The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1918-05-09
CAMPAIGN TO SAVE BABIES
 IMPORTANT

Good food and right methods of feeding will play a very important part in the success or the campaign to save the lives of 10O, ,000 babies dur ing the Children's Year, begun on April by the Children's Bureau of the U. s. Department of Labor at Washington, working through the Woman's Committee of the State Councils of National Defense. As soon as the baby is born his food be- comes matter of paramount import ance, most of all to himself, as he loses no time in telling everyone about. Happy that baby, who is sup piled with breast milk, which is the best food for a baby throughout the greater part of the first year of life. The seriousness of depriving a baby of its natural food is shown very tragically in the fact that in 1915 in the Registration Area of the United States, S2,000 babies died in the first year of life from diseases of the stomach and intestines. This vast army of abies-enough to make up the entire population of a respectfully large city-died chiefly, without doubt, from bad food, meaning partly dirty milk, and entirely unsuitable table foods, but also and probably largely from the substitution at too early an age of other food for breast milk. It is plain, therefore, that a great many of these babies died. needlessly, be- cause in the first place many moth CTS who did not, could have nursed their babies if they had had the right kind of care and advice, and many could have nursed them longer, if they had understood the necessity.
 The younger the baby the greater the necessity of breast milk, if that baby is to live and grow into health. A recent investigation made by the Children's Bureau shows that of cer- tain babies who had been exclusively breast-fed during the first six months of life, only a little more than p2er cent. died during the first year of life, while the proportion of babies dying who had been artificial1y fed during the same period was about six times as great. It is plain that, as has been often said, ''every mouthful of breast milk is important to the baby" and that in the first six months it is the principal safeguard of life.
 The Children's Bureau, Washington, D. C., has published a small pamphlet called Infant Care which it will be glad to send free to anyone who asks for it. Many mothers who now wean their babies too early could keep up the breast milk longer, and many who do not nurse at all could do so if they had better care, better food, and, often better advice. Much de- bends upon proper care of the mother before the baby is born, and especial ly at the time of the baby's birth. Af- ter she is up and about the greatest pains must be taken to insure the per manence, and suficiency of her milk by careful attention to her food, but more especially to her general hy- giene. The nervous mechanism which regulates the mammary glands is so sensitive that the unhappy, over worked, sick, or worried mother is very likely to have a depleted milk supply, but in many cases upon the removal of these conditions the milk returns and all goes well. In some | cases milk may be restored under skillful management even after it has apparently disappeared. It is wise, 1 therefore, to make sure that every means to conserve the supply has | ben tried before subjecting the baby to the risk involved in artificial feed | ing, especially in the first three l months If his life
 The protection which mothers give 1 their babies by breast-feeding is of 1 ten denied the children of mothers who are forced to leave them to go 1 out to work. A study made by the | Children's Bureau of the work of mothers during the first year of the baby's life shows that babies of wom-
 en who go out to work die at more than twice the rate of babies whose | mothers can stay at home and care
 for them. As part of the work of | Children's Year, communities are urg-
 ed to guard mothers so far as possi-
 ble from the necessity of going into
 industry and thus depriving the babies
 of that care and food which is essen
 tia1 to their welfare, even to life it.
 self.