Delivery of a baby is the most joyful moment for all family members.Everyone wants to see,hold and play with newborn.But at the same time parents and specially mother also has many queries about child care and also feels some anxiety about ''whether she will be able to take care of the newborn well or not?whether she will be able to breastfeed her properly or not?''
So here is a guide to all common questions newly became parents ask doctors.
How to hold a baby?
Neck holding takes place at around 2-3 months in baby.Hence while holding a newborn always support head of baby.Newborn babies are not ready for any kind of physical play so don't throw unsupported baby in air or do not shake baby vigorously to prevent him/her from shaken baby syndrome.
How many clothes are necessary for a newborn baby to maintain adequate temperature?
The number and type of clothing for a baby varies according to season.too many clothing unnecessarily increases body temperature and less clothing causes hypothermia in baby. There is a simple trick to know how many clothing are necessary for your baby.Newborn baby should be worn with one extra layer of clothing more than mother is needing in that particular season. Remember that mother should be comfortable in the environment.On the top of this always wore gloves,socks and cap for baby. Head is the most important part of body for heat loss hence cap is very important for temperature regulation.
When to start breastfeeding in a newborn baby and how many times breastfeeding is to be given?
Breastmilk is the best food for newborn baby. Breastfeeding should be given immediately after normal delivery even before cutting cord. This method is called as breast crawl method in which baby is kept on mother's abdomen after wiping the secretions with intact cord. Baby will naturally crawl to mother's breast and will fing nipple for breastfeeding. In case of caeserean delivery,baby should be breastfed within 1 hour. After C-section mother may find it difficult to sit and breastfeed, in this situation a female attendent should help to hold baby on mother's breast. Remember that breastfeeding is easy during first 30 min after birth as baby is active,later baby goes into deep sleep for long and breastfeeding becomes difficult.
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| Fig:Breast crawl method |
Breastfeeding should be given on demand which means mother should pick up early signs of hunger and feed the baby.Generally speaking, a newborn should be fed for 10-12 times in 24 hours out of which 3-4 times in night.Mother should not wait baby to cry out of hunger for breastfeeding as crying is late sign of hunger.
What are the early signs of hunger in a baby?
Early signs of hunger in a baby are:
- Finger sucking, sucking on breast,cloths
- Lip smaking,drooling, sticking out their tongue
- Making suckling movements of mouth
- Turning head towards object when touches to side of mouth
- Clenching of fist
- Alert and active nature
- Making sounds
How would I know that my baby is getting enough milk?What are the signs of adequate milk supply to baby?
This is a concern of many mothers and most of the mothers complaint that my baby is not getting enough milk and shift to bottle feeding by formula.
Following are the clues that your baby is getting adequate milk:
- Baby is sucking deep and slowly on breast
- Mother is hearing sound of swallowing
- After feeding baby is sleeping immediately on mother's chest
- Baby is getting deep sleep for 2-3 hours after feeding
- Baby is passing light yellow urine at least 6-8 times per day
- Baby is gaining adequate weight.
- Otherwise baby is active and playful.
What are the different breastfeeding positions?
The best position for breastfeeding is a position in which mother and baby both are comfortable till end of breastfeeding and baby can hold on breast easily(good latching).Side laying position should be use after baby become 2-3 months old.
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Fig:Different breastfeeding positions
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For how long should I brestfeed my baby?
The duration of breastfeeding differs from baby to bay. Some babies feed for 10-15 min and some feed for 30-35 minutes before their stomach becomes full.On an average most of the babies gets satisfied in 15-20 min.Mother should understand clues of babies satisfaction in her baby and feed accordingly.
What are the signs of good latching?
Good latching is very important for successful breastfeeding in a newborn baby. Many a times baby sucks on nipple only and couldn't get enough milk supply,moreover mother gets pain,cracked nipples due to nipple sucking.Due to this breastfeeding becomes difficult,mother's milk supply decreases and baby don't want to suck on breast as he/she doesn't get milk by sucking.
Following are the signs of good attachment while breastfeeding:
- baby's mouth is wide open.
- Baby's lower lip is everted.
- Lower portion of areola (black part around nipple) is taken inside mouth by baby so that no areola visible on lower side and upper part of areola is visible.
- Baby's head,neck and body is in same line.
- Baby's abdomen is touching mother's abdomen
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| Fig: Good latching |
How to burp a baby?
Burping after each feed is very important to remove gas and prevent reflux of milk in a baby.Mother should hold baby uprighe either on shoulder or can keep on thighs for 15-20 minutes before keeping baby flat on bed for sleeping. Burping also lowers chances of getting colic.
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| Fig: Burping Positions |
Is formula feeding necessary for my baby?
Breastfeeding is best feed for baby. But sometimes mother doesn't get enough milk or in case mother could not feed baby due to her illness or mother is hospitalized due to some complications then you can feed the baby with formula milk.Formula milk is available in different compositions for preterm babies and for term babies. Formula feed should be made in hygienic condition with proper hand hygiene and should be given with katori-spoon. Bottle feeding should be avoided to prevent nipple confusion and repeated infections in baby. Bottle fed babies usually suffer from recurrent diarrhoea, pneumonia and ear infections. Your pediatrician can prescribe formula milk for your baby in following conditions:
- Mother is not getting enough milk supply
- Mother is suffering from breast abscess
- Baby is not gaining adequate weight on exclusive breastfeeding
- Baby is losing weight
- Mother is on anticancer drugs or if she is taking antimetabolite drugs,radiotherapy
- Mother is HIV positive and she don't consent for breastfeeding
Is cow milk safe for newborn?
No. Cow milk should not be given to newborn as :
- Contains allegic components and can cause cow milk protein allergy in a baby
- Doesn't provide required nutrition to baby
- Increase chances of infection and poor weight gain in a baby.
- Baby's gut and digestive system is not ready to digest cow milk.
Should I massage baby?
Newborn baby loves massaging and has many beneficial effects.Baby massage should be started after 7 days of life. Pure coconut oil is best for massaging. Avoid massaging with mustard oil. Some of the benefits of massage are:
- Improves circulation in baby
- Improves lymphatic drainage in baby
- Abdominal massage helps to pass gas and relieves colic
- Improves quality of sleep in baby.Baby sleeps for 3-4 hours after sleep.
- Improves bonding between mother and baby
- Helps to stimulate baby's sensory system
But at the same time you should take care of following things while massaging:
- Do massaging when baby is awake and alert
- Don't massage with force and don't twist limbs too much
- No need to massage over head and filling defect on forehead. Anterior fontanelle is meant to allow head growth to full size and avoid doing massage over this defect.
- Avoid putting oil in ears,nose and urethral orifice
When should I start massaging and bathing my baby ?
Umbilical cord of baby usually fall by 7-10 days. You should start massaging baby after 7 days of delivery. First baby bath must be given from second day of cord fall. Bathing given before falling of cord unnecessarily delayes cord fall and increases chances of complication.
You can use baby soap or baby body wash for bathing as they are basic in nature.
What is the normal pattern of defecation in a baby?What is the normal color of baby stools?
In newborn babies:
Newborn baby normally passes meconium within 24-48 hours which is thick and sticky dark green to black in color.Stools becomes loose or watery with a yellowish green or greenish brown color after 3–6 days. This is called transitional stool. Transitional stools may be watery enough to resemble diarrhea, but if the baby has no other symptoms and is feeding well, it should not be considered diarrhea. This watery consistency is a result of undigested sugar in breast milk that acts as a laxative by acting as a osmotic agent. This type of stools indicate that mother is producing plenty of milk. Frequent passage of liquid stools also protects baby from having jaundice within first 1 to 2 weeks of age.
Breastfed babies:
Babies who have been fed only breast milk, no other liquid, not even water often pass frequent, liquid, or soft stool, usually many times in a day. The stools are usually yellowish, golden brown or sometimes even greenish. Sometimes, the baby may pass a loose stool after every meal during the first 2–3 months of life. This happens because intestines of a small baby move very fast to digest frequent milk feeds. When milk goes into the stomach, the colon ,a part of the intestine gets triggered due to gastro-colic reflex to empty itself for the next meal. That is why babies have a bowel movement as soon as they feed, or even while feeding. However, but this is not diarrhea. In some infants, this passage of stool may happen during the process of feeding itself. In another set of babies, this may happen 0.5–1 hour after the feed. However, as the child grows older, this reflex diminishes.
Sometimes breastfed babies don't pass any motion for 4-5 days.This can be normal provided baby is passing urine 6-8 times a day and he/she is active.
Frequent passage of formed stools is not diarrhea:
Some children may normally pass stool more frequently than others as a normal habit. The frequency of stool is mainly depends upon the type of food being consumed. Children who are breastfed, children who eat a lot of fruits, vegetables, and whole grain products, or those who consume a lot of fat, sugar or caffeine may pass stool more frequently than children on a low fibre diet. However, if the passage of stools is accompanied with pain in abdomen or distention of abdomen, you should consult your pediatrician to rule out irritability of the bowel or an infection or allergy.
How can I take care of my baby's skin?
Baby's skin is very delicate and unlike adults you have to be extra caucious while handling baby.
- Daily massaging of bay with coconut oil followed by bathing after 15 minutes provides necessary moisture to baby's skin.
- Following bath apply cotton towel over baby's skin,it will absorb all extra water over skin.Avoid rubbing towel over baby's skin as it will removes moisture from skin.
- Apply emollient over baby's skin to lock moisture in skin.
- Powder application over skin and especially over genitalia should be avoided as while applying powder, it's dust particles goes into baby's respiratory tract and can cause respiratory problems in a baby. Moreover it is established in various studies that powder application over genitalia increases incidence of ovarian cancer in female babies.
- To prevent baby from getting diaper rash,apply vaseline or nappy cream before applying new diaper and try to use homemade cotton washable diapers in a baby.
My baby is having watering from eyes.Is it due to infection?
Many parents complain that there is watery discharge from baby's one or both eyes. It is due to blocked or narrow passage of nasolacrimal duct(path connecting eyes to nose facilitating drainage of tears).As baby grows older this passage opens up and broadens and this issue resolves slowly by 4-6 months of age. Mother can do daily massaging of nasolacrimal duct 10-12 times in a day to enhance drainage of tears. If clear water is coming out of eyes, it is not due do infection. But if babe is having thick discharge,redness of conjunctiva and sclera it could be due to infection and you should consult your doctor for that.
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Fig : Watering through eyes of baby
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| Fig: Nasolacrimal duct blockage in baby |
Is kajal application safe in my baby?
Nowadays you get adulterated kajals in market. Moreover application of kajal in unhygeinic condition can lead to eye infection and also can block nasolacrimal duct causing watering from eyes. Many people believe that kajal application improves baby's eyesight. It is a myth and kajal application has nothing to do with eye sight
What is the normal sleep pattern of newborn baby? My baby sleeps alot, is there any problem with my baby?
Normal newborn baby sleeps for 18-20 Hours a day. He/she only wakes up for feeding and to urinate and defecate. This long sleeping hours are necessary for brain development of baby. Provided your baby is waking up for feeding,taking adequate feeds,passing urine 6-8 hours a day and gaining weight adequately this sleeping pattern is normal for baby.
Newborn babies normally sleeps throughout the day and remain wakeful during night hours.This is because of their sleeping pattern inside mothers womb. During the months of pregnancy,as mother is mobile throughout a day baby gets rocking effect and hence sleeps well during day and remains awake in night hours. This sleeping pattern takes 1-2 months to change.
You can follow below mentioned tips to modify this sleeping pattern resembling to ours:
- Keep sound,light and activity around baby normal during daytime. Don't unnecessarily avoid making sound like keeping mobile on silent or keeping TV volume low or keeping lights off for baby's sleep.
- Try to engage baby in play during daytime.
- On the other hand, during night keep activity,noise level and light to the level of nighttime.
- Whenever you feed baby in night,don't switch on lights or don't engage in playing with child.Keep silence in the room.
Normal sleeping hours in a baby are as follows:
- Upto 1 month : 18-20 hours a day
- 1 month to 3 months : 14-17 hours a day
- 4 months to 6 months : 12-14 hours a day
How to take care of umbilical cord of baby?
Umbilical cord is the connection between mother and baby till delivery. After delivery umbilical cord is tied and cut after 1 minute. Umbilical cord falls of after drying in 7-10 days.
Few tips about umbilical cord care are:
- Don't apply anything over cord after birth.
- Keep cord as dry as possible.
- Take care that diaper should not touch cord and avoid soiling of cord with fecal matter.
- Umbilical cord should always be out of diaper.
- No need to apply any medicated ointment over umbilical cord.
- After cord falls, there might be some bleeding through stump which is normal unless heavy bleeding is occuring.
- Don't apply any dressing or turmeric over abdomen after it falls.
Some of the signs of infection around umbilical cord are:
- Pus discharge through umbilical stump
- Redness and swelling around the stump.
- Abdominal distension
When to start giving baby tummy time and for how long?
Tummy time is the time spent by baby on his/her tummy while he/she is awake.It is considered as baby's first exercise position. Tummy time can be given as soon as baby comes home after delivery. It is given till your baby starts crawling.
It should be started from few minutes a day in a newborn for several times a day and slowly increase frequency and duration of tummy time. By 3 months you can give 1 hour/dat tummy time.
Benefits of tummy time are:
- It helps in motor development and helps baby learning to lift head,sit up,crawl,stand up and walk early.
- It also helps in visual and sensory stimulation of baby
- It prevents baby from getting flat head
- It helps in developing strength in core muscles of neck,back and shoulder.
- It helps releasing gas in baby.
Total tummy time duration per according to age is as follows.Give this tummy time in 5-6 divided sessions:
- Newborns : 2-3 Minutes/day
- 2 Months : 20-30 Min/day
- 3 Months : 40-60 Min/day
- 4-6 Months: 1-2 hours /day
- Above 6 months : > 2 hours/day
While giving tummy time make sure you take safety precautions:
- Make sure that baby is on low and solid flat surface so that there is no risk of rolling or falling out of bed.
- Baby should be watched carefully during this time.Never leave baby unattended during this time
- Make sure that baby is not sleeping and he/she is awake and taking normal breaths
- Make sure that baby's nose is free and he/she is not smothering
- Never practice tummy time during sleep as it can cause sudden infant death ( SIDS).
What are the red flag signs in a newborn baby:
Red flag signs are the signs when you get in your baby,you should not wait and visit pediatrician immediately:
Read more :
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