The western Democrat. [volume] (Charlotte, N.C.) 1852-1870, 1859-05-03
FEEDING INFANTS.

The following article, interesting to mothers, IS
copied from the Natchez Courier:
Great mortality prevails among children from
iniudicous feeding Some persons attempt to
support them upon articles of food which contain
little else than starch eum neither Of which arc
capable in themselves Of sustaining animal life.
Others confne them principally to the milk of the
COW, the excess of casein in which they unable
TO digest; and to these, other articles added
which are either indigestible innutritous.
Hence the large amount OF sickness and mortality
from disordered stomach and bowels, and which
are generally attributed to teething, to worms, and
to any aud every other cause but the right one,
errors in diet, producing Indigestion.
In the last July number OF the American Jour
nal OF the Medical Sciences there is clever arti-
Gle on natural and artificial lactation," by DIR.
Cumming brief abstract Of the concluding por-
ton Of which ain tempted to publish Tor the in
formation Of young and doubling mothers. He
says, and sufficiently proves by physiological and
chemical arg .ment, that nothing but milk can
with Iropriety be used the food &C infants; and
even this is apt to fail, and to give rise TO fatal
malades unless it lie made to correspond very
closely in its constituent elements with human
milk.
Cows milk differs from human milk in several
important particulars, as has been accurately as
certained by chemical anal yss. 1t contains near
ly three times as much casein as human milk, but
somewhat less than twice rs much butter; while
human milk contains nearly onethird more sugar,
and a little more water than cows milk. Mere
diluting cows milk by adding water and sugar.
therefore, is commonly done, will not fit it for
easy digestion by the infant stomach. There will
in this case always be an excess of casein and a
deficiency of butter. But the proportions are
materially changed by allowing the cows milk to
remain undisturbed until the lighter PARTICLES rise
toward the surface; and nearly the same result is
obtained by using only the milk last taken from
the COW.
DR.. Cumming, therefore, proposes to have cows
milk at rest for four FIVE hours, and then to
move the upper third part for use; to take only
the latter half as furnished by the COW. He then
advises us to add, fer child not more than ten
Gays old, two and half parts of water aud one
fourth part of sugar. This combination gives al
most the exact proportions of human milk at that
earl y period OF lactation. The exact proportions
given milk 1000, water 26t3, sugar 243. The
sugar and water are decreased as the child crows
older until at five months, the proportions are:
milk loco, water 1000, sugar 104. and at eight,
months the proportions are: milk 1000, water 300,
sugar IS The child should take this food at a
temperature Of 100 to 104 degrees. and by suction.
An eight ounce vial, with quill rolled in a long
strip Of Swiss muslin for q stopper, Is the best
arrangement for cleanliness and convenience; tubes
having q narrow passage cannot be very readily
clcaDsed.
\ child ten days old will take thirty-two ounces
daily, in eight meals of four ounces each; and the
meals should increase in quantity and diminish in
number as the child grows older, 50 that at three
months four meals of eight ounces each may he
taken. The milk should be given at regular in
tcryals, except that the child should be early ac-
custoned To pass six to eight hours at night with
out feeding The regularity of feeding, with
proper intervals, is in accordance with physiolo-
gica aw Of digestion applicable to all persons viz
that the stomach should have time fully to digest
It's food. before other food is taken into IL
March, 1869. -.' \. p. MERRILL.