Baby Safety, In the Bathroom

For an unaccompanied infant your bathroom can be full with potential and dangerous hazards, in spite of this by taking a small number of effortless precautions the risk of accidents may be minimised.

A number of parents opt to keep the bathroom door locked or blocked with a gate to ensure that their toddler cannot sneak in unattended. Nevertheless, this is not an tactic liked by all as baby is not offered the chance to familiarise themself with the bathroom and get to learn about its likely dangers before they start off toilet training.

Significant precautions to take include ensuring all medications, toiletries and cleaning products are safe in cupboards high out of your baby’s reach, removing any pointed objects such as scissors, razors and tweezers from the bathroom or storing them in a cupboard fitted with a child proof lock in addition to keeping electrical appliances out of the bathroom. Further, it is also worthwhile to fit a child lock on the toilet seat to thwart curious children from peering or climbing inside.

By setting the thermostat on your water heater t no more than 50 degrees Celsius you will help to reduce the possibility of your baby being burnt by hot water. When running a bath for your baby you must fill up the bath with cold water first and then add the warm water. You should make sure the temperature with your elbow or wrist as opposed to your hand as these areas are more responsive to heat. Furthermore, as babies are very easily burnt (their skin is 15 times thinner than an adults) it is critical that the hot water used in an adult bath is drained as soon as it is done with.

You should in no way leave your baby without supervision in the bath, not even for a second while you answer the phone or go to get something - even when your baby is resting on a bath support or in a baby seat. It is for this extremely important reason to make sure that you have all the bits you need to bath your baby to hand, if you have forgotten something, take your baby out of the bath and take them with you.

Avent Bath Thermometers are available to help you run the optimum temperature for your baby's bath, however it is usually a good idea to use your skin to test the water also, this method is fail safe unlike a faulty thermometer.

By taking these important precautions and making sure you by no means leave baby unsupervised in a room with a filled sink or bath, you will help to reduce any potential hazards whilst helping your baby to learn how to use the bathroom safely.

Is It Ok To Diet While Trying To Fall Pregnant?

Whilst attempting to fall pregnant you'll want to be as fit and well as possible to make sure your happiness, as well as that of your unborn baby. Thus you may possibly be considering going on a diet if you aren't absolutely content with your weight at the moment.

Though this can be a pleasant plan for those who are medically overweight, it may possibly not be required if you are already in good shape.

Uncover your 'ideal weight'...

When deciding whether or not you should go on a diet while trying to fall pregnant, you should ask yourself truthfully how close you think you are to your perfect weight. This does not mean trying to drop a clothing size so you can fit into your old pair of denims, but instead trying to reach a weight that is healthy and balanced for you.

To discover out what your ideal weight is you could check with your doctor, or work out your BMI (Body Mass Index) yourself here. By entering your current weight and height you can find out how close you are to reaching a weight that is optimum for your body.

What if I am overweight?

If you are overweight or obese you may benefit from losing a some weight ahead of you fall pregnant.

If you attain a healthy weight your chances of conception possibly will actually rise. If you have experienced issues with uneven periods you may possibly find that your menstrual cycle becomes more regular. It may signify that you are more likely to feel healthier and fitter when going through all the different stages of pregnancy.

Achieving a healthy weight is in addition incredibly significant when trying to conceive as it means you are less probable to be subjected to difficulties for the period of your pregnancy. Individuals who are at a premium weight when conceiving will have a lower possibility of developing pre-eclampsia or diabetes than those who are overweight.

But, rather than attempting to shed weight swiftly in time for the commencement of your pregnancy, it is prudent that instead you focus on eating a healthy, well-adjusted diet with a lot of nutrients, and drop weight little by little. If you subject your body to rapid weight loss you may be less likely to conceive as your body will experience needless strain.

The best thing to do to ensure a healthy diet is to make sure you are getting a lot of low-fat foods, speckled nutrients, fibres, and lots of fluids, while introducing a moderate exercise regimen, so that you can shed weight gradually and increasingly.

What if I am underweight?

If you weigh less than your ideal weight and have low body fat, you may well be less likely to conceive, particularly if your menstrual cycle is not regular due to your weight. In this case you may have to increase your calorie intake in order to be at a healthier weight and regulate your menstrual cycle, making you more likely to ovulate.

The crucial thing to bear in mind is to eat a healthy range of food while attempting to conceive. If you restrict your diet in any way in an attempt to lose or gain weight, you might not be getting all the nutrients you need to conceive and carry your pregnancy through to term.

If you are planning on starting any style of diet while trying to conceive, make sure to check with your health practitioner first. They will be able to let know you of your ideal weight and how you can go about reaching that healthily and safely. They will in addition be able to advise you of the right foods to eat and exercise to take that will increase your individual chances of conceiving.

Tommee Tippee BPA Free Baby Bottle Range

Tommee Tippee BPA Free baby bottle range will be arriving in Australia early next month and we will be taking delivery mid-July. This is very exciting news!

Tommee Tippee BPA free baby bottle range includes the following exciting new bpa free baby feeding products:

• Tommee Tippee BPA free Mighty Grip Trainer Cup (6m+, 230ml)
• Tommee Tippee BPA free Easiflow Spill-Proof First Cup (6m+
• Tommee Tippee BPA free Sip 'n' Seal Cup (6m+, 200ml)
• Tommee Tippee BPA free Easy-grip Sipper (6m+, 260ml)
• Tommee Tippee BPA free Easiflow Learn-to-Drink Tumbler (2 steps in 1) (9m+)
• Tommee Tippee BPA free Insulated Spout Cup (9m+, 270ml)
• Snack 'n' Straw Cup (12m+, 240ml)
• Tommee Tippee Closer to Nature Baby Bottles

To learn more about this fantastic new range click here.

Watch this space.

Introduction To Breastfeeding For You And Baby

Breastfeeding allows you to provide your baby with all it needs for growth and development. Breast milk not only contains all the nutrients your baby needs, in an easily digested form, but it also contains antibodies to guard your baby from all kinds of infection.

There are substances in breast milk, that cannot be reproduced. You single-handedly can give these living factors for your baby. Breastfeeding is a very helpful thing to do. It is not merely beneficial for your baby, it is good for you. The advantages are many.

The major advantages of breastfeeding for your baby:

• Breast milk is the only food specially designed, by nature, to meet your baby's individual needs.

• It contains the right balance of nutrients in a very easily digestible form.

• Antibodies are passed on through breast milk to defend your baby from all kinds of infection. The longer you can feed your newborn the better but if you breastfeed for the first three or four months this protection can last for up to a year.

• Your baby is much less likely to need to be admitted to hospital.

• Your baby is less likely to develop diarrhoea or constipation.

• Breastfeeding reduces the incidence of allergies such as eczema and asthma.

• Breast milk contains growth factors and hormones to help your baby's development. These cannot be reproduced in formula milk. Children who have breast fed for eight months or more have been shown to achieve more at school than those who have been bottle fed.

The Big advantages of breastfeeding for a Mum:

• Breastfeeding helps your body to get back to it's original shape, and in some cases better shape - burns up to 500 calories a day.

• Breast milk is free

• Mothers who breastfeed typically feel a special link with their newborn baby and can be much less likely to be affected by postnatal depression.

• Breastfeeding can possibly give you a safe-guard against developing ovarian cancer, breast cancer and hip fractures.

The main disadvantages of breastfeeding for Mum:

• Viruses such as hepatitis B or HIV and some medication can be passed on to your baby in breast milk.

• Mother may find breastfeeding tricky work, it may them worry, is can be worrying and it is tiring

• While you are breastfeeding it's really quite impossible to know amount of breast milk your baby has eaten, this can be a disadvantage if your baby is having problems putting on weight - if you choose to have a bottle fed baby this is never a problem

• It can be difficult for a breastfeeding mother to leave her baby for more than a couple of hours as no one else can feed baby unless she leaves expressed milk

Most women can breastfeed, but many do run into issues. Always ask for help.
Breastfeeding can take a number of weeks to establish properly with your baby. Once breastfeeding is established the majority of mothers find breastfeeding easy and fun.

Colic And Your Baby

Colic - All babies cry, however babies that cry for more than a few hours a day for more than a couple of days in any given week will likely have colic, which means not much sleep for already sleep deprived parents. Babies with colic will frequently be out of control with their crying, in spite of being well fed with the breast of baby bottle. Although colic is a harmless condition it can be fairly distressing for parents or your babysitter.

Approximately 20% of babies get colic, and it does not discriminate between gender, first born children and those born later. Generally speaking, colic can happen at around two to four weeks of age and can last for three months, or longer in a quantity of cases.

The root of colic is still a considerable mystery in the medical world; nonetheless, there are ways to assist your baby get to sleep if she is going through a bout of colic. In the past colic was thought to be associated to the digestive system - dreadful abdominal gas may perhaps contribute to colic, although there is little evidence to verify it's due to gastrointestinal troubles.

There are countless probable causes of colic, but a pretty common one is a mixture of the baby's overall temperament and a nervous system that is still incredibly undeveloped. The baby's temperament might make her or her exceedingly especially sensitive to the atmosphere surrounding her and your baby could probably react to usual stimulation by crying.

The most problematical indicator of colic is crying for extensive lengths of time, this is what keeps us up and makes us concerned. Even still crying can take place pretty erratically, it is commonly worse at nighttime. Babies possibly will tilt their heads, lift their legs up to their tummy, turn out to be rosy in the face and pass wind. A few babies may say no to eat or even have difficulty falling and staying asleep – this is very widespread.

On the whole, colic is not a serious condition. Research shows that babies with colic go on to eat and gain weight usually, despite the crying. The main problem with the condition is the stress and anxiety it creates within the home. Parents and other family members may find it difficult to cope with the constant crying, so it's important to have support and to take a break now and then.

If your baby has colic she will not need to see a doctor or paediatrician. However, any parent who is concerned about their baby's crying and colic may want to get assistance from a health care expert to make sure there is no severe problem. Before you see your baby’s paediatrician, you should try a course of elimination for things that may be making your baby cry; hunger, tiredness, lack of contact, temperature or pain.

If your baby has colic or is disposed to colic you may possibly consider the following:

• Try a formula milk formula
• If your baby is using baby bottles you ought to take a lengthy hard look at the baby bottles and teats you are using. Inadequately designed teats/nipples and baby bottles may intensify the risk of colic for your baby
• Breastfed babies should go on with breast milk, altering this may make colic worse for your baby
• New mothers who are breastfeeding may possibly reduce the subsequent foods out of their diet - cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, sprouts, parsnips, onions, or beans, garlic, apricots, melon, spicy foods, caffeine and alcohol. By reintroducing foods little by little, you may be able to identify which food, if any, is causing the trouble.
• If you are breastfeeding you could attempt getting rid of cow’s milk from your diet as you baby may find processing lactose troubling

If your baby seems to have a lot of wind, make sure he or she is burped frequently.
Anti-Colic Soothing Techniques:

• Attempt and avoid using a pram after feeds. Instead, go for a walk with her in a sling or at least so that she is upright
• Swaddle her firmly
• If she has a favourite swing, try using it
• Go for a drive. A word of warning though, do not let her get used to this method otherwise your petrol bill will go through the roof trying to calm her
• Try a dummy. However, be mindful that this will inhibit her vocal expressions
• Soothe her by having a shower together

There is not one ‘holy grail’ of a cure for colic in terms of prescription medication. Though, we at BPA Free Baby Bottles Online recommend a more holistic approach to colic incorporating our soothing techniques. If you are after a more holistic appraoch to colic relief you could try using Brauer Colic Relief

BPA Free Baby Bottles - why are they so expensive?

Those of you who are currently learned in all bisphanol A (BPA), who have possession of baby bottles that contain BPA, and are at this point think about a swap toward BPA free baby bottles are conceivably looking at all the bottles on the market and are stunned at the prices - given that a reduced BPA free baby bottle is $16 and a common baby bottle can be bought for as low as $4.00 I am not surprised.

The fact is that most BPA free baby bottles are made from either polypropylene of PES plastic and both these plastic are simply more costly the polycarbonate. The main reason for this price dissimilarity is that polycarbonate is more abundant, thus making it more expensive.

The second reason, and perhaps one not mentioned before, is that PES plastic is still in it's infancy and a little on the boutique side and less widespread. Also, the major brands that have decided to create BPA free baby bottles are still producing polycarbonate baby bottles, if not in the U.S certainly for the rest of the world. To illustrate this I use the analogy that when Ford develops a new concept car, the price to build could be millions of dollars, but it's not until it goes to mass production that the price comes down to a figure that the majority of people can afford. Meaning, one day, BPA free baby bottles will become cheaper to produce.

This means that, for the time being, BPA free baby bottles will remain a little on the expensive side. One thing to consider, however, is that BPA free baby bottles will last much longer than a polycarbonate baby bottle and it's likely that if you have more than one child that you will be able to pass this bottle on.

The other issue to consider is this; what price should you pay for your baby's safety and peace of mind?

Breastfeeding, What Should I Eat

When you are breastfeeding your diet is equally as important as whilst you were pregnant as you are still the primary source for your baby’s nourishment. As a new Mum you will also need plenty of energy to cope with the demands of looking after a newborn. For this reason you should endeavor and keep up the nourishing eating practices you took up throughout pregnancy.

Even though new Mum's can feel a huge amount of anxiety to regain their pre-pregnancy bodies fast after their baby is born it is suggested that you shouldn't embark on a diet or work out regieme until at least 6 weeks following the birth and then only after consulting your healthcare specialist.

Breastfeeding single-handedly burns in the order of 500 calories a day which is why Mums that breastfeed drop their baby weight at a naturally faster rate. If you do want to drop weight you should concentrate on consuming between 2000 and 2200 calories each day from wholesome foods and blend this with moderate exercise such as walking, swimming, yoga or pilates.

As an evolutionary device, it is your body rather than your milk supply that will suffer if you aren't taking on enough of the correct foods. This is because the valuable fundamentals of the foods you eat are passed on to your baby through your breast milk and only the surplus is used to nourish your body. For this reason the value of your milk is likely to remain constant regardless of your diet (with the exception of extreme nutritional deprivation), however the amount is likely to be affected. Having said that every baby needs a healthy Mum with plenty of energy to care for them so a well balanced diet is vital.

Essentials of the food and drink you drink are passed on to your baby through your breast milk - this includes alcohol and nicotine from cigarettes. If you do maintain smoking (although this is strongly discouraged) you should put off at least an hour between having a cigarette and feeding your baby to set aside some of the chemicals to disperse. Also, as alcohol passes into your milk source in less than an hour you should wait until after a feed before having an alcoholic beverage.

Though it is not said that caffeine has any long term undesirable effects on babies when taken in moderation, if you make out that your infant becomes stressed or finds it tough to settle when you have been drinking caffeinated drinks you may choose to avoid them or switch to a decaffeinated alternative. You ought to continually drink plenty of water when breastfeeding to make sure that you are suitably hydrated to be able to generate milk. You should try and drink in the region of 2 litres or between 8 and 10 glasses a day. At BPA Free Baby Bottles Online we in no way endorse smoking or drinking, ever, the reality is though that people do, which why we have mentioned it.

You ought to try and eat 5 varied portions of fruit and vegetables a day, plenty of complex carbohydrates (such as brown rice and pasta, wholemeal bread and potatoes) and lean protein. As breast milk contains high levels of calcium it is important that you eat heaps of dairy products, raw vegetables and nuts so that you don't become deficient.

If you were taking any vitamin supplements all through pregnancy it is normally suggested that you go on with with these even as you breastfeed although you should always check with your healthcare expert.

Even though the majority of babies do not have a food sensitivity, some babies become aggravated when their mother consumes certain foods. Unless you notice that your baby often has a reaction each time you have consumed a certain food (withing 2 to 4 hours) there is no need to assume that their digestive system will not tolerate it. However, if you do believe that certain foods bring about a reaction in your baby, it is important that you check with your GP before eliminating any food group from your diet.

Through eating a well balanced diet comprising wholesome foods with the occassional pleasure you ought to be able to give a healthy, nourishing milk supply for your baby.

COLIC And Your Baby

Most young babies cry, however babies that cry persistently for more than a few hours a day may have colic - most especailly if you are using formula milk and baby bottles. For parents, of course, this means an acute lack of sleep and may add an element of stress to your relationshop and/or household.

If you would like to know more about how to deal with your baby and colic click here and see the fully article.

Swine Flu, Pregnancy and Baby

Swine flu is here, it's spreading, and there is a risk to you and your baby. However, your baby is prepared as swine flu may not be able to penetrate the placenta - are you ready for swine flu though? What do you need to know about swine flu in Australia? How you can avoid swine flu? Is there any any medication you can take to avoid swine flu?

These questions can be answered and much more here.