Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1915-09-01
GOOD AIR FOR BABY
KEEP TlIE LITTLE ONE OUT iN
THE SUNSHINE.
Abundant Supply of That Usually Eas-
lily Acquired Essential is lmpera-
tive If He Is to Grow Well
and Strong.

! fPrenared by the Children's Bureau, United
! States Department of Labor
This Injunction needs to be repeated
very often even in the country, where
people are out of doors great deal Id
the natural course of life.
1t is often true that small homes III
the country are both overcrowded and
ill-ventilated, particularly at night, and
| in some cases the country baby sur
fers from a lack of fresh air almost as
much as does the city baby. But IL
would seem that it should be very easy
to give a country baby an abundant
supply of open air and sunshine.
The CHIEF drawback to his having
| comfortable out-of-door life in summer
are the flies, the dust and the heat.
There are few improvements that pay
| greater return upon the investment TO
mother and baby, as we'll as the whole
family. than porch covered with wire
screen on the shady side OF the house.
say, the east or south, provided the
| side is not so close to the road as to
get the dust. If the mother has a
porch of this kind, the baby may prac-.
tically live there, except while he is
being bathed. During the hottest
hours of the day, in midsummer, it is
usually cooler indoors than out, but
with these few exceptions the baby
may spend the greater part of the
time out of doors.
A play pen on the porch will serve
to keep an older baby within safe
bounds, and at the same time per-
NIT him to be out of doors. Such a
pen is described in a bulletin pub
lished by the childrens bureau called
Infant Care" This publication will
be sent free to all who write for it, adj
dressing the Chief, Children's Bureau,
u. S. Department of Labor, Washing
ton, D. G.
Experience has shown that sick ba-
bies stand a much better chance of
life, and recover much more rapidly
if kept out of doors. Common sense
should guide the mother in this, as in
all matters where the baby is con-
cerned, and she will realize that if
high wind is blowing dust about, or
a sudden storm comes up and the tenn
perature drops many degrees in few
moments, the baby should be taken in,
or protected from chill by suitable
clothing and wraps.
The young baby may be taken out
when he is two weeks old for half an
hour if the weather is warm and
pleasant, gradually frightening the
time he stays out. Remember that the
babys eyes are very sensitive and
must always be carefully shielded, not
only from the sun, but also from direct
light. Babies are often wheeled about
in their carriages staring directly up
into the sky. Try it yourself for a
few moments and you will realize the
cruelty to the baby who may not even
be able to relieve this strain on the
eyes by turning his head to one side.
When the baby is sent out with a
nurse she should be instructed on
this point and also how long she is to
keep the baby out, and be warned Of
the danger of allowing strangers to
play with him or kiss him.
The carriage outing should not be re-
garded as giving the baby enough fresh
air for the day. In addition to this he
should live on the porch in suitable
weather.
If it is necessary to bring him in,
the windows and doors should be
opened, screening them carefully from
insect intrusion
The baby should sleep at night in
well-ventilated bedroom, in a bed by
himself, and, if possible, in a room by
himself. Keep the doors and windows
open. Do not be afraid of the old SUI
perstition of the might air. The fear
of the night air likely arose from the
fact that. it used to be thought that
malarial poisons arose in the night, be-
fore it was known that this disease is
only carried about by mosquitoes.
which fly chiefly after nightfall.
In malarial regions, screens are in
dispensable. If the house is pro-
vided with screened sleeping porch,
there is no reason why the baby should
not sleep out at night after he is three
months old, provided, of course, he is
carefully protected Babies thus
taught from the beginning of life to
enjoy the open air will be far less SEN
sitive than otherwise, and much less
likely to suffer from colds and similar
troubles as they grow older.