How to keep your Baby Healthy during Weather changes?

It is a common observation that baby falls sick when weather change occurs. Even adults at home are down with viral fever, colds and fever due to infections. Follow these simple steps to keep your baby healthy and prevent baby from getting sick.

Breast feed and Immunize:

Your baby’s immune system will be strong with breast feeding and following the immunization calendar  promptly. Do ensure to breastfeed your baby for the first six months and also ensure the vaccinations schedules are adhered to.

Dress for the weather:

Dress your baby as the weather demands. In summer preferable choose light colors and light wear. In winters dress the baby in layers such that you can add or remove clothing as the weather change occurs and the sun is up. Ensure your baby is dressed comfortably.

Bathe your baby safely:

Maintain less gap for the baby after a massage to avoid catching a cold. The solution is to avoid exposing your baby to sudden temperature changes. Ensure there is no contact with cool or chilled air during massage or bathing process. Select baby’s bath time when the baby is least likely to feel cold. Dress up the baby and then only put on the fan. Follow precautions while putting on the AC or air cooler.

Provide a Balanced diet:

Maintain a balanced diet when your baby moves to solids. A good diet provides vitamins and minerals she needs to help fight infections. If the child is a fussy eater, make sure she gets enough vitamins and minerals.

Follow hygiene:

Babies are very sensitive and catch infections quickly from people passing by too. Therefore ensure you maintain a hygienic environment and avoid sneezing, coughing with the baby around. Wash hands with disinfectant prior to handling the baby.

Cleaning Baby accessories:

Ensure toys are not left on the floor. If washable clean them. Ensure the rooms and surroundings are not dusty. If your baby goes to a Day care center inform and create awareness to maintain hygiene while feeding and handling the baby. Restrict movement of street wear inside the rooms. Seek support from other parents to practice hygiene.

Inspite  of all your best efforts your little one may fall sick once in a while. Your precautionary measures will keep the baby free from repeated illnesses. Getting sick is a way to challenge baby’s immune system. Do not delay visit to the doctor upon observing symptoms of sickness, cold, diarrhea, vomiting etc.

Hope you have a better understanding to keep your baby healthy during weather changes. Irrespective of the season, do not be worried over small illnesses observed. Take good care and avoid baby falling severely sick as it will take time to recover from any illness however minor it may sound.

Do not break down. Be alert when the baby has fever and give medications timely. The baby will be back with bouncing energy to make you happy.

How Will Your Baby’s Teeth Appear

When your baby is almost 4 months you will observe your baby is constantly dribbling, there is saliva coming out of the mouth and baby is biting onto hard surfaces of toys or even the nipple of your breast, you will get a hint that it is time for the tiny teeth to appear.

Your baby’s first teeth show between four to six months. For few kids the teeth appear as early as three months and also around twelve months too. You will first see two bottom teeth appear from the gums and later followed by four upper teeth in the next four to eight weeks. This is the time when the baby is fussier.

There will be soreness and swelling of gums resulting in the drool. Few babies have redness and will be crying for long durations due to pain. These symptoms will be seen three to four days before the initial teeth comes out of the gums and will vanish once teeth have appeared. For some babies the transition is smooth, they do not have the irritation.

You can give thick slices of carrot, dry bread ( rusk / croutons) to nibble. Toys like teething rings are available. This will keep the child engaged and will provide some relaxation .Ensure no contact of these items on floor during usage.

Your child will continue to get new teeth until he has all twenty of his primary teeth when he is three years old. The normal pattern is appearance of four new teeth every four months.

Proper care should be administered for the baby teeth or primary teeth. This is very important as these teeth hold space for the future eruption of permanent teeth. If a baby’s teeth is removed too early or teeth decays, the space necessary for the permanent teeth is lost and can be regained only through orthodontic treatment.  Infected baby teeth can cause the permanent teeth to develop improperly resulting in stains, pits and weaker teeth.

Tips for dental care:

• Initially you can clean your child’s mouth with a moist cloth or thin towel.
• Standardize feeding habits ( breast feeding)
• When baby is around six months, use a small soft – bristled brush . Tooth paste will not be required for the baby until he attains one year.
• Provide safe objects for the baby to nibble, the tendency of the child is to put anything around .
• Consult your doctor in case you feel the pain is not being managed .
• Do not put your child to sleep with a bottle , since the sugar in the milk will pool around the teeth all night and cause cavities.
• If your baby is bottle fed, wean the child by the first birthday. This will avoid teeth raising higher.
• Once baby is one year old you can apply a little toothpaste the size of a groundnut such that he will experiment
• Teach the child to gargle mouth after brushing and also after meals to avoid food particles getting stuck.
• Train the child to brush twice a day – morning and before bed time at night.
• Provide a balanced diet. Save foods with sugar and starch along with basic meals. If not they will get stuck in between teeth and lead to tooth decay.
• Dental care can begin when the child is one year old. Include check up of pediatric dentists at least once in six months.

Best of luck…and Happy teething !!