What to do to take care of the newborn at home

To take care of the newborn at home, parents need to dedicate a lot of time to the baby, as he is very small and fragile and needs a lot of attention.

In this way, parents should try to maintain the newborn's comfort, so that he / she grows strong and healthy, avoiding diseases, such as infections or growth retardation. Thus, parents should feed the baby and change the diaper every 3 hours and bathe at least 3 times a week, for example, in addition to never leaving the baby alone.

In addition, in the first 2 weeks, the baby normally loses up to 10% of the weight with which he was born and, therefore, parents should not be worried, since then it is expected to increase every week of weight and grow.

How to prepare the newborn's room

The baby's room must be simple and always clean, to avoid the accumulation of dust and bacteria that are harmful to health, and it must be equipped with at least:

Large and airy room

Have chair

Have a changing mat

1 changing mat to change the diaper and easily dress and undress the baby; 1 comfortable chair or armchair for the mother to breastfeed; 1 closet for baby clothes and bed linen; 1 cot or bed, which must have waterproof mattress and cotton sheets and blankets and the bars with bars must be spaced less than 6 cm away for the child not to pass and fall and the baby can sleep alone since he is born.

In addition, the baby's room should be spacious and airy, maintaining a comfortable temperature, varying between 20 and 22º and the floor should not have rugs for parents to not trip over or many toys, especially plush toys.

How to give the baby the first bath

The newborn should bathe 3 times a week and whenever it is dirty and the bath should be done with water only for the first 15 days, as its skin is very fragile and it is essential to always hold the baby's head.

From there, you can use soap with a neutral pH and no alcohol and you don't need to use shampoo, washing your hair with the same product for the body.

Holding baby's head

Shantala or hot tub

Thus, to carry out your newborn's hygiene it is necessary to:

Bathtub, shantala bucket or hot tub with a maximum of 20 cm of water at 37º; Compresses and saline to clean the eyes and nose; Soft and lint-free towel; Scissors with round tips, if it is necessary to cut the nails; Brush or comb for hair; Change clothes, which must be open and arranged in the order in which they are to be worn; 1 clean diaper to change; Creams, only in some cases, for dry skin or diaper erythema, for example.

The bath should be quick, not exceeding 10 minutes so as not to change the composition of the baby's skin and can be given at any time of the day except after milk. Read more at: Bathing the newborn baby.

How to dress the newborn in summer and winter

The baby's clothes should be made of cotton, without ribbons, hair, elastics or buttons and, if possible, 2 separate pieces should be worn, such as a blouse and pants, as it is easier to dress and change.

To avoid irritation of the baby's skin, all labels should be cut and only one more piece of clothing that the parents are wearing should be worn, for example, if the father has 2 sweaters, the baby should only have 3.

Blouse and pants

Newborn clothes

In winter the outer clothing should be made of wool, as it is warmer and the summer clothing made of cotton all cotton, one should not buy too much clothing, as the baby grows very fast.

In addition, the baby's clothes should be washed apart from the adults' clothes, with a small amount of non-biological liquid product and drying the clothes in the machine makes it softer. Read more at: How to tell if your baby is cold or hot.

How should the baby feed

The newborn is normally fed through breast milk which is the best food for the baby to grow up healthy. However, in some cases, the newborn needs to make artificial milk that is given through the bottle.

Breastfeeding

The baby should breastfeed whenever he wants, so there is no defined frequency for breastfeeding, however, it is common for the baby to be hungry every 3 hours during the day, and should not spend more than 4 sleeping without eating, even at night and each feeding takes an average of 20 minutes, being faster at first and then slower.

The mother can breastfeed while sitting or lying down, the important thing is that the baby is making an adequate grip, which implies that the baby touches the chin with the breast, keeps the mouth open and the lips turned out, take the areola and not just the nozzle and being able to hear the swallowing of the milk. Learn how to breastfeed at: How to breastfeed.

Breastfeeding

Give the bottle

Baby bottle with formula

When the woman does not produce enough milk for the baby to grow, it is necessary to give artificial formula, however, it should only be started after the pediatrician's indication. The baby who drinks artificial milk is usually less hungry, as the milk is heavier, but it should also not go more than 4 hours without being fed.

To give the bottle you need to prepare the milk and for that you must:

Boil water for 5 minutes; Pour the water into the bottle and let it cool to room temperature; Pour the powdered milk, with 1 shallow spoon corresponding to 30 ml of water; Shake the bottle until the liquid is homogeneous; Give the baby milk in a glass or bottle and, to give it, you must support the head and back on the arm and keep the baby in a semi-seated position and keeping the teat filled with milk.

In the end, you should put the baby to eruct, which is to help burp to put excess air in the stomach and, for that, you need to place it upright and giving small pats on the back.

Cleaning the umbilical stump

The umbilical stump, which is the rest of the umbilical cord that stays in the baby's navel, must be disinfected at least once a day, after bathing and touching the stump does not cause pain to the baby, so you can move without fear. Generally, the stump falls around the 4th to the 15th day of life and to do its cleaning it is necessary to:

By alcohol at 70º in the sterile compress; Hold the clip with one hand; Clean the umbilical stump in the region with skin for the clip, passing the compress only once and then throwing it in the trash.

After dropping the umbilical cord, continue to clean with saline solution until it is completely dry and without injury and the diaper must be folded under the navel, to avoid wetting and causing infection, which causes symptoms such as redness, greenish liquid, loss of blood or strong and unpleasant smell, for example.

How to know why the baby is crying

In most cases, crying is the main way that the baby has to alert the parents of any discomfort, such as dirty diapers, hunger or fear, and it is important to identify the type of crying in order to calm the baby.

To understand crying, one must pay attention to the sound and movements of the baby's body, which usually help to identify the reason for crying.

Reason for crying	Choro description
Pain or colic	A short, high-pitched cry, very loud, for a few seconds without crying but with a red face and closed fists, followed by another scream and it doesn't stop even if you hold it. The pain can be caused by colic, which is more common up to 4 months in babies who drink artificial milk.
Hunger	She cries in sobs and moves her head to the sides, keeping her mouth open.
Fear or boredom	He whimpers but calms down when talking to him or holding him.
Tiredness	It is a typical cry of the end of the day and the newborn cries, moaning and frowning and frowning.

Some ways that can help to calm the newborn include looking for a calm environment, having a massage, breastfeeding or wrapping it in a blanket. Learn more techniques at: 6 Ways to make your baby stop crying.

How to keep the newborn safe

To keep the newborn baby safe, he should never be alone, as he is very small and fragile. Thus, some safety measures must be maintained, such as:

Always observe the baby, never leaving him alone; Do not take the baby to the kitchen while cooking, check the temperature of the bath water and milk, to avoid burns; Always lay the baby on its back with its head on its side, touching the bottom of the bed with its feet and keeping the bedding attached to the baby's aid, to avoid suffocation; Transport the baby in a car seat belonging to the 0+ group, which is suitable for the baby's weight and size. Lock the cart or egg whenever it is stopped and do not place it high, to avoid falls; In the car, put the car seat in the back seat, preferably in the middle seat, with your back to the traffic direction and in the case of the car having only 2 seats, the child can be transported in front, however it is necessary to disable the airbag system ; Avoid contact with animals with fur, as it can cause respiratory infections.

All these cares help the newborn to be safe and to grow in a healthy way, avoiding the appearance of diseases.