VOA慢速英语 向大自然学习拯救早产儿的方法

　　Every year, seven thousand babies are born at the health center where Ousmane Ndiaye works in Guediaway, outside Dakar. One in five is underweight. But Senegal has few incubators in which to keep premature babies warm.

　　In west and central Africa, one newborn in twenty dies. A major reason is prematurity -- the death rates are among the highest in the world.

　　Doctor Ndiaye says babies who weigh less than two kilos get special attention from midwives who assist with the births. They teach the mother how to keep the baby wrapped to her chest. The health center has a Kangaroo Clinic, a special area for teaching this method.

　　The mother's body heat is not the only thing that helps the baby. Her heartbeat helps control the baby's breathing rate.

　　Doctor Ndiaye says there are plans to expand the program throughout Senegal. But he believes the best way to get more people to use the kangaroo method is for mothers like Koumba Gueye to tell others about it.

　　Koumba Gueye recently had her third child, a boy. He arrived six weeks early. At first, she did not like carrying him in front. People looked at her strangely. She was not carrying him on her back, the traditional way. But after a few weeks, she says, the kangaroo method saved her baby's life.

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