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Away We Go!
Newborn
Welcome to parenthood! Along with your feelings of joy and excitement, you may be feeling a little anxiety about caring for your new baby—that's natural. Gerber is here to help.
She/he learning how to communicate through facial expressions, cooing sounds, and especially, crying. Rest assured that crying is normal and at this stage is her only way to let you know what she needs. As you go along, you'll learn how to interpret her different sounds and cries.
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends breastfeeding to ensure that your baby is getting the right nutrients. But if you can't, or decide not to breastfeed, then you need to give your baby formula. Babies should not be given cow's milk until one year of age because it does not provide the same complete nutrition as breastmilk or formula.
Bonds with parents during feedings, Makes cooing sounds and cries to communicate emotions and needs, Makes jerky, quivering arm thrusts by the end of first month, Brings hands within range of eyes and mouth by end of first month, Focuses 8 to 12 inches away by the end of the first month, May turn toward familiar sounds and voices by end of first month, Poor neck and trunk control for first month.
A newborn child is totally dependent on you. It's up to you to nurture your baby with compassion, tolerance, love, and acceptance, and to let him express his feelings. But, for the newborn, it's difficult to communicate—so newborns often cry to convey many emotions. If a baby is hungry, he cries. If he has gas, he cries. If he is sleepy—you've got it—he cries.
Prompt attention to your baby's needs is the best thing you can do. After a while, most parents begin to understand their baby's fussiness and facial expressions. Sometimes fussiness can be cut short with a feeding or new diaper, at other times baby just needs to be cuddled, and the best thing you can do is simply hold her and love her. Doing this will let baby know she is safe and secure and teach confidence.
Some babies can calm and soothe themselves with pacifiers. NUK® pacifiers are some of Gerber's most popular. Remember, though, that a pacifier is not meant to replace or delay meals. So offer a pacifier after or between feedings when you are sure he is not hungry.
Hours after birth, infants can make faces when they experience sweet, bitter, and sour tastes. Babies press their lips together and grimace at a drop of vinegar. By contrast, most newborns will relax their faces and react favorably to a taste of something sweet.
For most babies, breast milk is the first taste sensation they experience. And, by no surprise, it possesses a sweet taste. Breastmilk alone provides most full-term newborns with the nutrition they need for the first months of life, as well as added immune protection. But that's not all—breastmilk also contains the flavors, tastes and aromas of the foods the mother has eaten. If a mother likes food heavy in garlic or the taste of vanilla, these flavors will be relayed to the baby through her breast milk. These flavors teach the baby about what the family eats, even before she has a chance to taste them.
Nutrition
Toys
Breastfeeding
Infant Formulas
Bottles
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