Every part of your infant’s body is very fragile. A newborn must be well-taken care of from head to toe. Days after the mother gives birth, the umbilical stump will remain on the newborn’s stomach. While the stump hasn’t fallen yet, it is a must that you take proper care and must always be cleaned to avoid infection.

It must be cleaned everyday with alcohol and a cotton ball. Each and every time that you change your baby’s diaper, you should clean the stump and the area around it as well. The alcohol would help in drying the umbilical stump fast. Sponge bathing your baby is advisable until the stump has already dried and fallen off.

Seeing a small part of the stump with a dried blood is perfectly normal. However, seek medical attention once you see that the umbilical stump has a foul smell.

Infants can’t say a word nor do signs. That is why parents and nannies are always having a hard time guessing why the baby cries. More often than not, they blame it on colic.

The reason for colic is still not clear. Usually, infants between three weeks up to six weeks old. However, there are some infants experiencing colic until they are 4 months old. Colic may happen any time of the day. But most parents notice that their babies cry during the early hours of the evening.

There are anti-colic treatments that you can avail over the counter such as gripe water and homeopathic colic tablets. You can also swaddle your baby until he stops crying whenever he has colic.

Here are some tips that would guide you in taking proper care of your little one’s teeth.

• Don’t use toothbrush just yet when the first tooth appears. Instead, use water and a soft cloth to clean it.
• There are toothbrushes that are made specially for kids. Choose the brush that has soft bristles and let your child choose the design he likes most. This kind of toothbrush can be used as soon as the child already has 8 teeth.
• Use only non-flouride toothpaste if your child does not know how to spit yet.
• To make it fun and to teach your child the proper way of brushing teeth, do this together everyday. Brushing teeth can be a family activity too!
• Take advantage of the reading materials that teaches child proper brushing and mouth hygiene.

When your child vomits or has diarrhea, there’s no need to have him confined at the hospital so that doctors could check on him every now and then. Unless the vomiting and the diarrhea is not severe, there are several treatments that you can do at home without spending so much for the medical bill.

Instead of making your child drink juice, water, or sometimes Gatorade, let him have an Oral Rehydration Solution instead. The most popular child-friendly ORS is Pedialyte. But you can also give your child Enfalyte or Liquilyte as well.

Don’t give your child too much water if he frequently vomits. Instead, let your child drink when he wants. Increase the amount gradually as his condition improves.

Continue feeding them breastmilk or formula milk. Stop giving them drinks with too much sugar such as fruit drinks or carbonated drinks.

Every time a company calls for a product recall, the main reason who be the high amount of lead content found in the commodities. More often than not, it includes toys, slippers, and other products for kids that use lead to decorate or paint the items. But what is it with lead that makes it very dangerous to one’s health especially your child’s?

One of the most common dangers when a child is exposed to lead is anemia. But this can also affect adults and can be very risky for the unborn child of a pregnant woman as well. In severe cases, exposure to high lead content may also be a threat to the kidneys.

If you think that your child has been exposed to lead (due to the products that you bought or because of the chemicals in your house such as paint) look at the following symptoms and seek medical health immediately.

• abdominal pain
• sleeplessness
• constipation
• headache
• appetite loss

One of the most commonly found critters at home is the spider. Although most of it are friendly, there are spiders that can be dangerous to kids like the brown recluse spider and the black widow.

If your kid has been bitten by a spider (not the two spiders mentioned above), here are some of the things that you can do to treat your child at home.

• Wash the area several times with water and soap
• Put an ice cube and let it sit for about 20 minutes
• Use an anti-biotic ointment and apply it topically on the affected area
• If your child can’t handle the pain, give him Tylenol or other pain medicine for kids
• Do these steps until the swelling goes away (about 2-4 days)

But if your child was bitten by the said spiders, seek medical attention immediately.

Aside from milk, most parents serve eggs to their little ones especially if they are already starting to eat solid foods. But is it really safe for the infants?

Some parents do not to give their infants eggs because they are afraid that it would result to food allergy.  But if you think that food allergy does not run in your family (both yours and your husband’s side) then you can start feeding eggs to your kids as long as they are over twelve months old.

However, the egg yolk is considered safe and can be fed for infants that are between 7 months up to 10 months old.

It can be a great source of iron as well as DHA.

So if you want your 7-month old infant to have some eggs, trying scrambling it by including formula milk, butter, and a little bit of cheese as well.

Usually, if a schooling child gets apple for his/her snack, they would frown and feel frustrated. They were hoping that something greasy and fat-filled food would touch their mouth. Yummy isn’t? If you are having a hard time with your child who seems to hate apples, maybe you should give these reasons why an apple usually appears on his/her lunchbox.

1. It is healthier than any other snack!
2. Apples are low in calories.
3. This fruit is naturally sweet.
4. It is high in fibers.

See to it that you preserve the nutrients of the apple by serving it right. Don’t peel the apples because it will lose the essential fibers.  The same goes for the applesauce. Moreover, you must not give too much ready-made applesauce or apple juice because of the sugar content.

More often than not, infants up to preschoolers can’t seem to get enough of their milk during these ages. However, as they grow older, their craving for milk starts to dwindle.  Experts said that this is not because these kids are starting to hate the taste of milk. It is because they opt to drink other beverages instead such as fruit juice, fruit drinks, and of course soda.

As the parent, it is your job to make sure that your child would still drink milk even if they think they are already old enough to drink beer (is 16 the legal age?). Anyway, nobody is too old to drink milk!

Milk is the best source not only of calcium but protein and Vitamin D as well. These are all essential for the development of the child. Unless your child is allergic to milk, let them drink as much as 4 glasses everyday.  Try getting the carton that says “low-fat milk” so you too can enjoy the benefits of this healthy drink.

As parents, we know for a fact that one of the healthiest treats that your child can get is fruit juice.  But according to the American Academy of Pediatrics, there are also different disadvantages if you give your child too much fruit juice.

Because of the sugar content of the fruit juice, drinking too much of it may lead to obesity. It may be one of the major factors that would lead your child to become obese especially if it runs in your family.

And again, because of the sugar content of these beverages, fruit juices may also carry dental cavities and would ruin your child’s teeth early. Therefore, letting your teething toddler have too much of the good thing is actually bad for their teeth and their fragile gum’s health.