Feeding and care of baby / by Sir F. Truby King.

  • King, F. Truby (Frederic Truby), Sir, 1858-1938.
Date:
1942
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: Feeding and care of baby / by Sir F. Truby King. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    placed under the lee of a wall or hedge, or beneath a verandah or tree; the latter being the kind of protection that animals in the open instinctively seek in similar circumstances. Soft, open, diffused light from the sky, shaded if need be in the direction to which the eyes are directly turned, does not interfere with sleep in the daytime, and promotes sound reactionary sleep at night. But the mother says, “Is it not trying for the eyes ? ’ ’ Why should soft, diffused day¬ light be trying for eyes curtained with eyelids—the same eyes that take pleasure in gazing directly at open light when the child wakes ? The keeping of infants in darkened rooms or closely canopied prams during the day, under the mistaken notion that light prevents sleep as it tends to in adults, is responsible for a great deal of debility in babyhood. For the first week of life it is true that babies are acutely sensitive to light, and should be carefully screened; but after the first week they grow more and more fond of light, and need it for proper growth and development. Mosquito Nets It is necessary to place netting over baby’s cot when¬ ever mosquitoes or flies are troublesome. The practical rule regarding the use of protective nets should be to increase the ventilation; otherwise the air about baby will become stale and enervating. Harm is minimised by not carrjfing the net below the upper margin of the cradle. This usually suffices for flies. To keep out mosquitoes, the net must, of course, completely envelop the cradle. This is highly injurious as the breath can scarcely escape and fresh air makes its way to the baby with difficulty. To counteract this, place the covered cradle in a perceptible “draught” if the weather is moderately warm. The netting used must be of the largest mesh which will keep out mosquitoes. Run a tape all round the hem and draw it up tightly under the cradle. Prams and Hoods One of the most pitiable and exasperating sights of modern babyhood is the spectacle of an unfortunate infant sweltering and sweating under an American leather pram
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