The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1920-10-01
Malnutrition Should Be Treated.


Unless the condition is recognize,
early and measures are taken to. cor
rect it, the effects of malnutrition il
childhood may last to adult life. i
may show itself as prolonged i'll health
and feeble resistance to disease til,
individual may grow up understood anc
tinderweight instead of strong
healthy, well developed man or woman
What to Do.
In order to recognize malnutrition
before serious consequences have fol.
! lowed, the most important thing Is
! watch the child's weight. In the case
of older children this can best be done
in school and in child health centers
| where monthly weights of all children
I should be taken and recorded and spe
| cial attention should be given to those
who do not make a normal gain by
the parents. teacher or school nurse or
doctor if there is one. 1t il essen
tial that every child Of the school age
should receive fun medical examina-
ton once wear.
A child who is suffering from malnu-
trition-that Is, one who is much be-
low normal weight or one who is
steadily losing weight or one who is
not making a normal gain--should at
once be taken to a physician and ex
amned 10 see if any disease is devel-
oping. In the case Of children rcsid-
ing in areas in which malaria or hook
worm prevail the physician should
search for the presence of the parasites
of these and similar diseases The
chld's whole daily life should be care
fully gone into to see which of the
rules Of health he is violating and
whether this pertains to his food, his
habits Of eating, his hours Of play, of
home and school work, or OF sleep.
Mslnutrition is cured by correct
ing injurious habits or removing the
causes already mentioned upon which
it depends. Often ii is matter of
enforcing discipline in the home.
4 your child suffering from malnu-
triton Compare his weight with the
standard which was published in the
preceding article
Some Hints on Feeding Children
In dealing with malnutrition the
following suggestions regarding chill
dren's diet may be helpful.
During infancy the diet should con
sst wholly OF milk and since no per
feet substitute for mothers milk is |
known. mothers should always nurse !
their babies ut the breast unless 9TH
erwise advised by competent physi
clan.
At six months the baby begins to
be able TO digest starch; therefore |
at this time small amounts of barley |
or oatmeal water may be given with !
the milk II is also well to give
teaspoonful of orange juice twice
day.
When the teeth begin TO appear a
cracker or piece of sweback may be
allowed In addition to this a little |
cereal Jelly without sugar may be Civ
en- once day, preferable in the morn
ing.
At about the fifteenth or sixteenth
month small amounts of baked potato,
apple sauce. and the pulp of thor
oughly cooked prunes may be added
to babys diet.
When the child is two and one half
or three wears of age the mother may
begin to give one or two teaspoon
fuls of scrapcd meat, or an egg In
meat should be given very
,paringly TO small children during the
hot weather. and an egg should not
be given oftener than once or twice a
week to a child three to six wears old.
Sugar other than that obtained nat
IralIy in foods. is not necessary for q
Young chld's diet Simple desserts,
,uch as custards apple sauce and prune
pulp may be- given as early as the
wentieth month and in amounts suit
d TO the age.
As the child grows older it may
partake Of the same meals
IS the parents. care being taken TO
zee that the diet Is mixed and varied
md that il supplies all the elements
necessary to ensure growth Milk
,hould he given AT each meal
Infants should be given cool mot
old boiled water several times dur
ng the day and older children should
,e encouraged TO drink glass OF wa
er on rising and an abundance of'wa