How Mothers Can Take Care of Their Newborn Baby?

Nothing can be as fantastic as being a mother. Being a mother is the loveliest and the hardest job you can ever have. You might even feel confused when becoming a mom for the first time. There are so many things that you need to keep in mind while taking care of your newborn baby. And we know that it is not that easy. The mother has to be patient as well as careful in recognizing the problems of her baby. In this blog, we will let you know about some useful tips that can help you in taking care of your newborn baby.

1. BREASTFEED YOUR NEWBORN

It is extremely important that you breastfed your baby on time. A newborn baby should only be fed with breast milk for six months as the breast milk contains essential nutrients and antibodies that are important for the baby’s growth and survival. The mother’s milk and the warmth of her body take away the insecurities from the baby’s mind and makes the baby feel safe. As per various studies, most babies from 8 days to 12 months old eat artificial food items which can even cause pneumonia therefore newborns should be breastfed to ensure good health and growth.

2. BURP YOUR NEWBORN

The baby should be burped immediately after breastfeeding. When babies feed their mothers’ milk they also swallow air which causes colic and gas in their stomach. Burping removes the excess air out and prevents indigestion and vomiting. Here are the methods to make your baby burp:

• Hold the baby upright with his/her head over your shoulder. Then, gently pat the baby’s back until he/she burps.

• Place the baby face down on your lap and gently pat the baby’s back to remove the excess air.

• Make your baby, sit in your lap, facing away from you. Lean the baby forward and support the baby with your hand. Then, pat his/her back gently.

3. WAY OF HOLDING

If you are holding the baby make sure you hold your baby’s head and neck with one hand. You need to do so because the neck muscles of the baby are not strong enough to hold up the head alone. The baby can hold his/her head only after 3 months of age. After 3 months you can hold your baby vertically. Most mothers carry their baby on the shoulder after breastfeeding but it should not be done for too long.

4. TAKE CARE OF BABY’S UMBILICAL CORD

One of the important parts of newborn baby care in the first month is taking care of the umbilical cord. Generally, the umbilical cord falls off after two weeks but before it falls off you need to take care of it. Make sure your baby’s naval area is always clean and dry. If the umbilical cord has not fallen and the naval area has redness, swelling or smelly discharge take your baby to a paediatrician for an examination.

5. NEWBORN BABY BATH

Giving a bath to a newborn baby is a quite delicate task and some mothers might even get anxious about bathing the baby for the first time. So, it is very important to learn how to shower a baby before actually doing it. While bathing a newborn the most important thing to be kept in mind is the umbilical cord needs to be kept dry to prevent the newborn from infection. For that, you can take the doctor’s advice for bathing the baby.

The things which you will need for bathing your baby are an infant bathtub, mild baby soap or body wash, lukewarm water, soft towel, baby lotion, diaper and fresh clothes. Make sure you support the baby’s neck and head with one hand while bathing. After the bathing is done dry the baby’s body with the towel, apply lotion, put on diaper and baby clothes.

6. SLEEPING PATTERN

For the first 2 months, the babies are recommended to sleep for about 16 hours. During the starting months, babies generally sleep for 2 to 4 hours and only wake when they are wet or hungry. But this doesn’t mean that you will wait for the baby to wake. It is important to feed the baby every 3 hours so you have to wake him/her up for feeding. You don’t have to worry if your baby does not follow the same pattern as all the babies are different and every baby has different sleep patterns. Also, don’t forget to alternate your baby’s head position as it prevents the formation of flat spots on the head.

7. TRIM NAILS

The nails of newborn babies grow very fast and they may scratch their face or body with their hand movements. Therefore, it is very important that you keep your newborn baby’s nails trimmed. The babies’ nails are extremely soft so make sure you are using baby nail clippers for trimming their nails. Trim the nails gently when the baby is sleeping and do not trim them deeply as the nails are very soft and can be painful for the baby.

CONCLUSION

Every new parent wants to do as much as possible for the comfort of their newborn. Sometimes the parents even take suggestions from their experienced family members or friends for taking care of the newborn babies. In some cases, the new moms even get puzzled with the so many aspects of newborn baby care. The above are the 7 tips to take care of a newborn baby. We hope that the new moms will find these tips helpful in taking care of their babies. All the information provided is just for educational purpose so we recommend you to consult a doctor to find out which method is appropriate for you.