Tag: ChildHealth

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Development Health Parenting and Childcare

All You Need to Know About Your Baby’s Growth Chart: 0 to 12 Months

It is the responsibility of the parent to monitor the growth of your baby closely and check for the milestones to be achieved. But, it is vital to understand that the development pattern and growth of each baby differ. You should not be anxious if your baby discovers to walk later than others or his height is not in order like other kids of the same age.

In what way baby growth is measured?
  • Height
  • Weight
  • Attaining puberty
  • Other changes such as the growth of hair, the ability to speak, the arrival of teeth, learning to walk, etc.

Doctors usually are more concerned about the baby’s weight and height. While the height of a little one relies on his genes largely, it is very significant to monitor the weight chart of the baby boy. Weight can inform whether the baby can digest food appropriately and can take out nutrition from it.

Baby Growth Chart

A growth chart is vital to follow your baby’s growth consistent with his age. Though there is no perfect weight and height, there is a specific growth pattern that helps you evaluate your baby’s milestones. Girls and boys have diverse growth charts as boys are a little taller than girls. Also, growth patterns differ. The most excellent way to keep a track of your baby boy’s weight and height is to take him for regular doctor checkups. Your baby’s doctor will measure his head circumference, weight, and height and will then compare them with the standard growth charts.

Factors that can influence the growth of the baby

The growth of your baby boy’s rate depends partially on his metabolism and body type, and partially on his general health, the environment and feeding habits. The factors that have an impact comprise:

Your physical condition when you were pregnant: This can impact the store of nutrients your baby has when born. Your lifestyle habits, weight, and diet can also have an important influence on your child’s growth in his first year.

Feeding

Feeding offers your baby with the essential calories he typically necessitates to grow. Until he is 6 months old, he is reliant on breast milk or formula feed for nutrition. The duration and amount of feeding affect his growth.

Birth Weight Of Your Baby

It points out how well you have nurtured your baby during pregnancy. But, babies born with low birth weight grow quicker, and babies born with high birth weight grow gradually. It is also known as a catch-up or catch-down growth.

Your Physical Condition After Pregnancy

If you go through postnatal despair or are sick for any reason, it will be hard for you to take care of your infant. This may eventually affect his growth. But, it is not lasting and gets solved once you get well.

Genes

Genes also play a noteworthy role in the growth of the baby. If both the parents are sturdy, your child is likely to be healthy. Likewise, if both parents are skinny, even the baby would be underweight.

Minor Diseases

Diseases such as ear infections and flu affect the baby’s development, but only provisional. He may not want to drink milk when he is unwell, and this might have an effect on his growth. The growth comes back to normal after he starts drinking milk and feeling well.

If you feel that the growth is abnormally sluggish or there is a vast disparity in him and his peers you should consult his paediatrician and get appropriate guidance.

Categories
Sleeping Habits

Why is White Noise Good for Babies

To assist your baby sleep better at night, paediatricians often suggest soothing activities, such as warm baths. When nothing seems to work, parents may turn to alternative measures like white noise. Babies like white noise. They are used to it. Before making an entry into the world, your baby spent his days and nights in the reassuring buzz of human life. The noise of the blood hurrying around your body, your beating heart, and your every breath created a reassuring dissonance somewhat similar to the roar of a vacuum.

When born, your baby all of a sudden found himself in a perplexing world of whispered tones and calculated steps. Even though all these are meant for the baby’s comfort, this makes him feel detached completely. This prevents your baby to sleep.

What is white noise?

White noise refers to sounds that cover other sounds that take place in an environment naturally. If you live in a city, for instance, white noise could help obstruct out noise related to traffic. Particular sounds may be utilized to assist encourage sleep irrespective of ecological noise. Examples include comforting beach sounds.

There are devices particularly designed for use with babies. Some are set with heartbeat noise that is meant to imitate that of the mother or instrumental lullabies.

Reasons as to why white noise is good for babies

Babies might be able to sleep faster with white noise in the backdrop. White noise can suppress household sounds.

White noise may help sleep

The primary advantage of white noise for little ones is the fact that it can assist them to sleep. If you see your baby falling sleepy at noisy times outside of usual nap time, they may respond optimistically to white noise. Your baby may be adapted to being surrounded by noise, so a totally quiet environment could have a conflicting effect when it comes time to sleep.

Sleep aids can camouflage household sounds

Families with kids of varied ages can also advantage from white noise machines. For example, if you have a baby who needs sleep, but another child who no more takes sleep, white noise can assist suppress the noises of siblings to assist your baby sleep better.

Tips to use white noise for baby sleep
  • Play with the sounds a little. Every baby reacts to diverse tones differently. Reduced rhythmic sounds may be better.
  • Turn white noise machines all the way down to the beginning. The plan is to make it work at the minimum volume possible. Most machines can surpass the highest decibel level suggested for hospital nurseries.
  • Music is not white noise so do not play it.
  • Put the white noise machine close to the crib, but not within it. Items in a crib can be very risky for children.
  • It can be enticing to turn white noise on in the hope it will make your baby sleepy but this would not work and will just decrease its efficiency.

Whether your baby is a challenged or an easy sleeper, white noise can help the baby in several ways. The consistent, gentle sound can soothe him to sleep. You can whisper ‘shhh shhh’ to assist pacify your baby, which is a natural sound that imitates a mother’s heartbeat, and it works. As your baby hears this type of sound, he can focus on it, which helps him relax and sleep.

Remember that every baby is special when it comes to sleep needs, so white noise can finish up being a trial and error process. If you plan to try white noise, you should do it cautiously.

Categories
Health Parenting and Childcare

Tips to Recognise and Diagnose Your Baby’s Food Allergies and Sensitivities

Starting to feed solid foods to babies is an electrifying milestone for parents. But, it comes with a lot of concerns and questions, particularly about food allergies. Allergy is caused by antibodies that the body’s immune system pro­duces, which respond to a constituent of a particular food and then discharge chemicals that cause allergic symptoms such as sneezing, runny nose, itching, and coughing.

Start Gradually to Recognise Any Food Allergies

It is most essential to introduce a baby to new foods slowly, one at a time, in case of food allergies. If not, a parent may have difficulty finding out that the baby is sensitive to which food. For instance, if you offer your baby 3 new foods in a day and she builds up an allergic reaction, you would not know which of the foods triggered it.

The type of food or the order in which food is introduced is not much anxiety, as long as the foods you are offering are well-balanced and healthy for the baby. Every time you provide a new food, you should wait for a few days before adding another innovative item to the menu. Do not get rid of the previous foods your baby is eating during that time; as you know these are safe for your baby.

Food Allergy Symptoms to Look for in Your Baby

Food allergy symptoms typically appear very soon after the food is consumed. The reaction may occur in a few minutes to a couple of hours. If you are introducing new food to your baby, look for these symptoms:

  • Trouble breathing
  • Hives or welts
  • Loss of consciousness
  • Flushed skin or rash
  • Diarrhoea  and/or vomiting 
  • Lip, tongue, or face swelling
  • Wheezing or coughing
How to Diagnose Baby Food Allergies?

Doctors suggest that it is important to secure a reliable diagnosis before drawing any dietary conclusions. Remember that restricting a baby’s diet without your paediatrician’s guidance carries risks of its own. If your baby has stomach issues or is picky after meals, talk to your paediatrician and visit an allergist. Sometimes the issue is not related to food allergies at all rather it can be due to overfeeding, incorrect mixing of formula milk, etc.

If your little one is diagnosed with an allergy or is sensitive to a particular food, you will have to stay away from her trigger foods. If your little one is allergic to milk, doctors will typically put the baby on a hypoallergenic formula. Just keep in mind; while food allergies can be annoying and even frightening, they do not essentially last forever. Several kids grow out of them by age five.

If you expect a sensitivity or food allergy, verify your suspicions

If you see a few warning signs and start to suspect that your infant may have a food allergy or is sensitive to a particular food, then take appropriate steps:

  • Choose an elimination diet. This diet enables you to test how your baby reacts when you eliminate a specific food from her diet and then introduce it later. An elimination diet is a great tool to use if your baby’s symptoms are not life-threatening and acute.
  • Look for medical assistance if essential. If your kid’s symptoms are serious, seek medical attention at once. A paediatrician will be able to carry out a range of tests to give you a diagnosis.

After you have confirmation about your baby’s food sensitivity or allergy, let your paediatrician know about this. This comprises anyone who takes care of your baby. The people who will be supervising and feeding your little one must know exactly what he can and cannot eat.

Categories
Nutrition

Tips to Keep Your Child Away from Junk Food

One of the most common concerns of parents is that their child eats a lot of high-calorie, instant or fried foods, along with sweets such as pastries, ice-creams, and chocolates —essentially, junk food.

If you are a parent with the same food worries, here are a few simple tips that you can follow to initiate excellent eating habits in your kid and keep them away from junk food.

Teach them about healthy and junk food right from childhood

Experts say that habits and knowledge imbibed from childhood last for a lifetime. Whenever you start a new food in your child’s diet, inform them why it is good for them. When your child watches someone eating food you would not wish him/her to eat, clarify why that is an unhealthy choice. For instance, you can clarify that carrots are excellent for the eyes, milk is good for bones and teeth and that instant noodles are high in calories but have little nutritional value to assist them to grow stronger.

Be an ideal role model

Kids learn the best by watching. To motivate your child to consume healthily, you need to do the same and stay away from eating junk. If your kid sees you eating nutritious food, he/she will certainly be prompted to eat healthily. For instance, when eating out, choose healthier food options such as a sandwich over a burger. If you desire for noodles, arrange them from scratch instead of using the instant variety.

Focus more on healthy food rather than junk food

There is a strong environmental and psychological influence on eating habits. This indicates that rather than paying attention to the side effects of junk foods, you should pay attention to the advantages of including healthy eats. Positive modelling is shown to be more effective in stopping junk food consumption instead of negative modelling.

Make a conducive family environment

It is not just the parents who influence the eating patterns of the kid. Uncles, grandparents, and aunts play a key role in the food decisions of a child. They are also often known to offer ice-cream, chocolates, and chips to children. Have a conversation with them to get them onboard your plan to limit unhealthy food and endorse the use of fruits and vegetables —greater eating capability is related to more health-endorsing family eating patterns. There must be family food regulations ready.

Take your child shopping with you and buy only healthy foods

Involving your kid in the procedure of grocery shopping, checking food labels with them and buying only healthy foods, endorses the idea of eating well. Refrain shopping for pasta, instant noodles, popcorn or soups. Check food labels with your kid when shopping for grocery and check the list of ingredients. If there are over five to six ingredients mentioned on the label, chances are the food is highly processed, so avoid buying it. This shopping experience will give power to your kid and make him/her more convinced about food options right from a tender age.

When your child is very hungry, food cravings reach their peak and they are more likely to grasp junk food or other high-calorie treats. To avoid eating junk food, it is a superior trick to feed your child at regular intervals to ensure he does not get exceptionally hungry.

Categories
Health Nutrition

Sweets and Desserts Toddlers Should Avoid and Why

Many of you ruminate how to stop your child from having too many sweets. Today, we are going to talk exactly how you can manage that. There are a few ways to manage this without much fuss. But, before we delve deeper into those topics, let us understand a few things. Naturally, your child loves sweet flavours.

So ‘sweet’ is one of the primary flavours your child figures out how to taste and knows about. Be that as it may, it’s imperative to acquaint your kid with an assortment of tastes. Let him figure out how to like an assortment of nourishments. Having a changed eating routine is significant for little children. The goal is that they get all the supplements to develop well.

Limiting the number of sweets

As a parent, you need to balance the veggies with the number of sweets he has. So, if he eats rice or roti and pushes aside dal, vegetables or chicken, at that point offer a little bit of treat.

If he eats everything on his plate, at that point let him have a somewhat bigger segment of pastry. You can offer an alternative for dessert rather than desserts. This will make him love organic products a lot more helpful option than unhealthy sweets. If your kid requests toffees and candy, ensure there are none in the house. He will, in the long run, quit requesting them. There is a chance that he will keep craving for more.

How much sugar should my fussy toddler have?

Having an excess of sugar over an extensive period can prompt medical issues later on. This ranges from diabetes to hypertension and what not. Majority deterrence in babies’ weight control plans is juice or sugary beverages. Many natural product drinks have included sugar or fake sugars bad for your child. Breakfast grains are additionally high on salt and sugar.

Managing sweets and treats

There’s no denying that your kid loves desserts, candies and chocolates. Desserts have a significant influence in the Indian culture, celebrations and events. It’s ideal to let your kid have a few sweets or mithai and set aside the rest for some other time. Work out a menu and get your relatives ready if you can.

Additionally, desserts or sugary beverages become a piece of a family trip. Many guardians wind up offering treats when out shopping or when viewing a film. There is a chance that your kid demands sweets as soon as you step outside. Rather, bring some more helpful bites that your youngster appreciates alongside you. Little children need a greater number of snacks than grown-ups. But this bite ought to be nutritious because your kid needs a lot of supplements to develop well.

Thus, there should be a cap on the number of sweets he has. There are a lot of options in the market. And we hope you choose the healthier ones.
Happy Parenting!

Categories
Feeding

Is It OK to Settle My Baby with a Bottle of Milk?

Numerous mums who decide to bottle-feed, figure this pretty soon. Providing their infant with a container of breastmilk or an equivalent equation while he’s in the bed or his bunk can be a simple method to alleviate him. In any case, leaving a jug in your dozing infant’s mouth is anything but a smart thought as it could cause the accompanying issues.

Ear contamination

Drinking while he’s resting builds your infant’s danger of ear diseases. Ensure your infant has his milk before he’s resting. There are a few instances across the globe where this took place.

Hence, you do not want to take any chances of contaminating your baby’s ears. It can be treacherous in the long run. Various complications arise out of this petty thing thereafter.

Tooth rot

If your infant has begun getting teeth, leaving the jug in your resting infant’s mouth may cause tooth rot. You should clean your infant’s teeth after his last jug feed and before sleeping.

Also, you should regularly disinfect the bottle before you feed milk from it to your baby. Some bacteria residing on the bottle cap might infect his teeth. The child has developing teeth and it affects their overall tooth growth too. The decay and rot of teeth are too perilous.

Propensity framing

Remember that continually settling your child with a container may imply that he’ll become acclimated to you taking care of him into a sluggish state. It might debilitate him from figuring out how to settle himself.

He may likewise anticipate more containers during the night. This newfound habit might prove to be detrimental to him in the long run. It will not be visible at one go, however, it is hard to return once you set off.

Solid food considerations

On the off chance that you are giving your child bottle takes care of during the night and he’s over a half year and eating solids, attempt to lessen the number of feeds. This will break your child’s relationship between the jug and nodding off. Start by cutting the measure of milk or equation in the container by somewhere in the range of 15ml and 30ml for each feed, contingent upon how your child reacts.

You can begin with simply the sleep time take care of or lessen the volume of all rest related feeds simultaneously. Continue diminishing the measure of milk or equation by 30ml every night throughout the following week, until there are no more feeds. Or on the other hand, you could take a stab at offering some plain water in his jug. Ideally, at that point, he’ll conclude that a container of water does not merit waking for!

Hence, these are a few things that you must keep in mind. Babies have very sensitive teeth and bodies. You must tread with caution before doing this. As a famous idiom says, “prevention is better than cure”. Enjoy the time with your lovely babies parents! Happy babysitting to every one of you!

Categories
Health Nutrition

Right Drinks for Proper Nutrition Levels of Your Child

Hey lovely parents! How are you dealing with your children? Are you contemplating which drinks you can offer your toddler for a healthy diet and nutrition? Today we are gonna have a look at some of the drinks that you can serve them. These drinks are good for their health and growth. As soon as the toddlers turn one, breastmilk is good. It gives the greater part of the hydration and nourishment he required. If in case you choose to continue breastfeeding, your little child will keep on profiting. Now, there are a few questions that may arise in your mind regarding the drinks you can feed them. Hence, let us have a look at the drinks you can provide to them.

Milk: Serve it up in an open cup

At this age, your fussy toddler needs bone-building supplements like calcium and other nutrients. Hence, cow’s milk is an extraordinary source of many nutrients required on a routine basis. Entire milk is additionally a decent wellspring of the protein. Plain milk is ideal. Seasoned milk has a ton of sugar your kid doesn’t need.

Giving her enhanced milk presently could make it increasingly hard to get her to need plain milk later. When your fussy toddler turns 2, change from entire milk to low-fat (1 per cent) milk. Your kid doesn’t require as much bovine’s milk as she did breastmilk or equation. The general guideline about milk for little children is between 2 to 3 cups of milk a day. Offer milk with suppers, however, abstains from serving it between dinners since it’ll top her off and can prompt a supper time battle.

Water

We as a whole realize water is beneficial for us, and it’s useful for your kid, as well. Here’s the dependable guideline about giving water to babies

Offer a lot of water every day, and serve it as the go-to refreshment among suppers and when you’re all over town. Make water all the more energizing by offering it in an open cup. Blend it with your youngster’s preferred character or shading, or by utilizing an enjoyment straw.

Other drinks

We don’t suggest giving your baby organic product juice or some other sugary beverages, similar to lemonade, sweet tea, fruit juice, pop or smoothies. They all contain a lot of sugar, which can prompt various medical issues.

For instance, as indicated by the American Academy of Pediatrics, drinking a lot of juice can prompt:

  • Poor nourishment
  • The expanded danger of tooth rot
  • The expanded danger of looseness of the bowels, gas and swelling
  • The expanded danger of introduction to microscopic organisms in unpasteurized juices

On the off chance that you decide to give your little one juice, we prescribe adhering to 100 per cent natural product juice, diluting it and restricting it to 4 ounces per day. Furthermore, make certain to offer squeeze just in an open cup at nibble times as tasting on a jug of juice, a sippy cup of juice or a juice box for an all-inclusive timeframe further builds the danger of tooth rot.

If you haven’t discarded the container or sippy cup for an open cup yet, now is the ideal time.

Figuring out how to utilize an open cup is a key formative aptitude for your kid, so continue working with him on it. Anticipate a wreck, and offer assistance when he needs it. At the point when you’re in a hurry, offer water in a little child cup with a flip straw or a little kids’ water bottle.

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Health Parenting and Childcare Sleeping Habits

Soothing Activities to Help Your Baby Sleep

Some babies sleep much more whilst a few sleep pretty less. For instance, a few sleep through the night and some do not, for a long time. Your little one will have their pattern of sleeping and waking, and it is not likely to be similar to other kids you know. It is not going to fit in with your necessity for sleep. Try to sleep when your baby sleeps. If you are breastfeeding, in the initial weeks your little one is likely to sleep off for short periods during a feed. Continue feeding until you think your baby has completed or until they are completely asleep. This is a perfect opportunity to get a bit of rest yourself.

Soothing activities to help your baby sleep.

Teach your infant that night-time is different from daytime. During the day, play games, open curtains and do not worry too much about daily noises when they sleep.

At night, look out for tired signs and put your baby to bed as soon as they have been fed. You might also find it useful to not talk much and keep your voice low. Keep the dim lights on and do not play with your baby

Babies will show signs when they are getting tired such as frowning, yawning, grimacing, sucking, grizzling, staring, jerky movements, snuggling in, becoming overactive, rubbing eyes, clenching fists, crying or fussiness. Replying early to these tired signs stops your baby from becoming distressed and makes it easier for them to sleep.

Set-up schedule with a newborn

Newborn babies will sleep on and off all through the day and night. It could be useful to have a pattern, but you can always alter the routine to suit your requirements. For instance, you can try feeding your baby just before you go to sleep so that he/she can get sleep for longer hours.

Know how to settle your babies

In the initial six months, you can hold your newborn in your arms till they fall asleep. Utilize mild rocking, rhythmic patting, talking, stroking, or singing softly before placing your baby into the cot. These reiterations signal recreation and sleep.

You can also try placing the baby in the cot awake but drowsy and calm and gently stroke or pat them till they fall asleep, comforting them with mild sounds. If your baby becomes distressed, lift them for a cuddle until quiet or asleep before putting your baby back in the cot. Stay with them till they doze off.

Preparing a bedtime schedule

You might be prepared to start a bedtime schedule when your baby is approximately three months age. Getting them into a soothing, simple bedtime schedule can be useful for everyone and can assist to stop sleeping problems afterwards. Here are some things to try.

  • Changing into nightclothes and a fresh nappy
  • Reading a bedtime story
  • A warm bath before bedtime
  • Putting them to bed
  • Singing a lullaby or having a wind-up musical mobile that you can turn on when you have put your baby to bed
  • Dimming the lights in the room to create a tranquil atmosphere
  • Giving them a cuddle and goodnight kiss

As your child grows older, it can be useful to keep to a similar bedtime habit. Excessive stimulation and excitement just before bedtime can awaken your baby up again. Use some time relaxing and doing some quieter things, such as reading.