Child Care

 

The Diet:

                       

Children's diet should contain fewer amounts of sweetened drinks. Studies show that the children who consume more than 12 ounces of sweetened drinks a day gained more weight over two months than children who drank less than 6 ounces a day. Children getting 12 ounces of more of soft drinks get 20 percent less phosphorus, 19 percent less protein and magnesium, 16 percent less calcium and 10 percent less Vitamin A per day than recommended by the government. The study also showed that on days when they drank sweetened drinks, they took in, on average 244more calories a day.

 

Bad breath:

                     

Studies show that there are many reasons why your child may have bad breath. Some reasons are not brushing his teeth properly, building up of plaque and bacteria, decaying teeth, post nasal drip caused by allergies, recurrent colds or chronic sinus infection, inflamed gums or food particles stuck on the tonsils, objects or food matter stuck in your child's nose etc.

 

 Helping your child:

 

 

 

       This can be helped by increasing saliva and decreasing bacteria. Make after-meal brushing a habit. Time your child's brushing for at least two minutes. Mouthwashes and fluoride rinses are not recommended since children tend to swallow them. Give your child a regular check-up with his dentist, at least twice a year. The complaint of bad breath is common among children but it should not be ignored.

 

 

 

Bowlegs:

 

Most infant’s legs show some extent of bowing until they have been walking for a few years. The legs may appear "knock-kneed" with both knees pointing inward.

Causes:

  • Infants are born bowlegged because of the tight fit and folded position inside the uterus
  • Bowlegs can be a sign of Vitamin D deficiency and arthritis.
  • Trauma, tumours or bone diseases can lead to bowing of the legs.
  • Obesity can worsen bowlegs.

Preventive measures:

  • Anything that decrease space in the uterus (twins, large babies, and maternal diabetes) can make bowlegs pronounced.
  • Control weight, avoid obesity.
  • Adequate calcium and Vitamin D intake.

 

 

Toilet –training:

 

Many find toilet training their child a tedious process. However by following a few simple guidelines, your child will be using the potty on his own in no time. Your child need to be ready and generally over two years of age

·         Invest in a child’s potty seat. It will prevent your child from falling into the water. You may also need a small stool to help him keep his feet firmly on the ground while he is on the seat.

·         If there are siblings, praise them for using the potty in front of the little ones.

·         Allow the children to play with the potty even with their cloths on. Let them familiarise with the toilet seat.

·         Do not make your child sit on the seat for more than five minutes at a time. Never physically hold your child or strap him in. If he has regular times for bowel movements, let him sit on the seat during those periods.

·         Use specific words for what your child is doing like “potty”, “pee”, etc. This way your child will learn the words to tell you.

·         Stay with your child when he is on the seat. Reading or singing to your child when he is on the seat will help him to relax.

·         Children usually learn to go to the potty for bowel movements before urine. Start bowel training first.

·         Keep your child in clothing that is easy to remove, even for your child.

·         Even after gaining control there may be a relapse or two. Don’t comment on it. Don’t reprimand your child. Talk about it with your child if it happens often.

·         If things are nor working out, take a break. May be child isn’t ready. Wait for a month or two before restarting the process.

Dengue fever:

           

Dengue fever is one of the types of viral fevers. It is spread by the byte of an infected mosquito. The dengue virus is spread by the byte of Ades Aegypti, which is a daytime biter and lives in close proximity to humans in urban areas.

                  

          Dengue viruses spread to humans by the bite of female mosquitoes. The mosquitoes acquire the virus while feeding on the blood of an infected person. The virus circulates in the blood of the infected person for two to seven days leading to fever.

 

          There are four types of dengue. Infection and recovery from one type of virus does not protect the person from another type. Repeated infection by different types of dengue leads to severe forms of the virus. Dengue infection weakens the wall of the blood vessels, resulting in plasma leakage. The virus also suppresses the production of platelets, which help[ in the clotting of blood.

 

Symptoms

          The illness begins with the sudden onset of flu-like symptoms including fever, headache, muscle aches and joint pains. The fever lasts from three to five days, and rarely over seven days.

The other symptoms:

·         High fever and headache.

·         Rashes and red spots all over the body.

·         Pain in the joints and pain behind the eyes.

 

Medical Attention:

            While the disease is often mild and self-limiting, a more severe form-dengue haemorrhagic fever can occur: Its symptoms will include:

·         Stomach aches and vomiting (red, black or brown vomiting can mean bleeding in the stomach).

·         Flushing and redness on the palms, soles of the feet, face and neck.

·         Bleeding from nose, skin, lips or gums.

·         Liver enlargement and bloody stools.

 

Children with these symptoms require immediate hospitalization.

 

Preventive measures:

·         Destroy mosquito breeding grounds like used tins, empty bottles, tyres and anything that holds stagnant water.

·         Cover as much of your body as possible.

·         Use insect repellent creams on uncovered body parts.

·         Avoid traveling to high risk areas during the rainy seasons.

·         When in doubt, consult your doctor.

 

 

Check BMI of Children:

 

            From the seemingly slim to the truly chubby, all children should have their body mass index measures evaluated yearly as part of efforts to identify and prevent obesity. While most pediatricians already track children’s weight and height, the new policy asks doctors to keep obesity prevention in mind as they are doing so and to specifically measure body-mass index, a height-to-weight ratio. This will help them to spot unusually rapid growth that might signal an increased risk of obesity. In adults, a BMI of 30 or higher is considered obese but in youngsters the index depends on gender and age. Studies show that there is an increase in the rates in children of obesity-related diseases including adult-onset diabetes.

           

Lifting Children’s depression:

 

            An antidepressant popular with adults also helped many depressed children. Sixty-nine percent of the children between 6 and 17 who had been diagnosed with major depressive disorder responded positively to sertraline, sold under the brand name Zoloft by Pfizer Inc.

 

Test tube babies develop like normal kids:

 

          Children born through fertility techniques develop like normal youngsters. The largest and longest –running study comparing children conceived naturally and through in-vitro fertilization and intracytoplasmic sperm injection showed no differences in intelligence, language and behavior at five years old. But children born through ICSI, in which a single sperm is injected in an egg, had higher rate of urological and kidney abnormalities.