Healthy Baby 101
Contrary to the title of this post, there is no Healthy Baby 101 course. No ultimate guidebook to ensuring the health of our children exists. As parents, we are sometimes bombarded with tips and advice for keeping our children healthy from this way and that. Sadly, in other places around the world, mothers don't get the advice they need to make good choices for raising a healthy baby.
If you are a mother, your child's health is probably of high importance to you. I know it is to me! I was asked to share my favorite tip for raising a healthy baby. What is it for me that helps me make sure my children are as healthy as they can be?
Look outward and inward.
My best advice for new (or old!) parents is to look outward as well as inward for help on raising healthy children. I firmly believe that a balance of both is needed.
By looking outward, I mean that for big decisions such as what type of food to feed our children, when or if to have them vaccinated, how to treat them when they do get sick and so on, we should look to others. And I don't just mean one other person. Looking outward for tips on raising healthy babies means taking in advice from a wide variety of places. Read parenting magazines, talk to your child's pediatrician and look online at trusted websites for help making your choices. Read books and talk to your like-minded friends about the choices they've made.
And as important as looking outward for tips on raising healthy babies is, I strongly believe that looking inward is just as vital. Often, we as mothers don't trust our instincts enough. It can be easy to be overcome by the litany of parenting resources out there. There are so many healthy baby tips at our fingertips, it can be challenging to figure out which ones to take. This is where looking inward comes into play. After you have researched about infant circumcision, formula vs. breastfeeding and childproofing your home, let the ideas and information and facts you read sink in, and then turn inwards. What does your gut tell you? Mothers have an amazing instinct that helps us care for our babies and keep them healthy. Use it!
That is my tip.
Children's health is at the top of every mother's mind. What's your favorite tip for raising a healthy baby? By replying, you will be entered to win an exclusive Million Moms Challenge Gift Pack, which includes an iPad2, a custom-made Million Moms Challenge pendant and a $50 donation in your name to Global Giving.
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This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Million Moms Challenge. The opinions and text are all mine. Contest runs November 14 to December 18, 2011. A random winner will be announced by December 20, 2011.