Baby's gum
It is never too early to help baby develop strong,
healthy gums for teeth that will soon emerge. Wipe
baby's gums with clean damp washcloth or gauze several
times during the day and before bedtime. This cleans
and stimulates gums, keeping them healthy and bacteria-free.
Starting early will also get your baby accustomed
to a cleaning routine so when its time to start brushing
her teeth, she wont fuss.
Baby's head
A small baby loses a great deal of heat through his
head, hands and feet. Before you go in a cool or cold
weather, ensure baby's head is covered with a cap
or bonnet. Add blanket for added warmth over stroller
/ carrier. In warm interiors such as house or car,
remove extra layer covering baby. Baby gets just as
uncomfortable when overheated as when cold.
Baby's nails
Baby's nails grow very fast. Sometimes they need trimming
soon after birth. Cutting nails that are so tiny can
be scary but practice makes perfect. With nails that
are soft and thin, babies can still scratch, in particular,
themselves. It is best to keep them trimmed. Use a
nail clipper or scissors designed especially for babies.
The right time for manicure is when they are asleep.
Take one finger at a time in your hand; hold fingertip
down and away from you. Snip it straight across. Be
deliberate to avoid cutting into the flesh under the
nail. An alternative is to file baby's nails with
a baby nail filer. Use mittens. You will probably
need to trim nails once every fortnight. Thumb rule
is the bigger the finger, the faster the nail growth
so thumbs need to be trimmed more often. As baby starts
to use his hands more, some of his nails will wear
down resulting in ragged nails that can scratch him.
So check nails often. Toenails should not be ignored.
They wear down more than fingernails because of contact
with socks, booties. Toenails need less trimming than
fingernails, maybe once a month. This changes by the
time baby begins walking.
Baby's sweat glands
This early in life, baby's sweat glands are not very
active. She doesn't perspire even in hot humid conditions.
However this changes when baby turns 2 months old,
when she develops sweat glands. You will also notice
the oil glands in her skin don't produce as much oil
as an adult's skin.
Baby's hair
Almost all babies are born with dark hair. All babies
shed their initial or birth hair after a while regardless
of the hair color. In dark-haired babies the shedding
phase happens later than in lighter color hair babies.
This is replaced with a new lot of hair soon after.
