Issue Date: January 9, 2005

The newest research revealed!

15 things you must do for your baby

Here's the latest science has to offer on infants. Don't let your wee one age even one more day without reading these important findings.

By Kelly DiNardo

As your little one wraps a tiny, dimpled hand around your finger, USA WEEKEND Magazine wants you to know you've got the latest information on caring for your baby. Each year, we comb through the most recent scientific studies and research to compile a list of the most important new findings you need to know. From how much sleep your baby needs, to how to develop healthful eating habits, to how to care for ear infections, we've covered the ABCs so you can focus on the TLC.

Most infants don't get the 14 to 15 hours of sleep they need.

1. Establish a sleep routine
It turns out babies might be as sleep- deprived as their parents. According to a recent poll by the National Sleep Foundation, most infants don't get the 14 to 15 hours of sleep they need. "This can impair growth and cause behavior problems like irritability," says Lewis Kass, M.D., director of the Pediatric Sleep Center at the Children's Hospital at Montefiore in New York City. Kass suggests aiming for two or three naps a day and promoting healthful sleep habits by sticking to a nighttime routine.

2. Kick your smoking habit
Babies of women who smoke or who were exposed to secondhand smoke during pregnancy or while breast-feeding are twice as likely to suffer from colic, according to a review of studies in the journal "Pediatrics." "Doctors use the 'rule of threes' to determine if a baby is colicky," says the co-author of the review, epidemiologist Edmond Shenassa. "If a baby cries for three hours a day for at least three days a week for at least three weeks, then that's colic." Colic typically resolves itself in four to six weeks, but you'll reduce your baby's chances of suffering in the first place by stamping out that cigarette.

3. Consider breast feeding
Nursing cuts the risk of death from SIDS, infection, trauma and other non-cancer causes of death in the first year by 20%, according to a recent study by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences. The American Academy of Pediatrics is quick to point out there's no correct length of time that moms should breast-feed. Some babies lose interest in breast feeding between 9 and 12 months, but when you wean your baby should be determined by his, and your, needs.

4. Develop healthful eating habits from the start
A national survey of 800-plus moms of kids 2 and younger found 50% didn't know the daily nutrition guidelines for their child. As a result, the American Dietetic Association developed nutritional guidelines for infants. "We put out feeding recommendations in part to counteract common feeding myths," says Nancy Butte, a dietitian who is a pediatrics professor at Baylor College of Medicine. We sort through the myths:

MYTH: Parents should introduce foods in a certain order.
REALITY: The order doesn't matter, but stick to just one new single-ingredient food (for instance, carrots, not peas and carrots) for two- to seven-day intervals and watch for allergic reactions.

MYTH: If Baby doesn't like a new food after a few tries, it's best to just move on.
REALITY: Although 55% of mothers gave up after three or fewer tries, it can take up to 15 exposures for an infant to accept a new flavor. It's important to introduce a wide variety of foods so your baby gets all of her nutrients.

MYTH: Baby should avoid meat.
REALITY: Only 1% of moms served puréed meat as a first food. But iron-fortified cereal and puréed meats are excellent sources of iron and can be introduced early on. (See item No. 10.)

5. Turn off the tube

The more TV kids watch before age 3, the likelier they are to have attention problems at age 7.

Infants as young as 2 months old are interested in the visual stimulation of television. But a new study finds that the more TV children watch before age 3, the likelier they are to have attention problems at age 7. In fact, there is a 10% increase for each hour of television a child watches per day. "The American Academy of Pediatrics recommended that children under 2 not watch TV, and based on our study, I agree with that," says study author Dimitri Christakis, M.D., of the Children's Hospital & Regional Medical Center in Seattle.

6. Find time to relax

Find time to unwind -- for your peace of mind and your baby's health.

Pregnancy can be stressful, and a new Scottish study shows that babies exposed to excess stress hormones in the womb are at increased risk of heart disease and diabetes. But that doesn't mean Dad is off the hook: Past studies have shown that, after a baby is born, both parents' stress can affect a baby's weight, putting the child at risk for asthma. It's OK to feel sad, anxious or worried, but chronic stress or tension can have a lasting impact, so find time to unwind -- for your own peace of mind and your baby's health.

7. Keep an eye on baby's fever
When your baby comes down with a fever, it's natural to worry. But a new study in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology found that the more fevers a child has in the first year of life, the less likely he or she is to develop allergies. "A fever in and of itself isn't abnormal," says Ralph Kauffman, a pediatrician with Children's Mercy Hospital in Kansas City, Mo. "The real question is what's going on to cause the fever." Parents should take Baby to the doctor if he's lethargic, vomiting repeatedly or not drinking fluids, or if the fever is persistent and doesn't respond to medication for more than 24 hours. Parents of a baby under 3 months of age always should take the baby to the doctor in cases of fever. "In that age group, a fever can be more serious," Kauffman says.

8. Don't depend on cough syrup
In a study of 100 children, doctors at Penn State Children's Hospital found no difference between two ingredients commonly used in over-the-counter cough medicine and a placebo when it comes to suppressing nighttime coughing. Ian Paul, M.D., the study's author, suggests giving children lots of fluids and using a cool-mist room humidifier to moisten the throat. "A lot of cold symptoms can be for other things, like pneumonia or asthma," Paul adds. "If the illness gets worse or persists for more than 10 days, you should see a doctor."

9. Don't ignore jaundice
An estimated 50% to 60% of newborns have jaundice, a condition in which the liver has trouble getting rid of the chemical bilirubin in the blood. Jaundice, which causes yellowish skin, usually is not serious and typically rights itself within a week. However, in rare cases excessive bilirubin can put a newborn at risk of serious health problems, including brain damage. "This is completely preventable with proper screening and early intervention," says Henry Bernstein, M.D., associate chief of general pediatrics at Children's Hospital Boston. He is the author of an upcoming study suggesting that pediatricians evaluate all newborns for jaundice before discharging them. Additionally, new guidelines from the American Academy of Pediatrics recommend that parents of newborns with jaundice follow up with a pediatrician in the first three to five days of life.

10. Make sure baby gets plenty of iron
Infants who suffered from iron deficiency were more likely to score lower on cognitive and motor tests as teens, even if the iron deficiency was identified and treated. Babies who had been iron-deficient scored about six points lower on cognitive tests at 1 to 2 years of age and 11 points lower at ages 15 to 18, according to a recent University of Michigan study. Make sure your infant's formula is iron-fortified, and don't be afraid to add puréed meat into the baby's diet when she starts eating solids. (See item No. 4.)

11. Get kangaroo-cuddly
Skin-to-skin contact, known as "kangaroo care," has been shown to help premature babies adapt emotionally and cognitively. Now, a study published in "Pediatrics" shows that holding your full-term baby against your skin for an hour shortly after birth helps him or her sleep longer and more soundly the first night and helps reduce post-delivery stress. Even after Baby is home, regular touch can have a big impact. Studies have shown that infants who have hardly any physical contact go on to experience emotional and developmental problems, while lots of cuddling can promote Baby's development. And parents who cuddle with their little one regularly report feeling more bonded to their baby and more confident in caring for him.

12. Try natural cleaning products
Exposure to indoor pollutants known as volatile organic compounds (VOCs) may contribute to the development of childhood asthma, a new Australian study found. For each 10-unit increase in certain VOCs, which are found in paints, polishes, cleaning products, room fresheners and cigarette smoke, the risk of asthma increased two to three times. Natural products, such as vinegar and baking soda, as well as environmentally friendly cleaners on the market help keep VOC exposure low.

13. Mind baby's ears
Concern over bacteria's resistance to antibiotics spurred the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Academy of Family Physicians to issue new guidelines for treating earaches. "While eight out of 10 children get better from ear infection without antibiotics, children under 2 are less likely to get better than children over 2," says Allan Lieberthal, M.D., who helped write the new guidelines. He offers these tips for treating a baby's earaches:

Make sure your doctor fully checks the ear to determine whether it's a true ear infection.

Give your child a pain reliever like children's acetaminophen or ibuprofen to ease discomfort.

For babies younger than 6 months, antibiotics are always recommended, because very young infants are more delicate and difficult to diagnose.

Babies between 6 months and 2 years of age who definitely have an ear infection should be treated with antibiotics. However, if the doctor is uncertain and the parents are agreeable, observation for 48 to 72 hours is suggested.

14. Wean baby off the bottle between 12 and 18 months
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends introducing a cup around 8 months, and complete bottle weaning no later than 18 months. But a national survey found that 20% of 2-year-olds are still using a bottle. Each additional month on the bottle increases by 3% the odds that your child will be overweight as a preschooler, according to a new study. "It's a combination of the bottle, how many bottles the child gets each day and what's in it, which is often whole milk or high-sugar fruit juices," says study co-author Richard Kahn, a dietitian at Montefiore Medical Center/Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York.

15. Don't put baby in a walker
Walkers -- those seats with a wheeled base that let babies tool around on their own -- were banned in Canada this year. The American Academy of Pediatrics is working toward a similar ban in the United States and has recommended that parents avoid using them. "There's no good reason for mobile walkers, and they're very dangerous," says H. Garry Gardner, M.D., a member of the academy's Committee on Injury, Violence and Poison Prevention. "They're a significant cause of head injury and sometimes death [often from falls down stairs], and they don't help motor development. The stationary activity centers are great, but mobile walkers should be avoided."

Kelly DiNardo has recently written for USA WEEKEND Magazine about TV's "Desperate Housewives" and about the low-carb craze.