Tips from All Over

Submitted by Aiza Bautista on November 5, 2007 - 00:00

My own mom may not be around when I gave birth to Elise but I was lucky to be surrounded by people who gave me plenty of tips. Here are some that I found most useful when the little girl was around 1-6 months old.

  1. Trickle drops of vitamins under the baby's tongue. It lessens the chance of gagging since it'll combine with her saliva to make it less goopy. (source: Elise's Pedia)
  2. Give her vitamins before she takes a bath in the morning so you can wash off all stickiness afterwards. (source: Pau's Mom)
  3. Mittens - Aside from keeping her precious face scratch free, it doubles up as self-wipes for drool, too. Just make sure you change it as often as every after 4 hours to avoid baby's hands from smelling icky.
  4. Use moistened cotton to clean baby's face. Don't use soap or a washcloth because it'll dry her sensitive skin or may cause rashes.
  1. Do infant massage before you put soap during bathtime. Infants thrive on touch and the contact helps you bond with your baby more. (source: Elise's Pedia)
  2. If she refuses to drink water, mix one part of Karo Light Syrup to 5 parts of water. Honey is also okay but the preparation of our local honey may not be sterile for baby. (source: Elise's Pedia)
  3. If your baby's gag reflex is strong (like Elise's), you need not swab her mouth often to avoid mouth sores. Just make sure she drinks enough water to clean the white coating on her tongue. (source: Aiza's Pedia)
  4. You need not warm baby's milk before feeding, room temperature is enough (Philippine room temperature, that is). This will prove useful when you travel a lot. (source: Elise's Pedia)
  5. Sing to her often, it helps soothe baby when she's throwing a fit. (source: Aiza's Mom)

Hope this helps. What's your favorite tip of all?

Comments

dear aiza, great tips by

Anonymous's picture
Submitted by spunkyjose (not verified) on December 4, 2007 - 12:14.

dear aiza,

great tips by the way, I am a working father of a 7 month baby girl and i would love to get my hands/read on anything: tips, topics, info about babies and the "how tos" in raising a child. most of what you said is true, and I agree with them. I also do most of those things to my baby by the way. however i may not agree with your tip number 6. before people, mothers, even doctors recommend to mix Karo syrup or honey with water, but now basing on research, adding syrup offers more than empty calories and babies will get used to it, (the sweetness part) and as we know sweets aren't all that good either. Honey, presents an additional health risk to babies in the first year. Honey may contain the spores of the bacterium Clostridium botulinum, which in this form is harmless to adults but can cause botulism in infants. It is characterized by constipation, weakness in sucking, poor appetite, and lethargy, the disease can lead to pneumonia and dehydration, and is quite serious though rarely fatal. Some doctors okey honey at 8 months, others recommend waiting till year's end. I have learned this through research in baby books, others may not agree with what i said because nothing serious happened to their babies, and some doctors have different opinions about this, but for me it's better not to risk your baby's health.
Nice forum by d way....

hi, jac! i have also been

Anonymous's picture
Submitted by ByNature (not verified) on November 13, 2007 - 18:02.

hi, jac! i have also been looking for the brand "karo" but it doesn't seem to be available in unimart nore puregold. i've opted for another brand that's corn syrup to sweeten drinks. you may ask your pedia if corn syrup is okay to make glucose water (i think that's what karo is, too). but if you are breastfeeding, there's no need for that 'coz your foremilk acts as the "water" while your hindmilk acts as the "solids" for your baby.

Just like some of you

Anonymous's picture
Submitted by emily (not verified) on November 13, 2007 - 01:57.

Just like some of you mommies mentioned, honey can cause reactions to babies and best to ask your doctor first. Also, babies up to 6 months do not need to drink water. Babies get 80% of this from breastmilk and/or formula. I never gave water to my baby until she started on solids, just to wash it down. It's really best to ask your doctor and see what's best for your babies.

Best tip? Don't stress about what others say about raising your baby. Every child and mother is unique and you have to go with your instincts. Mothers really know best.

hi Jac, its available at

Anonymous's picture
Submitted by Aiza Bautista (not verified) on November 12, 2007 - 21:39.

hi Jac, its available at those big supermarkets. its a pancake syrup cost around P150 each bottle.

where can i buy karo light

Anonymous's picture
Submitted by jac (not verified) on November 12, 2007 - 16:24.

where can i buy karo light syrup?

the most useful tip for me

Anonymous's picture
Submitted by rinna (not verified) on November 6, 2007 - 03:36.

the most useful tip for me would be to not time breastfeeding sessions. i've heard from a lot of healthcare professionals (including the one who used to do my son's well-baby checks) to just do 10 minutes on one breast and then if the baby's hungry pa, switch and do about 7 minutes on the other. If I had followed that, we would've definitely failed in breastfeeding because my son was a piddler. He'd nurse anywhere between 45mins-1.5hrs.

yes, i've also read about

Anonymous's picture
Submitted by ByNature (not verified) on November 5, 2007 - 17:28.

yes, i've also read about honey being a taboo for babies below 12 months. light syrup should be good enough.

nice of you to share those tips for moms, btw. :)

great tips i have would be:
1) read to your baby as often as you can. it does not necessarily have to be baby books (for younger babies). magazines, newspapers, regular books are fine. it helps the baby get familiarized with words.
2) play music wherever your baby is. classical, nursery rhymes, and light/mellow music are the best.
3) best to use natural bath products on your baby. i make all-natural handmade soaps but i still tried commercial shampoos and body washes on our 1st son. he got contact dermatitis from them :( now, both our sons are using my handmade soaps for both hair and body and their skins are rashes-free.
4) when you give your baby a massage, do the "i love you" massage on the tummy to stimulate the digestive system.
5) when your baby has difficulty breathing due to the hardened mucus in the nose, just put 1-2 drops of salinase in each nostril to loosen the mucus then use a nasal aspirator or cotton buds (if your baby is not fussy) to remove them.

hope these tips help! :)

great tips, aiza. thanks :)

Anonymous's picture
Submitted by ivy (not verified) on November 5, 2007 - 13:02.

great tips, aiza. thanks :) about no. 6 though, i thought honey of all sorts was to be avoided until the baby reached 12 months. something to do with the botulism bacteria that infant tummy cannot fight yet. i accidentally gave dd honey graham crackers around her 7th mo though and she didn't seem to have any reaction to it. i did make sure she didn't get any more until she turned 1. when she did, i allowed myself to add a bit of honey to her applesauce.
fave tips? hmmm. rotate toys available to her so she doesn't get tired of all them all at once. give her something totally fascinating (to her, it differs from kids to kid. mine likes kitchen doodads like wooden spoons, egg whisks, measuring spoons...) when changing her dipes or else she'll try to fling her poop all over the room... the difference between the price of homemade baby food and that of commercial ones is whack. and always check the ingredients of products even those of baby food companies that have been here since the flood. some still use hydrogenated oils.
hth :)

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