newborn baby

Childhood vaccines protect children from a variety of serious or potentially fatal diseases, including diphtheria, measles, mumps, rubella, polio, tetanus, whooping cough (pertussis) and others. If these diseases seem uncommon — or even unheard of — it's usually because these vaccines are doing their job. Still, you might wonder about the benefits and risks of childhood vaccines. Here are straight answers to common questions about childhood vaccines. Is natural immunity better than vaccination? A natural infection might provide better immunity than vaccination — but there are serious risks. For example, a natural chickenpox (varicella) infection could lead to pneumonia. A natural polio infection could cause permanent paralysis. A natural mumps infection could lead to deafness. A natural Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) infection could result in permanent brain damage or even death. Vaccination can help prevent these diseases and their potentially serious complica...

Enterovirus D68 (EV-D68) is a virus that can cause an infection similar to the common cold. In some cases, it can cause serious breathing problems. Enterovirus D68 spreads when a person who is sick with the virus coughs, sneezes or touches a surface that is touched by others. Although adults can get infected with enteroviruses, enterovirus D68 most commonly affects children. Mild signs and symptoms may include: Fever Runny nose Sneezing Cough Body and muscle aches Severe signs and symptoms may include: Wheezing Difficulty breathing Children with asthma who become infected may be more likely to have serious breathing problems. In rare cases, children infected with enterovirus D68 may have problems with their muscles. The muscles can become weak or stop working temporarily (acute paralysis). Experts are unsure whether enterovirus D68 is linked to muscle weakness, but they recommend that parents contact a doctor if their child isn't walking correctly or deve...

Car sickness is a type of motion sickness. Motion sickness occurs when the brain receives conflicting information from the inner ears, eyes, and nerves in the joints and muscles. Imagine a young child sitting low in the back seat of a car without being able to see out the window — or an older child reading a book in the car. The child's inner ear will sense motion, but his or her eyes and body won't. The result might be an upset stomach, cold sweat, fatigue, loss of appetite or vomiting. It's not clear why car sickness affects some children more than others. While the problem doesn't seem to affect most infants and toddlers, children ages 2 to 12 are particularly susceptible. To prevent car sickness in children, you might try the following strategies: Reduce sensory input.  Encourage your child to look at things outside the car rather than focusing on books, games or movies. If your child naps, traveling during nap time might help. Carefully plan pre-tr...

Many factors can trigger a breast-feeding strike — when a baby refuses to breast-feed for a period of time after breast-feeding well for months. Typically, the baby is trying to tell you that something isn't quite right. During a breast-feeding strike, your baby might appear happy to go to your breast — but then act disinterested or start to cry. Sometimes a breast-feeding strike happens suddenly. In other cases, a strike begins gradually. Causes of a breast-feeding strike Common causes of a breast-feeding strike include: Pain or discomfort.  Teething, thrush or a cold sore can cause mouth pain during breast-feeding, and an ear infection can cause pain during sucking. An injury or soreness from an immunization might cause discomfort in a certain breast-feeding position. Illness.  A cold or stuffy nose can make it difficult for your baby to breathe during breast-feeding. Stress or distraction.  Overstimulation, delayed feedings or a long separation from y...

Breast-feeding and alcohol don't mix well. There's no level of alcohol in breast milk that's considered safe for a baby to drink. When you drink alcohol, it passes into your breast milk at concentrations similar to those found in your bloodstream. Although a breast-fed baby is exposed to just a fraction of the alcohol his or her mother drinks, a newborn eliminates alcohol from his or her body at only half the rate of an adult. Research suggests that breast-fed babies who are exposed to one drink a day might have impaired motor development and that alcohol can cause changes in sleep patterns. Also, while folklore says that drinking alcohol improves milk production, studies show that alcohol actually decreases milk production and that the presence of alcohol in breast milk causes babies to drink about 20% less breast milk. If you choose to drink, avoid breast-feeding until alcohol has completely cleared your breast milk. This typically takes two to three hours f...

Breast milk sharing occurs both formally and informally. On the formal side, many milk banks belong to the Human Milk Banking Association of North America (HMBANA), a voluntary professional association.  HMBANA  has policies for donor human milk collection that involve the rigorous screening of potential donors' health and medication use. Milk bank donors are also instructed on proper collection, storage and shipping — and their milk is pasteurized before it's distributed. Women who donate their breast milk in this way aren't paid.  HMBANA  milk banks provide milk for hospitalized infants and others who have a doctor's prescription. Informal breast milk sharing practices also occur between friends, family and strangers online. Websites connecting people who want to sell and buy breast milk often include recommendations for buyers on how to minimize health and safety risks, such as making sure the donor has been screened for certain infections. However, br...

Yellow, mushy bowel movements are perfectly normal for breast-fed babies. Still, there are many shades of normal when it comes to baby poop. Here's a color-by-color guide for newborns: Black or dark green.  After birth, a baby's first bowel movements are black and tarry. This type of baby poop is known as meconium. Yellow-green.  As the baby begins digesting breast milk, meconium is replaced with yellow-green bowel movements. Yellow.  Breast-fed newborns usually have seedy, loose bowel movements that look like light mustard. Yellow or tan.  If you feed your newborn formula, his or her bowel movements might become yellow or tan with hints of green. They will be slightly more firm than breast-fed bowel movements, but no firmer than peanut butter. Once your baby begins eating solid food, his or her bowel movements might contain a wide variety of colors. If you're concerned about the color or consistency of your baby's bowel movements, contact your baby...