Brownsville herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1910-current, 1929-05-20
Health and Right Living

II Is Just as natural TO want 70
fcndle a baby as 1t Is TO peek at
one when you pass a baby car
riage. The soft little things. sweet
ana loveable. make an appeal to
the most hard boiled OF human be-
ings. But babies should not be
f0ndIed. 1t Is bad for them. More
than this. 1t Is positively danger
OuS.
Some persons are 90 fascinated
BY newborn chicks that they do
not trust themselves to take the
fluffy little things IN their hands.
There Is a positive temptation to
squeeze the attractive birdlets to
death.
If you resist the temptation to
fondle q baby chick. why should
you be possessed to fondle a hui
man baby? Yet you can hardly re-
sist the impulse TO do so.
You can't blame young Earents
for being crazy ever the first baby.
The long days Of anxiety are over
and they are more than rewarded
by the precious Gift. 1T Is natural
TO bounce and Eggle and toss and
kiss the sweet smelling infant.
But. dear parents, you mustn't.
The tender muscles. the frail hack
bone. the soft little head. the deli
cate organs. are not strong enough
for play. Careful as ycu may be.
your handling Is too rough for the
child. You must be patient. You
must wait.
The less you fiddle and fuss with
the infant the more it will grow
in strength. What a newborn
baby needs is sleep. II must be
left alone.
You needn't think the baby viii
be lonesome. You needn't think
you are n~eglecting ii.
On the contrary. when YOU
practice self-control. and leave the
baby To its own devices, the better
you are Us a parent. BY 80 doing.
you will be entitled to all the prizes
rs a model parent.
Cruel? OF course I am. But I
am truthful and for once, certainly.
strictly scientific.
Kissing a baby in the mouth Is
really a crime. 1t should be pro-
hibited by law If anything should
be. Kiss it On the back of the neck,
If you wish, but never on the
mouth.
In cur noses AND on our lips arc
many germs. They mean little to
us hardened grownpus. We have
powers of resistance, the products
OF long years of contact with these
evil agents. We are not easily vic
timized by such things. But a baby
Is different
To an adult a cold Is usually an
aiiment Of little consequence. Per-
hapS we do not ray as much atten-
ton to cur colds as we should. but.
anyhow we survive them. But there
IS not the same certainty that a
baby will survive a hard cold.
It is really remarkable how a
baby wears down if it gets a nasal
infection. There is danger OF an
ear complication. There Is a pos
I - RAAI0Au1AA41. ENGIl IL III In
no more than a nasal disturbance
and never goes farther. ii under
mines the vitality OF the tender
infant.
IL Is true OF the father. partIc-
ularly. that he may bring from the
outside world germs that are un-
friendly to little babies. He should
not touch the child until he has
thoroughly washed hands and face
with soap and water. Il will be
better still if he changes his
clothes. After this he may take
the child iE his arms and admire it
from a distance of several inches.
But. dear daddy give all the
kisses TO your wife and wait till
the baby Is older before you shower
It with these attentions. I am sure
this Is good advice.