Your precious baby needs all the help it can get to grow into a healthy toddler – but it all starts with good hygiene.
Babies are sweet and cuddly, and they need lots of constant care. The trickiest part of newborn baby care is to maintain the highest levels of home and personal hygiene – babies are quick to catch infections since they have low immunity levels.
Newborn baby care, however, is not all that tough either. We list a few pointers on how to keep your baby safe from infections and illnesses in the following sections:
* Clean your hands frequently. If your hands are unclean while handling your baby, then you are most likely to pass the germs along to your child as well. The baby can get these germs on their skin and on their face, from where they can develop a cold, or cough or even fever. Every time you are about to feed the baby, or change their diapers, or simply hold them for a while, make sure that your hands are completely germ-free. You can kill the germs on your hands by using a good hand sanitiser. The sanitiser kills up to 99.9% germs on the skin, and it is a quick way to ‘wash’ your hands while you keep an eye on the baby. Keep the hands clean immediately after changing their diapers.
* Sterilise baby’s bottles and toys. You have to exercise extra vigilance once your baby starts bottle-feeding. This applies also to the time that your baby develops hand-eye coordination to reach out and grasp its toys. Most babies put everything they see in their mouths, so their toys must be cleaned as often as possible. Sterilise the bottle teat and their toys every day, taking care to wash rubber and plastic toys with antiseptic liquid mixed in water. Use sterilisation tablets in boiling water to sterilise the bottle and rubber teat.
*Ventilate their cupboard as much as possible. The baby’s clothes and toys are delicate and they must have their own cupboard. However, if the clothes are not aired often enough, they can develop dust and mould. Fit the cupboard shutters with louvers to allow ventilation, and do not put away used clothing with freshly laundered clothes. Add naphthalene balls or silica packets in between the clothing so that it does not become mouldy and attract pests.
* Keep the changing station clean. The baby’s changing station will comprise of a flat mat or plank to place the baby on, with shelves to hold diapers, cleaning wipes, talcum powder, moisturising cream, etc. Also keep hand sanitiser at the changing station, and use it quickly before you handle the baby’s diapers.
* Wash baby’s laundry separately. Your child’s clothing is in constant touch with their bodies, and it should be soft and completely germ-free. Wash your baby’s clothes in a separate laundry load, and add Dettol antiseptic liquid to the load to kill all germs.
