Pacifiers: Are they good for your baby

Most babies have a strong sucking reflex. Some babies even suck their thumbs or fingers before they're born. Beyond nutrition, sucking often has a soothing, calming effect.

But are pacifiers really OK for your baby? Although the answer to that question is often debated, the American Academy of Pediatrics gives pacifiers the green light.

 Advantage:

A pacifier may soothe a fussy baby. Some babies are happiest when they're sucking on something. 

A pacifier offers temporary distraction. When your baby's hungry, a pacifier may buy you a few minutes to find a comfortable spot to nurse or to prepare a bottle.

A pacifier may help your baby fall asleep. If your baby has trouble settling down, a pacifier might do the trick.

Pacifiers may help reduce the risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). Researchers have found an association between pacifier use during sleep and a reduced risk of SIDS.

Pacifiers are disposable. When it's time to stop using pacifiers, you can throw them away. If your child prefers to suck on his or her thumb or fingers, it may be more difficult to break the habit.

 Disadvantage:

Early pacifier use may interfere with breast-feeding. Sucking on a breast is different from sucking on a pacifier or bottle. Some babies have trouble learning how to nurse properly if they're given a pacifier too soon.

Your baby may become dependent on the pacifier. If your baby uses a pacifier to sleep, you may face frequent middle-of-the-night crying spells when the pacifier falls out of your baby's mouth.

Pacifier use may increase the risk of middle ear infections. However, rates of middle ear infections are generally lowest from birth to age 6 months — when the risk of SIDS is the highest and your baby may be most interested in a pacifier.

Prolonged pacifier use may lead to dental problems. Normal pacifier use during the first few years of life doesn't cause long-term dental problems. However, prolonged pacifier use may cause a child's top front teeth to slant outward or not come in properly.

Pacifier do's and don'ts

If you choose to offer your baby a pacifier, keep these tips in mind

Wait until breast-feeding is well established. Be patient. It may take a few weeks or more to settle into a regular nursing routine. If you're breast-feeding, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends waiting to introduce a pacifier until your baby is 1 month old.

Don't use a pacifier as a first line of defense. Sometimes a change of position or a rocking session can calm a crying baby. If your baby seems hungry, offer the breast or a bottle.

Choose the one-piece, dishwasher-safe variety. Pacifiers made of two pieces pose a choking hazard if they break. The shape and firmness is up to you — or your baby. Once you've settled on a favorite pacifier, keep a few identical backups on hand. Many babies refuse a substitute pacifier.

Keep it clean. Before you offer your baby a pacifier, wash it with soap and water and allow it to dry thoroughly. Resist the temptation to "rinse" the pacifier in your own mouth. You'll only spread more germs to your baby.

Know when to pull the plug. If ear infections are a concern, you might begin to wean your child from a pacifier at age 6 months.

The decision to use a pacifier — or not — is up to you. Let go of any guilt or pressure as you learn what works best for your baby.

By www.mayoclinic.com

children and nature

Disconnection from outdoor experiences is resulting in a generation of young people who lack creativity, independent thinking and problem solving skills. Free play outside is the most challenging of play because it allows a child to make the rules.

Photo By Nature Kid

guide to connecting your kids with nature

http://www.discovertheforest.org/

http://www.kidsdiscovernature.com

http://www.childrenandnature.org/

 

Food for Kids With Diarrhea

All parents should know about remedies for children with diarrhea because if allowed to progress, it can become very severe. Bacteria or food sensitivity can cause diarrhea; you should take your child to the pediatrician to determine the cause and severity of the diarrhea. But there are steps you can take to make the experience easier on you and your baby.

Hydration

 A child suffering from diarrhea should be kept hydrated because he could quickly become dehydrated. Offer plenty of water to the child throughout the day. Juices and broths are another great idea, but avoid apple or pear juice; these will make the condition worse.

Foods That Bind

Some foods help to bind up the stool more than others, and these foods should be the basis of your child's diet while suffering from diarrhea. An easy way to remember these foods is the "B.R.A.T. diet." This includes bananas, rice, applesauce and toast. You don't have to limit the diet to these foods. Rice cereal, soda crackers, yogurt, white potatoes (mashed is fine), chicken and pastas are also helpful.

Foods to Avoid

 Avoid foods that are often used to alleviate constipation in children such as apple juice, dairy products (yogurt being the exception due to its bacteria), apricots, peaches, plums, pears and other foods high in fiber. Also, avoid foods with a high fatty content or a lot of seasoning until your child has been feeling better for a few days. These types of foods can agitate the bowels and worsen your child's condition.

Read more:  http://www.ehow.com

Today's story -Ramadan

Sincerity of a Six Years Old

There was a little girl (six years old) who was fasting in Ramadan, even though it is not obligatory on people below the age of puberty. She was in school, and at lunch time, when all the other children went out to eat and have lunch, she sat in the classroom, because she was fasting. Her (non-muslim) teacher thought that she was too young to fast, and so said that it was not necessary, and she could eat a little. The girl still didn't eat. Then the teacher said: "Your parents are not here, it doesn't matter if you eat a little". The girl replied: "I am not fasting for my parents, I am fasting for Allah". This simple statement had such a profound effect on the teacher, that later she accepted Islam.

By www.islamcan.com 

Hiccups in Babies

Hiccups in babies happen while feeding. Like sneezing and snuffling, hiccups are also normal and very common in babies. 

Very rarely hiccups happen due to any health problems.

In simple words, hiccups occur when we swallow in excess of air. Babies often get hiccups while being fed and also after meals. This so happens because the babies tend to swallow air when they are been fed, creating gas in their stomach leading to hiccups.

You can just follow simple steps and cure the hiccups of your babies even while feeding them:

1-Hold the baby against your shoulder and pat his/ her back. Some babies tend to swallow a lot of air during the feeding process and this distends the stomach which leads to hiccups.

2-A baby can take in a lot of air through the feeding bottle also if the hole in the nipple is too big. The hole should be such that there is drop by drop flow and not a continuous flow. This will not allow extra air to flow in for the babies to swallow, thus preventing hiccups.

3-There is a myth stating that you should not feed your baby at the time of hiccups. This is not true and thus, you should do not delay your baby’s eating process because of hiccups since hiccups will not create any problem while feeding your baby. 

 4-Anise seeds for infants is also said to work. Add a teaspoon of anise seeds into a cup of boiling water and feed the baby two or three teaspoons. It often cures the hiccups immediately.

5-If for the first few months your baby is continuously getting hiccups, then overfeeding can be one of the causes. Feed your baby in portions and with time intervals.

 6-Gripe water contains safe, fast, effective and natural ingredients for curing colic discomforts. Gripe water is being used since centuries by mothers to cure their babies from hiccups, stomach cramps, gas and colic discomforts.

By www.babycare.iloveindia.com