All parents want to take care of their baby in the best possible way. You listen to every suggestion given by your elders in the family or by your friends when it comes to taking care of your baby. As a result, you even start believing the age-old myths, suggested by elders, thinking that it does good to your baby. But you must know the truth behind all the age-old myths and practices that are being followed in our society.
Between bad advice and questionable products, what’s a parent to do? Here, our experts debunk 8 common myths and facts about newborn babies.
Myth: Achievement of developmental milestones early means that your baby is exceptionally gifted
Fact: Unfortunately, there is no such a thing. Every baby is different and develops at their own pace and the standards that we have in place are only to identify delays in them rather than rejoice in early achievements. Early milestones aren’t worth celebrating, but excessively delayed milestones must be taken note of.
Myth: The umbilical cord stem requires special cleaning
Fact: You don’t need to go overboard and use alcohol or other antiseptic solutions to sanitize the stump of the umbilical cord, using soap and water is plenty. Just clean it well every time to clean your baby, and don’t panic if it gets dirty. Caring for the umbilical cord is easy and often highly overrated.
Myth: Routine is important and healthy for a newborn baby
Fact: Your mother could be telling you that you need to get your baby to sleep on time or you’re doing parenting wrong. Truth is, it is nearly impossible to get a newborn baby to do anything that you want. Babies need to be fed way more frequently than you think they do and they cannot sleep for more than a few hours at a time.
Myth: Young babies need to be bathed every day
Fact: This is not required, but if you believe it will offer you more time to bond with your infant and make it a more joyful experience for both of you, go ahead and do it. Use baby wipes to keep them clean, and make sure their hands and genitals are clean at all times.
Myth: You shouldn’t spoil your baby by picking them up every time they cry
Fact: Your baby cannot talk to you and the only way they can communicate distress and discomfort is through their cries. They might need a change, milk or there could be something worse. Never ɪɢɴᴏʀᴇ a crying baby as they seldom cry for no reason. Also, you cannot possibly spoil a newborn baby.
Myth: Oil massages are old school or old-fashioned.
Fact: Oil massages have been in Indian culture for a very long time, but this does not mean that this age-old practice should be replaced or can be done without. Massaging a baby with oil is recommended because it helps in better circulation of ʙʟᴏᴏᴅ in the body of your baby and it also helps induce sleep.
Myth: My breast milk supply could run out soon
Fact: Even if your baby ғᴇᴇᴅs up to 12 times each day, you’ll have enough food to give them whenever they need it. Even if your infant is exclusively ʙʀᴇᴀsᴛғᴇᴅ, you will never run out of milk. You may feel this way at first, but it’s merely because it takes up to six weeks for the production of milk to be regulated.
Myth: Mothers, who are united with their babies as soon as they deliver, bond better with their babies.
Fact: It is important for a baby to feel a mother’s warmth and touch, immediately after birth but it may not be feasible in case of ᴘʀᴇᴍᴀᴛᴜʀᴇ ᴅᴇʟɪᴠᴇʀʏ or a ᴄ-sᴇᴄᴛɪᴏɴ. But you don’t need to ᴡᴏʀʀʏ as a few days or hours of separation will not affect your life-long bond, and you will get enough time to strengthen your bond with your baby.
The only way to debunk most of these myths is to do your research and question everything that does not have a strong and obvious reason to back it up. While many such myths could be ʜᴀʀᴍʟᴇss, some can put your baby at ʀɪsᴋ.
