The Prince George's enquirer and southern Maryland advertiser. (Upper Marlborough, Md.) 1882-1925, 1915-09-17
AILMENTS OF BABIES
MANY OF THEM ARE EASILY PRE-
VENTABLE.
Mother, by Wise Management, May Do
Away With a Great Deal of the
Troubles Which So Frequently
Affect the Little Ones.

prepared by the Children's Bureau, U. 8.
Department of Labor)
1t is no doubt true, many times, that
a fretful, unhappy baby is made so
quite unnecessarily, and instead of
rocking or patting him, or walking up
and down with him in her arms, or
possibly giving him dose of medicine
to quiet him, the mother should seek
the cause of his discomfort anG re-
move it.
1t may be that the baby is thirsty.
There is no doubt that babies fire.
quentIy suffer from thirst. 1t is nee
cssary, particularly in summer, to
give plenty of drinking water to all
children who are too young to get it
for themselves. A drink of water will
often satisfy fretful baby and some
times it is all that is needed to send
a restless one off into quiet sleep.
One of the most frequent sources of
misery for the baby is found in his
clothing, especially in hot weather,
when any clothing is burden to him
to wear. So many babies are over
dressed that it is no wonder they
fret. Compelled to wear wooden un-
derwear, knitted socks. stif1y starched
caps and dresses it is only natural
that they should protest vigorously.
Neither wool nor starch has any place
in the, clothing of the baby in hot
weather.
One of the troubles from which a
baby often suffers is prickly heat. This
ailment appears as fine red rash
usually on the neck and shoulders and
gradually spreads to the head, face
and arms. 1t is caused by overhead
ing, due either to hot weather or to
the fact that the baby is too warmly
dressed. The rash comes and goes
with the heat, and causes intense
itching. The remedy for it is to take
off all the clothing and give the baby
a sponge bath in tepid water in which
common baking soda has been dis
solved. Use one tablespoonful of soda
to two quarts of water. Use no soap.
and do not rub the skin, but pat it
dry with soft towel. After the skin
is thoroughly dry, dust the inf1amed
surfaces with a plain talcum powder.
This ailment, like all others, is more
readily prevented than cured. Ere
quent cool baths, very little clothing,
simple food and living in cool rools,
or In the open air will probably save
the summer baby from much of the
annoyance of prickly heat and other
more serious ills.
Fat babies are very apt to suffer
from chafing, especially in hot wealth
er. 1t appears as redness of the
skin in the buttocks or in the arm
pits, or wherever two skin surfaces
persistently rub together.
Much the same treatment is re-
quired as in prickly heat. Never use
soap on an inflamed skin. Instead use
a soda, bran or starch bath, as adj
vised in a former article. Directions
for these baths are given in publica-
ton called Infant Care" which can
be had, free Of charge, by address
ing a request to the Chief of the Chill
dren's bureau, U. S. Department of La
Dor, Washington, D. G.
Great care should be taken not to
let the baby scratch the skin, when
it is irritated. Sift together two
parts powdered cornstarch and one
part boric acid. and use it freely on
the chafed parts. Remove wet or
soiled diapers at once. Wash and dry
the flesh thoroughly, then dust the
powder freely between the legs.