Evening star., 1941-03-05
Baby's Bath
Should Be
Pleasure
Careful Planning
Will Make Rite
Welcome One
By Leffice Lee Street,

You are not unusual If you look
forward with doubt and dismay to
the day when you will bathe your
new baby for the first time.
When the fateful moment arrives
you are suddenly conscious that you
do not feel as strong as you thought
you were going to by this time. You
view your innocent babe with alarm,
fearful that his soapy little body
will slip from your shaking fingers.
But it won't, and the baby will be
bhssfully unaware of his mothers
trepidation. You will bathe him
without hurting him, even If you
are bit awkward at first.
But you really should not attempt
the task until he Is weeks old, not
for his sake, but for yours. He
should not have tub bath until he
is 2 weeks old or until the umbilicus
Is entirely healed.
The average mother must fit the
daily schedule for the care of her
new baby into the regular routine
of her household, so that her other
duties are not neglected. She has
her housework to do, possibly other
young children to take care of and
all of this work to finish In time to
make herself fresh and pretty for
her husband when he comes home
In the evening. Time cannot be
wasted.
After you have had little prac-
tice you will make systematic
preparations before you start to
bathe your baby, and the whole job
will be finished and the bathroom
tidied up in about a half an hour.
Have all In readiness before you
start and try to put everything in
the same place each day so that
reaching for what you need will be-
come habit and no time and effort
will be wasted in searching.
The best time for baby's bath is
before his midmorning feeding. The
room should be warm, 10 or rs de-
grees, and the bath water should
be 98 or 100 degrees for an infant
6 weeks old or under.
AS a child grows older you can
gradually cool the bath until he can
safely bathe in water about 30 de-
grees by the time he is a year old.
The most convenient and COM
Portable tub for you both Is the
type with the sliding table top.
known as a ''bathinette"
Wash the baby's face with plain
water and leave his mouth and eyes
alone. If they need 1t you may
gently wipe out his ears or nose with
a small piece Of twisted cotton, but
do not use toothpicks.
Soap his head and rinse and dry
without rubbing. Then soap his
entire body and slowly lower him
into the water. Sudden or unsteady
movements will frighten him. Let
him feel the reassuring touch OF
your hand at all times, and never,
never leave him in the tub alone.
Be sure to support his back and
head with one hand and arm while
you rinse off the soap with the
other.
After he is dried you may powder
him lightly. Be sure that you do
not buy powder that contains
stearate of zinc, as this is dangerous
when inhaled. Apply oil to the
deep folds and buttocks. 1t Is wise
to carefully observe all body open
ings each time you bathe your baby.
Any discharge or Inflammation
should be reported to your doctor.
After he has had his bottle and
is peacefully snoozing again you will
probably collapse with WEAKNESS,
more from sheer nerves than any
thing else. But tomorrow the task
will be easier and very shortly you
will be strong enough and expert
enough to put your tiny one in and
out Of the tub without any thought
except how very cute he IS.