Few mothering habits, it seems, are guaranteed to provoke quite such a reaction as breastfeeding beyond babyhood.

When I told anyone who happened to be interested that I was interviewing Ann Sinnott, a mother who had breastfed her daughter for over six years and has now written a book on the subject, reactions ranged from discreet grimaces to outright revulsion.

If I’d said I was about to meet someone who believed swearing at children was to be encouraged along with smacking them daily, the disapproval could not have been greater. Read the rest of this entry »

Once your baby starts sleeping more and has already skipped the middle of the night feeding there is still that inevitable night waking from time to time.

In the middle of the night when your baby wakes up check if the baby has leaked without moving him/her or without lifting baby from the crib. If there is no leak, stroke baby’s head for a minute to soothe them back to sleep or give a pacifier. Then leave the room and go back to bed. Read the rest of this entry »

Infants communicate by crying. They are new to the world, and every sensation, every feeling is something new. New parents often have a hard time determining what an infant needs when he cries.

There are some basic needs that the new parent can check when an infant is crying, to be sure that they are met. Any one of them, or a combination, can be the reason the infant is crying. Read the rest of this entry »

The best time to do this is while he’s sleeping. (You may want to leave nail utensils in the car so you can do the job while your baby’s asleep in his car seat.) Another good time is right after a bath, when your baby’s nails are at their softest.

Make sure you have enough light to see what you’re doing. Use a pair of baby scissors or clippers made especially for the purpose. Press the finger pad away from the nail to avoid nicking the skin, and keep a firm hold on your baby’s hand as you clip. Read the rest of this entry »

For more than a year now, I have been discussing the importance of the “sunshine vitamin” and how Vitamin D during pregnancy has effects on such things as rates of caesarean section and the health of the unborn baby’s future teeth.

Now, in the latest bit of research, mothers who were pregnant with babies who were born between June and October had children who, when studied at the age of 9 years, were taller and had wider bones than those born in the darker months. Read the rest of this entry »

Pregnant women are among the most common sufferers of chronic heartburn, a condition also known as gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). Heartburn is the result of acid reflux, the term used to describe stomach acid that backs up into the esophagus (the narrow tube that connects the mouth and the stomach). Hormonal changes during pregnancy and the pressure exerted on the stomach by the growing fetus can cause acid reflux to happen more frequently. Read the rest of this entry »