Baby Health

When to Call the Pediatrician for a Sick Baby

Let’s face it – all babies get sick. Your baby’s immune system is still developing, and it’s not as strong as an adult’s. Unfortunately, there are trillions of germs and bacteria in our world. Your body has become immune to many of these germs, since you’ve had years of exposure. But a young baby’s body has yet to encounter them. So, at some point in your baby’s first year of life, he or she will get sick.

Having a sick baby is a worrisome experience for all parents. Seeing your baby coughing, crying nonstop, and feeling uncomfortable is a heartbreaking sight. You want to do all you can to help your sick baby feel better. But should you call the pediatrician every time that your baby is ill? Probably not.

Jaundice in Newborn Babies: Should You Worry?

by DP Nguyen 1 Comment

Why is my newborn baby’s skin yellow?

A newborn baby should have rosy skin, and if there is any skin discoloration, you are right to be worried. You definitely want to contact your pediatrician to see what’s going on. In most cases, your newborn has a common condition called jaundice.

Up to 60 percent of full-term newborns, and 80 percent of premature infants have jaundice. In a majority of cases, jaundice goes away on its own and it’s not dangerous. However, in cases of severe jaundice, your baby will need to get treated to avoid the potential risk of brain damage.

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Baby Acne – Why Does My Baby Have Pimples?

by Guest Writer 9 Comments

No new mother wants to see little red or white spots on her baby’s cheeks. Believe it or not, but these red bumps are baby acne. That’s right – your baby has pimples. Although it’s not a pretty sight, baby acne is usually nothing to worry about. It is temporary and a common experience. The pimples will clear up within a few weeks or months.
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Signs of Eye Problems in Babies

by Guest Writer 2 Comments

This is a guest post.

Sometimes it’s easy to forget to pay attention to vision problems in babies. Some parents may be more focused on when their child begins to babble and talk, or when their child begins to pull up, crawl, or walk. But your baby’s vision teaches a lot about the world around them, so it’s critical to his or her overall development.

When a newborn arrives in the world, his or her eye is about 75 percent the size of your adult eye. A newborn’s vision is initially very poor (approximately 20/400), but he or she will respond (by blinking) if someone shines a light in his or her eye. Your child will not have 20/20 vision until he or she is two years old. Over the first year of life, your child’s vision rapidly improves. His or her 3D vision also develops along with coordinated eye movements. [Read more…] about Signs of Eye Problems in Babies

Autism Study: Premature Babies are 5 Times More Likely to Have Autism

by Guest Writer 7 Comments

Guest Post by Chipper Nicodemus.

There’s a new 2011 autism study out of the University of Pennsylvania that finds that babies that are underweight and born early (before 37 weeks of pregnancy) are five times more likely to have autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

The researchers followed over 1,100 children over a period of 20 years. The children weighed less than 4 pounds, 6 ounces (or 2,000 grams) at birth. The team of scientists evaluated the children at the ages of 2, 6, 9, 16 and 21 – each time looking at behavioral, academic and psychiatric outcomes. They found that the prevalence of ASD in this group of children as five times higher than children born full-term and with a normal birth weight.
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Pets and How They Prevent Allergies in Children

by DP Nguyen 4 Comments

Gracie Lu Shih Tzu — Gracie Lu, My Shih Tzu

Pet allergies in children are a sad reality, and it can deprive kids of knowing the wonderful experience of owning a cat or a dog. If you’re a dog or cat lover, you don’t have to give up your pet for your child. According to new research, exposing infants (under one year old) to a pet (whether this is a dog or a cat) can actually prevent pet allergies later in life.

Many parents are often worried that having pets in the home can increase their child’s risk of getting pet allergies later on. Despite what you have heard, this is not the case. You should allow your baby to be around cats and dogs!

(Make sure you watch and pay attention to how your fur-baby acts around the new member of your family. Furbabies can get jealous and act out.)

A new study, published in the journal, Clinical and Experimental Allergy found that young adults who lived with a dog or a cat when they were a baby were less likely to have pet allergies.