The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1924-12-11
WARNS MOTHERS
TO BOIL MILK
Specialist and Health De-
partment Urge Boiling
Baby's Milk.
OFTEN NEEDS DILUTING

DR.. Stanley Gibson, attending ply
stefan of the Children's Ward of Yves
ley Memorial hospital in Chicago
who is also acting as health advisor
to Kenosha mothers who are inter
ested in the work of the health de-
partment's infant welfare stations
and those operated by the Service
League, is this week stressing the i'm
portance of the food for the baby, es-
pecially the young infant.
When baby is deprived of human
milk, DR.. Gibson declares, the milk OF
some other mammal must be the
basis of the food. In this country
cows milk is most widely used.
1t has been found by experience
that the feeding of undiluted cows
milk to young infants for any length
of time always results in gastro-in-
festival disturbances Of more or less
severity. For this reason it is neces-
sary to modify cows milk in such
fashion that it will be more readily
digested and assimilated.
First of all, the milk used in infant
feeding should come from mixed
herd of healthy cows, should be clean
and as fresh as it is possible to OBJ
tain it.
Boiling Milk.
The majority of children's special
lists now recommend boiling the
milk, no matter how clean and fresh
the milk may be.
This is done for two reasons. First
harmful bacteria are killed; even the
best grades of milk are not alto
gether free of bacteria. Secondly
boiled milk produces a much finer
curd and is more easily digested.
Boiling does not impair the food
value of the milk, and boiled milk
can be given in larger amounts than
raw milk without producing diges-
tive disturbance. There is one
theoretical objection to it's use. Ba.
bies fed on boiled milk alone for a
long time may develop scurvy.
This, however, can be absolutely
prevented by giving the baby q
small amount of orange juice daily.
When this single precaution is taken,
the advantages of boiled milk so far
exceed it's possible disadvantages
that there seems little reason for
feeding raw or even pasteurized
milk.
In addition to boiling, cows milk
is usually diluted with water or
cereal water. This is done chiefly
because it is found that the amount
of fat present in whole milk Is not
well tolerated by many infants.
Because cows milk contains much
less sugar than mothers milk, and
because the sugar content is lowered
still more by diluting the milk, addi-
tional sugar is added to bring the
percentage up near the amount con-
tanned in human milk.
Milk sugar, cane sugar, and dextrin
maltese preparations are the ones
most commonly used. Milk sugar
has no known advantage over the
ordinary cane sugar.
Dextrin maltese preparations con-
tanning a high percentage of dextrin
can be given in larger amount than
either milk or cane sugar with less
danger of producing diarrhoea, and
on this account are extensively used.
sugar is we'll tolerated.
Such are the ingredients ordinarily
used in preparing formula for the
artifcially fed baby. When given in
proper proportion and amounts, be-
ing varied to suit the needs of the
individual baby, satisfactory results
can be obtained in the majority Of
cases.
A word of caution should be urged
against the indiscriminate use Of
numerous proprietary foods which
are now upon the market, and widely
advertised as being ideal baby foods.
Oftentimes the directions for feed
ing are printed on the package. Many
mothers are led to believe that they
have only to follow the directions
given, and may then rest assured
that the baby will thrive.
Such an experiment is almost GER
tain to lead to disaster. A wise
physician said many years ago that
babies must be fed with brains and
not with mathematics. In other
words each baby presents an indi-
vidual problem, problem that often
taxes the skill of the physician who
has had a wide experience in infant
feeding. The artifically fed baby is
being denied the food that nature
meant it to have. It is more fire.
quently subject to gastro-intestinal
disturbances than the breast fed
baby, and these disturbances are
likewise more severe. For this rea-
son the bottle fed baby should be
under constant medical supervision.