The Colorado statesman., 1909-01-16

Let us not supersede her method till
we know better.
Once every two hours is often
enough for the first month and every
third hour thereafter. II there is a
real demand between the periods,
sweetened water should be given (dis-
titled or boiled water and milk sugar..
Constant overfeeding causes an abnor-
NAL appetite, as in the adult, that is
never satisfied.
No definite rule can be laid down as
to the amount required. The best that
has been suggested is, an ounce for
each month, beginning with two
ounces, increasing to eight ounces at
eight months, after which full milk
will be used. Moderate, judicious ex-
ercise now becomes important A
child needs exercise before it can
walk. The freer it's opportunities for
movement the better.
The infant digestive system is not
adapted to cereal food, always a cause
of more or less digestive difficulty and
expenditure of vitality, even in the
adult. Under no circumstances should
fee, milk or gravy be given to an in
fant.
There are many infant foods on the
market, composed of cereals or Of
cereals with milk, matted. In cases of
milk poisoning, or of serious digestive
disorder resulting from unbalanced
feeding, due to the inadaptability Of
cows milk, something must be sub
stituted for the milk, but it does not
follow that because child improves
on the substitution of one of these
prepared cereals 1t is better
as a permanent diet. 1t is also well
to keep in mind that child is not
healthy merely because it is fat. 1t
may be failing to develop the diges-
tive system normally. 1t may become
so "flabby" that it will fall a prey
to disease when the fatty degenera-
tion has reached its limit and the con-
ditions are favorable for disease.
The common practice, when cows
milk disagrees, is to adapt the milk
by mixing it with oatmeal or barley
water. This cereal tends to break up
the coarse curd of cows milk, but it
is in itself unsuitable, though the
remedy is better than the disease; the
prepared foods are better as the
cereal in them is matted.
Cereal foods are digested with diff
ficulty by the adult and should nNt
be given freely to children. Coarse
bread. never less than two days old,
is preferable to fine white bread
yUl,i oh hn OIL
fresh.
At the age of one year a very small
quantity of pulverized fresh peanut
may be taken, az noon, in water, form
ing a peanut cream, and the amount
very gradually increased till at two
it forms half the diet. A small piece
of zwiebach may now be added to the
evening meal and very gradually in
creased till it becomes one-half, by
weight of the evening meal, when
both should be continued.
At three, the regular diet of child
hood should be fully established At
seven in the morning a drink of wa
ter with lemon juice and only enough
sugar to make it acceptable; at eight,
apple. cantaloupe, ripe banana or 9th
or fruit; nothing else, unless water is
called for. At ten as much artificial
buttermilk as can be taken; at noon a
slice or more of whole wheat or COM
bination cereal bread with pulverized
peanut. If the child is really hungry
and healthy he will eat this.
AT three give the modified milk.
At six zwiebach with honey or, if pre-
ferred, prunes only. Give water as
often as called for between meals, but
nothing else.
Let the solicitous parent be fully as
sured that this diet will develop the
highest qualities of body and mind
and that sickness will be avoided, If
the child is properly aired, watered,
exercised and amused and protected
from stagnated, foul air, bad water
and sudden changes of temperature
or too much clothing in warm weather
The goat is the healthiest of all ami
mails, always free from tuberculosis.
Its milk is in every respect superior
to cows as substitute in infant
feeding, and it ought to be adopted
for general use, there being no rea
sonable objection but lack of knowl-
edge of the facts
1t is a poor goat that will not give
from one to four quarts of milk day,
and it costs no more to feed than a
dog, where there is a fair-sized back
yard.
Tests show that goats milk approx
mates to the natural infants food
more closely than does cows milk. Di-
It
times more digestible, the curds be-
ing much finer and the fat far more
soluble.
Absolute cleanliness and freedom
from disease is, however the chief