mothercare Singapore

Helpful tips, good advice and a few essential items to make sure your baby sleeps safely.

It’s important that you take all the precautions you can to ensure that your little one is safe and comfortable whilst in their crib or cot.

What you’ll need
    * Cot mattress
    * Fitted mattress sheets x 4
    * Top sheets x 4
    * Blankets x 3
    * Room thermometer
    * You may also need a crib or moses basket

DO NOT use the following bedding for babies under 12 months
    * Cot quilts or duvet
    * Pillow

Swaddling
Swaddling may help your baby settle and feel secure for the first three months. Always place your baby on his or her back to sleep once swaddled, and make sure your baby doesn’t get too warm. Please make sure materials are lightweight and your baby’s head should not be, or become, covered.

Tog ratings and temperature
Check the tog rating and remember the higher the rating the greater the warmth. For a good safe night’s sleep, babies need to be warm but not too hot, which is why we apply a tog rating to all our sleeping bags (and quilts/duvets for babies over 12 months). A steady room temperature for your sleeping baby is 16-20ºC. Buy a room thermometer to keep an eye on the temperature and check if your baby is sweating or feels hot to the touch to see if you need to adjust clothing or bedding.

Choosing a mattress
Our mattresses have been designed to the very highest level of comfort, safety and hygiene. Visit our stores, to touch and feel our full range of mattresses. They are all made from non-PVC, designed to meet the same standards and cater for all budgets. A new mattress is also recommended for new babies because of the link between bacteria and SIDS.

Current sleep safety advice
    * The safest place for your baby to sleep is on their back in a cot in your room for the first 6 months
    * Keep your baby smoke-free
    * Do not let your baby get too hot
    * Keep your baby’s head uncovered
    * Place your baby’s feet at the bottom of the cot, to prevent wriggling down under the bed clothes
    * If your baby is unwell seek medical advice promptly
    * Never fall asleep with your baby on a sofa or armchair

How will you be feeding your baby? If you haven’t started thinking about it, now is probably a good time. Breastfeeding is best for your baby’s health, but every woman, and baby, is different and the decision how to feed your baby is yours and yours alone. It is far better, for you and your baby, to choose the method of feeding that you feel comfortable with.

You can always start breastfeeding and then change to bottle feeding if you would like to, but it is more difficult to make the switch the other way. You can express milk from your breasts for your baby to take from a bottle or use formula milk.

Formula milk
If you bottle-feed your baby, you must use formula milk, not cow’s milk. Cow’s milk is not suitable for babies. It can cause an allergic reaction, and babies also find it very hard to digest.

Only feed your baby milk that is formulated especially for babies. You can discuss with your midwife or GP the formula milk that will be best for your baby - the number of different brands on the market can be very confusing.

How do I prepare formula milk?
Formula milk comes in two different types:

    * Ready to use - as the name suggests, this comes ready to pour straight into the bottle. It is very convenient, but it is also an expensive method of bottle feeding
    * Powdered - dried formula that must be mixed with water
      It is very important that when you prepare powdered formula milk you add the right amount of water. Adding too much water will mean that your baby is not getting enough nutrition from his feeds. Also, not adding enough water can cause digestive problems.

What equipment will I need to bottle feed my baby?
You will need 6 full size bottles and teats for a fully bottle-fed baby. The variety available is huge and the type of bottles and teats you choose really is up to you. The other thing to bear in mind is that newborn babies may need smaller bottles and a faster flowing teat - they can become tired very quickly if they have to suck very hard to make the milk flow.

It is very important to make sure your bottles and teats are sterilised. To do this, first rinse all the bottles and teats in cold water. Then wash all the equipment in warm, soapy water. Now you have a choice of sterilisation methods.

    * A chemical steriliser is a sterilisation tank that you fill up with cold water and add a sterilisation tablet or liquid. Make sure you follow the instructions for how much steriliser to use. Never put metal items in your sterilising unit. As sterilising solution is a dilute bleach, all items should be rinsed in recently boiled water before immediate use.
    * Steam sterilisation. This type of sterilising kills harmful bacteria using steam created in a specially designed electrical unit. Steam sterilisation is a very quick and easy method of sterilising, but make sure you fill the bottles with formula within 3 hours of sterilisation.
    * Microwave sterilisation. This method works by creating steam in the microwave steriliser to destroy harmful bacteria. All cleaned equipment should be placed in the steriliser with the amount of water specified in the manufacturer’s instructions, with bottles and caps upside down. The unit’s lid should be securely fastened before placing in the centre of the microwave.

Make sure your hands are absolutely clean when you take out the bottles and teats to make up the feeds.

How do I make up a bottle?
There are a few golden rules about making up formula milk:

    * Make sure all your equipment is sterilised
    * Follow the manufacturers guidelines to the letter regarding how much formula to use in one bottle - overfill each scoop and then scrape off the excess with a sterilised knife to make sure you have the right amount of formula
    * Always add the water to the bottle first - not the powder - this will make sure that you are using the right amount of water
    * The best way to warm your baby’s bottle is by placing it in a jug of warm water. Warning: take great care if you heat your baby’s feed in a microwave oven because of the risk of hot spot burning. Always shake or stir the bottle and test the temperature before serving.
    * Always make sure the formula you are using is not out of date
    * Always test the temperature of the bottle by dripping some of the milk onto the inside of your wrist

Storage of formula milk
The Department of Health and the Food Standards Agency advise that feeds are made up fresh for each feed. If you do need to prepare a feed for later, they suggest that water is kept in a sealed flask and fresh formula milk is made up when required. You should avoid making up enough feed for a whole day in advance, or warming up bottles of formula milk which has been made from powder.

How much should I feed my baby?
Your baby will let you know when he is hungry. A very small baby has a very small tummy so will probably require a lot of small feeds. Your baby will let you know when he is full - so take your lead from him and don’t force him to finish a bottle. As a general guide, if your baby is putting on weight steadily, then he is eating enough.

How do I give the bottle?
Like anything new, giving a bottle might take a little time to get used to. Firstly, make yourself comfortable and hold your baby on your lap with his head resting in the crook of your arm. Make sure his head is higher than his tummy. Keep the bottle tilted to make sure there is always milk in the teat, and remember to give your baby the chance to burp during and after the feed. To wind your baby either sit him up and pat his back or hold him upright on your shoulder and pat his back.

If you have any questions about how to feed your baby, talk to your midwife or health visitor who will be able to give you all the help and information you need.

Newborn babies do not get very dirty. Provided their nappy area, hands, face, neck and creases are kept clean there is no need to bath a very young baby every day. You may find, however, that your baby enjoys having a bath, in which case you can give her a bath every day.

There are some babies who really do not like being put into water when you first try to bathe them and they will scream until the whole event is over. For these babies there is really need no to worry. Simply ‘top and tail’ them every day and try bathing them a few weeks later, by which time they may have forgotten their dislike for water. If they still object in a few weeks, just carry on cleaning them every day and try a bath at a later date. Most babies do eventually learn to enjoy having a bath, especially once they can play with buckets, squeeze toys and splash around.

Topping and tailing
Try to make cleaning your baby a routine part of your day. Choose a time when your baby is awake, but not irritable because she is hungry, for example. It’s a good idea to top and tail your baby on something that is waterproof - a changing mat is ideal - in case water drips off her.

You will need cotton wool, baby cream, a bowl of warm water, a towel, a clean nappy and clean clothes. Start by washing your baby’s face. Use a separate piece of cotton wool for each eye and wipe the eyes from the inside of the eye outwards. In the first month of life, use sterile water around the eye area (a good way of getting sterile water is to boil a kettle and let it cool down). Use a clean piece of cotton wool to wash other parts of the face, including the mouth, nostrils and behind the ears. Don’t forget the creases in the neck as these can often hold dirt and become red and irritated if not cleaned. Don’t clean inside the ears because they are very delicate and do not get very dirty anyway. When you have finished, pat the skin dry with a soft towel. You can then wipe the arms and hands with a facecloth.

Once you have finished this area you can put a vest on your baby, but leave it undone to allow you to clean your baby’s bottom. Try not to remove more clothing than is necessary at each stage so your baby doesn’t get cold.

With a clean piece of cotton wool wipe around the genital area, paying particular attention to the creases in the groin and upper legs and then dry thoroughly with a towel. The foreskin in a baby boy usually cannot be pulled back over the head of the penis; pulling it by force may result in damage to the tissues. As a result it is often better to not to wash under the foreskin in a baby boy and it is not necessary to wash inside the labia in a baby girl. Lastly wash your baby’s bottom and dry it thoroughly. If the skin is at all red you can rub in some cream at this stage before putting on a nappy.

Bathing your baby
As with topping and tailing choose a time when your baby is likely to enjoy a bath. Bathing can be quite an activity for a young baby, after which they will enjoy a long sleep. But it can also stimulate and wake a baby up. Find out how your baby responds to a bath and then fit it in to suit their routine. For example, if a baby seems to wake up after a bath you may like to bath them in the morning. But if they are sleepy afterwards, choose a time close to bedtime.

Tips for bathtime
    * Firstly, it is very important to never leave your baby alone in the bath - even for a second.
    * Make sure the water is warm, but not hot enough to scald your baby. About 32ºC is ideal. If you can dip your elbow in and it does not feel hot this is about right.
    * Make sure the room is warm, about 20°C.
    * Soap is not really necessary as it dries the skin, but you can squeeze a few drops of liquid baby soap into the bath if you wish. If your baby’s skin is dry try a few drops of pure almond oil to moisturise it.
    * Have your baby’s clean clothes, nappy and a large soft towel ready.
    * Support your baby’s head with your forearm and her bottom with your other hand as you lower her into the baby bath.
    * Having the baby in the bath with you can also be enjoyable, but you will probably need help to get the baby in and out of the bath. If you are trying this for the first time, wait until someone is with you.