How to Care for the Premature Baby
If a baby is born just after or within six months of pregnancy, its body has not developed fully inside the womb, so its extremely difficult though not impossible to raise such a baby. An eight-month pregnancy is dangerous for both baby and mother and so it is universally advised that all possible efforts should be made to see that the baby is not delivered at this time. In fact, it is very difficult to raise any baby who has not completed the full term of pregnancy, even though modern science has provided many methods and machines for premature babies. However, experience shows that it is faith and prayer that may prove most important to ensure that a premature baby grows consistently and properly.
A child born before completing 37 weeks in the mother’s womb is called a premature baby. Since the child has spent a little less time in the womb, it will not be fully developed and so
unable to survive completely independently in the outside world. It is important to take extreme care of the child at this stage. In the womb, the lungs are the last organs to be developed. When the child is in the womb, it does not need to inhale and exhale, unlike after birth. Among the several transitions a baby has to make once out of the womb, breathing through the lungs is the most important. A premature baby’s lungs may not be fully developed, and so it might be necessary to place it in a ventilator to begin with.
The fewer the weeks spent in the womb, the more care needed for the premature baby. A baby born before 24 weeks of pregnancy requires extreme care. A premature baby will be underweight, lack in physical development, have less hair and sometimes even its ears will not have taken shape fully. During childbirth a premature baby may have its arms and legs spread, instead of collected, as happens in full-term babies. In male premature babies it is possible that the testes have not yet separated properly from the main body. It is possible that premature babies may be susceptible to diseases related to the development of the brain, heart, lungs and liver. They could suffer from defects in vision or hearing. They will have low immunity and low energy as well.
Therefore they may not grow or develop as fast as other children. Even handling a premature baby at birth is difficult. It is extremely important to keep the baby in the care or supervision of a specialist for the first few weeks or couple of months. It has been seen that a woman who delivers prematurely is often not given as much attention as she needs. It is important that the oil massages, hot fomentation, dhoop, and abdominal belt, as well as all other post-partum care recommended for a woman who has had a normal labour process, should also be administered in case of a premature delivery.
unable to survive completely independently in the outside world. It is important to take extreme care of the child at this stage. In the womb, the lungs are the last organs to be developed. When the child is in the womb, it does not need to inhale and exhale, unlike after birth. Among the several transitions a baby has to make once out of the womb, breathing through the lungs is the most important. A premature baby’s lungs may not be fully developed, and so it might be necessary to place it in a ventilator to begin with.
The fewer the weeks spent in the womb, the more care needed for the premature baby. A baby born before 24 weeks of pregnancy requires extreme care. A premature baby will be underweight, lack in physical development, have less hair and sometimes even its ears will not have taken shape fully. During childbirth a premature baby may have its arms and legs spread, instead of collected, as happens in full-term babies. In male premature babies it is possible that the testes have not yet separated properly from the main body. It is possible that premature babies may be susceptible to diseases related to the development of the brain, heart, lungs and liver. They could suffer from defects in vision or hearing. They will have low immunity and low energy as well.
Therefore they may not grow or develop as fast as other children. Even handling a premature baby at birth is difficult. It is extremely important to keep the baby in the care or supervision of a specialist for the first few weeks or couple of months. It has been seen that a woman who delivers prematurely is often not given as much attention as she needs. It is important that the oil massages, hot fomentation, dhoop, and abdominal belt, as well as all other post-partum care recommended for a woman who has had a normal labour process, should also be administered in case of a premature delivery.
There could be several reasons for premature delivery.
- Weak or deficient sperm or ova
- Deficiencies in the pregnant woman
- Some problems during pregnancy
- Food or action that is detrimental during pregnancy
- Accidents
From the above general understanding we can derive the following specific instances that may lead to a premature delivery
- If the pregnant woman is over 35 or under 18
- If the pregnant woman is either very short, or extremely overweight
- Conceiving again within six months of childbirth (the new foetus will then have chances of being delivered prematurely)
- A previous history of miscarriage or abortion
- Inadequate nourishment during pregnancy
- If the pregnant woman suffers from diabetes or high blood pressure. She could be suffering from these before pregnancy or she may have contracted them during pregnancy.
- IVF or IUI artificial pregnancy techniques. In these processes, depending on individual cases, hormones are used to stimulate the ovaries to produce eggs.
- Twin or multiple pregnancy
- If the pregnant woman has weak or small uterus
- If the pregnant woman faces extreme psychological stress, fear, disappointment or other such emotionally stressful situations
- If the pregnant woman smokes or chews tobacco or consumes alcohol, or has other such addictions
The obvious conclusion is that one should make maximum effort to ensure these situations do not occur if one wants to conceive. In case a woman is above the age of 35, or has a history of miscarriage or abortions, or a weakened uterus, it would certainly help her to conceive and have a healthy pregnancy if she undergoes Pancha Karma and follows the processes that help to culture her ova, prior to attempting conception.
A premature baby may not be capable of feeding on mother’s milk by itself. Breast milk should be extracted and given to the child through special pipes. It is important to remain aware of cleanliness and purity during this process.
In the beginning the baby needs only a little breast milk. It is important that unused breast milk also be removed, else it will get stored and cause knots in the breasts or lead to other complications like a decrease in the production of breast milk. Many people start feeding their children milk other than breast milk, because it is much more convenient, but this not good for either mother or baby. Even though modern science has made great advances in the care of premature babies and invented several machines to take care of their needs, they cannot substitute for the kind of development and nourishment possible in the womb. It seems that even after maximum care, the possibility of some deficiency or some weakness
A premature baby may not be capable of feeding on mother’s milk by itself. Breast milk should be extracted and given to the child through special pipes. It is important to remain aware of cleanliness and purity during this process.
In the beginning the baby needs only a little breast milk. It is important that unused breast milk also be removed, else it will get stored and cause knots in the breasts or lead to other complications like a decrease in the production of breast milk. Many people start feeding their children milk other than breast milk, because it is much more convenient, but this not good for either mother or baby. Even though modern science has made great advances in the care of premature babies and invented several machines to take care of their needs, they cannot substitute for the kind of development and nourishment possible in the womb. It seems that even after maximum care, the possibility of some deficiency or some weakness
A child born after full term will weigh around 2.5 to 3 kilos at birth. A premature baby may sometimes weigh less than a kilo. This kind of child requires even more care. Since a premature baby may be required to be kept under a specialist care for a few weeks, and in some cases, even a few months, it may not be possible to perform all the traditional Jaatkarma Sanskars. Only the simpler things like placing gold infused honey on its tongue, rubbing oil into its crown and perhaps applying oil to its body, may be possible. It has been seen that these sanskars definitely help it to recover faster.
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