Baby Care Essentials

You must be so happy with your bundle of joy, especially if the baby is your first baby! To many mothers, having a baby invokes a lot of emotions. You feel happy yet feel anxious at the same time because if you are a new mother, you still may not know what to do.

You feel excited yet feel apprehensive because you are delving into the unknown. These are just some of the emotions a mother can feel when she has her “my first baby moments”.

A lot of mothers, will think they know what to do. But, it is best not to rely mainly on your mother instincts. You should do some research and study on the essentials in taking care of a baby. After all, your baby will be depending on you for its comfort as well as its survival.

The most basic concerns that mothers should be focusing on especially on their baby’s first couple of
weeks are feeding and sleeping.

Feeding Your Baby

Your baby needs adequate nourishment for proper development during the first months of his or her life. He or she needs to be fed with the right amount of milk at the right
time.

You would have heard that breast milk is always best for your newborn baby. Many breastfeeding mothers can testify that it is always best to breastfeed your baby. Breast milk is better than any milk or formula in the market.

However, some mothers stop breastfeeding their baby after perhaps 3 months due to work commitments or health reasons. Do not feel discouraged! You can give your baby ready to feed formula which is nutritious as well.

Most baby feed formula is safe and healthy, with exceptions from recently spats with China-produced baby feed formula. Get baby feed products from highly established baby feed formula companies other than from China.

Mix the baby formula as instructed. Do not dilute the formula with water because your baby might not get sufficient calories. On the other hand, concentrated formula should be mixed with water in a 1 is to 1 ratio.

Usually after a couple of weeks, your baby will be able to consume more or less a quart of formula each
day. You should also check if your baby manifests symptoms such as frequent vomiting, diarrhea,constipation or rashes as this may mean that the formula is not fit for him or her and may need to be changed.

The proper feeding time of a baby typically has a 2 to 3 hour interval. A common sign that you should look out for is crying that can’t be hushed through lullabies.

You can check if your baby is having adequate nourishment. A properly nourished baby will usually have a wet diaper during the 2 to 3 hour interval and the color of the urine should be clear. Stool is soft and yellow in color. Breast-fed babies will typically pass tools 6 times in a day while bottle-fed ones may pass stools every three days.


Sleeping

Babies sleep normally for a length of 10 to 23 hours day. Any less of the minimum can be detrimental to your baby’s development. Here are some tips on how you can help your baby achieve the normal length of sleep he or she needs:

• Make sure that your baby has completed his or her rituals before you put him or her to sleep. This
  includes feeding, burping, and diaper change.
• Wrap your baby securely so as to prevent him or her from doing excessive movements that can disturb his or her sleep. This will also provide your baby warmth.
• Place your baby in supine position. Studies show that letting your baby sleep on his or her back is the safest position for him or her and lessens the occurrence of Sudden Infant Death.

Feeding and sleeping are just two of a “my first baby essentials.” For a new born baby, these are the main
responsibilities for the first couple of weeks.  So, for all you new mothers or mothers-to-be reading this article, enjoy your motherhood and baby care. Until next time and article, do subscribe to my RSS feed below.

God bless and take.  This article was brought to you by Views Zone – You Ultimate Views Info Zone On The Web.

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