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May 28, 2007 14:23 - Baby Sign Language - Does It Work?
Baby sign language is becoming increasingly popular as a means of communicating with babies before they can speak. Some child care establishments are even signing to the infants in their care - and for many parents using sign at home, it has almost become a pre-requisite that a child care provider offers this benefit.
But does signing really work?
Many parents say yes - and a visitor to our site, Janet from the UK, is one such example. Janet had heard about baby sign language through the media, but had never thought of trying it. Then one day she happened to read our baby sign language page and decided to give it a try.
She started when her son, Kevin, was four months old and told us...
"...By the age of 6 months, Kevin could recognize lots of the signs and at 8 1/2 months, he started using some of them. It looked really cute and it made it easier for me because he could often tell me what he wanted. Kevin is now a year old and has started talking, too, but he still loves to sign."
We included Janet's comments here because they seem to confirm what many other parents have discovered - that using sign language does not seem to have a negative effect on the development of a baby's speech. This is probably because, when done properly, signing with babies involves accompanying the sign with the spoken word.
But seeing is believing... so if you've been thinking about trying sign language with YOUR little one, take a look at this You Tube video of a baby signing with her Mum! The nice thing is that she really seems to enjoy the interaction.
We'd be very interested to hear about YOUR experiences with sign language, too, so please let us know. And you can read more about the advantages of using sign language as a means of communicating with your baby here.
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May 28, 2007 14:50 - Join The CafeMom Online Community
Do you ever wonder how Moms used to manage without the internet to turn to? With just a few clicks, modern day Moms can do all sorts of things, from the weekly grocery shopping to looking up recipes to make their own baby food (well, we had to mention that!).
But for Moms in remote areas, or without a strong network of friends and family, one of the best things about the world wide web is access to online communities. Within communities like these, it's possible to let off some steam, ask questions, discuss problems... or just have a chat.
CafeMom is one such community which has been created just for Moms. In addition to be able to "chat" with fellow members, users of CafeMom get their own customizable homepage, plus the ability to start private or public groups with other Moms. The site also offers great opportunities to share your photographs, too.
Click the banner below to go to CafeMom - you'll enjoy your visit!
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May 30, 2007 08:43 - Baby Food Ideas From Our Visitors
At the beginning of this month we launched our Baby Food Recipe Competition, giving you the opportunity to share your favourite recipes with our visitors and the chance to win a $20 Amazon voucher.
We have just chosen our prize-winning favourite recipe from this month's entries, along with two other excellent baby food ideas that we think you will enjoy.
To view these unique recipes, please visit our new Readers' Recipes page.
And if you'd like to see YOUR recipe on this page and have a chance at winning June's voucher, then please submit your entry here.
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May 30, 2007 08:45 - Vitamin D Supplements Recommended in Ireland
Health professionals in Ireland will soon be prescribing vitamin D supplements for all babies aged between 0 to 12 months, following new recommendations from the Irish Food Safety Authority (IFSA).
Studies have shown that much of Ireland's population is deficient in vitamin D. This deficiency can have very serious consequences for babies in particular, because they are at an increased risk of developing bone deformities associated with rickets if their stores of vitamin D are unable to support thier rapid growth during their first year.
The human body makes vitamin D in the skin following exposure to sunlight. In Ireland, however, the supply of sunshine is limited from October to March, which is proabably a major contributing factor to the widespread vitamin D deficiency that has been observed.
The new supplementation programme will not begin right away, as the only supplement available in Ireland at the moment also contains vitamin A which - together with the vitamin A in formula - would exceed safe limits. Instead, a new vitamin D-only supplement will need to be formulated. You can find more information on the IFSA's decision here.
Vitamin D supplements are, in fact, the subject of much controversy. Many experts believe that simple exposure to the sun is all that's required for babies to produce enough vitamin D, without the need for supplementation. But parents are afraid to expose their babies to the sun at all, fearing permanent skin damage.
Yet the amount of exposure required is not as great as you may think - and it may be possible to keep your baby's vitamin D levels within the healthy range by allowing SAFE sun exposure...
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