only diminish the
quantity, but vitiate the quality of the milk.
As soon, then, may we expect to see q
bad tree bringing forth good fruit, as bad
management good results and low must
that parent be ranked in the scale of moral
beings, who, knowing the relation we have
pointed out, can still deliberately sacrifice
the welfare Other offspring by the improper
indulgence Of her appetltcs and passions,
and by culpably neglecting The duties and
restrictions demanded by her own health.
1t is common mistake to suppose that,
because q woman is nursing, she ought
therefore to live very fully, and to add an
allowance Of wine, porter, or other termen-
ted liquor, to Eer usual diet.* The only
| result ofths plan is to cause an unnatural
degree offulncss in the system. which pla-
ces the nurse on the brink of disease. and
which of itselffrequently puts stop to, IN
stead of increasing, the secretion Of the
milk. The health and usefulness Of coun-
try nurses arc ofcn utterly ruined by their
transplantauon INTO TIC fais'ilioS of rioh and
luxurious employers. Accustomed at home
to constant bodily excrtion, exposure 20 the
air, and moderate supply of the plalncst
food, they live in tho enjoyment of the best
health, and constitute excellent nurses. But
the moment they arc iranspanfcd from their
proper sphere, their habits and mode of life
undergo an unfavorable change. Having
no longer any laborous duty to perform, or
any daily exposure 10 encounter, they be-
come plcihoric and indolent and as they
are at the same time too well fed, tho d.
cestiyc functions become impaired, the s!ys'
tenn speedily participates in the disorder
| ,J ,I,o ,,;il, which WIS ct first bland.