Good pediatric medicine is preventative as well as curative. The important aspects of a healthful life for children include the following: adequate nutrition (a diet high in proteins for growth and carbohydrates and fats for energy, but not so much as to cause overweight); physical exercise and play (stimulate growth and development, improve resistance to illness, and allow the acquisition of life skills); intellectual stimu­lation (toys, games, educational materials, contact with people and places, good schooling, books, and so on); protection from accidents and proper medical care (regular checkups, immunizations, prompt treatment of illness and injury, emergency care); and an emotionally secure, loving, supportive, nurturing, relaxed homelife.

WELL-BABY VISITS: Every baby should be examined by a pediatrician once a month for the first year of life and every three months during the second year. At these well-baby visits, the doctor will examine the child for evidence of any infections, birth defects, abnormalities or other anom­alies; will weigh and measure him and check on his growth and development; will immunize the child against diphtheria, whooping cough, tetanus, polio, measles, German measles, and mumps; will check the infant’s diet, give advice to parents, and treat any abnormal conditions as they arise.

INFANT-WHEN TO CALL THE MWTOR: If the baby is not looking or acting well; if he is pale, bluish, or yellow; is behaving oddly listless, lethargic, overly drowsy or ex­cessively irritable, or unconscious; is having convulsions or is obviously in pain and can­not be comforted; has severe diarrhea or is vomiting persistently or coughing; is bleed­ing from the nose, ears, mouth, or navel or shows blood in his urine, stools, or vomit; has lost his appetite for more than a few feedings; or has injured his head and is not back to normal in ten or fifteen minutes ­call the doctor.