Tiny Tummy troubles — survey reveals 1 in 10 parents don’t sterilise

A new survey has revealed that 1 in 10 parents don’t sterilise their baby’s bottles and feeding equipment, putting them at risk of sickness and diarrhoea caused by bacteria in the bottles. The survey of 3,000 parents by sterilising experts Milton found that out of those who do sterilise, 36% only sterilise equipment once a day rather than before/after every feed as recommended by the NHS.

The survey also revealed that 25% of parents stop sterilising at 6 months, the time when a baby’s immune system is at its weakest, indicating that there is a lack of information given to parents about the importance of sterilising and good hygiene. 65% of parents revealed that they get their baby care advice from their GP or midwife however friends and family also have a strong influence for half of parents.

50% of the parents surveyed said their babies had suffered between 1 to 3 stomach upsets during their first 12 months, with a further 8% stating their babies suffered diarrhoea more frequently.

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Would you name your baby Brooklyn to get free pizza?

There are many different reasons why parents name a new-born baby the way they do, but pizza shouldn’t be one of them… should it?

In celebration of a style of pizza, Domino’s Pizza will throw a pizza party for every family that names their child Brooklyn this Friday, 29th February 2008.In addition, the family of the first child named Brooklyn born in the continental U.S. on Leap Day will receive $1,000 in pizza gift certificates.

Apparently, any spelling of the name will qualify — let’s just hope parents don’t go the whole hog in celebration of the company’s pizza and name their child BRKLYN.

“Leap Year babies beat the odds by being born on February 29, a day that rolls around only once every four years,” said Jenny Fouracre, Domino’s Pizza spokesperson. “We think they are very special and deserve a memorable birthday with a good story about how they were named. What a lucky group - they will be 10 when most people born the day before or after them are 40.”

Well, it takes all sorts. I’ve nothing against the name Brookyln itself, but surely there are other reasons to name your child than in an effort to score some free pizza?

What do you think?

Health concerns raised over bisphenol A (BPA) used in baby bottles

The health of young baby is of paramount importance to every new parent, so whenever there’s the potential for that health to be put at risk by a seemingly innocuous product, it’s worth taking notice.

A large number of state and national environmental health organizations in the U.S. and Canada are calling for an immediate moratorium on the use of bisphenol A (BPA) in baby bottles and other food and beverage containers, based on the results of a new study that demonstrates the toxic chemical BPA leaches from popular plastic baby bottles when heated.

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Celeb Watch: Christina Aguilera, Nicole Richie, Cheryl and Ashley Cole

Christina Aguilera and Nicole Richie are both enticing a number of high-profile publications who want the right to print the first photos of their babies. Marie Claire reports:

A bidding war has erupted between OK! and People magazine for the first pictures of Christina’s son Max Liron, and the asking price has already reached $1.5 million.

Nicole Richie and Joel Madden have already signed a deal with People magazine, where they will get $1 million for the photo debut of daughter Harlow Winter Kate.

I wonder at the lives of the rich and famous, yet the bidding war is only active because the magazines know that large sections of the general public want to see the photos. No doubt they’ll be leaked onto the Internet anyway. So much for the privacy of kids with famous parents.

Meanwhile, Cheryl Cole is being urged by her family and friends to leave husband Ashley, after claims from at least two women that he had affairs with them:

The latest claim comes from glamour model, Brook Healy, who is alleged to have been approached by Cole in December 2006 at London’s Funky Buddha club - just five months after the Coles’ marriage - and later slept with the footballer.

The Girls Aloud star [Cheryl] stated: “I was furious… but I’m determined to be strong. Ashley’s a wonderful husband and we’re in love. I won’t let this woman destroy our marriage.”

WellChild Helpline launched: UK’s only national children’s health advice line

The children’s charity WellChild today announced the launch of the WellChild Helpline, designed to offer comprehensive help and advice to anyone concerned about the health and well-being of children.

Staffed by a team of trained healthcare professionals from a variety of disciplines, callers will either have questions answered, or efficiently passed to the most appropriate organisation.

BBC1’s Breakfast programme’s GP, Dr Rosemary Leonard, endorsed the WellChild Helpline, saying, “WellChild’s new service is extremely welcome as accessing the right information can seem daunting and not having access to concerns about health can cause a lot of anxiety. By having this multi-disciplinary team of experts at the end of a phone-line or email, WellChild will be putting people in touch with the right health information which could ultimately lead to saved lives as well as an enormous improvement in the quality of many more.”

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Citinannies.net Helps to Filter Frauds and Scams for Families Seeking Care

Household employment is increasing for families who continually strive for a manageable balance between life and work. For many people, the solution to managing the pressures and the obligations is to hire household staff to work in the home. Most domestic placement agency services can run into the hundreds, or even thousands of dollars, ranging from $700 to $4,000 per placement. What happens when a family is not happy with the placement agency’s selection of nannies? Generally, there is very little recourse. Would it be very difficult for a family to search for household help without using an agency? How would a family weed out frauds and scams? Are the tools of the trade available and easily accessible?

Citinannies.net was created to connect families and top quality caregivers nationwide. Whether a family needs a nanny for their children, a personal assistant or even a butler to bring cocktails poolside, Citinannies.net can help. Citinannies.net is the first online domestic placement service to utilize an advanced identity authentication process without entering a credit card number or requesting intrusive information such as the registrant’s full social security number. The patent pending privacy tool prescreens all caregivers and families to help filter out the frauds and scrams that put loved ones at risk.

Families simply register, post the specific domestic requirements and qualifications, and pass the Citinannies.net authentication process. Once the authentication process has been completed, the pool of quality caregivers are available with a click of the mouse. New caregivers are added daily, so the selection is never stale. In addition, Citinannies.net has trusted partners that offer services including criminal background checks, online continuing education courses and easy ways to pay caregivers without hiring an accountant. After all, finding household help that is tailored to a family’s lifestyle can be overwhelming.

As President of CitiNannies LLC, Jennifer Nguyen states, “I wanted to make the search for care easier for families, and at the same time, filter out fraudulent registrants, identity thieves, and fraud schemes that become rampant on the internet. We are taking one step further to assure families are more comfortable using the internet to find exceptional help for their loved ones.” Being a single mother, Jennifer realizes the importance of finding top quality caregivers. Hiring and entrusting caregivers can improve the quality of life immensely, without sacrificing the commitments. Recall the last time an emergency situation arose and a reliable sitter was not available? Think citinannies.net. Do it right. This is the most important hiring decision a family could ever make.

For caregivers seeking employment opportunities, the registration process is free. Simply agree to be bound by Citinannies’ professional code of ethics, register and post a profile. In addition, passing the Citinannies.net identity authentication process is also a prerequisite for all caregivers. Imagine, no more agency fees or commissions taken out of the paycheck. No more answering blind newspaper ads or attending embarrassing career fairs. Imagine an easier way to connect with potential families who are serious about searching for care and willing to pay top dollar for exceptional care?

For information: CitiNannies.net

3 in 5 parents couldn’t save their child’s life, survey finds

A survey of 2,500 mothers by UK supermarket Tesco suggests that 60% of new parents wouldn’t know what to do in an emergency where their child’s life was in danger.

Less than 10% of new parents have had child first aid training in the past 12 months, and 24% said that they badly needed a refresher course.

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Mother wins right to keep baby a secret from father, court rules

A mother has won the right to keep the birth of her baby, conceived on a one night stand, a secret from the biological father.

Though the county court ruled that the 20-year-old had to tell both her parents and the father, the Court of Appeal ruled that the mother had “the ultimate veto” over who was told about the birth.

Naturally, fathers’ groups were unhappy, saying that the child was now treated as the property of the mother, “to be disposed of as she sees fit.

The mother said that she wanted the 19-week-old baby to be adopted.

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Dads lack of confidence in bringing up baby shows up as not taking responsibility

An interesting new survey from SMA Nutrition suggests that some fathers who come across as being unwilling to help with the upbringing of their babies and young children are actually unconfident about their abilities.

The study finds half of new dads admitting that they don’t always make the effort to get home from work in time for their baby’s bath and bed routine, while 43% say they rarely or never get up in the night to comfort their crying baby.

Other ‘confessions’ to sidestepping parental duties include not always changing their baby’’s nappy (68%) and a tendency to spend time playing with baby rather than on practical childcare tasks (45%). More than a third (36%) have taken their parents’’ side on the ‘best way to parent’ while 35% say they have felt relieved that work commitments have meant an overnight hotel stay as it ensures a good night’s sleep.

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TwinsClub launches charity 2008 Calendar featuring pictures and stories of twins and triplets

TwinsClub.co.uk, which claims to be the UK’s largest website for parenting twins, triplets, and more, has announced the availability of its 2008 Twins & Triplets calendar, featuring 57 beautiful photographs and 13 moving stories.

The calendar will be sold in aid of Tommy’s, the Baby Charity.

Co-founder Lindsey Gray said “As far as we know our calendar is totally unique - the only calendar dedicated to Twins & Triplets and we are extremely proud of it. We have raised over £5000 for BLISS and TAMBA (the Twins and Multiple Birth Association) through sales of our previous calendars, and we are hoping to have the same success this year.”

Stories in the calendar include twins conceived after vasectomy, triplets conceived after a sterilisation, the heaviest set of twins born naturally in the UK, twins born on different days, identical twins with downs syndrome, and 2 sets of twins born to same parents in 2 years.

The calendar costs £10.50 and is available from TwinsClub.co.uk or by post from 1 Matthews Close, Stratford St. Mary, Suffolk, CO7 6LH (cheques made payable to Twinsclub).

Vote for best kids’ activities in Britain, raise money for Children in Need

From 1st November, Britain’s parents (and indeed, anyone else) can vote for the best kids’ activities in the UK.

Every vote cast in November will see 5p donated to the BBC’s Children in Need appeal.

The What’’s On 4 Little Ones 2008 awards, sponsored by pioneering food company Organix, are now in their second year.

This year, the awards are bigger than ever, covering 20 different categories ranging from Best Antenatal Class to Best Messy Play Class.

The awards are divided into three categories: national, for activities that are available in more than one area of the UK; local, for activities that are based in one area of the UK, and a set of special awards.

Parents can vote online for the national awards. The other awards are being judged by an independent panel, which includes broadcaster, author and mother-of-two Alice Beer. All the winners will be announced in March 2008.

The awards also include the Organix Make A Difference Food Award, which
will go to any class or activity that has made a difference by introducing
healthy food choices.

What’’s On 4 Little Ones co-founder Sam Willoughby said, ““We wanted to give parents a chance to say thank you to the many class teachers and activity organisers across the UK. We’ve gained such enjoyment from reading the nominations - so often activities provide a lifeline to parents”.”

There have already been more than 300 nominations for the awards, and
there’s still time to nominate your favourite local activity before the
closing date of October 31 2007.

Visit www.whatson4littleones.co.uk for more info.

Pennsylvania parents reminded of safe haven law

Pennsylvania’s Department of Public Welfare yesterday reminded expectant and new parents that the State has a “Safe Haven” law which allows them legally and confidentially to ‘turn over’ unwanted infants to any hospital, up to 28 days old, as an alternative to abandonment.

While it sounds a very harsh way of putting things, it’s much kinder to both mother and baby in a situation where they feel they simply cannot keep the child, to be able to hand the baby, unharmed, to a responsible organisation without fear of prosecution.
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