Description
Product Description
The guide to every aspect of infant care that’s most recommended by pediatricians and trusted by parents, with over four million copies sold—now in a completely revised and updated fifth edition!
From the American Academy of Pediatrics, the nation’s most authoritativename in childcare, comes the definitive all-in-one resource Your Baby’s First Year. Featuring new and expanded content, including the latest reports on cutting-edge research into early brain development, the fully illustrated fifth edition of Your Baby’s First Year includes
• Guidelines for prenatal and newborn care, with spotlights on maternal nutrition, exercise, and screening tests during pregnancy
• Milestones for physical, emotional, social, and cognitive growth, as well as visual, hearing, language, and movement milestones
• Cutting-edge research on early brain development and how babies and young children think.
• A complete health encyclopedia covering injuries, illnesses, and congenital diseases
• An in-depth discussion on breastfeeding, including its benefits, techniques, and challenges
• Revised nutrition recommendations, including the importance of early introduction of allergenic foods and obesity prevention tips
• Tips for choosing childcare programs
• Updated safety standards: the very latest AAP recommendations, from CPR instruction, safe sleep, and immunizations, to childproofing tips, car safety seats, and toy safety
• Safety checks for home, including bathing, preventing drowning, poisoning, choking, burns, and falls
• And much more
Comprehensive, reassuring, and up-to-date, Your Baby’s First Year is an indispensable guide for parents everywhere.
About the Author
Tanya Altmann, mD, FaaP, is a practicing pediatrician who founded Calabasas Pediatrics and is an assistant clinical professor at Mattel Children’s Hospital at UCLA. She is also an American Academy of Pediatrics spokesperson and sits on the Editorial Advisory Board for Sharecare. Dr. Altmann is the author of Baby and Toddler Basics and What to Feed Your Baby. She lives in Calabasas, California, with her husband and three sons.
The American Academy of Pediatrics is an organization of 60,000 primary care pediatricians, pediatric medical subspecialists, and pediatric specialists dedicated to the health, safety, and well-being of infants, children, adolescents, and young adults.
Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
Chapter One
Preparing for a New Baby
Pregnancy is a time of anticipation, excitement, preparation, and, for many new parents, uncertainty. You dream of a baby who will be strong, healthy, and bright—and you make plans to provide her with everything she needs to grow and thrive. You probablyalso have fears and questions, especially if this is your first child, or if there have been problems with this or a previous pregnancy. What if something goes wrong during the course of your pregnancy, or what if labor and delivery are difficult? What if being a parent isn't everything you've always dreamed it would be? These are perfectly normal feelings and fears to have. Fortunately, most of these worries are needless. The nine months of pregnancy will give you time to have your questions answered, calm your fears, and prepare yourself for the realities of parenthood.
Some of your initial concerns may have been raised and addressed if you had difficulty becoming pregnant, particularly if you sought treatment for an infertility problem. But now that you're pregnant, preparations for your new baby can begin. The best way to help your baby develop is to take good care of yourself, since medical attention and good nutrition will directly benefit your baby's health. Getting plenty of rest and exercising moderately will help you feel better and ease the physical stresses of pregnancy. Talk to your physician about prenatal vitamins, and avoid smoking, alcohol, and eating fish containing high levels of mercury.
As pregnancy progresses, you're conf