Baby Facts

Andrew Adesman

Description

Ear infections need to be treated with antibiotics. Newborns and infants should be bathed daily. New parents are deluged with advice on how to care for their babies. This book explores common baby health myths--in areas such as feeding, sleeping, toilet training, and illness--to help them separate baby facts from baby fiction.
Foreword by William Sears, M.D.

Acknowledgments.

Introduction.

The problem: Myth and misinformation.

The solution: BabyFacts.

Chapter 1: From Milk to Cookies.

The truth about feeding and nourishing your child.

Breast-feeding and bottle-feeding: Facts and fi ction (and lots of opinions).

Cow’s milk: What kind, when, and just how much.

Real food: When milk isn’t the only thing on the menu.

Sugars: The lowdown on sweet stuff.

Weight gain: What’s to blame, and when it’s an issue.

Chapter 2: Lights Out, Kiddo.

The truth about getting your child to sleep.

Safe sleep: The best position, 52

Good sleep: From naps to nighttime sleep, from bassinets to beds, 55

Co-sleeping: When three isn’t a crowd, 67

After the crib: Big-kid beds, night-lights, and things that go bump, 71

Chapter 3: From Bathtub to Booties.

The truth about keeping your baby clean and comfortable, from head to toe.

Clean and dry: Skin-care tips and bath-time basics.

Baby clothes 101: Dressing your baby.

Safe in the sunshine: Protecting your skin.

Chapter 4: Diapers, Disposable Training Pants, and Potties.

The truth about diapering and toilet training.

Diapers (and a bit of digestion): Don’t do anything “rash”.

On to the potty: The moment you’ve been waiting for (and you may have to wait a while).

Chapter 5: Little Coughs, Big Worries.

The truth about common childhood illnesses and keeping your child healthy

Colds, coughs, and kids: Treating them the right way.

Fever: Keeping your cool when your child heats up.

Ear infections and sore throats: “Mommy, it hurts when I swallow!”

Conjunctivitis: Don’t rub, don’t share, and don’t panic.

Immunizations: Keeping kids healthy for life.

Allergies and asthma: Know the facts, breathe easier.

Baby teeth: Cutting them, losing them, and keeping them healthy.

Tummy troubles: From colic to stomachaches.

Chapter 6: Growing, Growing, Gone!

The truth about how your child’s body and brain develop.

Noggin power: Your child’s brain.

Speech and hearing: How your child communicates.

Vision: Bringing the facts into focus.

Walking: From fi rst steps to fi rst shoes.

Physical growth: Big, little, and in between.

Behavior: The good, the bad, and the normal.

Chapter 7: When Accidents Happen.

What to do—and what not to do—when your child gets hurt.

Head injuries: When (and why) to call a doctor.

Seizures: What (not) to do.

Cuts and burns: First-aid care, and when to get more help.

Bruises, breaks, and sprains: When sticks and stones hurt their bones.

The great (itchy) outdoors: When bugs bite and plants are pests.

Stopping trouble in its tracks: Preventing Accidents.

Conclusion.

Index.

Sujets

• Vie de famille
• Parentalité et Éducation des Enfants
• Santé familiale
• Children's Health
• Philosophie et théologie
• Children's Health (magazine)
• William Sears
• General officer
• Parenting
• General

Informations

• Publié par: Turner Publishing Company
• Date de parution: 08 janvier 2009
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9780470484975
• Langue: English

Extrait

Table of Contents
 
Title Page
Copyright Page
Dedication
Foreword
Acknowledgements
Introduction
The Problem: Myth and Misinformation
The Solution: BabyFacts
 
CHAPTER 1 - from milk to cookies the truth about feeding and nourishing your child
 
Breast-feeding and Bottle-feeding
Cow’s Milk
Real Food
Sugars
Weight Gain
 
CHAPTER 2 - lights out, kiddo the truth about getting your child to sleep
 
Safe Sleep
Good Sleep
Co-sleeping
After the Crib
 
CHAPTER 3 - from bathtub to booties
 
Clean and Dry
Baby Clothes 101
Safe in the Sunshine
 
CHAPTER 4 - diapers, disposable training pants, and potties the truth about ...
 
Diapers (and a Bit of Digestion)
On to the Potty
 
CHAPTER 5 - little coughs, big worries the truth about common childhood ...
 
Colds, Coughs, and Kids
Fever
Ear Infections and Sore Throats
Conjunctivitis
Immunizations
Allergies and Asthma
Baby Teeth
Tummy Troubles
 
CHAPTER 6 - growing, growing, gone! the truth about how your child’s body and ...
 
Noggin Power
Speech and Hearing
Vision
Walking
Physical Growth
Behavior
 
CHAPTER 7 - when accidents happen what to do—and what not to do—when your ...
 
Head Injuries
Seizures
Cuts and Burns
Bruises, Breaks, and Sprains
The Great (Itchy) Outdoors
Stopping Trouble in Its Tracks
 
Index

Copyright © 2009 by Andrew Adesman, M.D. All rights reserved
Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey
Published simultaneously in Canada
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The information contained in this book is not intended to serve as a replacement for professional medical advice. Any use of the information in this book is at the reader’s discretion. The author and the publisher specifically disclaim any and all liability arising directly or indirectly from the use or application of any information contained in this book. A health care professional should be consulted regarding your specific situation.
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eISBN : 978-0-470-48497-5
 
 
To my parents—who provided me not only with guidance and extraordinary opportunity early on, but also with a lifetime of support and encouragement . . .
 
To my wife—for her continued forbearance, her extraordinary patience, her sage counsel, and her immeasurable support . . .
 
and
 
To my three children—for their consistent understanding as I worked on this book, for teaching me the things I did not know as a pediatrician, for making me look good as a father, and most important, for all of the joy that they and my wife bring into my life.
 
Greater riches no man could ask.
The great enemy of truth is very often not the lie—deliberate, contrived, and dishonest—but the myth—persistent, persuasive, and unrealistic.
—President John F. Kennedy
Foreword
Love for your baby and your desire to be the best parent you can be make you vulnerable to lots of conflicting advice. Dr. Adesman changes baby myths into baby facts. Parents rely on pediatricians to “show me the science,” and that’s what you will find in this book. BabyFacts exposes troubling myths and misinformation and comforts parents with facts that are backed by science and by Dr. Adesman’s own experience as a parent and a pediatrician.
BabyFacts will empower parents to make informed decisions about those daily medical, developmental, and behavioral happenings that are normal in infancy and childhood. In those early years, parenting seems to be a 24/7 marathon of “what to do when . . .”
As a pediatrician and a parent for nearly forty years, I have come up with one piece of time-tested advice for parents faced with on-the-spot decisions, such as what to do when your baby cries at 3 A.M. or when your toddler throws an obnoxious temper tantrum. I tell them: “Get behind the eyes of your baby and ask yourself, ‘If I were my child, how would I want my mother/father to react?’ ” Your reaction will nearly always be right.
Include BabyFacts in your parenting library as a resource to help you grow together with your child from infancy through preschool. Enjoy!
William Sears, M.D., coauthor of The Baby Book
acknowledgments
There are many people who have provided considerable support to me over the years—either directly during my writing of this book or indirectly in giving me the assistance and the opportunity needed to take on this wonderful challenge.
For the past twenty-two years, I have had the opportunity to grow professionally as a developmental pediatrician at Schneider Children’s Hospital in New York City. Dr. Philip Lanzkowsky was chairman of the Department of Pediatrics for my first twenty years there. He provided me with considerable support and encouragement to assume projects such as this. His support of my professional development was unflagging. As with many other nonclinical endeavors that I have pursued over the years, I know that this project would not have been possible were it not for Dr. Lanzkowsky’s considerable trust, confidence, and support.
In 2006, a new chairman of pediatrics was appointed. Although many people fear change of leadership within a work environment, for me, the more things changed, the more they stayed the same. My new chairman of pediatrics, Dr. Fredrick Bierman, has provided me with the very same level of professional support during his two-year tenure to date. I have been extremely fortunate to have chairmen who consistently recognize the value of projects such as this. Without their support, my dream of writing this book could never have been fulfilled. I am truly indebted to them.
Of course, recognition must go to several others who have provided me with more direct assistance in giving birth to this book. I would like to thank John Silbersack, my literary agent, who had faith in the concept from the very beginning and who gave me the encouragement and guidance that I needed as a new author. I must also recognize the extraordinary efforts of Becky Cabaza, whose assistance with the manuscript was immeasurable. Her stylistic and structural input ensured that the book came to life for the reader. I would like to thank Robyn Feller, who contributed considerably to the medical research.
The final manuscript was reviewed by three outstanding pediatricians. Dr. George Cohen was my first mentor in general pediatrics. His gentle style and warm personality were nurturing and deeply inspiring to me in my formative professional years. Drs. Donna Weiner and Neil Minikes are not only close, long-standing friends, they are exceptional general pediatricians. I am grateful to each of these three physicians for their keen eye and constructive comments regarding the manuscript. I would also like to acknowledge the early support I received from many preeminent physicians—William Sears, Harold Koplewicz, Steven Shelov, Ari Brown, Carden Johnston, Marianne Neifert, Daniel Coury, Harlan Gephart, and Joel Alpert. Each of these physicians recognized the merits of this book when it first was conceptualized. Their enthusiastic praise helped ensure its publication.
Speaking of publication, I would like to thank Tom Miller, executive editor at John Wiley, for recognizing the importance of a book like this, and Christel Winkler, my editor at Wiley, for her assistance in finalizing the manuscript.
As one might expect, writing this book has taken me away at times from other obligations at work and at home. I must thank the professional staff with whom I work within the Division of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics at Schneider Children’s Hospital—Drs. David Meryash, Ruth Milanaik, Patricia Bigini-Quinn, and Alyson Gutman, as well as our nurse clinician, Patti Hanson. I must give particular recognition to Nancy Alfieri, a special friend, wonderful colleague, and exceptional nurse-practitioner, for all of the day-to-day support that she has given me in my professional life for the past fifteen years. Christine Peck and Angela Trinder also deserve recognition for their admi