Protect Your Baby From Germs

Invisible, disease-causing bacteria and viruses lurk all around your home, from the kitchen counters to the living-room rug. Healthy adults have strong immune systems that can fend off many dangerous germs, but babies are at much greater risk. "An infant's immune system is like a new engine straight off the production line," says Terri Rearick, R.N., corporate manager of infection prevention and control at Children's Memorial Hospital, in Chicago. "It's ready to be started but can get overtaxed if pushed to its limits all at once."

Although you've got to keep your child's environment extra-clean, it's a balance. You can't guard against every germ--nor should you, since your baby needs opportunities for his defenses to develop. What, exactly, do you need to do and when? Top experts share a protection plan you can live with.

Concentrate on cleaning your kitchen and bathroom, and make them a top priority from now on. Your infant won't spend a lot of time in these areas, but older family members and guests will. They can pick up germs there and then spread them to your baby.

Preparing last night's chicken dinner could have contaminated the sink with salmonella or campylobacter bacteria, or both, which 80 to 100 percent of all poultry contain. Either can cause food poisoning. In addition, some germs that cause colds, viruses, and flu can survive on counters and other surfaces for days.

Clean counters and sinks often with germicidal cleaners, like powder with bleach, especially after you've made a meal. And follow these steps.

• Use separate cutting boards for meats and produce, or wash your board (and knife) well in between.
• Wash up thoroughly after each step of meal prep.
• Wash sponges in the dishwasher, then let them dry, or microwave them, moist, for one to two minutes.
• Mop the kitchen floor with a sanitizing cleaner whenever it's dirty.
• Keep areas where baby-feeding equipment will be stored scrupulously clean.

The bathroom is another breeding ground for germs, for obvious reasons. Plus, its warm and moist conditions allow many bugs to thrive.

• Disinfect the toilet bowl and seat every week with a commercial disinfectant or with bleach and water.
• Close the lid before you flush. Flushing propels droplets of dirty water up to 20 feet, hitting the tub, sinks--and toothbrushes.
• Soak sponges and loofahs in a water-bleach solution every week, then rinse them and let them dry.
• Rinse off toothbrushes and razors after each use, and let them air-dry.
• Change towels often, and wash them in hot water. Add bleach, if possible (test for colorfastness).

Your baby's nursery should be as clean as possible. "If you'll be using a secondhand crib, inspect the mattress for tears. Germs, including bacteria that can cause blood infections and pneumonia, can congregate there," Rearick says. Better still, buy a new mattress. In addition:

• Wipe down the crib, furniture, and other surfaces with soap and water.
• Ideally, keep the floor bare--coverings trap germs. Area rugs are easier to clean than carpeting.
• Avoid heavy drapes, which can also house germs, or clean them often.

The rest of your home needs careful attention too.

• Vacuum floors, curtains, and upholstery regularly to keep dust mites and other allergy- and illness-causing contaminants in check. Use a vacuum that's equipped with an air filter.
• Clean frequently handled items, like telephones and doorknobs, with an antiseptic spray or an alcohol wipe (or at least a clean wet wipe) every week, and after someone with an illness has used them.
• Have separate shoes for indoor and outdoor use.

She faces a world of germs, starting with your own. As she passes through your womb, drinks breast milk, and cuddles with you, she's exposed to the bacteria, viruses, and other microbes your body naturally carries. These germs are helpful. Intestinal bacteria help digest food, for example. Skin flora eat dead skin cells and crowd out virulent germs.

To keep her immune system safe as it grows strong:

• Breastfeed, if you're healthy and able. You'll pass along antibodies.
• Make sure your newborn receives scheduled vaccines.
• Ask friends to visit your baby after 4 to 6 weeks, when she's hardier.
• Don't let people hold her. "Eighty percent of infectious illnesses are spread by touch--by coming into contact with contaminated people or objects," says Philip Tierno Jr., Ph.D., director of clinical microbiology and diagnostic immunology at New York University Medical Center and Mount Sinai Medical Center, in Manhattan. If people must touch her, have them wash their hands.
• Don't let people kiss the baby. They may transmit germs that cause colds and flu or gum disease.
• Wait until your child is about 6 weeks old before taking her to busy places.

Items that will be in close contact with your infant need special care.

• Before washing his clothing at a Laundromat, run an empty cycle with hot water and bleach. Many germs, including E. coli bacteria and the hepatitis A virus, can survive in the washer and dryer.
• Always wash his laundry separately, using a mild, gentle detergent.
• Clean your baby's bottles before each use. Put them in the dishwasher, boil them in water for at least five minutes, or use a microwave sterilizer. Nipples should be rinsed with water and a mild soap.
• Buy dishwasher-safe pacifiers, and wash them often, especially after your baby drops them (see "Time-Out for the 3-Second Rule,").
• Seal dirty diapers in a pail, and wash your hands after changes.
• Disinfect the diaper pail regularly with a bleach-based cleaner and a spray disinfectant.

Your child drops a pacifier. Thanks to your Jackie Chan-like reflexes, you retrieve it barely a moment after it hits the floor. Should you give it back to your child?

Look at it another way. If the pacifier had dropped in dog poop for a split second, would you still let your child put it right back in his mouth? A floor that appears pristine can, in fact, have traces of animal droppings made by a pet or tracked in on someone's shoes. Now that you've lost your appetite, wash the pacifier, please.

It's harder to ensure that everything he encounters is clean. The good news: "He's becoming more acclimatized to different germs, and his immune system can handle them better," says Dr. Tierno, author of The Secret Life of Germs. But he still needs some TLC.

Your child has plenty of both, which means he's also exposed to their germs.

• If another child uses your changing table, replace the cover before and afterward.
• Discourage kids from sharing foods.
• Periodically wash off your child's toys. Many plastic toys can be cleaned with a 2 percent hydrogen-peroxide solution or with water and soap--read their labeling. For particularly dirty toys, you may need to use a bleach-and-water solution. Check the labeling on plush animals and other toys before washing.
• Clean the handlebars on walkers and other riding toys at least weekly with an antiseptic spray or alcohol wipes. Wipe down the handles on supermarket shopping carts and kiddie rides, too, before putting your child in them.

Your baby is trying solid foods now, so follow these safety rules.

• Serve only pasteurized juices and dairy products.
• If you know your child can't finish a jar of baby food in one sitting, pour the portion you'll need into a bowl and store the rest. Never feed from the jar and then refrigerate what's left--bacteria can grow quickly, since the food is contaminated with saliva.
• Don't let your child eat food that's fallen to the ground.
• Ask your doctor when it's safe to give your child water from your faucet. If you're not sure how clean your tap water is, boil it for ten minutes, then cool it before serving.
• Never serve any product that's past its expiration date.
• Be sure to serve only well-done meat to your child.

04-01-2003