How To Care For Your New Born Baby

By Medical Expert Team

Aug 10 , 2017 | 1 min read

The moment your baby is born can be both magical and stressful. A newbornexperiences rapid change in physiology at birth and during the initial few days of life. This is the period when many infants would fall sick. So care during first few days of life is very important and can lay a good foundation for a healthy childhood.

Irrespective of the mode of delivery, opportunity should be utilized for bonding and initiation of breastfeeding. Because separation of a normal infant from the mother even for a couple of hours can pose an effect on successful breastfeeding. Breastfeeding is the best way to provide infants with the nutrients they need.

WHO recommends exclusive breastfeeding starting within one hour after birth until a baby is six months old. Once you are ready for discharge from the hospital make sure that your kid gets all the vaccinations (BCG, OPV & Hepatitis B). The infant can be bathed at home once discharged from the hospital.

A variety of traditional practices are common in India. These can be beneficial such as oil massage, however there are a variety of harmful traditional practices such as applying kajal/surma in eyes, putting oil in ear and nose, putting boric acids in nostrils or applying substances such as cow dung on cord must be avoided. All healthy babies should preferably be placed down for sleep on their back only.

If your baby’s birth weight is below 2000 grams then you can do kangaroo mother care (KMC), in this method, the infant is placed between the mother’s breasts in direct skin-to-skin contact because of benefit on breastfeeding, better weight gain, and lower risk of respiratory infections.