Page:The physical training of children (IA 39002011126464.med.yale.edu).pdf/40

 22. What kind of a belly-band do you recommend—a flannel or a calico one?

I prefer flannel, for two reasons—first, on account of its keeping the child's bowels comfortably warm; and, secondly, because of its not chilling him (and thus endangering cold, etc.) when he wets himself. The belly-band ought to be moderately but not tightly applied, as, if tightly applied, it would interfere with the necessary movements of the bowels.

23. When should the belly-band be discontinued?

When the child is two or three months old. The best way of leaving it off is to tear a strip off daily for a few mornings, and then to leave it off altogether. "Nurses who take charge of an infant when the monthly nurse leaves are frequently in the habit of at once leaving off the belly-band, which often leads to ruptures when the child cries or strains. It is far wiser to retain it too long than too short a time; and when a child catches hooping-cough while still very young, it is safer to resume the belly-band." [Communicated by Sir Charles Locock to the Author.]

24. Have you any remarks to make on the clothing of an infant?

A baby's clothing ought to be light, warm, loose, and free from pins. (1.) It should be light, without being too airy. Many infants' clothes are both too long and too cumbersome. It is really painful to see how some poor little babies are weighed down with a weight of clothes. They may be said to "bear the burden," and that a heavy one, from the very commencement of their lives! How absurd, too, the practice of making them wear long clothes. Clothes to cover a child's feet, and even a little beyond, may be desirable; but for clothes, when the infant is carried about, to reach to the ground, is foolish and cruel in the extreme. I have seen a delicate baby almost ready