baby_matters_article003

Articles on Baby Matters:

Start Nurturing Early On

The mantra is: It is never too early.

Talking to your baby and playing simple games with him will help develop his speech and motor skills faster. Infants develop naturally, but neglected ones will be laggards in picking up speech and physical coordination, and become slower learners, said Dr Chong Shang Chee, an associate consultant with the Children's Medical Institute at the National University Hospital.

To speed up the development of speech, talk to your baby - this can start from birth. Dr. Clare Ong, a consultant psychologist with the Paediatric Clinic at Thomson Medical Centre, said: "The child may not understand language, but will be able to discern the different voices and tone."

Give a running commnetary as you change his nappy, make a meal or go shopping for groceries - speaking to your baby will engage his interest in speech. Reading to your baby also helps develop language. Babies from six months old can be given pop-up books, or those with pictures or textured pages.

Dr Chong said: "Children exposed to books usually learn to read independently - they appreciate stories and words - much earlier." A child ready to talk will start babbling, and parents can help the learning along by helping him to form the words and encouraging him when he hesitates.

Play is as important because it develops physical coordination - it also happens to be fun. Toddlers can start with simple eye-hand coordination skills such as throwing, catching or rolling a ball along. Dr Chong said, however that dumping achild with toys is not play.

Play should be interactive. Parents should not feel inadequate, said the experts, if they cannot afford to enrol their child in programmes or buy the fancy toys that claim to boost a child's intelligence. Activities of high educational value include reading to or with your child, playing games and painting - which can be done at home or outside at little expense. But getting the television set to play nanny is a bad idea.

In fact, the American Academy of Paediatrics says that children under the age of two should not watch television and those above this age should watch only educational programmes for not more than one to two hours a day st that.

While some parents might be doing less than ideal with their child, there are also those who give their children a weekly diary busier than most adults. Not all children are musically or artistically talented, and while one child may thrive on being kept busy, another may feel overwhelmed.

Children have different strengths and learning styles, as do adults. A sensitive parent will tune into and develop these interests and strengths. Dr Chong's parting tip: "Learning is optimal only if your child is receptive."

Elaine Young
Singapore
29 Apr 2007

This article is an abstract from Mind Your Body, The Straits Times, January 24, 2007

A Baby's Milestones

Motor Development

According to National University Hospital paediatrician Chong Chang Chee, this takes place very quickly in the first year of a child's life.

One Month:
Actively moving and kicking his legs but his hands remain fisted. His head still flops because muscles are not developed.

Three Months:
Able to flip over onto his tummy. Raises his head and chest when lying on his front. Begins to grasps objects.

Seven Months:
Rolls from back to front and front to back and sits without support. Moves objects from hand to hand but still cannot pick up tiny objects with his fingers. Tends to rake these objects towards himself.

Nine to Eleven Months:
Crawls or does the bottom-shuffle. Able to pick up tiny objects with his fingers.

12 Months:
Pulls himself into a standing position and walks with support. He may also be able to take the first few isolated steps on his own.

Tendency to pick up food with his fingers, learns how to scoop using a spoon and drinks from a cup. At this stage, he will love to throw objects or press buttons.

18 Months:
Walks independently but still has the "teddy bear gait". Loves to go up and down stairs. "While this is a tiring time for adults, it is essential for the development of the child's motor skill development,: said Dr Chong.

2 Years:
Runs and kicks a ball.

3 Years:
Climbs well, throws, kicks and can pedal a tricycle. Sorts objects by shape and colour.

Social/Emotional Development

Two Months:
Able to smile at the sound of his mother's voice.

Three to Six Months:
Smiles at other people. But between eight and nine months, suffers from stranger anxiety.

12 months:
Suffers from separation anxiety and is able to express unhappiness. "As this is a transitional stage between communication and needing to express himself, the child often screams, and in the case of boys, headbutts. But this will pass," Dr Chong said.

2 to 3 Years:
Begins to play in make-believe situations.

Speech and Language

Three to Four Months:
He will babble, laugh and try to imitate sounds. If he does not babble, there is a cause for concern as there could be a problem with hearing or brain development.

Seven Months:
Responds to his own name and is able to say "dada" or "mama".

Nine Months:
Knows the meaning of the words "no" and "bye bye".

12 Months:
Says single words that are used daily and enjoys imitating people.

18 Months:
He is able to string words together and usually speaks in two-word sentences

2 to 3 Years:
These are what is known as "Terrible 2s and Tantrum 3s" where the child is constantly concerned about himself. He is able to follow simple instructions and speaks in multi-word sentences.

Judith Tan
Singapore
29 Apr 2007

Baby's First Bite

fedding a baby can be one of the most time-consuming tasks for new parents.

Birth to 4 months:
Breast milk is the best food for your baby and cannot be duplicated in any formula. The American Academy of Paediatrics recommends breastfeeding until your baby is one year old.

Use a demand feeding schedule: This means feeding on demand as opposed to a strict feeding schedule. The baby should receive six to eight feedings in a 24-hour period.

Observe baby for signs of hunger and fullness: Learn to detect how your baby signals when he is hungry and when he is full.

Understand different feeding temperaments as some babies are lazy feeders while others have more vigorous style of feeding.

Do not force the nipple into mouth: Take advantage of your baby's rooting reflex and allow him to latch on.

Safe water: Use filtered or boiled tap water for your baby during the first few months. Talk calmly and quietly with your baby while feeding

Expressed breast milk can be refrigerated and used within 48 hours. Do not microwave as it can change the composition of breast milk.

Nutrition for the nursing mother:
Many mothers are concerned about what they can do to improve the quality of their breast milk. Dr. Christine Wood, a US-based paediatrician and author advises women to avoid nicotine, drugs and any toxic substances as these can be passed on to the breast milk.

She has the following advice:
- Drink enough water.
- Eat a varied diet with plenty of fruits and vegetables.
- Try to limit foods with colorings, artificial sweetners and chemicals.
- Try to get healthy fats such as those in olive oil and avoid trans fatty acids.

Six months:
This is the time where you could start introducing solids in your baby's diet. Here are some clues that he may be ready:

You baby is watching you eat and opening his mouth or reaching for your food as you take a bite.

He does not use his tongue to push out objects from his mouth but uses a chewing motion with objects instead of just the sucking motion.

Which solids to introduce:
Most paediatricians recommend starting with rice cereal as it is bland and unlikely to cause allergic reactions. Stick yo rice cereal for a few weeks.

When starting out with solids, it is easiest to give your baby half the bottle of formula and then give the solids.

Add fruit or vegetables (cooked and pureed) if the rice cereal has been tolerated for three to four weeks.

If buying baby food, look at the ingredients list and avoid products with sugar or modified starch.

Water may be introduced in a bottle or a cup.

Juices are not necessary at this age and they may encourage your baby to prefer sweet fluids instead of water.

Solid intake will vary. Once or twice a day is sufficient.

Homemade foods:
A small food processor, blender or baby food grinder is a handy kitchen gadget to puree the foods.

Use fresh fruit and vegetables in season. Try to use fruit and vegetables within a day or two after you buy them as they will lose nutrients when stored for longer. Firm fruits like apples and pears can be cooked in a small amount of water and then pureed for babies under six to eight months of age.

Steaming fruit and vegetables will help retain more nutrients. Avocados can be mashed and mixed with other foods or served alone. They are a great sources of the "good fats".

Foods to avoid:
Eggs, until after one year of age. Products with nuts. Wheat and corn, until after your baby is eight or nine months old, longer if there is a history of allergies.

Honey, until after one year of age as there is a risk of infant botulism. Ready-made foods with added sugar or modified cornstarch.

Any hard, small pieces of foods that could be a choking hazard.

Citrus and tomatoes should be used cautiously under one year of age. They may cause rashes in the diaper area or around the mouth because of their acidity.

Shefali Srinivas
Singapore
02 June 2007