The Seven Most Important Things You Can Do For Your Baby

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The 7 Most Important Things You Can Do For Your BabyID: 14589Category: Health - BabyAuthor: Article:As a mother myself, I know that the most important concern for most parents is making sure that our children are as healthy as they can be. We can’t control everything in our life; however here are 7 areas to consider when having a baby that are under your control. 1. Get A Healthy Start Nothing could be more important to ensure the health of your new baby than taking the best care of yourself before the baby is born. Good prenatal care, eating healthy, drinking enough water and minimizing your exposure to harmful substances all contribute to growing a healthy baby. Facts and Tips: • During pregnancy your body needs approximately 1500 mg daily of Calcium. Most of the prescription prenatal vitamin on the market have no more than 200 mg • Folic acid is a supplement known to help prevent Neural Tube Defects in babies. Studies show that you need to be taking 400-800mcg daily and the best time to start is 3 months prior to pregnancy If you are even considering pregnancy, take a prenatal vitamin daily. (Recommendation – Ultra Prenatal by Natures Plus) • 200-300mg of DHA daily during pregnancy: Current research suggests adequate levels of DHA may help increase a developing babys cognitive functioning, reduce the risk of pre-term labor and decrease the risk of postpartum depression. • Did you know that mercury passes through the placenta to the fetus? Avoid exposure to this toxin as much as you can. Exposure is cumulative and builds over your lifetime • In NJ, there are 30 standard Metabolic Screening tests performed on newborns. There are 50 available It doesn’t cost much to have ALL the tests performed on your baby, and I highly recommend that you have them done. How to get the whole Panel of tests. 2. Store you Baby’s Umbilical Cord Blood I am a huge advocate of cord blood banking and did so with both of my children. I know it’s a big investment, but I look at it as an insurance policy. Most likely you will never need it, but if you ever did you would spend your last dime to have it As a midwife, I have seen people you needed it and had it and those who needed it and didn’t. It was enough to make the decision to bank an easy one for our family. Facts and Tips: • Storing your newborns cord blood means that should there be a need, your baby will have a source of stem cells that is an exact match, with no risk of rejection. There is also a strong possibility that his/her siblings will be a match as well. This is important because clinical studies demonstrate that stem cell transplants are twice as successful when the stem cells come from a family member rather than from a non-relative (e.g., a public bank). • Today, cord blood stems cells are used in the treatment of over 70 life-threatening diseases, including a wide range of cancers, genetic diseases, immune system deficiencies, and blood disorders. • I recommend banking with a large national company such as Viacord or Cord Blood Registry, and not the smaller more local banks. You want to ensure that they will be around for the long term and you will have quick and easy access to your cells no matter where you are • Check out this Viacord coupon for $400 off Hurry, the deadline for enrollment is May 4th 3. Breastfeed your Baby What a surprise, I am advocating breastfeeding It is probably one of the most important things you can do for your child’s short and long term health, and it’s free I won’t discuss breastfeeding as some sort of “bonus” to your child, or the “ideal food”. To me it is just a baseline need. When we discuss the “benefits “of breast milk, we almost always refer to how it reduces the risk of various illnesses and chronic conditions such as obesity, diabetes, allergies, cancer and SIDS. There is nowhere else where we refer to the biological norm as some sort of “bonus”. We don’t say things like “not smoking reduces your risk of lung cancer” (that would be silly ); instead we know that “smoking increases your risk”. Why isn’t the same for breastfeeding? Breastfed babies have a normal risk for all of the conditions listed above, and not breastfeeding actually increases their risk Facts and Tips: • Any Breast milk is better than none Even if you just breastfed while in the hospital, you would be supplying your child with colostrum (a substance loaded with all your immunity) which passes right to your baby and reduces their risk of illness. Read more about the amazing benefits of colostrum • The Americal Academy of Pediatrics recommends exclusive breastfeding for the first 6 months of your baby’s life and then continuation until at least 1 year. • I believe that any breastfeeding is better than none It doesn’t have to be all or nothing. 4. Choose the Right Pediatrician Your pediatrician is your partner in the health of your baby/child and one of the most important decisions you will make. Make sure that you find someone you completely trust, and have the same basic philosophies as you about health. Ask your friends or people you trust who they are using, but in the end make the decision yourself based on your personal experience. If you are not happy, remember there are many different choices, and just because you started with someone in the hospital doesn’t mean you have to stay. I switched pediatricians three times until I found someone I was completely comfortable with Check out this article: “10 Questions to Ask When Choosing a Pediatrician” 5. Become Informed about Childhood Vaccinations Whether you are a strong believer in completely vaccinating your child, against the whole idea, or uncertain what all the controversy is all about; becoming knowledgeable and making an informed decision for your child is critical. It is one of the first decisions you will make and understanding your choices, risks and benefits will help you make the decision that is best for your family. Too many parents come into my shop every day and don’t even know what “shots” there child just had I find this to be irresponsible and unacceptable for the pediatrician and the parent. Learn more and understand what diseases the vaccines prevent, their effectiveness, what your risks are if you don’t stick to the schedule and what alternative options are available. Remember, this is your child and there long term well being is in your hands 10 Things You Need to Know about Immunizations and possible side-effects (Pro-Vaccine) A great holistic website with information about alternative health options (Anti-Vaccine) 6. Limit your Baby’s Exposure to Toxins and Chemicals We live in a world loaded with toxic chemicals. I am not saying we need to put our children in a bubble, but where ever you can limit their exposure the better off they will be. Chemicals can enter our bodies in several ways; through our skin, in our food and water, breathing it in, etc… Get informed about what chemicals are in the most common baby products and what to avoid. Recently the American Academy of Pediatrics warned parents about limiting their child’s exposure to something called Phthalates (pronounced th-al-ates) and Parabens (pronounced par-ah-bens); the former is a synthetic chemical used to make plastics flexible and stabilize fragrances in many consumer products (i.e. cosmetics) and the latter is a chemical preservative used in skin care products (i.e. shampoos, shaving and cleansing gels, lotions, topical pharmaceuticals and lubricants). In an article published in the February 2008 edition of the Official Journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics, the authors stated that “young infants are more vulnerable to the potential adverse effects of phthalates given their…metabolic capabilities, and developing endocrine and reproductive systems.” Facts and Tips: • Always use organic, non-chemical lotions, washes and creams on your baby and children. What you put on their skin will absorb into their bodies • Purchase an organic crib mattress. The fumes that are emitted off regular mattresses can be hazardous and your baby spends a lot of time in there, especially early on. • Be extremely careful of their exposure to Lead and over-exposure to Fluoride 7. Consider Cloth Diapers I know you are all thinking “Now she has lost it ” but when I learned about the toxic chemicals that are in our disposable diapers, I thought “I want a do-over ” I thought I was doing everything right when I had my babies; I breastfed, I ate healthy and organic food, I avoided harmful chemicals, and then they both sat in plastic for almost 4 years I just didn’t know what I know now. One of the most serious toxic chemicals present in disposable diapers is Dioxin, which in various forms has been shown to cause cancer, birth defects, liver damage, and skin diseases, is a by-product of the paper-bleaching process used in manufacturing disposable diapers, and trace quantities may exist in the diapers themselves. And what about the material that makes superabsorbent diapers so absorbent? If youve ever used disposable diapers, youve probably noticed beads of clear gel on your babys genitals after a diaper change. Superabsorbent diapers contain sodium polyacrylate, which absorbs up to 100 times its weight in water. Sodium polyacrylate is the same substance that was removed from tampons in 1985 because of its link to toxic shock syndrome. No studies have been done on the long-term effects of this chemical being in contact with a babys reproductive organs 24 hours a day for upwards of two years. Cloth diapering is not at all what you think So much easier than it sounds, much cheaper than your regular diapers, better for the environment and really cute Check out our cloth diapers and to learn more about cloth diapering join us for our awesome new workshop every other Tuesday evening. Want to Use An Article in Your E-Zine or Web Site? You can, as long as you include this complete tag with it: Nationally recognized breastfeeding expert and new parent educator, Shari Criso, stars in Simply Breastfeeding, a DVD program that helps parents learn the ins and outs of breastfeeding. She publishes the MyBabyExperts Parenting and Breastfeeding Tips email newsletter. If youre ready to give your baby the best, get your free subscription at www.MyBabyExperts.com Article Source: http://www.easyezinearticles.comAuthor Info:Email the Author:

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