Dr. Spock's Baby and Child Care  (English, Paperback, Spock Benjamin M D M.D.)

This is the ninth edition of Dr. Spock's Baby And Child Care. This is a fully updated edition of the classic text on parenting.

Summary of The Book

Dr. Spock's Baby And Child Care, first published in 1946, was a revolutionary book for its time. Previous books from the early parts of the twentieth century had been advocating rigid schedules and highly disciplinary parenting.

The earlier books expressed the view that showing a lot of affection for the child would spoil her. The child would then be unprepared for all the challenges of life she could face. So, the authors advocated minimal expressions of affection and discouraged hugging and kissing the child or other shows of affection. They also advised strict regimens in feeding and toilet habits

Dr. Spock’s book took a wholly different approach. He was among the first pediatricians to have undergone training in psychiatry. He combined this knowledge with his expertise on child care. His book also took into account the child’s emotional needs.

His book, while telling parents that there was nothing wrong in expressing affection, also provides a lot of valuable advice about practical childcare. This ninth edition has been thoroughly revised while still retaining most of the fundamental ideas and advice of the original. This book takes into account current issues and concepts that are not traditional and related to families, cultural diversity, environmental health and children with special needs.

This book provides valuable advice on the requirements in child care necessitated by the current lifestyle. It focuses on dealing with family stress, the impact of media on children, nutrition, and obesity. It also explains many new medical ideas relevant to parenting and childcare. It provides insights into current medical opinion on topics like immunization. The book also includes information regarding disorders like ADHD, autism, and depression.

Besides retaining the stage by stage childcare guidance of the original, this edition also provides a glossary of commonly used medications and a compilation of useful online resource links. The book has been translated into 39 languages.

About The Authors

Dr. Benjamin Spock was an American Pediatrician.

Some other books by this author are A Baby's First Year, Raising Children in a Difficult Time, and Caring for Your Disabled Child.

Dr. Benjamin Spock was born in Connecticut in 1903. After studying history and literature at Yale, he studied medicine at Columbia University’s College of Physicians and Surgeons. He studied psychoanalysis to deepen his understanding of a child’s mind and needs. He was also part of the Olympic Gold Medal winning rowing team at the Paris Olympics in 1924.

Dr. Robert Needlman is a practicing pediatrician.

He is also the author of Dr. Spock's Baby Basics: Take Charge Parenting Guides and Dr. Spock's Baby & Childcare In India.

Dr. Robert Needlman studied at the University of Chicago Laboratory Schools and graduated from Yale Medical School. He trained at Boston City Hospital in General Pediatrics and Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics. He presently lives in Cleveland. He is married to Carol Farver, and they have a daughter.