Infant
Infant
Infant
Childcare Options
THE BABBLE TAKE Childcare options are a sensitive topic, fraught with class and financial issues. There is no hard data on whether daycare or at-home-care is better for children. Both options have pros and cons, including logistical hurdles. If the at-home caregiver is a nanny, economics will factor in; paying a nanny to take care of a single...
Infant
Antibiotics
THE BABBLE TAKE Small children get sick. A lot. The average young child will come down with somewhere between three and eight respiratory infections each year. Doctors say most of these will be viral and should not be treated with antibiotics. Bacterial infections on the other hand require antibiotics. However, upwards of half of all visits to t...
Infant
Febrile Seizures
THE BABBLE TAKE Febrile seizures (or convulsions as they are commonly known in Australia) can be brought on by the rapid spike in body temperature that happens when a child develops a high fever. The symptoms can be mild, such as eye-rolling, or slight shaking, or they can consist of full-blown seizures with the whole body cramping up in spasm...
Infant
Hives
THE BABBLE TAKE Hives (Urticaria) are red welts with a white spot of raised skin in their centre. They usually appear suddenly, can come and go, and are caused by an allergic reaction of some kind. Illness, food, medicines, or external irritants like pets, laundry detergent, or new clothes are some of the possible culprits. Usually, it isn't p...
Infant
Returning To Work
THE BABBLE TAKE Few parenting issues involve as much culturally inflicted guilt as when and how (and in some circles, if) a mother should return to work, with much anxiety surrounding the topic. Politics aside, working is a necessity as well as a desire for most mothers, and their babies tend to be none the worse for it. Some say mothers who'v...
Infant
Teething
THE BABBLE TAKE Teething is an unexpectedly controversial topic. The degree of physical pain and symptoms attributed to teething has varied considerably over the last century. In Victorian times it was thought to be the leading cause of infant mortality. New teeth are no longer seen as a cause of severe illness, but paediatricians still disa...
Infant
Formula
THE BABBLE TAKE While all paediatricians agree that breastfeeding is the ideal method of nourishing a child, a formula baby can still be well-fed and healthy. All Australian baby formulas are strictly regulated by the Food Standards Board and should contain all the nutrients necessary for an infant to thrive. Paediatricians say there are no ge...
Infant
Sign Language
THE BABBLE TAKE Sign-language is not just for the deaf and that Meet the Fockers kid anymore. Some parents are now teaching their hearing infants to sign before they can talk in an effort to better communicate with their pre-verbal babies. One oft cited benefit is that signing may ease toddler frustration. Sceptics wonder if it is worth the e...
Infant
