How to take care of a newborn baby for first-time mothers?

For first-time mothers, taking care of a baby is quite awkward and clumsy, especially for newborns. The baby is just exposed to the environment outside the mother's body, so it will be confusing and must gradually adapt to breathing, breastfeeding and enduring the hot and cold weather outside. To protect the baby's health and ensure healthy development, proper care of a newborn baby is extremely important.

Newborn care in the first 7 days of life
For newborns, the first 7 days after birth is a very important period, this is the time when the baby is at high risk of death if not cared for carefully and properly. The rate of death during this time due to lack of care is quite high, about 50%.

1.1. Pay attention to keeping the baby warm
During this time, the baby's cranial nerves will be inhibited, so the baby will sleep a lot and only wake up when hungry or the diaper is wet. For babies under 1 month old, the most important thing is to keep the baby warm. If the baby is cold, the baby can be attacked by disease-causing bacteria.

If there is no problem, the baby should be left lying with the mother, this will help the baby stay warm thanks to the mother's warmth and the baby will always be observed to promptly handle any unexpected incidents if any.

1.2. Breastfeed your baby frequently when he is hungry
When away from the warm, nutritious environment in the mother's womb, the baby is likely to be hungry and cold because it needs a lot of energy to withstand the outside environment. Parents should note that newborns have a very high need for food, so mothers need to meet their needs immediately after birth.

Then, it is also necessary to meet the baby's need for milk whenever the baby is hungry, and it is not possible to breastfeed the baby at a set time.

1.3. The importance of colostrum for the baby's development
Within 7 days after birth, the amount of IgA in breast milk is thousands of times higher than in regular milk. 1cm3 of colostrum contains up to 4,000 white blood cells, drinking colostrum will help the baby have good resistance to destroy harmful bacteria in the intestines.

Babies who are breastfed colostrum immediately after birth have a much lower rate of pneumonia and diarrhea than babies who are not breastfed. Therefore, mothers should not express colostrum and throw it away, but should make full use of this colostrum for their children.

1.4. Some normal physiological manifestations of newborns
Newborns under one month old often experience some manifestations such as passing meconium, the stool is often dark green, odorless or thick,... However, if the baby does not pass meconium for more than 2 days or has abnormal manifestations such as weight loss, jaundice, choking when feeding, cyanosis, difficulty breathing, crying a lot, jaw stiffness or lethargy, parents need to take the baby to a medical facility immediately for examination.

In some cases, if the baby's head has a hemangioma, parents should not puncture it to avoid causing dangerous infections. In this case, just monitor and follow the doctor's instructions.

Some newborns may be underweight or premature, but if there are no abnormal manifestations, the baby can be discharged after a few days. When bringing the baby home, you need to take care and monitor carefully, take the baby to see a doctor immediately if there are any unusual signs.

Caring for babies under 1 month old
In the first 28 days, the baby is in the perinatal period, the risks to the baby will gradually decrease if the parents take care of the baby properly. Parents often read and refer to the following ways to care for newborns under 1 month old to take care of the baby properly.

2.1. Caring for babies when breastfeeding
The reflexes of newborns are still very immature, if there is no support from the mother, the baby is very susceptible to regurgitation or vomiting, which is very dangerous. To overcome this problem, when breastfeeding, the mother needs to do the right thing, hold the baby upright and gently pat the back after eating so that the baby does not choke.

When sleeping, the baby's head should be slightly higher or the baby should lie on its side to avoid choking. Absolutely do not let the baby lie on its stomach because the baby can suffocate.

2.2. Taking care of your baby when bathing
Before bathing, you should prepare enough towels, diapers, clothes, bath water, eye drops, nose drops, etc. to ensure that your baby is kept warm right after bathing. The bathing place must also be windproof and you should not arbitrarily use leaves to bathe your baby. If the weather is cold, you do not need to bathe your baby every day.

The navel is a part that is very susceptible to infection in newborns, so parents need to take care of their baby's navel every day. Every time you finish bathing, just clean the navel with saline and dry it. If you want your baby's navel to fall off quickly, you need to leave the navel open, do not apply or use chemicals to wash the navel for your baby.

2.3. Wrapping diapers and hats for your baby
Do not wrap diapers too tightly because this will make your baby hot, uncomfortable and stuffy. Wrapping diapers too tightly will force your baby's hip joints to straighten and move forward, affecting the development of the legs later.

Parents should not wear hats for their children day and night, even in cold weather. Newborns often lose heat through their scalp, wearing hats regularly will make them hot, itchy and fussy. If it is hot, you only need to wear a hat to cover your baby's fontanelle at night when sleeping or when going out.

2.4. Skin, eye, nose, tongue care
The senses of newborns are still very immature, so they need to be protected and carefully cared for. Note:

- Do not let newborns come into contact with cosmetics, harsh soaps.

- Change diapers as soon as the baby gets wet.

- Use gentle products for newborns to avoid skin rash caused by irritation from feces and urine.

- Keep the baby's skin moist.

- Do not let the baby's eyes come into contact with chemicals. If the baby has watery eyes or discharge, just clean them with saline.

- Use a separate, clean towel to wipe the baby's face.

- Clean parts such as the nose and tongue daily with saline.

If you have any questions or need answers about how to care for your baby, please contact Hallysen immediately. We are always ready to support you with expert advice and quality products to help take the best care of your baby. Let Hallysen accompany your family on the journey of caring for your baby's health and development!