New Care Kits for More Babies

Monday, November 21, 2016

In Sarai Nuruddinpur, UP, Amrita SeRVe’s baby kit project continued as new mothers received bundles with essential items for their tiny children. Ranging from a mosquito net to protect the baby to chyawanprash for the mother, the kits contain items necessary to support the health of both.

Mothers were also oriented on the importance of colostrum feeding—the first milk that is produced during pregnancy and after delivery. It ranges from a clear-fluid like appearance in some women to a deep-golden thick and creamy fluid in others. What colostrum lacks in volume it makes up for in power. Some people refer to colostrum as “liquid gold”. It is full of antibodies and high in protein but has less carbohydrates and fats.

The mothers were also trained about why it is important to exclusively breastfeed a baby until the age of six months and then how to initiate solid food along with mother’s milk.

All-in-all,  the infant care kit contains 12 items: a soft bed with head rest, a mosquito net, one set of clothes, three reusable cloth napkins (langoti), a wrap towel with a cap, baby soap, baby powder, a soap box, a nail cutter, massage oil, a rattle toy, and chyawanprash for the mother.