We’ve had a number of previous posts related to childhood obesity and the growing number of overweight children in America, but I personally never took it further than that. But I suppose it would be common sense to realize that [some] heavy children may have emotional and/or psychological issues because of their weight and in turn have some anger management issues. After all, in most cases, being overweight is nothing more than genetics. And although they may “slim down” as they get older, as a child, all they know is that they’re bigger than the other kids and that sometimes they get picked on because of it.

So exercise would seem logical, right? As an adult, if we’re overweight or we want to be healthier, we exercise and we feel better afterward, we have a bit more self-confidence and maybe even shed a few pounds along the way. In theory, the same goes for children.

“…exercise can help children control their anger, and that might be because they’re in a better mood because they don’t get angry as much, and it might also be an aspect of self-control,” Dr. Catherine L. Davis of the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta.

Now lets also be very clear - I’m not saying that all overweight kids are significantly more aggressive than their normal-weight classmates, but studies have shown that they are more likely to be bullied or to bully others.

But given the fact that exercise is known to help improve mood and reduce hostility in adults isn’t it only logical that it might have the same effect in overweight children?

I think every parent knows that you don’t give cold and/or cough medicine to your baby if they’re under 2, and if you’re not sure - It usually says it right on the package. But with all the recent press about babies and toddlers getting sick from being over medicated by OTC medicine, the FDA has changed its guidelines and will be adding new warning labels stating that children under 4 should not get OTC cold or cough medicine. (You can read more here)

Now don’t get me wrong - added warnings and safety measures are never a bad thing! But if we’re talking about parents not reading labels, than that’s an entirely different story.

But how much of this has been proven? Has it been shown that kids under 4 are at risk due to the actual medications or is it more because of parents, too anxious to medicate their children at the first sign of a runny nose or a cough aren’t paying attention to the labels and warning and putting their own children at risk?

Like any medicine, there are always potential side effects I suppose. But if there’s a question regarding any medication, or if I gave my child some OTC medicine for a cough or cold and noticed even the slightest adverse reaction or change in his behavior, I would be on the phone with his pediatrician in a heart beat!

In all, the simple guideline are:

Parents should never:

• Give adult medicines to a child.
• Give two or more medicines with the same ingredients at the same time.
• Give antihistamines to make a child sleepy.

Parents should:

• Give the exact recommended dose, using the measuring device that comes with the medicine.
• Keep OTC medicines out of sight and out of reach.
• Consult their doctor if they have any questions.

With the kids going back to school, it made me realize that my little boy was due for his next round of immunizations. (Download the Immunization schedule here (PDF) | right click and save as)

The chart above (and available for download) shows the latest vaccine recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics and other medical groups, along with the ages (or age ranges) for when each shot or series of shots is to be given. For example, according to the chart the polio vaccine is to be given four times — at 2 months, 4 months, 6 to 18 months and 4 to 6 years. Yellow indicates that children in certain high-risk groups may benefit from additional vaccinations.

Its important to keep your kids up to date with their immunizations, and although its difficult for me to find time during the week to take my son to the pediatrician (unless its an emergency,) they’re pretty good at playing “catch-up” with his shots so that he’s not missing anything vital. If your child has missed any shots, check with your doctor about getting them back on track. Depending on what they’ve missed, they probably have a “catch-up” schedule that they can follow.

AAP - Catch Up Schedule (download PDF | right click and save as)

Immunization Schedule: 7-18 years old (download PDF | right click and save as)

I can’t tell you how excited I am that I can finally stop paying $25 every few days on a can of formula! It’s like this stuff is a drug that my little boy has been addicted to since birth. I would almost be more comfortable buying it from a guy in a dark alley every week, seeing that it wold justify the feeling of “feeding an addict!”

But it’s over now - or is it? Whats the next progressive step? I’ve heard a lot of people say that once they’ve moved away from breast milk or formula they start giving the children regular milk. Which at about $4, sounds like a sweet idea to me. But do I give him whole milk, low-fat, organic or soy?

According to a (newly) revised guideline issued by the American Academy of Pediatrics, it’s better “…that some babies as young as 12 months of age should be given reduced-fat (2 percent) milk instead of whole milk.”

“Specifically, for children between 12 months and 2 years who are at higher-than-normal risk of becoming overweight, or have a family history of high cholesterol, obesity, or heart disease.”

All of this has got me thinking, when we were growing up we were given regular whole milk and we grew up big and strong (with the exception of my sister who grew a tale and rabbit ears - but I hardly blame the milk.) So is this recommendation just another attempt to point the finger at the declining health status of the kids in our country or is this something we our parents just weren’t aware of years ago and we’re now learning the benefit of?

Which would really be a shame for my “rabbit-esque” sister, but that’s life folks!

Its no surprise that in most cases, having a baby can be stressful at times. Both on us, as parents and on our bank accounts in the process. But for people having twins, triplets or more - does this “stress” just compound with each child?

I read something recently regarding a study that claimed parents of twins are more likely to have mental health problems than those of single-born babies. (You can read about the study here)

It was a small study and it tracked about 100 twins and around 700 single-born babies, with an outcome that showed the parents of twins having more depression, anxiety and other problems than parents of the single-born babies.

But that got me thinking… were they really suffering from depression and anxiety? Or was it more caused by the idea of the lack of sleep, double feedings and double diaper changes that made it seem as if these new parents were having issues?

Of course the medical concerns when having multiples can play a part in this as well. As it”’s known, women pregnant with multiples are more susceptible to medical complications — such as premature birth, diabetes and high blood pressure, but I would think these concerns (somewhat) go away once the children have been born and given a clean bill of health.

I suppose this is more relevant now than ever with the rise in twin births due to artificial reproduction techniques. Since many in-vitro fertilization procedures implant more than one embryo, there is obviously a greater chance (1-in-4) of having twins.

So with all this to consider, maybe having twins isn’t exactly like getting two for the price of one!

Any woman who’s had gestational diabetes can tell you all the ways it can affect your pregnancy. From small things like changes in your diet to the more “annoying” aspects such as checking your blood sugar every few hours - not to mention the potential affects the disease can have on your baby.

Being as there is no history of diabetes in my family, I can pretty much blame myself and my sweet tooth. And although I tried to change my eating habits (as in not eating as much “sweet” stuff) to more fruits and veggies, the natural sugars in fruit just added to the problem I already had.

Luckily I didn’t have a sever case, and it did not carry over after my son was born. Although the increase in sugar did speed up his growth and in turn I ended up with a 10lb baby!

Read more…

When I was pregnant with my first child I remember (every so often) having some weird cravings, and then at one point my entire “sense of taste” changed. Things I had LOVED before I was pregnant made me cringe and stuff that I would have never eaten before made my mouth water.

The reason I bring this up is due to an interesting study stating that “…pregnant women who eat nuts or nut products like peanut butter daily raise the risk their children will develop asthma by 50 percent.”

Luckily for me, my husband manages to eat all peanuts, almonds, cashews or anything else that goes well with a cold beer before I even know its in the house, and I have never been crazy for PB&J. But I know that there are thousands of people who eat peanut butter or “nut-based” products daily!

On the plus side the study also showed that moderate amounts did not seem to have an effect, so I suppose it’s too soon to say whether or not pregnant women should give up nuts completely - especially since they contain a lot of important nutrients and healthy fats that a developing fetus needs.

You can read the full report Here

The labels on the food we buy our children help us determine how foods fit into our kids overall diet. But most nutritional labels are based on amounts for kids 4 and older and/or for adults - not for toddlers.

This is why its important to know what to look for when picking out foods for your kids. But how do you know what you’re looking for while reading a nutritional label?

Here’s some helpful tips:

• Be sure to look at the serving size since its the basis for all the nutritional information on the label. Remember to adjust nutrients according to the number of servings you feed your child.

• If the Nutrition Facts panel is not designed specifically for toddlers, offer your toddler about 1/4 to 1/2 of the recommended serving size, and of course always watch for signs that your child is full.

• Look for foods with 300mg (or more) of potassium (10% of the 3,000mg toddlers need per day), and 2g (or more) of fiber (10% of the 9g they need per day.)

• Look for foods that provide at least 10% of the Daily Value (DV) of iron, zinc and vitamin E, since toddlers need more of these nutrients. But keep in mind that the 10% DV on an adult label may not be the same DV for a toddler.

What’s this? A DVD that claims to show parents the “off switch” for their baby’s crying. This DVD, The Happiest Baby on the Block - The New Way to Calm Crying and Help Your Baby Sleep Longer, claims just that. Most of us have tried numerous “techniques” to calm our baby to no avail. And of course we’ve all dealt with the many sleepless nights as well.

The DVD features step-by-step instructions by Dr. Karp, on how to “switch on” their baby’s powerful calming reflex. Dr. Karp has been featured on Dr. Phil, Good Morning America, and has even taught classes at the Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles. His tips and techniques are based on research and facts and have been know to work. That’s music to any parents ears; to know there is a solution to sleepless nights or uncontrollable crying.

The DVD also contains 3 bonus chapters:

1) Dr. Karp answers questions submitted by parents about calming babies.

2) A Spanish dubbed audio track of the entire 38 minute teaching video.

3) 3 tracks of calming white-noise sound to help sooth and relax your baby

After doing my own research on this and reading numerous reviews and testimonials it’s clear that the instructions in this DVD work. There is a great FAQ on The Happiest Baby on the Block website that should answer a lot of questions any parents may have. I can’t wait to try the 5 S’s on my little one. Happy parenting.

As new parents, one of the questions you may have is whether you need to wash your babys clothes in special detergent? I know that for the first 9 or 10 months, we washed all my sons clothes with Dreft because we didnt want to use the “normal” detergent on his clothes and blankets. But that was merely personal preference.

It really boils down to your own personal preference, family history and any skin reactions after your baby arrives. As it stands, most of the special detergents are different in the sense that they are scent free and use fewer ingredients that may be likely to irritate sensitive skin. Although some of these detergents have a light scent to them that can be described as that “class baby” smell.

On the other hand, you can certainly wash your baby’s clothes in regular detergent, but keep an eye out and make sure your baby doesn’t have any allergic reactions or skin irritation afterwards.