Vaccinate
If your baby is six months or older, be sure to get him a flu shot. Keep in mind the vaccination takes two weeks to start working. For good measure, have the entire family vaccinated to prevent unnecessarily exposing your baby to the flu.

Stay Home
Keep your child at home as much as possible between October and April. Avoid attending events involving large public crowds in an effort to prevent exposing him from dangerous viruses.

If you do attend an event, such as a holiday party, keep your baby close to you by declining others who ask to hold him or kiss and hug him. A good way to prevent unwanted contact is to keep your child in a car seat or stroller during these outings. This makes them less accessible to the public.

Sanitize
Adopt the practice of sanitizing incessantly. When away from the house, carry hand sanitizer and sanitizing wipes. Sanitize your hands prior to holding or touching your baby.

When going to the grocery store or restaurant, wipe down any surfaces (highchair, shopping cart, table, etc.) you might touch with a wipe.

Also be sure to clean your baby’s hands and face with warm, soapy water frequently and pay special attention to items he tries to put in his mouth. Your overall objective is to maintain a sterile, clean environment for your child.

On the same note, remember to sanitize your home often. Concentrate of frequently touched items and surfaces in the home. This includes phones, remote controls, keyboards, doorknobs, counters, toilet handles, etc. Sanitizing can be done with a sanitizing wipe or an easy to use sanitizing spray.

Keep The Sick Away
If a family member becomes sick, keep them as far away from you and your baby as possible. Along with preventing the spread of germs to your baby, you want to ensure that you do not become sick as well. In the event you fall ill, consider handing over your parenting duties to a trusted family member to limit contact between you and the baby.

Utilize the “Well Room”Most doctors’ offices have a well room and sick room in their waiting areas. If your child is due for an appointment, keep him or her in the well room and away from any children or adults who appear sick. The waiting area is packed with germs, making this an especially important aspect of keeping your baby healthy.

Choosing Organic Baby Toys
When shopping for organic baby toys, avoid phthalates that are known to cause cancer and are associated with infertility. In addition, keep in mind that polyvinyl chloride (also known as PVC) is found in plastic baby toys. PVC has also been linked to many health ailments including cancer. Lastly, consider the materials that plush toy is made of before it makes its way into the nursery. Mostly likely (unless otherwise indicated) stuffed animals contain synthetic fibers that contain petrochemicals. While the industry standards find this acceptable, organic mommies think twice about the idea of letting their babies roll around with a toy that gives off toxic gas even after being washed.

Organic Diapers
Making the switch from disposable to organic diapers is a major lifestyle change. In the long run, however, cloth diapers are not only environmentally friendly, but baby friendly as well. Before deciding on which is best for your family, consider this – disposable diapers are filled with gels, pesticides, chlorine, and other toxins. These toxins can be absorbed through the skin of the baby and straight into the blood stream. Once a disposable diaper is thrown away, it takes up to 500 years for it to break down in a landfill. Compare that figure to organic cloth diapers that can be used as many as 150 times and then recycled into hand rags.

If cloth diapers are a bit too much to take on, consider a combination of the two. You can utilize chlorine-free disposable diapers for outings and bedtime and reserve the cloth diapers for times when you and your baby are at home. Remember, every little bit helps.

Organic Skin Care For Baby
Did you know that a baby’s skin exceptionally thinner than yours? In fact, your baby has skin that is five times thinner than the average adult. Keep this fact in mind when considering what skin care products to use on your child. Ask your pediatrician to refer you to a baby skin care product that is both safe and age-appropriate.

Organic Labels
Perhaps you have already seen the USDA “Organic” label in stores and on baby products. When you buy USDA Organic labels, you are purchasing an item that is free of antibiotics, genetically modified organisms, food additives, pesticides, irradiation, and other synthetic chemicals that are dangerous to your baby. Organic labels can be found on a variety of items including cotton, skin care items, and food.

There are a number of plausible causes for diaper rash but it is primarily due to the wetness of the feces and urine. It is important that the diaper is changed frequently to prevent rashes and the baby skin will not be exposed to waste for prolonged period. It is also important to remember that baby wipes may also contain chemicals that can aggravate the rash. Warm water and soft tissue would be the simplest way to clean your baby when changing the diaper.
Preventing diaper rash:

While it is true that diaper rashes are a common occurrence among babies, there is preventive measure available to avoid it altogether and save your baby from discomfort.

• Frequently change diapers
• Change soiled diapers right away
• Try different brands of diaper
• Wipe well
• Use unscented wipes or simple plain water
• Use petroleum ointment or white zinc oxide

Homemade Treatment for diaper rash

Step 1
Mix cornstarch and Desitin Original in a bowl, stir and add small amounts of Mylanta until it forms a nice smooth paste. You can store this concoction for future use.

Step 2
Change the baby’s diaper using water. Gently wipe the baby’s bottom and let it air dry for a few minutes. Apply the ointment liberally into the affected area. Let the mixture dry and rinse off before reapplying it again on dry skin.

Step3
As much as possible avoid sugary juices that can help the yeast grow and aggravate the condition.

In today's society, it can be difficult for a mom to find the time to breast feed her child. Or it may simply be inconvenient because of being out in public. In these circumstances, many women choose to use expressed breast milk. Expressing is the act of mechanically squeezing milk from the breast and storing it in a bottle. The expressing is normally done using a pump. Expressed milk also comes in handy if the mom cannot be around and has to leave her baby in the care of a baby sitter, nanny, or her husband.

Expressed milk can remain good for quite a while if stored correctly. There are plastic bottles and bags made especially for holding and storing this milk. The milk can be placed in the freezer and refrigerator to extend it's shelf life. It is true that expressed milk stored in the freezer will lose some of it's nutrients, antibodies, and enzymes, much the same as any other food. But even so, unless you are sick, it will most likely still be healthier for your child than any formula that you purchase from the store.

To test if expressed milk is good, simply smell it. As long as it doesn't smell bad, it's probably still good. You should be able to store expressed milk at room temperature for up to six or eight hours with no ill effects from it.

Sometimes babies that have been used to breastfeeding have difficulty learning to suckle milk from a bottle. In these cases, the probable culprit is that sucking from a bottle requires a slightly different set of mouth motions than sucking from a breast. So the baby has to learn new eating habits, which most infants are reluctant to do after about 4 weeks. Now, nearly all babies will be bottle fed at some time or other. So to avoid or lessen problems later, it's probably best to at least introduce a child to a bottle a few times in the first 4 weeks or so. This way it's not a foreign experience to her when you try to get her to suckle from a bottle at a later time.

When choosing a baby bottle in which to store milk, you will typically have a choice between the 4 ounce and 8 ounce sizes. You can probably count on using both sizes at some point or other, so you may as well get one or more quantities of both sizes. You can also choose to buy permanent bottles or disposable ones. One of the most important features to look for in a feeding bottle is one with anti-gas properties. Anti-gas features can do a lot towards preventing your child from sucking in air with her milk which can cause cramps and other discomforts.

Normally, when breastfeeding her child, the woman should sit in a near upright position, leaning slightly backwards. This decreases the chance of the baby swallowing air. It's also a very comfortable position for the woman, enabling her to hold the child firmly while she wraps the baby around her.

Jill Viland writes articles on children, weddings, and baby related topics. For her latest article on feeding baby please visit her web page.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jill_Viland
http://EzineArticles.com/?How-to-Store-Breast-Milk&id=2758287

The first of the permanent teeth do not appear in the mouth until a child is about 6 years old and the last permanent teeth (not including the wisdom teeth) will appear by about 12-13 years. Therefore a child's primary teeth need to last anywhere between 5-12 years. To ensure that they last, parents need to help children look after their teeth and inculcate good oral hygiene practices from young.

The Functions of Baby Teeth

1. Biting and Chewing
The most obvious function of the primary teeth is obviously for biting and chewing food.

2. Nutrition

Children need to eat a wide variety of food to gain a well-balanced diet.

A child with limited teeth or one who is experiencing discomfort from tooth decay may refuse foods or limit food intake to those that can be consumed easily or with minimum discomfort. Chewing a variety of textures also stimulates the oral environment and exercises the jaw muscles.

The ability to bite and chew also helps to break up food into more easily digestible pieces and allow for better digestion of food. As the food is being broken up by the teeth, it is also mixed with saliva containing enzymes that begin the digestive process. A child that swallows too rapidly without chewing the food adequately will prolong the digestive process.

3. Speech

Teeth are necessary for the articulation of certain sounds. Young children who are still learning how to speak properly need their teeth to help them form words and speak clearly.

4. Development of the Jaw Bones and Facial Muscles

The presence or absence of teeth will affect the way in which the jaw bones and facial muscles develop. The growth of the jaw bones are affected by the facial muscles. Teeth and the chewing function help to exercise the facial muscles and facilitate the development of the jaw bones.

5. Place Holder

The primary teeth are place holders for the permanent teeth. They are intended to hold a space in the jaws until the permanent tooth is ready to erupt. When the permanent tooth is ready, it will push out from under the primary tooth, causing the roots of the primary tooth to break down. Therefore, the primary teeth also serve as a guide for the permanent teeth to erupt into its proper position.
When primary teeth are loss prematurely, the permanent teeth have no guide to follow. Additionally, the adjacent teeth tend to close the gap of the missing tooth, meaning there will be no space for the permanent tooth to erupt into. This can lead to crowding of the permanent teeth.

6. Aesthetics

A child without teeth or with missing teeth may look cute, but she will not agree when the premature loss of her baby teeth leads to the growth of crooked permanent teeth.

Looking after Baby Teeth

From the moment the first baby tooth appears in the mouth, parents need to take the responsibility to begin cleaning it. Initially, all that is necessary will be to take a damp cloth or piece of gauze and to wipe the tooth. Once more teeth begin to appear, you can use finger brushes that are worn over your index finger and use them to brush your baby's teeth.

When your baby is about 18 months to about 2 years old, you can purchase a child toothbrush and begin cleaning your child's teeth at least once a day. Initially, it is not necessary to use fluoridated toothpaste, especially if the drink water in your area is already fluoridated.

Remember, young children have trouble spitting out and usually end up swallowing the toothpaste, fluoride and all. This may expose your child to unnecessarily high levels of fluoride which can lead to fluorosis. Fluorosis, while not harmful, first appears as white spots on the teeth. In more severe cases, it can make the teeth appear brown and mottled. Although it is not harmful to the teeth, it is aesthetically unsightly.

If you are concerned about tooth decay, there is a new range of children's toothpaste with xylitol as an active ingredient. Xylitol also serves to prevent tooth decay.

You can encourage your child to get into the healthy practice of brushing by offering the toothbrush to your child but make sure that you perform at least one brushing for your child a day. Children have poor manual dexterity and will not brush adequately without your help. At most, they will chew on the brush and make a few cursory attempts to swipe the teeth if they are older.

As your child grows older, you can begin to teach him (or her) how to brush by guiding his (or her) hand. Once your child has mastered the art of tooth brushing, you can hand over the responsibility to your child to continue brushing, however, you may still need to keep an eye on your child to ensure the job is done properly. Tooth brushing is a task many children quickly get bored of and try to sneak out of. Some may comply with the task but do a poor job of cleaning.

It is not difficult to look after baby teeth. The challenge lies in teaching your child the process and helping him (or her) develop a healthy, lifetime habit. Knowing how important baby teeth are, it is important to ensure they last. Teaching your child to look after his (or her) primary teeth also sets the stage for healthy oral hygiene habits in future.

Shen-Li is a stay-at-home-mum dedicated to the pursuit of excellence in parenting. She has a formal educational background and former work experience in healthcare. If you enjoyed this article, visit her blog Babylicious and follow her as she learns how to raise a happy, confident and successful person.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Shen-Li_Lee

Author: Maxine Williams

Probably one of the hardest adjustments of having a new baby is the lack of sleep that goes hand in hand with your baby needing regular feeds throughout the night. If your baby is hungry it needs to be fed, but there are a few things that can help your baby settle for longer until it is only hunger that will wake him or her in the night. By six months most babies do not need a night time feed if they have fed well during the day and are not ill.

First 9 Months Sleep Advice

• When your baby is newborn, after having 9 months of a nice snug womb and your body noises and motions to settle them, sometimes the adjustment to the outside world can cause more night wakings than is just down to hunger. It is important to remember newborn babies have no concept of time, night or day, so it will take time for them to fall into a pattern. With your help though, it is perfectly possible to have them sleeping through by six months.
• Making sure your baby is ready to sleep first of all is most important. With newborns, as they are so tiny they will mostly drift off to sleep when they are ready but from around 3 months this can change and they may need you to notice the signs of tiredness and help them to settle.

Ready to Sleep Checklist

• Is your baby well fed, clean, dry and winded?
• Is your baby in good health? Illness can either make babies sleep more or make them find it hard to sleep.
• Is your baby tired enough? Some say most newborns up to three months of age find it hard to stay awake more than two hours without becoming overtired and miserable. Some babies yawn, rub their eyes or pull at their ears when they are tired, watch for signs.
• Is your baby too tired? Overtiredness can mean that a baby will find it very hard to settle due to too much stimulation and lack of sleep. A nice dim lit room, a bit of soothing can help your baby to sleep in this case. Trying to catch your baby before he or she becomes overtired will also help.

If your baby is most of these he or she will most likely be ready for a sleep.

• Getting a balance with day time naps can also help your baby to sleep longer. It is generally agreed most babies before 6 months need around 3 naps in a day and will sleep roughly an hour before waking, however all babies are different! If your baby is waking a lot int he night and you dont think it is caused by anything but lack or tiredness have a look at your babies sleep in the day and see if you can help encourage your baby to have less or more at certain times. You can never force a baby though, so if your baby really wont tweak his or her naps, you may have to try again in a few weeks or so.
• Have a think about your babies sleeping place as well to help encourage a more settled sleep. Is the room warm but not too warm? It is recommended a babies sleeping room should be constant between 16-18 degrees. Is the room very light? Some babies may find it hard to settle in a bright room, having the room kept dim can help them settle better and also begin to teach them the difference between night and day as well as teach them that when they go into a dark room it is most likely time for a sleep. Is the room noisy or the surroundings of it? Some babies like to hear noise when sleeping, others can be easily disturbed by it so it could be something to watch for.
• Swaddling is something that can be considered for helping your baby to sleep well. Swaddling is the method of wrapping your baby nice and snug in a blanket, with arms and legs by its sides and only the top of the shoulders and head uncovered. The reason this is believed to work so well with some babies is that it replicates the snug feeling of the womb and also that babies are born with the 'moro reflex' (startle reflex) meaning that sometimes when they are drifting off to sleep and their arms and legs begin to go limp, they can get the sensation of falling and suddenly jerk awake. Also any loud noises near by can cause a new baby to fling out its arms and legs in shock and begin to cry. Having your baby swaddled helps control the moro reflex, but it should be understood that not all babies necessarily will like being swaddled. By six months old the moro reflex is minimal or totally gone. Swaddling is really only for the first 3-4 months of a babies life after that, your baby will need to move about a bit and be able to release body heat to prevent over heating.
• If your baby is one who does not like to swaddled, some mums swear by a baby gro bag (baby sleeping bag) that leaves babies arms out and whilst the legs are obviously inside they are not held firm like the swaddle. Being in a baby gro bag has the added benefit that baby will not wriggle out of it and so wake up cold in the night. Be aware though that like duvets there are different thicknesses of gro bags from 0.5 tog being extra light to 3 tog being extra warm. Most gro bags come with instructions regarding this but make sure you have a read before use.
• Having a 'wind down' routine can help as well. Although babies below six months are very young to use a routine with, it is possible to have the beginnings of one. Giving your baby a nice lukewarm bath, a baby massage with some oil (even f you dont know how to do this, your baby will love you to just stroke him or her) followed by a breastfeed or a warm bottle of milk in a dim lit room, perhaps even with some low music playing will help your baby realise that when all this is happening, he or she will be in bed soon and be ready to sleep.
• Using aids such as rocking, dummies or feeding to sleep do all help though sometimes your baby can begin to rely on whichever as the only way he or she can settle to sleep, so when your baby wakes in the early hours of the morning, he or she could come to need you to provide whichever aid they are used to sleeping with. If you would like to avoid this, it can help to use rocking or dummy or a feed as a wind down to get your baby sleepy but try to avoid them actually falling alseep whilst in the process. Gently rousing your baby slightly as you settle him or her into bed for the night will help them begin to learn how to settle off to sleep by themselves. If your baby is waking for a feed after 6 months of age and you are certain he or she does not really need to be feeding (talk to health visitor first) then you can begin to dilute down your babies milk to encourage him or her to drop the feed.

10 months to 18 months Sleep Advice

• As your baby gets older, his or her sleeping patterns can change. He or she may need less sleep during the day and become harder to settle.
• Having a set bedtime routine will now be very effective in helping your growing baby understand the signals and become sleepy for bedtime. Again, giving your baby a warm bath, a baby massage with baby oil, and then perhaps going into your babies room and sitting down together, reading a book to your baby, will make for a good bedtime routine. If your baby is old enough, offering a beaker of milk whilst reading will keep your baby calm and settled.
• Some babies like to have a comforter during the long hours of the night. A soft cuddly toy or special comforters such as cuskees bought from mothercare or such places can become your child's firm friend and help them sleep better. Sleeping with your chosen comforter for a night or two before giving to your child will provide comfort to your child in the fact he or she will be able to smell you from the toy.
• Avoid watching tv too close to bedtime. Most studies conclude babies who watch a lot of tv especially before bed are much more likely to have unsettled sleeps.
• Your child may still be happy to be in a gro bag at this stage, which is totally acceptable and can help gently restrict your babies ability to try to get up and about in the cot. However from12 months of age, it can be a novelty to your baby to introduce a child's duvet and pillow, especially if you let your child pick his or her own (more around 18 months).
• If you find your baby is waking in the night and the timing is pretty regular, it could be a habit your child has made. To gently break this, there is a method called 'gradual withdrawl'. This means when your baby cries, you can go in and soothe your baby but without picking your baby up. You can do this perhaps by humming softly or stroking babies forehead. Reassure your baby that you are there. Try to avoid turning bright lights on and talking loudly, keep it nice and quiet and sleepy. After a few minutes, sit by the cot on a chair and keep very softly reassuring your baby that you are there. If your baby is happy to settle knowing you are near by, the following evening if your baby again wakes, this time you can move the chair further away from the cot. Continue moving the chair further away until you are by the door. Once you reach the door you may now find that after a quick reassurance your baby will settle if you leave the room. It can take a few weeks and you should avoid letting your baby become hysterical but being patient, gentle and reassuring and providing there is no other reason for your abby to be waking that for reassurance, he or she should begin to settle soon.

About the Author:

maxine is a busy mum of 3 and runs a chat forum for women at http://womens-world.co.uk/forums

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com - Baby Sleep Tips

Putting baby to bed AWAKE – is it really that easy?

We know that sleep is necessary and natural, so why is it so hard to establish good sleeping habits for our babies? If the magic formula is simply to put your baby down to for a sleep when he’s still awake, why is that so hard in reality? I know from experience of both my children that as soon as I’d put them down awake, they would protest! Settling them would take so long I’d be tempted to feed them to sleep. The easy option would only take five minutes instead of sixty!

In their fantastic book, ‘Sleep’, Hollyer and Smith describe how falling asleep can literally be a frightening experience for babies. When we are asleep we are vulnerable. So for a newborn baby (who is completely helpless) to fall asleep alone, is clearly counter-intuitive. If we look back to primitive times, sleeping when not in the arms of a guardian may have meant death to a vulnerable infant. So it’s no wonder they protest when we put them down! Resisting separation from us is a basic survival instinct.

Add to that the sensation of actually falling asleep, which is alien and frightening for a newborn, and I can understand why our babies would prefer we were holding them close. I must admit that I also had a secret desire to break all the sleep books rules and let my precious bundles curl up on my chest all night long. But there’s only so long a baby will fit on your chest and once a sleep association is established, it’s hard to break. Sound, peaceful sleep certainly goes a long way to helping us have fun filled days and a happy family. And setting up bad habits in the early days only makes it harder to establish good ones later. I recommend getting all the cuddles you can in the day and when it comes to sleep times, put your baby down awake so that he can transition to sleep on his own. Your baby will need some support. He needs to know that it’s safe to go to sleep.

My first son always used to cry just before he fell asleep, sometimes for a few minutes, and my going to him only made him fully wake again, so he’d have to start the process of falling asleep all over again. Once I realised that he needed to cry for a few minutes, I gave us both a break. I stayed close and he was able to go to sleep without my intervention.

Here’s some tips for settling your newborn to sleep awake:

1 – New babies are easily over stimulated. Take him to a room that is dark and quiet to wind him down.

2 – Swaddle your baby so that he feels secure.

3 – A new baby (0-4 weeks) will only need to be awake for about 45 minutes before they need to go back to sleep. Leave it any later and they will find it harder to settle – which means more intervention from you.

4 – Hold, rock or feed your baby until he is drowsy but still awake and then lower him into his cot (bum first and then head – other way round and they wake right back up again!).

5 – Some little ones may need white noise to help them transition between sleep cycles.

6 – Keep a baby comforter close to your skin for a few hours and place it at the end of your baby’s crib so he is comforted by your smell.

By doing this in the early days, you will avoid setting up sleep associations that are later difficult to break. Your baby will learn an essential skill – how to go to sleep by himself, without your help. His need for sleep is both mental and physical. When our babies are sleeping, they begin to make sense of their worlds, their brains develop and their bodies grow. Sleep for our little ones isn’t something to hope for, it’s a necessity for us all!

Lucy Fitzgerald runs www.sleepytot.com, distributors of the SleepyTot comforter, renowned for helping babies and toddlers drift off to a peaceful nights sleep. Sleepytot can be contacted on 0845 009 4405 , by email info@sleepytot.com or at www.sleepytot.com

About the Author:

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/babies-articles/putting-baby-to-sleep-awake-is-it-really-that-easy-847402.html

Flex those organizational skills and do some early planning, which can help avoid the unnecessary bout of crying, whining and tantrums. Below are some of the valuable tips from season pros when it comes to getting the travel essentials when traveling with your tot.

Baby Gear
A stroller or a baby carrier is an essential gear to bring along when traveling. Make sure that you know how to use it, although it’s fairly easy to handle.

Baby Essentials
Forgetting to bring this and that can turn out to be a catastrophe and a very harrowing experience for you and the baby. The logical approach would be to prepare a list of things that you need to bring along. Here is some of the essential stuff you need to include:

• Diaper
• Baby wipes
• Pacifier
• Changing pad
• Soft Blanket
• Ointment
• Burping cloth
• A change of clothing
• Favorite toy

Of course, when you have already done preparing for your baby, you should also have to take some of your own essentials. A bottle of water is needed especially when you are breastfeeding since most women complain of extreme thirst when nursing their babies. You can also bring hats and sunscreen to protect your skin and your baby.

You also need to bring along some few and well chosen pieces of clothing is also important. Of course, if you are traveling with someone, you can naturally ask your partner to manage the luggage while you look after the baby and vice versa.

Here are some preparations you might want to add to your checklist:

1. Get a Baby-sitter for other kids

For parents with other children, it is important to assign someone to supervise someone to take care of the other kids while you are away. You can ask a family member or a close friend to handle these tasks, especially when it comes to fetching the kids to and from school.

2. Prepare the baby’s room

Preparing for the baby’s room is one of the exciting tasks every expectant mom and dad seem to relish. You will need to make sure that the baby’s room or sleeping area is made as comfortable as possible, complete with all the possible equipment needed for baby care such as the following:

• Bibs
• Blankets
• Diapers
• Crib
• Formula milk
• Feeding bottles
• Pacifiers
• Carrier

4. Infant’s Safety

Your newborn’s safety should be considered a priority. Experts advise to have an officially approved infant car seat on your way home. After all, accidents with newborns are not totally unheard of, right? Be sure to place the infant car seat at the back as the deployment of the air bags has been known to seriously cause injury to infants.