Baby Care Blog

whooping cough photo provided compliments of amyvangsgard.com

A news story was published regarding an outbreak of the whooping cough which started in the pediatric ward of a childrens hospital in the boston area. A young baby was diagnosed with the whopping cough ailment initially and before long it was determined that the disease had spread among three dozen of the hospital's own employees.

Later tests which were done to substantiate the initial whooping cough lab results came up inconclusive. Those infected all showed the signs and symptoms typically associated with the whooping cough. The baby that initially tested positive for the upper respiratory infection with had a persistent cough, running nose, and sneezing. Health officials were baffled when the second round of tests came up showing no signs of the whooping cough virus which is commonly known as pertussis; and to be honest we were baffled too.

We were baffled because this winter our own toddler came down with the same symptoms and she had to be hospitalized. Even after she was released the symptoms still persisted. In our community we have come in contact with so many people that have complained of having a horrible cough that has lasted... not for days... not for weeks... but for up to an entire month!

Another ironic thing is that no one is calling this whooping cough... even more ironic to me is that this has not gotten more wide spread media attention. I find this very ironic given the severity of this disease and the toll that it can take on young infant babies. At times the cough can get so violent that it has the potential to shatter bones in the rib cage... this clearly is not a virus that should be left unchecked.

Students are being hit by this in some parts of the U.S. as well. In one Nevada community an entire high school has been rocked this winter by the whooping cough disease. Only four whooping cough cases were confirmed but half of the school kids did not come to school fearing an out break.

Typically babies will get the vaccine to prevent pertussis in 5 stages. The shot is given to the infants during there 2,4,6, and 15-18 months. The final shot will be given between the ages of 4-6. The challenge is that this vaccination only reduces the risk of getting the disease and it wears off once the child grows into their teenage years. There are some new vaccines that are coming on the market for teenagers and adults though.

If you want more information about the whooping cough we suggest that you check out this site on whooping cough http://www.whoopingcough.net/index.htm

Have you seen any symptoms of whooping cough in your community this winter? If so please give your experiences here... we'd really like to hear from you!

Posted by John at 3:01 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Pregnancy photo compliments of fitpregnancy.comMany women struggle with being able to shed extra pounds after a pregnancy. Some women do not have any problems with losing the extra weight and it seems as if their pounds melt off as soon as the baby get's out of the oven. We wonder what makes the difference between these two extremes? Admittedly, some women have a more difficult time with weight issues than others, but after a pregnancy it seems that these issues are magnified all the more. This is a serious issue because when you are preparing to have a new baby the extra weight can affect the health of the child as well as that of the mother.

Some doctors advise that overweight moms considering another pregnancy try to lose the extra pounds first. The reason is that the baby may become larger as a result of the mom being larger and this in turn could make the delivery of the baby more difficult due to the baby's size.

Our family recently had a baby girl and we are struggling with this issue... so I thought that I would blog about it. Are there any ladies out there who have struggled with their weight after a pregnancy? If so, what have you done to shed the extra weight that you gained while carrying? Please post your comments.... we'd love to hear what you have to say about how you have gone about losing your weight after your baby's birth.

Posted by John at 12:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Do you own a baby crib? If this is true, you may need a Crib Rail Cover. Getting a Crib Rail Cover will help your teething baby in the crib. The Rails of the Crib are usually made of a solid material. A Crib Rail Cover was made to wrap over this solid material and to soften it. The sides of the Crib Rail are often sealed with a varnish or some other kind of paint. This could possibly harm your baby. When your infant starts teething he or she may attempt to bite down on the Crib Rail. The Crib Rail Cover idea was conceived as a way to safeguard your teething infant baby from the potential problems which can arise from chewing on the sides of the Teething Rail.

A Crib Rail Cover is a very affordable product that you will want to get just to be safe. Teething babies enjoy biting on things. The Crib Rail Cover provides the perfect testing ground for new babies to practice using their new teeth. At times teething tots will stand upright in the baby crib and chaw down on the sides of the Teething Rail and this isn't safe for your baby. During the teething stage you may notice that the little tot can accidentally chip their teeth on the Teething Rail. The Crib Rail Cover will help lower the chances of these accidents from happening. The Crib Rail Cover is designed to help safeguard your teething young infant from broken pieces of wood and harmful paint.

Teething is a real important time for infants. All infants respond differently to the teething stage, but teething is something that all teething tots really like doing. The Crib Rail furnishes teething children with the perfect chewing opportunity. The Crib Rail Cover will help you and your baby during this period of time. You have to make sure that you invest in the right kind of Crib Rail Cover. If you decide to purchase a Crib Rail Cover it is very essential that you make certain that it is made of a soft material. Some Crib Rail Covers are made of a pliable plastic. This might fit on top of the wood, however it may be too hard and it could still traumitize your baby's brand new teeth.

This helpful Crib Rail Cover Article was created and written by John Hall. John is a author and website designer. You may contact john for more help and information on buying a Crib Rail Cover.

Posted by John at 8:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBacks (0)

During this Earth Day Weekend The los Angeles Convention Center will be host to the first Natural Parenting and Family Expo. The event is the brain child of Kathy Arnos. Kathy is a California-based mother, author and producer who recognized a need for guidance and education in the community for creating more balanced lifestyles.

Kathy is the author of the complete teething guide and Bach flowers for children. The Expo is sponsored by many notable and reputable organizations such as The Whole Foods Markets grocery chain and Organic Family to name a few. You can find a complete list of their sponsors here: Natural Expo Sponsors

Kathy is committed to helping families find a natural alternative to caring for the medical and emotional needs that both children and families have. This expo is on the cusp and cutting edge of providing a unique networking forum where families seeking natural solutions can interact and share their ideas. This expo will provide a special opportunity for families wanting to follow natural parenting to develop community amongst themselves.

It is our hope that The momentum built from this event will continue to build as the particpants reach out to each other. This will hopefully lead to the establishment of think tanks and institutions that will further make the public aware of the many natural parenting options that are available for them.

If you are in the Los Angeles area this weekend and are interested in attending the Natural Parenting and Family Expo you can visit their information page here: Visitor Information

For further networking after the event you can also reach Kathy arnos directly via her website at: http://www.spiritdancepublishing.com/

Posted by John at 12:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

In certain parts of the United states home prices have started to soar. For families that are just starting out this can be a bit of a problem. Most mothers like the idea of having a nice affordable home for their baby and family. Raising an infant in a nice stable environment has many benefits for both the child and the family. Having a family home in the United states has been touted as the "american dream" in some circles. But with home prices beginning to rise, is the american dream becoming a nightmare for those families who are struggling to make ends meet? It is true that there are affordable family homes in some parts of the U.S. It is also true that in some places the home prices are so high that mothers and fathers have made the tough decision to temporarily put their dream of homeownership on hold.

Is your family in a situation where you are raising an infant and you want find a nice affordable home in a decent neighborhood to raise your child? If so, there are other options than traditional home buying and you may want to look into them. For example, you may want to consider purchasing a manufactured home as an alternative way of finding affordable housing for your family. There are many nice mobile home parks which you can find in various parts of the U.S. This is an option that you may want to consider for you and your baby.

There are Pro's and Con's to having a manufactured home just like there are for buying a regular home. The price of a modular home or manufactured home may be a lot lower than what you'd pay for a regular home. Consider your options, and see what happens....

Do you have a mobile home? Have you raised your family in a modular home? Are you just starting a new family or are you looking for a new home for you and your baby? If so, let us know your thoughts about mobile or modular homes. Your experiences could help some one else... make a post and let us know what you think.

Posted by John at 1:11 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

We have found that parents have many questions about teething. Parents don't know when teething will start and they look for ways of finding the teething side effects and teethig symptoms ahead of time. Here are a few things that we have found that can help you to better determing when your baby is teething.

If you find that your baby is producing more saliva in their mouth than normal, this could be a teething side effect. If your baby is placing their hand in their mouth this could also be a teething symptom and teething side effect. Teething babies may place their hands in their mouth in order to try to relieve some of the pressure that the emerging teeth may be placing upon their gums.

Believe it or not, in some rare cases ear infections have been found to be teething side effect. Ear infections can occur when the excess saliva gets backed up into the nasal passage area. Ear Infections are not normally associated as a teething side effect, but it does occur.

Teething affects babies differently. Have you ever had a teething baby? Did your baby have teething side effects? Did your baby have an ear infection? What were your experiences? Please drop us a line and let us know what happened to you... your teething experience could help someone else.

Posted by John at 3:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

Here is an article on an infant condition called cradle cap. It was contributed by a site dedicated to dandruff

In some little baby infants there is a dandruff like condition which is called cradle cap.This condition is similar to that of dandruff and it occurs in young babies. Here is some information about how cradle cap is caused... older adults are constantly regenerating new hair skin cells at approximately or near the same rate at which they are losing their old dry hair skin cells. In many of the adults that have a healthy scalp condition, the old skin will just fall off and really don't even notice the process.

However with babies and young infants, the new hair skin cells may grow much faster on their scalp than they can fall off. This is the start of Cradle Cap. Cradle Cap usually will leave a dandruff like layer of somewhat crusty, extra skin. Cradle cap is a crusting and scaling rash and it is found in the hair of young babies may look somewhat similar to dandruff. The cradle cap condition will usually start at 3 months of age. The cradle cap condition will usually will disappear by the time the child is 1 year of age.

Cradle cap, can be treated in this way... rub a small amount of olive oil or a similar type of baby oil onto the infected scalp area of your baby infants scalp. Then wait several minutes to give the oil a chance to loosen and soften the dandruff like scales. One this has happened you should be able to easily brush them away.

You can find more information on cradle cap by clicking onto this dandruff link.

Posted by John at 1:40 AM | Permalink | Comments (9) | TrackBacks (0)