The Hays free press. [volume] (Hays, Kan.) 1908-1924, 1916-05-13
Care and Feeding of Children

The average weight of an infant at
birth is seven pounds smaller baby
may be healthy, larger baby is not
necessarily healthier in proportion to
its weight The very fat and fabby
baby, usually supposed to be extremely
healthy by the laity, is the one in whom
the PHYSICIAN most frequently meets
with constitutional disorders. A very
fat baby may not gain for the first
two or three weeks, may, in fact, lose
in weight. During the first two
months the normal infant gains six to
eight ounces a week. During the
third month, four to six ounces a week,
and after the third month three to four
ounces a week.
A child should double its weight at
the end of five months and treble its
weight at the end of the first year.
Children who are health conform in a
general who to the above figures, but
weight cannot be relied upon to guage
child's health. The weight may be
normal and yet some grave constitu-
tional disease be present.
normal weight, must have regular
bowel and kidney action, bright eyes,
clear skin and be active. A healthy
baby with good digestion and fed pro-
perly is good natured, not cross or IT.
ritable.
The muscle tissue and the glands of
the stomach and intestines are just be-
ginning to develop at birth, and are
not completely developed until the
tenth year. This explains why so
many foods given before this age can
not be properly digested and conse-
quently produce digestive disease which
continue into adult life. It can be
readily seen that if the muscle tissue
and the glands are not developed, the
/ stomach and intestines will not have
the power or the chemicals to digest
many foods that later in life are d.
gested easily. 1t is folly to feed chill
dren everything" as so many parents
do. Many things that are food to
adults are poisonous to children.
Coffee and tea are not beneficial to
anyone but are especially detrimental
to children. They sinterfere with the
chemical process of digestion as well as
the nervous mechanism.
The heart action is disturbed, causing
wakefulness anda impressions of fear
Paralysis has been caused by feeding
too much coffee to young children. Il
may cause nervousness, anxiety anC
jerky movementsIof the muscles like
Chorea (St. Vitus dance.) Tea is NJ
better.
No child at birth, should ever be ar
tifcally fed if it can possibly be avoided
A great part of sickness in artifcally
fed babies is caused by the food con
tainers not being sterilized. Any ply
: stefan will be glad to tell mother how
to do this without charge.
Children should not be handled OF
shook about after nursing. 1t inter
feres with stomach digestion causing
: vomiting and COLES. Babies have right
just as anyone else and we should no
/ take advantage of their helpIessnes
and make of them things of amuse
ment. Everyone that comes along
wants " SEE DdOy5 AOAu nAHl, jump AlLil
: squeeze, pinch, kiss and spank him
then when he cries everybody wonder
i why?
Poor mamma is called for when per
haps she has just spent half hour Of
: her precious time getting him caret
: for.
When baby is cared for and fed, h'
should be allowed to lay quietly, lie
i alone, not made a plaything- Grown
people would not stand for one minut,
, what they force upon helpless babe!
continually.
!, If as much that were given to tn
care and diet of babies as is give
! newly Matched chickens, eight per cen
of their troubles would disappear.
DIR. 4. H. Clover.