First With Kids

More on the Web

Click Here For Complete

Sledding - aired January 25, 2010

Parents have been gliding up to me on slopes and in stores asking me how they can keep their kid safe on a sled this winter. Let me see if I can glide through some winter safety sledding tips. Turns out that more than 70,000 kids are going to be injured on sleds this year. That number seems to be increasing on an annual basis. If you don't want your child to be a sledding injury statistic I've got some suggestions. First, before your kids go sledding, inspect the hill that they're going to be sledding down, make sure it's free of obstacles, such as tree branches, tree stumps and rocks that are under that snow. Second, make sure that there is enough distance when the hill flattens out the sled can stop before your kids roll out onto a road, a parking lot or a body of water. Equipment is very important. I happen to like sleds that have plastic or metal runners to cushion the bumps. I also like sleds that have steering devices or secure handles. Tubes and saucers may have the handles but they don't have secure steering so I'm not a big fan of those. If you're going to take your child sledding make sure that no child sleds alone. If it's a little child make sure that child is sitting between your legs, sitting upright as you go down the hill. If it's an older child make sure they're not on their belly as they go down the hill, if they do that that's a set up for a head or belly injury. In fact, sleds like this force you to sit up and give you some secure steering. Speaking of head injuries, make sure your child and as an adult, you wear a helmet, bike or ski helmet whenever your sledding down a slope to reduce that risk of head injury. It's also important that all sledders stay alert, not just when you're going down the slope but as you're bringing your sled back up the hill and stay to the sides of the hill so you're out of the way of downhill sledders who may not be as alert as you are. Hopefully, tips like this will be easy ones to slide through when it comes to keeping your child out safe on a sled this winter.

Bronchiolitis - aired January 18, 2010

With winter here, parents have been all choked up asking me lots of questions about whether or not their baby has something called bronchiolitis. Well let me see if I can put everyone in the nose, or in the know about this particular illness. Bronchiolitis is a disorder that involves swelling of the tiny airways called bronchioles that lead into the lung. These get inflamed, fill with mucus, and make it very difficult for someone to breathe, especially babies, and most particularly premature infants who have the tiniest of airwaves. What causes bronchiolitis? Bronchiolitis is caused by a number of viruses, including the flu virus but most commonly by a virus called respiratory syncytial virus or RSV. How do you know if your baby has bronchiolitis? Well they'll begin with cold symptoms, a low grade fever, they may get a little bit of congestion, then a lot of congestion and have difficulty breathing that will sound like wheezing. You might even think your baby has asthma but it's a little early for them to have asthma, it's most likely bronchiolitis. What can we do for a baby with bronchiolitis? Well, it's a virus that gets better with tincture of time so the name of the game is we have to support our babies by giving them good hydration and using a suction bulb to suction some of that mucus out of their nose and help them breathe more easily. If that's not working, please talk to your child's doctor who will want to see your baby and in some rare cases admit your baby to the hospital for more supportive care. Can we prevent bronchiolitis? Well, it's a virus which means we should wash our hands, and if we have a cold, cough into our sleeves, rather than our hands and don't forget to keep your baby away from the effects of second-hand tobacco smoke. So that hopefully tips like this will allow you to breathe more easily when it comes to knowing a little bit more about bronchiolitis.

Cursing - aired January 11, 2010

Ow! You know parents have been talking to me about what they should say to their children the first time they say a bad word. I probably wanted to say something just now like this (points to sign) but the truth of the matter is that's a darn good question so let me provide some information on children who curse. A toddler will say a bad word the first time because they probably heard it from someone else and when they say the word and it gets attention, they may say it again. Now children may say these words because of emotions they're experiencing, they may say them out of anger, disappointment, frustration, or pain. And again, all though they may get negative attention they are going to use these words emotionally if they see adults using them. And teenagers, they'll use these words out of peer pressure, or to exert their independence and while we can ignore what a toddler is saying, we really can't afford to ignore what our children and teens are saying when they use profanity. So if you want to do something about it, here's some information. First, stay calm, cool and collected when your children say a bad word. If you hit the ceiling your kids are going to want to say the words again, just to see you do that again. Instead try to figure out why they've used that word and better yet, sit down with your children and explain that these words are hurtful and can hurt people's feelings and explain what the word means and that will usually take care of the behavior during childhood. It's also important to have ground rules in your home. Figure out what words are acceptable when somebody does hurt themselves, such as gosh, golly, ouch and you may even make up imaginary words like pickle truck which your child will say when they're frustrated which makes everybody laugh and breaks the tension. But if your kids continue to use curse words and profanity then set some other ground rules like dock them for privileges, such as time on the internet or a weekend privilege that they were looking forward to. Finally, parents please, bite your tongue, count to ten, leave the room but whatever you do, please don't curse in front of your children. It will just set the wrong example so that hopefully tips like this will go to helping your child and put a damper on the problem of cursing.

Cold Sores - aired January 4, 2010

Parents have been asking me a mouthful of questions about what to do if their child gets a cold sore, see I'm using a cold background today. Well, I don't want anyone to get sore at me so let me provide some information. Cold sores are red or purplish blisters that sit on the outer edge of the lip. There may be one or a few of them and sometimes they're fluid filled but usually over the course of a week they'll crust over, scab over, and disappear and the lip will look fine. What causes a cold sore? Well, a cold sore is caused by a type of virus, the herpes virus, Herpes Type I, which is to be compared with Herpes Type II which is the herpes virus we think of in sexually transmitted diseases. This is not that type of herpes virus. It's a virus that's transmitted by close contact between people, hand to hand or even clothes to hand and you can pick up the virus and get a cold sore. So what do you do if your child gets a cold sore? Well you might try if they're a little bit uncomfortable, ice in a washcloth, to apply to the lip, that will numb the spot and help reduce the discomfort. You can also try some acetaminophen, or ibuprofen to reduce the pain. Usually over a couple days the sore will disappear. Unfortunately, when the sore goes away, the herpes virus stays in your child's body and grows up with them and may be reawakened at any point to cause another cold sore. In fact, it's felt that 90% of senior citizens have the herpes virus type I virus, even if they've never gotten a cold sore. What might cause a recurrence? Well, it might be due to a cold or fever, sometimes we call these fever blisters. It might be because your child is tired, your child is not getting enough sleep, or your child has been out in the sun for awhile and has gotten too much sun exposure, in which case a lip balm applied to the lip of somebody who gets cold sores will prevent their recurrence or frequency. It may also be due to stress so you can try to figure out what is stressing your child to reduce the number of cold sores. But if cold sores keep coming, please talk to your child's doctor who will recommend a prescription medication to reduce the frequency and severity of these episodes. Finally, remind your child not to pick at a cold sore, because that opens it up, puts the virus onto their hand and makes them extremely contagious to other people. Hopefully, tips like this will not be viewed as painful ones when it comes to knowing a little bit more about what to do if your child should get a cold sore.

New Year's Resolutions - aired December 28, 2009

With New Years Eve approaching parents have been asking me to help their children make some New Year's resolutions for a healthy 2010. Well let me see if I can ring in the New Year with a few thoughts. First, if you're an infant you should resolve to always want to be put on your back to sleep at night to reduce your risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. If you're a toddler, you should resolve to always brush your teeth twice a day, to wash your hands before you eat and after you use the bathroom and make sure you help your parents clean up any messes you may have made while playing. If you're an older child you should resolve to try a new food at least once a month and better yet, once a week. You should also try to cut back on soda, and sugary fruit juices that you're drinking and you should find a physical activity, whether it's bicycling, playing tag, whatever it is, do it at least three times a week to stay fit. All children, infants and toddlers should cooperate when they get into a car and be properly fastened, and resolve to be properly fastened in their infant, toddler or booster seats. All children should also resolve to have themselves read to each and every night and as they get older, to offer to read to their parents. Older children and teenagers who are using computers should resolve never to give any personal identifying information over the internet and children and teenagers should also resolve to try and limit the amount of recreational tv and video game playing to no more than 1 to 2 hours a day, if at all. Finally teenagers, there's a special resolution for you. You should turn to art, music, sports and exercise if you're feeling stressed rather than turning to risk-taking behaviors like drugs and alcohol. While old acquaintances may be forgot, hopefully you'll remember these New Year's resolutions so 2010 is the healthiest year for everyone.

Holiday Safety - aired December 21, 2009

As the holidays approach, please keep safety in mind, so no injuries occur and no accidents you'll find. Yes, it's the holidays again and what better time for me to share a few of my annual holiday safety tips. First of all, if you're going to have a tree, make sure that tree is secure and can't tip over. Don't set it up near fireplaces or heating ducts or any other heat source to prevent it from becoming a fire hazard. If it's a fresh tree, keep it watered, if it's an artificial tree, make sure it's fire resistant and don't put any electric lights on a metal tree or you're in for a shocking experience. Speaking of lights, don't string more than three strands of lights to one extension cord and beware of the fact that many of the light packages you buy will say on them that they contain lead in the cord so you may want to wear gloves when you're hanging lights and don't let your kids hang the lights particularly if you think they're going to chew on the cord even if it's a little bit of lead that's in these wires. Another great idea is to take the small lights and ornaments and put them high up in the tree so your small children don't grab them and think that they're candies and then they can become choking hazards. It's a good idea to keep candles high and away from children and don't even light them if you have small children in your home and it's a great idea to blow out any candles, turn out all lights and make sure you have a good smoke detector if you're leaving the house or going to sleep at night during the holiday season. And don't forget, holiday plants can be a problem, mistletoe and holly berries when eaten in excess, well, they can be dangerous. So if you find your child eating one of these plants or a mystery plant call the New England Regional Poison center at 1-800-222-1222. Finally, clean up the night of your holiday party rather than the morning after so small children don't come down into the room and find alcoholic beverages that have been left over that they could drink or small snacking foods that they could possibly choke on. To wrap up this week's piece let me leave you with this musical thought: Find some ways, at holidays, so injuries don't abound, then you can really celebrate with your kids safe and sound, sooo, heed my rules and safety tools so no one flips their lids this is pediatrician Dr. Lewis First hoping you'll be First With Your Kids! Happy Holidays everybody!

Flying and Ears - aired December 14, 2009

With holiday vacations approaching, parent have been flying up to me here at the airport and other places asking me what they can do to prevent their child from experiencing ear pain when they're on an airplane. Well, let me take off and provide some information on this topic. It turns out that when an airplane goes up, air pressure goes down against the eardrum but as an airplane starts to make its descent, well, air pressure increases. Normally cabin pressures don't vary very much but sometimes they can, causing discomfort in your child's ear. How do we relieve that discomfort? Well, they have to equalize the pressure on the other side of the ear by opening up a tube that connects from the back of the ear to the back of the nose and if that tube is filled with fluid such as occurs when your child has a cold it may be difficult to equalize the pressure and your child's going to be uncomfortable. If you find that your child does have some trouble on an airplane because of air pressure changes here are some suggestions. First you might want to give your child some acetaminophen or ibuprofen before they get on the plane or certainly 30 minutes before the plane starts to make its landing. In addition, the best way to keep that tube open is for kids to swallow or yawn. If you have a baby, baby's awake and uncomfortable, breast feed your baby, the more they swallow, the more that tube equalizes and the less the ear pain. If you have an older child allow them to drink liquids as the plane is starting to make its descent and that will also help. Older children can chew gum, that also opens up that tube and in addition, a great idea is to give older children, if they'll cooperate, ear plugs, because with ear plugs they can basically prevent any pressure from coming up against that ear drum and they should do just fine. If despite these suggestions your child is still complaining of ear pain after the plane has landed for several hours by all means please have your child seen by a doctor cause it may represent an ear infection and that requires further treatment. So that hopefully, tips like this will make your child's ear pain on a flight be ear today and gone tomorrow when it comes to having an uneventful airplane flight and vacation with your family.

Smelly Feet - aired December 7, 2009

Parents have been walking up to me with lots of questions about what to do when their child's feet smell. Well, let me see if I can put my best foot forward and provide some information on this topic. Now your child's feet will smell because or perhaps their feet are caught in a tight shoe that generates a lot of heat which means that feet are going to sweat. When they sweat that's a great environment for bacteria on the skin of the feet to grow and multiply and as those bacteria grow and mix it up with the sweat they produce the chemicals that give the feet their bad odor. So the name of the game to help this problem is to either reduce the amount of sweat your child is making on their feet or reduce the amount of bacteria. To reduce the amount of bacteria on their feet, your child, if their feet smell, should soak their feet at least twice a day for ten minutes in lukewarm water and then scrub them well with an antibacterial soap and then dry them thoroughly before they get into a sock. As to the sock they need to wear I would use a cotton sock which absorbs the sweat off the foot and therefore the bacteria will not grow as much and the feet won't smell as much. If you want to reduce the amount of perspiration or sweat on the feet, first and foremost avoid tight fitting shoes for your kids and avoid shoes made of plastic which generate extra heat and make the smell extra bad. In addition, you're going to want to give them an antiperspirant, or anti-odor fighting spray or powder and put those onto the feet as they get into their shoe and then put their sock on. Another good idea is to use an anti-odor insole or insert into their shoe. Another suggestion might be to alternate the shoes they're wearing each day, use one pair one day, another pair the next and then go back to the first pair which gives those shoes a chance to air out and reduce the odor before their feet go back into them. If none of these suggestions work my advice is to tell your child to please keep his or her shoes on at school, in the car, when they're with friends. When they get home at night, take their shoes and socks off, let them go barefoot. That allows the foot to dry out and reduce the amount of odor. Hopefully, tips like this will put you in the nose and in the know when it comes to knowing a little bit more about what to do about your child's feet that smell.

Growing Pains - aired November 30, 2009

Boy the questions have been growing from parents of growing children who have been asking me if their children have been experiencing growing pains. Well, let me see if I can weigh in, so to speak, on this particular topic. Growing pains are quite common and occur in 25% of otherwise healthy children. What are they? Well, they're deep achy pains in the calves, they may be in the thighs, they may be behind the knees, they usually occur in both legs, often times at the end of the day, early evening and can be severe enough to wake your child up from sleep. But interestingly enough they don't come with redness, swelling or decreased limitation of motion. In addition they often times appear between ages 3 to 5 or 8 to 12 years of age. A child may have one episode a week, or a couple of episodes a day. What causes growing pains? We're not quite sure but what we do know is that they're not associated with rapid periods of growth, instead we think they're due to the strain your child experiences at the end of the day after vigorous daily play as they really stretch and flex those muscles and joints. Now, what do you do for growing pains? The good news is that growing pains are not dangerous and most of them go away over a period of a few days or weeks. But if your child is experiencing an episode of growing pains the best thing they can do is rest, perhaps do some passive stretching of the muscle that hurts, and your doctor can show you some passive stretch exercises. They might also try a heating pad, massage, or some acetaminophen or ibuprofen to help with the discomfort. When do we really worry about a growing pain? We worry if the pain is only in one leg, if the pain is associated with redness, swelling or your child is limping or if it's associated with rash and fever, or you're just concerned, by all means please talk to your child's doctor because most likely, this is not a growing pain. Hopefully, tips like this will grow easily with you and your child when it comes to knowing a little bit more about those dreaded growing pains.

Thanksgiving - aired November 23, 2009

At this time of year with Thanksgiving approaching I find myself giving thanks for so many things. I'm certainly thankful for the viewers who watch First with Kids each week and that these segments have lasted as long as they have. I'm especially thankful for parents who set great examples for their kids. For example, I love to thank parents who fasten their seat belt, wear their bike helmets and insist that their kids do likewise. I'm also thankful for parents who don't smoke, and for those who do, I thank them for trying not to expose their kids to secondhand tobacco smoke. I find myself thanking parents who read to their children every night and as their kids get older, having their kids read to them. I'm thankful for parents who make sure their kids get an annual checkup and keep their kids immunizations up to date. I'm also very thankful for new parents and the fact that they put their babies down to sleep at night on their backs to reduce the risk of that baby ever experiencing Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. And of course I'm thankful to all parents who safety proof their homes and re-inspect those homes each and every year several times to make sure they're safe and prevent injury and fires. Of course, while I'm thankful for parents I hope that children are especially thankful for their parents, their relatives, their friends, their teachers, the clothes they get to wear and the food that's on their table. And I hope at this time of year that kids and parents will recognize that not everyone can be quite as thankful and they'll find a way to help those in need, particularly during the holiday season. Finally, it's important for all of us to remember that improving the health of our children is a Thanksgiving meal unto itself and something for which we can all be thankful.

Food Labels - aired November 16, 2009

Parents have been chewing the fat with me asking me what foods I would recommend that are healthy for children. Well I can certainly suggest some healthy foods but when parents suggest that to their kids they're probably not going to eat them so I have a better idea. Teach your kids how to read food labels. That's right, food labels. What do they tell you? Well, food labels contain the calories in the food, how much is in a serving and what the healthy and not so healthy nutrients are in a food your child can choose. Before you teach your child about food labels my recommendation is sit down with your child's doctor and find out how many calories they need in a day to stay healthy and to grow and what the breakdown of nutrients should be to be healthy. For example, most kids need about 30% fats, 10% that unhealthy saturated fat, they need about 40 to 50% carbohydrates which are in the form of starch or sugars and about 10 to 20% protein and some vitamins and nutrients. The important thing to remember is once your kids learn how to keep track of their calories and make sure they can keep track of those percentages, well they're going to stay healthy because they can make substitutions to get the nutrients they need from the foods they want. Take calcium for example, kids who are school-age need 1300 mg of calcium or the equivalent of 4 to 4 and a half cups of milk a day. Most kids aren't going to drink 4 to 4 and a half cups but if they check the food label they'll see how many milligrams of calcium are in foods they want to eat and they'll stay healthy with the calcium they need even if they're not drinking milk. Another great idea is if your child has a food allergy to a certain ingredient they can look for that ingredient on a food label and then not eat that food if they think it's going to cause an allergic reaction. The most important thing I can tell you about food labels is it allows our kids to make smarter choices when they eat and when they're making those choices off these labels they're going to be healthier as well. So hopefully tips like this will be easy ones to digest the next time you recognize the importance of teaching your kids about food labels.

Undescended Testicle - aired November 9, 2009

Parents of infant baby boys have been testing me with lots of questions about what they should do if they can't find one of their boys' testicles. Well, let me see if I can find some information for these parents or at least help them find the missing testicle. Turns out that testicles form in the abdomen or the belly and then move down into the scrotum prior to birth. But if they don't move down, we call that condition an undescended testicle and that can occur in up to 30% of premature infants at birth and about 4 to 5 of healthy full term infants. Undescended testicles should be compared with what we call a retracted or retractile testicle. What is that? It's when basically your baby is cold and the testicle disappears and moves upward and it looks like it's not in the scrotum. All a parent needs to do is put baby into some warm bathwater and they'll see that the testicle comes right back into the scrotum, and that's nothing to worry about. But if they don't see a testicle, even when the water is warm, they need to bring this problem to their doctor because it may represent an undescended testicle. Your doctor will try to find the testicle and bring it down and the good news is that half the time testicles find their way to the scrotum within the first six months of age. But if they don't your doctor will probably refer you and your baby to a pediatric surgeon or urologist who will want to do an outpatient surgical procedure if they can't find the testicle by a year of age, to tack it down or bring it down into the scrotum so it doesn't rise up into the belly. Why is an undescended testicle a problem? Because it's been associated after a year of age, with your child having an increased risk with problems with fertility, testicular cancer and even having the testicle twist upon itself, which can be quite painful. So hopefully, tips like this will descend well into your mind when it comes to knowing a little bit more if you think your son has an undescended testicle.

Sharing - aired November 2, 2009

Alright you can play with my moose, you can play with my frog but I get to play with my car and I'm not gonna let you have it. You see, parents have been sharing with me lots of questions about how they can get their toddler to learn to share. Well, I don't want to be selfish on this one so let me provide some information. First of all, sharing is not something a child is born to do. Through careful observation and guidance from parents, children can learn as they socially develop the importance of sharing and learning how to make friends. In fact if you want to empower your child to recognize the gratitude and respect their going to get from others by sharing, here are some suggestions. First, don't threaten your child or force them to share. Don't pry a toy out of their hands and give it to another child because that's not going to make sharing a pleasant experience. Instead, if you're going to be having a play date for your child, explain to your toddler ahead of time that they're going to be sharing some of their toys and they should choose which toys they want to share. And if there's a toy like my special car, they don't want to share, well, they shouldn't have to share. That becomes a stay at home special toy, just like we as adults may have a special piece of jewelry or a home computer we're not eager to share around with other people. Now once you get to a play date if your child still doesn't want to share, don't force it, instead you might say, now we're going to share, would you like to give Billy your frog or your moose and then Billy takes both and hands one over and in doing so that reinforces feeling good about the sharing behavior. If kids can solve a sharing problem themselves, that's all the better. For example, if there's two children and one cookie to be shared, well, if one child decides I'm going to cut the cookie in half and then offer which piece to somebody else… ooh, they took the smaller piece! Well, that demonstrates good sharing behavior. In fact, reinforce any sharing you see going on with your kids and the more you tell them how good it is and be positive about it the more they'll realize how important sharing can be so that hopefully tips like this will allow me to share a wealth of information not just with one parent but with all parents so that everyone understands how important it is to teach all children how to share.

Halloween Safety - aired October 26, 2009

With Halloween approaching it seems like only last year that I shared, or should I say scared some Halloween safety tips into parents. Well, this year my good friends Dr. Shivers and Creepy want to join me in talking directly to kids so they have more than a ghost of a chance at having a safe and happy Halloween. So kids, if you're planning on going trick-or-treating and you want to disguise yourself, don't wear masks or hats with wide brims that will block your vision. My motto is you need to see and be seen. If you want to disguise your face use hypoallergenic face paints or make-up and make sure you have reflective tape on your costumes so others can see you in the dark. Before you go trick-or-treating sit down with your parents and decide what the route's going to be, how long you're going to be trick-or-treating and with whom you're going to go if you're not going with parents. Kids over the age of 10 can go out trick-or-treating without parents but you need to go out with at least two other friends and one of those friends, if not you, should carry with you as Dr. Shivers is doing, a flashlight, a watch to keep track of time and a cell phone in case you have to make an emergency call. Thank you Dr. Shivers. In addition, make sure when you are trick-or-treating that you stay on sidewalks and paths. Don't let your costumes drag on the ground or get near lit pumpkins and only go to houses that are lit. Don't go into someone's home you don't know and don't forget to say thank you for those treats. Speaking of treats, don't forget to have a great dinner the night of Halloween so you're all filled up so you don't start to look or eat your treats until you get home and we can all inspect them, or your family can inspect them. Anything that's unwrapped or tarnished or is baked by somebody you don't know well I would discard. My motto there kids is when in doubt, throw it out. Finally, if you're worried a little bit about the healthy or not so healthy aspects of having all that candy that Creepy just picked up, well here's a good idea. Why not trade it back to your family in exchange for a special privilege or treat. That way your family can reintroduce the candy each week over the course of months when you do something special and you get to go on that special outing with your parents. So that hopefully tips like this will not result in any Halloween boo-boos when it comes to having the safest and happiest of Halloweens.

Texting - aired October 19, 2009

Parents have been texting me with lots of questions about how they can ensure that their kids are texting safely whether their texting their friends or people they don't know. So let me log on and provide some information on the subject of safe texting. Turns out that texting has become the number one form of communication for teenagers, children and adults, surpassing e-mail and letter writing as a means of getting your message across. That being said, kids lack the life experience and maturity to really understand how to navigate the texting highway without some parental guidance to ensure safety. So if you want to help your kids with texting and texting safely here are some suggestions. First, parents you need to learn what these social texting networks are all about. If you don't know what Facebook, MySpace or Twitter means talk to your child, and better yet, log onto those sites and create your own profile so you can understand the type of communication your child is sending and receiving. Second, set up some ground rules in your house, if you're paying for the electronic equipment your kids are using then they need to allow you into their sites on these social networks so that you can text them and they can text you and you can keep an eye on the kinds of messages they're receiving. Another good idea is to keep the computer, or the home computer for texting in the middle of a public space you can keep an eye on what your kid's are doing when they're online. It's very important that your kids understand that anything they text can be shared with others, even people they don't know are receiving the text message can look at it, particularly on these social networks. They need to understand that sexting, sending risky pictures over the internet, or bullying using texting can result in legal charges pressed against your children and even worse, can result in them having basically their educational careers or their future employment ruined because schools and future employers go on these sites and see what kind of communication their future hires are sending. Most importantly keep an eye on your child and make sure they're not becoming addicted to texting. If you find that your child is missing meals because of texting, that their school grades are starting to plummet, they're not doing after school activities because they're hooked to texting, please talk to your child's doctor because this could represent a serious addiction problem and require some counseling. Hopefully, tips like this will allow you to send the right message when it comes to you and your children texting safely on the internet.

Fever - aired October 12, 2009

Parents have been hot to ask me what to do for fever in their infants and toddlers. Well let me see if I can cool down everyone's concerns on this important topic. First you need to realize that fever is not a disease, it's a symptom that tells us that your infant or toddler doesn't feel well. Second when your toddler or infant's temperature is elevated, they tend to kill germs faster. So if fever can give us a clue that your child's not feeling well, and if they're going to get rid of germs faster with a fever, in many ways we can celebrate and say fever is our friend. Now I know when your child is hot and irritable, you're not going to view fever as a friend so I need to give you some more suggestions. First if your baby is under one or two months of age and has a temperature over a 100 degrees Fahrenheit, please call your infant's doctor because he or she will want to see your baby examine the baby and make sure we're not missing a serious infection that's been clued up by your child having a fever. If your child is over 2 months of age and been immunized your doctor's not going to worry about what the number on the thermometer is, they're going to worry more about how your child is acting, breathing and that they're staying hydrated and if any of those things are not happening please call your child's doctor of if you're still concerned about the fever. But most of the time these fevers are due to viruses that will get better with tincture of time so you need to keep your child hydrated, don't over bundle your babies or toddlers, don't make them too active and if they're cranky you can try some acetaminophen or Tylenol to help bring the temperature down. Some parents like to give their child a cool bath to bring the temperature down, that's not a good idea because cool baths are just going to have your child shiver when they come out of the bath and that's going to drive the temperature up. And please don't give your infant, toddler or child an alcohol bath to bring down the temperature. That may be something you got as a child but we now know that alcohol baths can drop your blood sugar and can lead to a serious convulsion, so please, no alcohol baths. Hopefully tips like this will burn brightly in your mind and keep you calm, cool and collected the next time your child gets a fever.

H1N1 - aired October 5, 2009

With summer gone and fall here, time just flew by and speaking of flu, so many parents have been asking me what they should be saying to their children to help them deal with the H1N1 or swine flu virus. Well let me see if I can put everyone in the "nose" when it comes to talking to kids about this virus. First if your child asks you questions about the virus, first, find out what they know about H1N1 or swine flu and then answer their questions clearly and concisely. If you don't know the answers to their questions you can try the Centers for Disease Control website at www.cdc.gov. They have a special section for parents where they have the most frequently asked questions by kids that you can then get the answers to. It's also important to acknowledge to your children that it's okay for them to be a little bit scared or angry that we're going to have to deal with H1N1 but also reassure them that the healthcare system has been working over the past several months to create a vaccine that's going to be effective, hopefully, against the flu, it's going to have medications that will reduce the severity of the flu and also there are prevention strategies to prevent the spread of the flu. Most importantly you can dwell on those prevention strategies with your kids. Teach them the importance of hand hygiene. They need to learn how to wash their hand with soap and water or an alcohol-based hand sanitizer for 20 seconds, the time it takes your kids to sing the Happy Birthday song twice. They also need to remember if they're starting to get sick, they shouldn't cough into their hand, but cough into a Kleenex or onto their sleeve so they don't put germs in their hand. They should stay about six feet away from anybody that's getting sick and most importantly, and kids may not thrill to this, they need to get the H1N1 vaccine and the other flu vaccine to take care of other types of this important virus. Hopefully, tips like this will tell you what is and is "snot" indicated to talk to your child about when it comes to reassuring them about the H1N1 or swine flu.

Homework - aired September 28, 2009

With school back in session, parents have been asking me lots of questions about how they can ensure that their children do their homework every day. Well, let me take on that assignment and provide some information. Turns out the best way to ensure that your children do their homework is to set a routine in place early on in your child's schooling career, such as in first or second grade. Let your children know after school when homework is to be done, where it's to be done and for how long. Setting up that routine is critical but don't make it all homework all the time, set up some free time and some play time as well after school. You should remember that kids do their best work late in the afternoon and early evening and not just before they go to bed. If your older kids are doing homework on a computer, put that computer in a public place so you can keep an eye on them when they're doing their assignments, make sure they're actually doing the homework, not surfing the internet or texting their friends. It's also a good idea to watch your child doing their homework and praise them when you see good behavior; such as if they do their assignment neatly or they get the answer accurately, let them know how proud you are. It's also a good idea to show the relevance of a homework assignment. For example, if they're learning percentages in school you might show them how percentages are important in leaving a gratuity or a tip in a restaurant, or how they can use a coupon that says 5% off to determine how much an item's going to cost. It's also important to note that if homework has not been assigned for a given evening use that routine that you set up in place to have your child read or do some quiet time so you don't lose track of the routine. Finally, parents I know you love to promote school and learning with your kids but whatever you do, don't do your children's homework for them. Now if you're like me, given the things my children are learning in school they're so complex I couldn't do my kids homework even if I wanted to! So that hopefully, tips like this will work for you at home when it comes to making homework an enjoyable and regular part of your child's routine.

Vomiting - aired September 21, 2009

Parents and even our mascot Monty the Moose have been bringing up lots of questions to me about what happens when kids start to throw up. Well let me see if I can toss out some information which is better than tossing my cookies on this particular topic. Vomiting is the body's way of getting rid of something it doesn't like, whether it's a germ, a food that's spoiled, or just pressure that's built up somewhere in your child's system. It's a complex process that's coordinated by a vomiting center in the brain that senses something in the body it doesn't like and sends a message to the stomach to gather its half-digested food, some stomach acid, some mucus, send it up the food pipe and out comes the vomit. So when do we worry about vomiting? We'd worry if that vomiting has occurred for 12 to 24 hours, if it's forceful, if when it comes out you see flecks of blood or coffee grounds which could be old blood or even bright yellow green material which could be bile suggesting that there is some kind of blockage in your child's digestive system. We also worry if the vomiting is associated with fever, belly pain, headache or your simply concerned that your child might be getting dehydrated, by all means talk to your child's doctor because they're going to want to help. What if it's just a simple vomiting episode with a stomach virus? Well if your child vomits once or twice stay calm, cool and collected, rest their stomach for a few hours and then begin to give them sips of clear liquid like an oral re-hydrating solution which will allow them to stay hydrated and if they still don't vomit then you can introduce some mild solid foods, like crackers, toast or even some rice. Parents often ask can we give medication to stop the vomiting. Well those medications oftentimes have side effects that outweigh the benefits and the truth of the matter is for simple vomiting we want them to get rid of what's bothering them and oftentimes after vomiting, kids feel a lot better. So that hopefully, tips like this will stay down with you and your child when it comes to knowing a little bit more about what to do next time your child throws up.

Sweating - aired September 14, 2009

Boy parents have been soaking up lots of information from me about what to do when their kids sweat a lot. Well let me see if I can dry up some of their concerns and tell you a little about kids who sweat. Now sweat is the way for the body to control its own temperature. When the body gets hot it puts warm moist fluid on the surface of the skin which evaporates into the air, that's the process of sweating. But sweating can also occur not just when it's hot outside but when your child or teenager is anxious or nervous, something very common in puberty when the more than 3 million sweat glands in your teenager's armpits rev up and produce that sweat that mixes it up with bacteria in that area to produce the not so pleasant odor we associate with a lot of sweating. So what can we do about sweating? Well if your child is outside sweating a lot your major concern should be dehydration so make sure your kids are drinking lots of cool liquids when they're out sweating to keep themselves hydrated. But if your teenager is sweating because of nerves or anxiety the name of the game then is first to make sure that they shower every day and dry themselves thoroughly so there's no extra moisture under their armpits or on their body. In addition they should use a good deodorant antiperspirant. The deodorant to cut that odor and the antiperspirant to reduce the amount of sweat they're producing. They should wear fabrics made of cotton or linen that absorbs moisture off their body and prevents bacteria from overgrowing and making that odor. They may also need dress shields or a dress pad or underarm pad to help absorb some of that moisture as well and maybe for your teenager they may want to keep an extra t-shirt or shirt in their locker if they're showing a lot of underarm stains due to sweating. If none of these ideas work well then talk to your child or teenager's doctor who can recommend some prescription medication to reduce the amount of sweat they're producing and make them feel perhaps a little bit better about this problem. So that hopefully you'll find dealing with your child's perspiration is really no sweat at all next time you want to deal with this problem.

School Bus Safety - aired September 7, 2009

With school back in session parents have been driving up to me asking me how they can be sure that their kids are going to be safe on a school bus this year. Well hopefully it's not one that I'm driving because I'm not qualified to drive this bus but let me put the brakes on some of their concerns. First you need to know that school busses are some of the safest vehicles in terms of highway transportation yet accidents can and do occur, about two-thirds of them actually occur outside the bus to pedestrians. Your child is probably safer riding on a school bus than they are when they're trying to get on or off the bus. If you don't want your child to become a bus accident statistic here are some suggestions. First, get your child to the school bus stop at least five minutes before the bus arrives so no one is hurrying or running in front of or behind the bus as it pulls up because the driver will not have good visibility. It's important to respect the danger zone around the bus, that's an area within 10 feet around the bus within which the driver may not see everybody as clearly as they can. Therefore keep your child outside that zone and in fact, if you're going to cross by a bus cross ten feet in front of the bus so the driver can see you and then wait for the driver to signal that it's okay to get on or off the bus. Once your child gets onto the bus make sure they're not blocking the aisle or the seats with themselves or any of the things they're bringing to school. When it's time to get off the bus make sure they collect any drawstrings on their clothing, any straps on their bookbag, keep an eye on those because they can get caught in the handles or the door as your child is getting off. Remind your child when they get off the bus never to talk to strangers and by all means never take a ride home with someone they don't know, even if they're offering. Hopefully tips like this will take care of business, or should I say "busness" when it comes to making sure your kids are safe this year on the school bus.

Keeping Kids Healthy at School - aired August 31, 2009

With school back in session parents have been testing me with lots of questions about how they can insure that their kids stay healthy this school year. Well let me take on this assignment and provide some information. The best way for your kids to stay healthy is to make sure that they have or are about to have a back to school annual checkup. And when you're at that check-up make sure their immunizations are up to date as well. If your child has an underlying disease or an allergy make sure you share that information with the school nurse so that he or she will know what to do if your child gets sick at school. Once you've been to the doctor the next way to keep your child healthy is to teach them the importance of good hand hygiene. They should learn to wash their hands before they eat, after they go to the bathroom, before they're in close contact with other children, such as after gym class. Washing your hands means washing with soap and water or an alcohol based hand sanitizer for 20 seconds, the time it takes to sing "Happy Birthday" twice, in order to ensure that germs are off those hands. And speaking of germs, kids with other kids who may be sick shouldn't bring their hands to their mouth, their nose or their eyes or that's just going to inoculate them with someone else's germs particularly if they haven't washed their hands. And if your child is starting to get sick and starting to cough remind them not to cough into their hand but to cough into a Kleenex or onto their sleeve rather than onto that hand to spread germs. Another great way to keep kids healthy is to make sure that they are not sharing cups with other kids, not two people on one cup and they should certainly not share combs and brushes, cause that's an easy way to spread head lice from child to child. It's important that your kids get a good night's sleep this school year. Kids need an average of 8 to 10 hours, 8 is the minimum in order to be healthy and perform well in the school room. Finally, also make sure that your kids eat healthy and that begins with a good breakfast early in the morning, either made at your home or in the school cafeteria because studies suggest will perform much better with nutritious foods in their stomach early in the morning. So that hopefully tips like this will put you on the honor roll and take you to the head of the class when it comes to insuring that your child has the healthiest school year ever.

Sports Physicals - aired August 24, 2009

With fall sports season here, parents of middle and high school students have been asking me to clear the air as to when their kids are medically clear to play a fall sport. Well let me see if I can score some points on this particular topic. Turns out that up until recently student athletes would be medically cleared for a fall sport by going through a multi-station pre-participation sports physical. What is that? It's where kids go into the gym and there are multiple tables or stations set up, staffed by doctors nurses and trainers, who would basically examine different parts of your student's body as they get cleared for that sport. At one table they might have their eyes looked at, at another, their heart and lungs. They might be checked for flexibility of muscles and joints and then cleared to play. But unfortunately, the multi-station physical doesn't check the social and emotional well being of your student athlete which is critical. So it's for that reason that the Vermont Principal's Association, the School Nursing Association, the Department of Health and the American Academy of Pediatric Family Physicians are strongly urging your athlete, your student athlete, to get a Comprehensive Well Pre-Participation Physical from their primary care doctor and not from multiple stations. Why is this important? Because your child's doctor knows your child from a health standpoint best. He or she can help your student athlete put together a preventive program of strategies to keep them healthy on the field and in the classroom. And studies even suggest when your child gets a comprehensive well physical from one person the health outcomes are going to be better. Now it turns out that in our region about 60% of students who play a fall sport get a check up from their primary care physician, 40% either go to the multiple stations or some don't get that check up at all and that's simply unacceptable. So student athletes, I hope you will touch down with your primary care doctor when it comes to getting that back to school sports physical and in doing so reach your goal! Of having the safest and healthiest sports and school year ever!

Acne Myths - aired August 17, 2009

Recently I've been coming face to face with teenagers asking me to separate the fact from the fiction when it comes to understanding acne. Let me see if I can clear up some of their concerns and provide some information on this topic. Acne is the leading skin disease in this country, responsible for effecting 90% of our teenagers. So what causes acne? Well many teenagers think that acne is caused by eating too much chocolate, greasy foods, stress or dirt on their face but those are all myths. What is true is that acne is caused by the over-active oil glands in your teenagers' skin that get revved up by overactive hormones that make lots of secretions that trap bacteria that swell up and cause the pimples we affectionately refer to as acne. Now many teenagers are also under the belief that their acne will be a lot better if they scrub their face vigorously many times a day, they get a good suntan or they pop their pimples. Well all of those are myths and all three of those activities are going to make their acne look a lot worse with increased inflammation. Now the truth about acne is that acne is not forever and it does get better with appropriate medical treatment. If pimples are just starting to surface on your teenager's face you might start with something over-the-counter like benzyl peroxide. You only need to use a pea size amount on the entire face, not only on just a couple of pimples, that's a myth; you need to cover the entire face but sparingly. If kids do it repeatedly their face is going to get even more inflamed so back down on the frequency of using this medicine but if despite using it the pimples seem to be getting worse then have your teenager talk to his or her doctor who can recommend other prescription medications that will do the job. So that hopefully tips like this will take care of any of your teens concerns when "zit", when it comes to gaining a better understanding of the truth versus the myth surrounding acne.

Vegetarian Diets - aired August 10, 2009

Parents who are vegetarian have been asking me whether it's okay for their infants and children to be brought up on a vegetarian diet. Well let me get to the root of the matter and plant some information on this topic. The key word in planning any diet is growth and the good news is that children brought up on vegetarian diets can grow and grow well particularly if dairy products are involved but if a family is a strict vegan family they can also grow assuming you work with your doctor to provide any nutrients that may be missing from that vegetarian diet. All diets for babies should begin with breastfeeding. It's full of good nutrients but mom's who are vegetarian should share their diet with their baby's doctor to make sure its not lacking in certain vitamins like vitamin d, b-12 or nutrients like calcium, iron and zinc. In fact the American Academy of Pediatrics now insists that all babies who breastfeed get vitamin d supplement. But as baby gets older they're going to need a protein source and kids on vegetarian diets get their protein from beans and nuts and cereals and grains but beans and nuts can be choking hazards so in babies when they're ready to advance to proteins through solids use a soft solid like soy protein or tofu and that will do the job. If you are a strict vegan and you can't get calcium through dairy products be reassured you can get calcium through green leafy vegetables such as broccoli which is also a great source of iron. Teens may want to start on a vegetarian diet later in life and that's great but often times their diets are high in fiber and low in calories so keep an eye on their weight when they're on this diet. The bottom line is that any vegetarian diet requires careful proper planning with your child's doctor or nutritionist to insure that growth is maintained. So that hopefully, tips like this will satisfy your appetite and that of your child's when it comes to them growing up healthy on a vegetarian diet.

Jock Itch - aired August 3, 2009

Boy after a tough workout parents have been itching to ask me what I can do to help them help their child with their jock itch. Well let me see if I can scratch below the surface and provide some information on this topic. Jock itch occurs when sweat and moisture gather in the inner thighs and groin area and this environment sets up a great place for fungus to party. When fungus party in the groin they're going to cause the cracking, peeling, itching, flaking and redness we refer to affectionately as jock itch. You don't have to be a jock to get jock itch and it can occur in women as well as guys, in fact, any one who sweats a lot is going to get jock itch. Such as what occurs in a hot human environment, when your bathing suit is too tight or when you're sharing clothing with someone else who has the fungus in their clothing. But the good news is jock itch is not life threatening and it's easily treated, often with an over-the-counter anti-fungal treatment or cream that you apply to the rash at least twice a day for two weeks or at least a week until the rash disappears. On the other hand, what you really want to do is prevent jock itch, rather than have it occur so here are some suggestions. First, don't make your clothing too tight over your groin area. Bathing suits should be looser and make them of fabrics made of cotton or synthetic fabrics that draw the moisture away from the groin and guys, you should be wearing a clean athletic supporter to draw the moisture away from your groin if you're playing a sport. Another great idea is don't share clothing with anybody else, particularly after you've exercised and you can always buy an over-the-counter anti-fungal spray or powder to use once a day to prevent the fungus from even thinking of growing down there. So that hopefully tips like this will make you a great supporter of your athlete when it comes to reminding, at least the guys to wear a clean athletic supporter the next time they want to deal with the heartbreak of jock itch.

Noise Pollution - aired July 27, 2009

What? I'm sorry, I can't hear you. Parents have been shouting out to me with lots of questions about how loud is too loud when it comes to their kid listening to loud music through their earpieces or headsets and their mp3 players. Well, let me see if I can lend an ear and provide some information on this topic. Turns out that this year more than 5 million kids and teenagers will experience some form of temporary or permanent hearing loss due to listening to loud music with these devices. How loud is too loud? We measure sound in terms of units called decibels. Routine conversation is at 60 decibels, traffic is about 80 decibels, and it turns out that if your child is listening to music at 85 decibels or higher for just 15 minutes they can be at risk for temporary hearing loss. How do you know its temporary hearing loss? Your kids may complain that their ears are ringing or sound full and treatment involves removing the headsets and having them not listen to loud music for about 24 hours and they should feel fine. But many kids with mp3 players listen to loud music at 85 to 100 and even higher decibels for hours upon end and that's a setup for permanent hearing damage. How do you know its permanent hearing damage? Your child may complain that they don't understand conversations that they want to listen to in crowded rooms or that words and sounds appear muffled. If so, please take your child to the doctor to have their hearing tested. But it's a lot easier to prevent hearing damage than to have to deal with it so here are some suggestions. First, teach your kids to turn down the volume, or get mp3 players with volume control devices that don't allow the sound to go above 85 decibels. If your teens are going to a concert this summer well tell them not to stand or sit near speakers and if they're going to sit near speakers, get them earplugs. Finally, educate your kids about the dangers of noise pollution from listening to loud music for prolonged periods of time. Kids need to know that when they listen to loud music, their not toughening their eardrums, they're setting themselves up for hearing damage. So that hopefully tips like this will make just the right amount of noise when it comes to educating your children about the dangers of hearing damage if they play that music too loud for too long.

Flat Feet - aired July 20, 2009

Parents have been asking me to step up and provide some information on why their children have flat feet and what to do about it or why Monty has flat hooves. Well, let me see if I can put my foot down and provide some information on this topic. Flat feet represent a problem where there's no arch on the bottom of the foot between the toes and the heel as demonstrated by my friend Monty the moose. All babies are born with flat feet and the arch will not start to form normally until about age 2 to 3 years when kids become comfortable walking in flexible shoes. On the other hand, some children will not get that arch at age 2 to 3 years, it may come years later or not at all because flat feet can be inherited and you'll have flat feet for your entire life. The good news is that flat feet are really not a problem. Your child will be able to walk at the right time, run well and play all sports with flat feet. It really is not a concern. So when is it a concern? It can be a concern if your child as they get older, begins to complain that their feet may hurt when they're walking due to their flat feet. If that's the case have their feet examined by your child's doctor. They're going to look at the bottom of the foot, examine the bones, make sure they're not too tightly joined together and in rare circumstances they may get an x-ray to make sure those bones allow flexibility. If they don't in rare circumstances surgery may be warranted but that's exceedingly rare, the vast majority of the time the arch will form or they'll have flat feet for the rest of their lives and you need to know that special shoes, exercises, going baref, oot, running or jumping is not going to make the arch form any more quickly but putting a support arch inside a sneaker or shoe, well that will relieve the discomfort and make them feel perfect with their flat feet. So that hopefully tips like this will allow you to put your best foot forward when it comes to being reassured and hopefully relieved about the fact that your child still has flat feet.

Blood Tests - aired July 13, 2009

Parents have been asking me some pointed questions as to how to help their children, young children, get through a blood test. Well let me see if I can provide some information on this topic that won't be at all painful. First, find out if a blood test is actually scheduled for your child and if your child is old enough to understand tell them an hour or two before you go to the doctor. Now they're going to tell you they don't want that blood test so listen to their fears and their frustrations and acknowledge that but also tell them the blood test is going to keep them healthy and allow them to enjoy lots of fun activities in the days and weeks ahead. Give your child some control over the situation, know that they can't refuse the blood test but they can decide which arm they want to have the blood test in, or where they want to have the blood test, in a chair, on the exam table, or in their parents lap. Distraction is also very helpful. Older kids tell me that they like to listen to music while their blood is being drawn. Younger kids may want to squeeze their favorite teddy bear, and some parents tell me that they use their thumb as an imaginary candle. When their thumb goes up with an imaginary flame the child blows on mom's thumb to put out the flame as the blood is being drawn and that takes away the pain and discomfort and that's actually been studied and found to be very effective. Now if your child does well with the blood test, praise them, call friends and relatives to celebrate the occasion. If it doesn't go so well, still, tell your child that your proud of them for going through the experience and follow it with a positive cons, equence like a trip to the playground or an extra story that night. Hopefully tips like this, and I'm not just talking needle tips, will inject just the right amount of information when it comes to helping your child go through a blood test.

Power Drinks - aired July 6, 2009

Oh boy, after a tough workout parents are thirsty to ask me whether it's good or not for their children to want those power drinks they always seem to enjoy. Well let me see if I can quench everyone's thirst and provide some information on this topic. Power drinks really constitute a number of different beverages including the sport drinks, the vitamin and mineral waters and even the high energy supplements. They're all advertised to improve your child's energy, level of alertness, boost nutrition and improve their athletic performance. But do they really do this? Let's start with power drinks. These contain added sugar and body salts to keep your body in balance if it's getting dehydrated and that's a good thing. But if your child's not very athletic the added sugar may just add calories and increase their weight rather than do anything else. There's no proof that these beverages do anything better than water for re-hydrating your child. What about vitamin and mineral waters? Well they also can re-hydrate and vitamins and minerals are good things but these beverages also contain added calories, artificial sweeteners, caffeine and herbal supplements that have not necessarily been tested in children. In addition it's not clear that they work any better than water but they're probably okay in moderation. Now it's the high energy supplements that I'm most concerned about. These contain large amounts of sugar and enough caffeine to be equivalent to one to three cups of coffee. These are going to make your young athlete jittery, give them headaches, make it difficult for them to concentrate and the caffeine can make them urinate a lot to the point that they may actually become dehydrated when they're working out or in an athletic contest. So the bottom line is avoid the caffeine supplements as much as you possibly can. The power drinks and the vitamin waters probably can be taken in moderation but again there's no proof they're going to work any better than hard work, practice, a good night's rest, eating healthy and drinking water before, during and after a practice or an athletic event. Hopefully, tips like this will energize you to be a little bit more knowledgeable and more cautious the next time your child wants one of those power drinks.

Insects - aired June 29, 2009

Oh boy, parents have been bugging me with summer here about what they can do to help their children protect themselves against those insect bites. Well let me see if I can bite into this one and provide some information on the topic. It turns out that if you don't want your kids to get bitten by mosquitoes and other insects this summer, keep them away from where the insects like to frolic, such as for mosquitoes, stagnant pools of water, where there's open food, or where there are flower gardens, particularly between dusk and dawn when the bugs really like to party. In addition, don't dress your children like flowers, bright colors will just draw the bugs, instead use bland colors like I'm doing, khaki or beige and the bugs will stay away. Don't make your child smell like a flower either during the summer so avoid soaps, shampoos and lotions that have a fragrance to them unless that fragrance happens to be citronella which does tend in some studies to show that bugs will stay away.
Now you're going to need an insect repellant for your children and for yourself and I would recommend the insect repellants that contain the chemical DEET but I would get insect repellant that contains 30% or less DEET, not higher because DEET when used in excess can result in some rare cases of seizures and even coma. But under 30% used every six hours or so it will do the job on the skin exposed areas. Now clothing isn't a good product to spray DEET on because it may stain clothing but there's another insect repellant, Permethrin that you can spray the children's clothing with and that will also keep bugs away but Permethrin is not as good on skin. If an insect bite, occurs my suggestion is to use cool compresses, an antihistamine, and maybe some ibuprofen or acetaminophen to help reduce the discomfort. On the other hand if your child starts to have difficulty breathing, their face swells or they experience nausea, vomiting, well that could be a serious allergic reaction and I would seek medical help because that is an emergency. Hopefully, tips like this will take care of business, or should I say bzzzness when it comes to knowing a little bit more about how to protect your kids from insects this summer.

Swimming Safety - aired June 22, 2009

With summer here, parents have been pooling their thoughts as to how to keep their children safe in a pool, lake or a body of water. Well let me dive in, no, it's the shallow end, let me step into this one and provide some information on the topic. It turns out that drowning is a leading cause of accidental death in children in this country and it's expected that this year more than a thousand children will die by drowning, many of them in home swimming pools. If you don't want this to happen to your child, and nobody does, here are some suggestions. First make sure your children have swimming lessons and know how to swim. I suggest they start swimming lessons at least by age 4 and upward. Before age 4 they're not developmentally ready to swim and they're no safer taking infant and toddler swimming lessons. Second, never leave your child unobserved in a body of water, whether it's a swimming pool or a lake. A child can drown in less than 20 seconds, that's less than the amount of time it takes you to go inside, answer a cell phone or the front door. And it's a good idea to for babysitters, parents, grandparents, anyone watching a child, to know CPR. Third, if a child can't swim, they should have a Coast Guard approved flotation device, inner tubes or water wings simply will not do the job to keep your child safe. If you have a home swimming pool, it should be protected with a fence that's at least 4 feet high with a latch the children can't reach that's self-locking and self-latching and the slats on that fence should be no more than 4 inches apart so kids can't get into that pool area when you're not around. Finally, it's a great idea to have a cell phone with you whenever you're with your kids near a body of water so that if an emergency occurs you can call 9-1-1 and get help on the way while you're using that CPR. Hopefully tips like this will make a big splash when it comes to keeping our kids safe in the water this summer.

Father's Day - aired June 15, 2009

Last month we had a chance to celebrate moms for mother's day, this week it's Dad's turn with father's day approaching but I don't want to talk to dads. I want to talk to moms and kids and tell them what dad's tell me they want for father's day, gifts that don't cost very much but are essentially priceless. You might think that dad wants to sleep in, get breakfast in bed, own that remote control for the day, play a little golf but dad's tell me what they really want on father's day is to be celebrated for their parenting skills, that's right, their parenting skills. So while you may want to have dad play a little golf with his buddies you also want plan activities that dad can participate in with the whole family that he and everyone else will enjoy, such as going to the beach, or if golf is dad's passion, everyone goes to the driving range or even plays a little mini-golf. Some dad's tell me they would love to be able to say the word no on father's day and actually have it mean something. Dads also tell me they love gifts. While store bought gifts are good it's the homemade gifts that mean all the more. In fact, a great homemade gift is to make a certificate for dad that says world's greatest dad. He'll frame this and it will last a lot longer than any necktie you're going to get him for the big day. Finally, take dad out for dinner, or better yet, cook him his favorite home cooked meal, surround him with family, grandparents, even in-laws so everyone can tell dad what a special guy he is and this way dad will realize that the greatest gift of all is the family that surrounds him and the family will realize that father's day should be celebrated, not just on June 21^st but every day of the year.

Sun Safety - aired June 8, 2009

With summer coming parents have been hot to ask me how to protect their young children from the dangers of the sun. Well let me see if I can provide some bright ideas on this particular topic. It turns out that one blistering sunburn will more than double their risk of skin cancer as an adult and yet the use of sunscreen, as being demonstrated here, will reduce that risk by more than 80%. Babies under six months really shouldn't be out in the sun at all, the ultraviolet rays are not good on baby's thin skin so they should be under stroller shades, under a beach umbrella; they should have a hat, t-shirt and sunglasses, that's right, sunglasses. In fact, the sun's rays are most dangerous to the back of the eye through age 10, so all children, just like this family, should be wearing sunglasses when they're out in the bright light. Sunscreen is also going to be very important. The American Academy of Pediatrics even recommends sunscreen for babies, but again, babies shouldn't be out in sunlight, but at least for their sun exposed areas. I like a sunscreen that has a sun protection factor of 15 or better. It should be applied at least 30 minutes before kids go out in the sun and reapplied as is being done here every two to three hours or as soon as kids come out of the water, even if the product says it's waterproof. If a sunburn actually occurs, my suggestion is cool compresses, aloe vera lotion and acetaminophen will help reduce the sting. And a great other suggestion is keep your kids out of the sun between 10 and 2 in the afternoon when the sun's rays are at their brightest. Hopefully, tips like this will bring rays of hope when it comes to shining some light, just not a lot of sunlight, on your children when you want to protect them from the dangers of the sun.

Lactose Intolerance - aired June 1, 2009

Parents have been milking me for lots of information in regard to whether or not their child might have lactose intolerance. Well let me see if I can provide some information that's easy to digest on this topic. Turns out that lactose intolerance represents a problem breaking down a complex sugar called lactose found in milk and dairy products. Why can't the sugar be broken down? Well some children may be lacking a protein or enzyme called lactase which breaks the sugar down and enables our body to absorb it from our intestines. If we don't have this protein the sugar sits in our intestines for hours upon end and results in gassiness, bloating, cramping and diarrhea that we associate with lactose intolerance. How do we get lactose intolerance? Well, kids get it usually because they inherit it. In fact, it's felt that 10% of people in this country have some form of lactose intolerance. It may also result from having another gastrointestinal disease that prevents absorption. What do you do if you think your child has lactose intolerance? Well, first take your child to his or her doctor and if it turns out that the symptoms occur only after eating dairy products your doctor may refer your child to a gastrointestinal special for kids who will do a special test to confirm the diagnosis. If your child is diagnosed as having lactose intolerance be reassured, they're not going to go without eating any dairy products for the rest of their lives; they're just going to have their diet adjusted so they have some dairy products but not enough to cause the symptoms. For example, with kids often times they do better with cheese and yogurts rather than milk. You can also get kids a lactose free milk you can even buy the enzyme or protein lactase and add it to their diet to enhance their digestion. Hopefully tips like this will "mo-o-ve" you in the right direction when it comes to understanding a little bit more about what to do if you think your child has lactose intolerance.

Nail Biting - aired May 25, 2009

Parents have been hitting the nail on the head with lots of good questions about what to do to prevent their child from nail biting. Well let me see if I can bite into this topic and provide some information. It turns out that nail biting is a very common habit that children do beginning around age three, it peaks around age seven to ten, in fact, 50% of kids at that age will bite their nails and it may continue on to adult hood with about 10% of adults biting their nails, guys more so than women. Second, it's important to realize that nail biting isn't that dangerous. It's only if the biting is excessive down to the base of the nail or the skin around the nail that that area can become inflamed and may cause a minor infection. Third, just because your child bites his or her nails doesn't mean that they're overly anxious. It may be that they're simply bored or they recently gave up their bottle or their blanket and they want a little self-comforting. So what do you do if your children are biting their nails? My best piece of advice is to ignore the habit and it will go away over time. In fact, it's much better to spend your time wondering why they're biting their nails than to constantly tell your child to stop biting his or her nails. Another good idea is to consider distraction. For example you might have kids put their hands in their pocket or squeeze a ball rather than bite their nails. Some parents like to paint bitter solutions on the nails and well, that may work in the short run it's not going to work in the long run they're just going to bite their nails as soon as that solution that you painted on wears off. Positive rewards and consequences may work. You might promise that you'll paint your daughter's nails if she doesn't bite her nails for a week or you might just simply praise your son if he doesn't bite his nails for even one day and follow it up with a positive consequence such as a trip to the playground. My best piece of advice is when your kids friends are no longer biting their nails your kids won't either. So hopefully tips like this will nail down any concerns you have when it comes to knowing more about what to do if you're children are nail biting.

In-Toeing - aired May 18, 2009

Parents have been asking me to step out and explain to them why their infants or children's feet turn in when they walk, something, like, this. Well let me put my best foot forward and provide some information on in-toeing. In-toeing is fairly common in infants and children and usually represents a temporary twisting of the bone in the foot, the shinbone or the tibia or the thighbone or what we call the femur. If you happen to see that your baby's feet turn in, either one or both when their born, it usually means that they've been cramped in the womb or uterus and treatment for this is fairly simple and involves gently twisting or pushing the foot in the other direction several times with each diaper change and the foot will straighten itself out, usually within a month or two. If not, and in rare circumstances, casting and even more rarely, surgery may be indicated. Now if your child starts to have their feet turn in when they're starting to walk that's the most common type of in-toeing. We call that a problem with the shinbone or tibia and it has a name, tibial torsion. The good news is this gets better with tincture of time, usually over a year or two. Giving your child special shoes, special exercises or night braces is not going to speed up the process of the bone straightening itself out and the good news is most if not the majority of children with in-toeing are going to walk at the right time, run well and be able to play all sports without any problem whatsoever. If you are still concerned about the degree of your child's in-toeing please talk to your child's doctor. He or she will want to examine the feet, understand what bone is at risk, whether it's the foot, the shinbone or the thighbone and in rare circumstances refer you to a pediatric orthopedist doctor who can further examine the bone and decide if casting or surgery is indicated but again this is a rare circumstance. Hopefully tips like will have you avoid the agony of "de-feet" so you're less concerned when you find your child's feet are in-toeing.

Teen Drinking - aired May 11, 2009

With prom and graduation season here, parents have been asking me what they should say or do for their teenagers to convince them not to experience underage drinking. Well let me see if I can quench their thirst with some information about this very important topic. First, I hope you've been talking to your children before they're teenagers about the dangers of alcohol so they know what they might experience if they're offered a drink by one of their peers and speaking of peers, it's important to know who your teenagers friends are, better yet who the parents are so together as parents you can form a network around your kids to prevent them from the risk-taking of underage drinking. It's also a good idea to give your teen some lines to say if they're approached by someone with alcohol such as "not now, I'm in training" or "I'll be grounded for life!" A great idea is to make sure you know where your teenager is going, when they're going to come back and set a curfew but an even better idea is to offer your child a no questions asked ride home if they're about to get in a car with someone who is under the influence of alcohol because that would be an event that they're all going to regret. Now parents, you need to be good role models as well. That means don't drink alcoholic beverages in front of your children or teenagers, it sets a bad example. Another good idea is not to have your children bring you an alcoholic beverage and if other adults are coming over, please don't offer them alcoholic beverages if the kids and teens are going to be around. Another very good idea is to watch television or the movies with your teenager and if alcohol is being shown point out the negative effects of this drink even if its being portrayed as something humorous or desirable. It's also a great idea to always point out the strengths, the inner strengths, of your teenager and their healthy behaviors so that they're less apt to turn to alcohol for risk-taking to escape reality. So that hopefully, tips like this will sober you up when it comes to the important role parents can play in helping to prevent their teenagers from underage drinking.

Mother's Day - aired May 4, 2009

Everyday I get to hear from lots of moms, including my own. And so with mother's day approaching this week I thought I would celebrate mom for the special person that she is. But I don't want to talk to moms, I want to talk to dads and kids and share with them what moms tell me they want for mother's day. Gifts that don't cost very much are essentially priceless. For example, mom's tell me that they would love to be able to have their family do what they want them to do the first time they ask them to do it. And that goes for dads as well. Moms also tell me they want a coupon for a full day off on mother's day but that's easier said than done. So instead at least let mom sleep in, bring her breakfast in bed and give her the remote control so she can watch the programs she wants to watch. Moms tell me they would love a "no-whine" zone, W-H-I-N-E for mother's day you might extend that beyond that big day. Moms also tell me that they love gifts, but they really love homemade gifts. An easy one is a certificate you can make mom that simply says World's Greatest Mom. She'll frame this and it will last a lot longer than any gift you can buy in a store. You might also show mom that she's not the only one with the special skills to make beds, clean rooms and do dishes, everyone can help with that. Finally, take mom out to dinner, invite the grandparents, even the in-laws so everyone can tell mom what a special person she is, give her hugs, tell her how much they care for her. In this way mom will say wow, which is mom upside down, when it comes to our showing her the care, kindness, love and concern that she deserves, not just on mother's day but every day of the year.

Diaper Rash - aired April 27, 2009

Parents have been asking me some rational questions about what to do about their baby's diaper rash. Well, let me see if I can do more than scratch the surface on this particular topic. All babies are going to get diaper rashes and it's not a sign of poor parenting. Diaper rashes usually occur due to irritation or inflammation in the diaper area. It may be because the diaper's too tight and there's chafing. It may be due to irritation from the contents that sit in that diaper for awhile. It may also be due to chemicals in the disposable wipes that you're using to clean up the diaper area and rarely it may be due to an infection. So what do you do if you start see redness in the diaper area? My best suggestion is to cover that area over with a barrier cream or ointment such as Vaseline or zinc oxide. Use that several times a day and it prevents moisture from making the skin or the rash look even worse but if despite using a barrier cream or ointment you find that the redness appears to be spreading and there are red dots all over the area well that may represent an infection due to a fungus or a bacteria and require a prescription anti-biotic cream or ointment from your pediatrician. Of course it's much easier to prevent a diaper rash than it is to have to treat it so here are some suggestions. First and foremost, check your baby's diaper area frequently and clean up that area on a regular basis so that things in the diaper don't sit there for a while. You want to use a washcloth, warm water and pat the area dry. Sometimes disposable wipes may contain alcohol or other chemicals that may actually irritate baby's skin. You also don't want to make their diaper too tight so that air can't get in there and allow the skin to heal. In fact, give baby some in the buff time each day to really let the air get to the skin and enhance the healing process. When do we worry about a diaper rash? Well, if the diaper rash has lasted for a couple of days or is associated with fever, blisters, pus in that area or you just don't like what this rash looks like by all means please take your baby to the pediatrician so he or she can do some further examination and give you the appropriate treatment. Hopefully tips like this will be the bottom line when it comes to knowing a little bit more about what do if your baby gets a diaper rash without any ifs, ands or butts.

Going Green - aired April 20, 2009

With Earth Day approaching on April 22^nd, parents have been finding it within their nature to ask me what they can do to teach their child to respect and protect the environment. Well I'm going green with excitement rather than envy over this set of questions. If you want to teach your young one how to respect the environment first and foremost take them with you out into the environment for some fun activities, like helping you plant a garden as I'm doing or set up a bird feeder, this being a hummingbird feeder. Another great idea is to teach your child the importance of recycling by making a game of it. You could take four different colored bins, one for paper, plastic, cans and bottles and ask your young child to put the right object in the right colored bin. As your kids get older and appreciate recycling you might play the game, can this item be recycled, why or why not? Another great idea is for the whole family to go green by participating in a greening up event over the weekend such as helping to clear up a schoolyard, athletic field or playground. Now teach your children as well that when they do things that they expect are run of the mill they're also helping the environment. For example, when they turn off the light, turn off the television or their electronic game they're helping the environment and let them know that, when they want to use rechargeable batteries rather than the disposable ones they're also helping the environment. Another great idea is when they see something that looks real neat like these light bulbs point out that they're not only neat looking but they're energy saving. Another great idea is to praise your kids when they do something to also help the environment by wanting to walk or ride somewhere on their bicycle rather than in the car or on the bus. Finally the most important things you can teach your children are to reduce it when it comes to energy use, re-use when it comes to batteries or even grocery bags and of course, to recycle it as a means of protecting that environment so that hopefully tips like this will be down to earth for you and your children when it comes to making our earth a better place for all of us to live.

Flatheads - aired April 13, 2009

Parents have been heading me off at the pass asking me if by putting baby down on her back or his back to sleep at night, they're flattening the back of their baby's head. Well, let me come flat out and provide some information on flatheads. The best position you can lay your baby down on at night to sleep is on their back to reduce their risk significantly of ever developing sudden infant death syndrome. On the other hand, if baby is on his or her back at night also by day and back up against the back of an infant seat as well during the day well, that may result in some positional flattening of the back of the head. This is going to fill out as your baby gets older. How do you prevent the flattening from occurring? Well, give your baby a lot of time away from being on their back when they're awake. Such as tummy time which is a great way to exercise the muscles in the arm, the leg and the neck. Another good idea if one part of the back of their head looks flatter than the other is to alternate which end of the crib or the bassinet you place them each night so they alternate where the pressure is being placed on the back of their head particularly if babies like to look out into the room as they're going to sleep. If your baby still has some evidence of flattening , or misshapening of the head by six months of age, you can talk about this for sure with your child's doctor. He or she in rare circumstances may want to get an x-ray to make sure that the bones of the skull are not joined too tightly together but that's a very rare occurrence. Most likely it's due to positioning and you still should keep your baby on his or her back to sleep at night but be reassured flattening of the back of the head due to position does take care of itself and is not a cause for the brain to stop growing or effect its development and it's certainly not a cause for brain damage. So that hopefully tips like will shape up any concerns you have when it comes to reassuring you that you should put your baby on his or her back to sleep and not worry about that temporary flattening of the back of their head.

Scabies - aired April 6, 2009

Parents have been itching to ask me whether their child's itchy rash might be scabies. I "might" so to speak be able to answer that question so here goes. Scabies is an itchy rash caused by an insect called a mite from the family of ticks and spiders. Its real name is sarcoptes scabiei and these tiny mites get onto your child's skin and then tunnel or burrow under the skin laying their eggs causing inflammation, blisters, bumps and the red itchy rash we call scabies. Now scabies usually appears on the wrists, on the fingers, in between the fingers and toes but can occur essentially anywhere on your child's body. How do you get scabies? Scabies is contagious and its usually spread by skin to skin contact between children but the scabies mite can also survive off of skin for at least three days at room temperature so it may be in clothing that's shared between children. How do you know if your child has scabies? Well if your child is itching and has that rash between the fingers, toes and those red spots that you see around the wrist take your child to your child's doctor. He or she will want to examine the rash maybe take a few flakes of skin at the area of the rash and look for the mites or their eggs. If they see them they're going to recommend a lotion containing a medicine called Permethrin you put all over your child, let them wear that lotion for 8 to 12 hours, then wash it off the morning after and then repeat that treatment a week later and that will eliminate the bugs and their eggs. Of course it's also important to prevent the spread of scabies if your child has it so please wash their clothes, their sheets, their towels, their pillowcases in hot water and , remind your child not to share any clothing especially if you're worried about scabies. Hopefully tips like this will do more than scratch the surface when it comes to knowing a little bit more about what to do if you're worried your child has scabies.

Tics - aired March 30, 2009

Recently, parents have been making it a habit to ask me if their child's constant eye blinking or throat clearing represents a tic. Not the insect but a series of repeat involuntary muscle movements we call tics so this week let me tick off some information on this important topic. Turns out that tics may be more common in children than we suspect. Some studies suggest that they occur in 1 out of 5 school age children but they can also occur in toddlers. What causes a tic? Well, we're not sure, we know they run in families and some people believe they're just a part of the brains normal development. We know that tics begin at a time of physical or social stress and may get worse when a child is tense, anxious or tired and gets better when a child feels a bit more relaxed. Now it turns out that most tics are simple tics meaning you just have eye blinking or throat clearing but occasionally multiple tics occur involving vocalizations, sounds, movements, a condition we call Tourette's Syndrome but that's quite rare. Instead, for the most common tic my suggestion is don't criticize your child, don't tell them to stop blinking their eyes because they can't control that behavior. Instead, be supportive, be sensitive, be caring and let them know that they're not doing anything wrong and the tics will disappear within a period of a couple weeks or a month. When do you worry? You should worry if your child is having tics that last longer than a month, is having multiple kinds of tics, if tics run in your family or you or your child are simply concerned then talk with your child's doctor. He or she will want to examine your child to see if there's a reason for the tics, try to identify some of the stressors on your child that may be making the tics worse, may want to change the medicine your child's on that can be contributing to the tics or may want to prescribe a different medication to reduce the frequency of the tics. But it may not make them go away until tincture of time takes its course. Hopefully tips like this will not tick you off when it comes to knowing a little bit more about the do's and don'ts of your child having a tic.

Cholesterol - aired March 23, 2009

Parents have been recently asking me whether or not their child needs a blood test to screen them for cholesterol. Well, I want to do more than chew the fat on this one so let me provide some information. Turns out that cholesterol is a fatty substance made by the liver or it gets into the body from the foods we eat and once cholesterol is in your body, well it can contribute to you becoming overweight, obese and as you get older it clogs up blood vessels that can lead to heart disease as an adult. In fact, the American Academy of Pediatrics has realized that cholesterol buildup begins in childhood and so they're recommending after the age of two any child who's at high risk for cholesterol buildup should be screened for cholesterol. So who's at high risk? Well, they're recommending that any child whose in a family where there are adults who have high cholesterol should be screened as well as a child whose in a family with adults who have an early history of heart disease, which means a heart attack for men before age 55 or women, before age 65. In addition, if the child or any other family member has a history of high blood pressure, being overweight or diabetes they too need to be screened for cholesterol at least every three to five years. Now that pretty much involves 3 of out 4 children who are going to get screened.

Now, whether or not you screen high for cholesterol or you're not even in a high-risk group it's important to pay attention to the amount of cholesterol you're taking in in your diet and your doctor can help you identify foods that are low in cholesterol and saturated fats. If you tend to be a little bit more obese or overweight you want to reduce the amount of whole milk in your diet and stay on that low fat milk as well. Now a great idea is for families to exercise together to prevent the buildup of cholesterol and if diet and exercise don't seem to be making a difference and your child is over the age of eight and is screened as having a high cholesterol level, well, they may need medication that adults take to lower their cholesterol. But talk to your child's doctor to understand the benefits versus the risks of using this medication. Hopefully tips like this will get to the heart of the matter when it comes to knowing a little bit more about how to screen your child, or if to screen your child for a cholesterol level.

Piercing - aired March 16, 2009

Parents have been pinning me down asking me what age is the right age for a child to have his or her ears pierced. Well let me poke throug,, , ,, h, and provide some information on this particular topic. Turns out there is no particular age by which a child should have their ears pierced. It's really a function of your child wanting to have the ear pierced and being mature enough to take care of the ears once they have been pierced. Why is that so important? Because complications can occur, in fact three out of 10 children who do have their ears pierced, if they don't take care of them, develop bleeding, swelling, infection and can have an allergic reaction to some of the metals that go in their ears. So as much as you're worried about what age to have their ears pierced, I would worry about where to have it done and choose the most germ free environment possible. Your children's immunizations should be up to date and you need to choose a place where not only are gloves used that are sterile, the equipment needs to be sterile and even that first set of earrings needs to be sterile and germ-free. Now, what do I recommend for a first set of earrings? Well, gold and stainless steel tend to be the least allergenic so you might want to start there. Once a pair of earrings has gone into your child's ears, they should stay for four to six weeks. Every night your child should wipe the ear with a little alcohol wipe or an alcohol rub or antibacterial ointment and turn the earring a quarter to a half a turn so it doesn't stick to the skin that's healing around it. Now if you find after your child has the earring in for awhile they can't take it out or the earlobe turns red or starts to ooze pus, please talk to your child's doctor because that would represent a complication that your child's doctor can help you and your child with. So that hopefully tips like this will stick with you the next time you're concerned and want to know more about whether you should get your child's ear pierced.

Hyperactivity - aired March 9, 2009

Boy I don't whether to play with buzz lightyear or play with the horse or play with the balls I'm going to go from one activity to the next! Well, parents are asking me whether its okay for their toddler to jump from one activity to the next or whether that's a sign that they're going to have an attention deficit or hyperactivity disorder. Well, let me calm everyone down and get everyone to pay attention to this particular concern. It turns out that the vast majority of normal healthy three and four year olds have high energy. That's part of their normal development. We don't even begin to worry about a child being hyperactive or having trouble paying attention until they're in school, kindergarten or first grade and then a great idea is to ask your child's teacher if your child's energy level is different from the other kids. Even then most of the time it still falls within the realm of normal. So, recognizing that your child's spirited personality is part of their normal development there's still some suggestions I can make. First and foremost, don't call your child Dennis the Menace because they're hopping from one activity to the other or that will be a label that will stick. Now, build some consistency into their play date. Don't overwhelm them with a lot of toys but give them an easy pace to get through the day so it's not so frenetic. Don't set your child up for an activity that they're going to fail in, such as taking them with you to hear an adult speech or having them sit through a long meal in an adult restaurant. Now a great idea is you don't want to punish your child for their spirited personality but you do want to set some limits. So you might tell them no jumping on the bed but you can jump on the floor. If you catch your child playing quietly by themselves or with other children praise them because that will reinforce that quiet kind of behavior. And parents who have spirited children, you need to take some time out for yourselves so you can relax, refresh and reenergize to celebrate your child's energetic personality. So that hopefully tips like this will energize you when it comes to having a better understanding of your child's spirited personality.

Chest Pain - Aired March 2, 2009

Parents have been trying to get a lot of questions off their chest as to what to do when their teenager or child complains of chest pain. Well I want everyone to breathe more easily on this one so let me provide some information.

Now when we think about chest pain in adults we think about heart disease and heart attacks and something that is life threatening. Well, kids and teenagers don't have heart attacks but they do have chest pain but it's not going to be quite as serious. In fact the most common cause for chest pain in teens and kids is muscle strain and bone pain due to an injury or accident that's occurred. Perhaps from stretching the muscles from over exercising or getting hit accidentally while playing, not realizing it and waking up the next morning and realizing their chest hurts. Now the best way to diagnose this type of chest pain is to ask your teenager where it hurts, when they point to a place, where does it hurt Jen? You press on that area and if they go "ouch" that means it's a muscle strain or a little bit of bone pain and that gets better with rest, reassurance, tincture of time and a little bit of acetaminophen or ibuprofen.

Now what else could be causing chest pain? Well if the chest pain is associated with cough it may be a form of asthma, if it's associated with fever, it may be a signal for pneumonia. If it comes on after your child has eaten it may be pediatric heartburn. So when do we worry? Well I worry about any chest pain that has lasted for over an hour or if you have chest pain that's associated with difficulty breathing by all means, talk to your child's doctor. It's also a good idea to talk to your child's doctor about chest pain associated with fever or if your child says that their heart seems to be racing although that's a rare occurrence. In fact if you're at all concerned about your child's chest pain, by all means talk to your child's physician. What will he or she do? Well, they're going to want to talk to your child, examine your child, they may get a chest x-ray and in rare circumstances they're going to get an electrocardiogram to check your child's heart. But again, heart disease is a rare cause for chest pain in teenagers. Hopefully tips like this will be much less painful when you come to realize that chest pain in kids is common but it's certainly not as life threatening as it is in adults.

Lies - Aired February 23, 2009

With president's week here, seeing my friend George reminds me of how many parents ask me what to do when their children tell a lie. Well I don't want to fib on this one so let me tell you the truth about kids who lie. First and foremost, all children are going to lie at one time or another. Maybe because they tell you they didn't break the vase when they did or that they brushed their teeth when they didn't, but all kids are going to lie. Now a toddler might do it because of their amazing imagination, a school age child might lie because they're feeling guilty or afraid they're going to be punished and a teenager- well they may lie to protect themselves or cover for a friend but again, everyone is going to lie at some point. So what should you do? I don't want you to ignore the lie but I don't want you to punish your child immediately because they lied but instead focus on why they lied.

For example you might say did you think I'd get angry because the vase was broken rather than I can't believe you lied to me for breaking the vase. You might also go on to say something such as how do you think the vase broke. This opens the door to an ongoing dialogue and communication rather than an interrogation or inquisition and this way your child will recognize the consequence of their actions, talk about it, apologize for it and recognize it's okay to tell the truth. Now that night when you have your child's unconditional attention at bedtime and they have yours, you can go over the incident in which they lied and reiterate your values of how important it is for them to tell the truth. Now parents, you need to tell the truth too which means don't get caught telling a lie, even a tiny lie, in front of your children or they'll think you're approving that behavior. Instead, apologize for lying, recognize the consequences of your action and reiterate how important it is to tell the truth. So that hopefully, tips like this will lie well with you and your children when it comes to knowing what to do the next time you catch one of them telling a lie.

Blogs - aired February 16, 2009

Parents have been e-mailing me online with lots of questions about whether or not their children should be allowed to blog on the Internet. Well let me log on and provide some information on this topic. Now just as a refresher a blog is an online diary or journal with a level of privacy depending on the blogging service you're using. Now you can imagine families right away think that if my child blogs there are going to be safety issues and they're right. On the other hand, blogs have been found to improve a child's writing skills, communication skills, social skills and teach them more responsibility and safety on the Internet. So what do I recommend? Well, talk to your child. If your child is interested in blogging and you think it's a good idea, then set some ground rules in advance. Rule number one is make sure your child does not give out their full name, their address or any photographs that would identify them. Rule number two: make sure you get a blogging service that is password protected so even though they're being secure, no one can get into that blog unless you know who it is and your child knows who it is. Third, sit down with your child and review what they're going to post on the blog before it goes up so you can teach them about what is responsible writing for the Internet and be able to access that blog so you can see who's responding if they've chosen a service where people can respond to what your child writes and again, talk about what's a responsible response and what isn't. A great idea is for the entire family to share a blog so they can all communicate together in which case it would be a fun and safe experience for everyone. So that hopefully tips like this will stay locked in your memory banks when it comes to understanding how to have a safe and fun experience when your child wants to blog.

Romance - aired February 9, 2009

With Valentine's Day approaching parents have been crushing me with lots of questions about how to talk to their teenagers about their romantic adventures. Well let me see if I can get to the heart of the matter and provide some information on this topic. Now it turns out if you have a young teenager or a pre-teenager they're going to socialize in groups so you can rest easy for awhile unless you don't know whose in those groups. Now usually when a girl is 14 or 15 years of age and a boy 15 or 16 they're going to seek a more intimate relationship with a special someone but it's not the age of your teenager that's important but more their maturity and the guidelines in place for establishing such a relationship. How do you set up those guidelines? Well, hopefully you've been having open communication and conversations with your child even before adolescence where they can talk to about their friends and they can ask you questions about sex and sexuality. Now it's important in having those conversations that you do more listening than talking, that you don't be overbearing or criticize their friends but you can share your values about relationships because they form the foundation for those guidelines. Not it's important to watch television with your teenagers and listen to their music and point out the differences between how sexuality is portrayed in the media and the realistic decision-making they must make in real life. Remind your teenager that drugs and alcohol are going to impair their judgment and make them vulnerable and a great idea is to guarantee them a no questions asked guilt free ride home if they find themselves headed for a situation with someone that everyone is going to regret. Hopefully tips like this will go a lot further than Cupid's arrow when it comes to hitting the target and telling you what you need to say and do, or better yet, listen, when you want to learn more about your teenager's boyfriends and girlfriends.

BPA - aired February 2, 2009

Recently, parents have been bottling up lots of questions about whether or not their young child is being exposed to a chemical their hearing about in the news called BPA. Well let me take the lid off some of those concerns and provide some information on the topic. BPA stands for bisphenol A, a chemical used in the making of plastic, particularly a type of plastic called polycarbonate that's found in baby bottles, water bottles, it's also found on the inside lining of cans that contain fruits and vegetables and may even be part of cell phones, plastic tableware and parts of cars. It's essentially everywhere. In fact the Food and Drug Administration estimates that 95% of us have trace amounts of BPA in our bodies because its leached into the foods and beverages that we drink from containers made wi, th BPA. So what's the problem? Well there are animal studies that suggest that animals who take large amounts of BPA experience behavioral problems, brain damage, cancer, poor growth, early puberty and even birth defects. But you need to understand animals break this chemical down different from humans and the amount in the animal studies is much, much greater than any trace amount found in our body and its for that reason the Food and Drug Administration feels that BPA is not a risk for our children or ourselves. However the toxicology division of the National Institute of Health they'd like to see even further proof that this chemical is safe in our bodies. So, what do I recommend? Well, even though the risk may be very, very tiny, if you're concerned, breast-feed your baby, rather than feed them out of infant bottles, or get an infant bottle that is BPA free. Now if you're bottle has a triangle with a 7 on it or has a circle with PC it contains BPA and I would again, look for a BPA free bottle. If you have cans or bottles, don't heat them or put them in a microwave because if they're made with BPA that chemical will leach all the more into the foods and beverages that we eat or drink. Another good idea is to use frozen foods or fresh fruits and vegetables rather than canned foods made with BPA. Now my best advice is if you have any questions about BPA talk to your child's doctor and they can help you learn more about this chemical so that hopefully tips like this will be food for thought when it comes to recognizing the very tiny, if any risk, of exposing your child or yourself to BPA.

Moving Away - aired January 26, 2009

With the New Year here, parents have been asking me some moving questions about how to talk to their children about a pending family move in the weeks or months ahead. Well let me see if I can pack up some information on that topic. It turns out that as stressful as a move is on adult it's even more stressful on a child who feels that their world is being turned upside down as something happens that they had no control over. So my best suggestion is if you're planning a move talk to your child about it long before the move occurs to get them excited. No matter what the reason for the move, keep a positive attitude. If the place you're moving to is nearby, take your children with you to look at your new home or apartment, the local school and playground, to help get them excited. And if they're far away have pictures or videos of the location you're going to be going to again, raise their enthusiasm. Infants are not going to worry about a family move; they're more worried about themselves. Toddlers, well the thing they're going to worry about with the move is whether that box you're packing is being given to someone else so as soon as you get to the new home or apartment, open that box first for your toddler and show them that their toys are just as they left them. It's also a good idea to bring furniture from a toddler's old room into their new room. The group that has the hardest time with the move as you can expect, are school age and teenage children and if you can hold the move until the end of the school year that's all the better. If you can't, then sit down, explain why to your child, listen to their concerns, tell them that you feel sad too that you're going to have to move at this time of the year. A great idea is to plan some exchange visits between their old friends in the old neighborhood and where they are in the new neighborhood. You want to make sure that letters and e-mails go back and forth as they keep their old friends and make some new friends to smooth the transition. If after a month or two you find your child is still not excited about the new location, talk to your child's doctor who can help your child work through this problem and in rare circumstances suggest some counseling. Hopefully tips like this will move you and your children along when it comes to planning the family move.

Allowance - aired January 19, 2009

With so much talk about our nation's economy nowadays, our thoughts are always on money, including children. Not because they need a mortgage, because they want to know if they're going to get an allowance or a raise in that allowance. So this week, let me raise the rate of interest of everybody on the subject of kids and allowances. Now an allowance is designed to teach kids how to handle money and in fact studies suggest that a child who gets an allowance learns to save more wisely and spend more wisely. So when should you start an allowance? Well, usually at age 5 or 6 kids begin to understand that different things cost different prices that's a good age to start. How much should you give for an allowance? Well that's really up to you as a family but money experts would recommend fifty cents to a dollar per age per week but no more than ten dollars until kids are adolescents. Now the big controversy with allowances is whether they should be tied to chores and getting good grades. Some experts say yes, but many say no, feeling that grades and chores are part of expectations for someone in the family and they shouldn't be tied to getting an allowance. You can always reward your child for chores or getting good grades with a non-monetary reward such as a family outing or a simple compliment which goes a lot further than a financial bonus. Now if you decide to start your kids on an allowance, set some ground rules in advance. By that I mean let them know what day the allowance is going to be given, how much you're going to give, if your taking some out for charity say that in advance, but then let your children spend the money as they see fit. They're going to make mistakes but that's part of the learning process. The most important thing to remember for your kids is to make sure they know the allowance is a privilege, not a right and they'll deal with the allowance a lot more responsibly. Hopefully, tips like this will make dollars and "cents" when it comes to knowing a little bit more about what to do if your kids want an allowance.

Cell Phones - aired January 12, 2009

Parents have been calling me with lots of questions about whether or not they should get their child a cell phone. Well, I don't want to leave anyone on hold on this one, so let me provide some information. The main reason you want to get your child a cell phone is out of security, safety and convenience. I mean there's no question that if your child is done an athletic practice and needs to be picked up, it's nice to have them be able to call you and it's nice for you to tell them you're going to be late picking them up. But it's not a good reason to buy a cell phone if your child says its because all their friends have cell phones or because it's a status symbol. So what do I recommend? Well, first of all younger children really don't need a cell phone. They're going to be in school where cell phones are not allowed and after school they're going to be home or at a friend's house where they can use their parents' phones. But as kids get close to becoming adolescents, they're going to be out and about and parents do want to know where their kids are and most cell phones do have a GPS system where they can be locatable. But if you're going to get your teenager a cell phone, here are some suggestions. Get one with a prepaid phone plan that works on time limited minutes so your kids aren't on the phone all the time but know that they are limited on how many calls and text messages they can send. Also, parents should have some control over the numbers they can call out or receive but don't forget to include 911 in case there's an emergency. My best suggestion is if your child is ready to have a cell phone and you think they are, well, set some ground rules in advance. Make sure your child understands the rules for using the phone; the time-limited plan and is responsible for caring for that phone so you're not buying a second phone before that warranty is expired. Hopefully, tips like this will answer the call when it comes to knowing a little bit more about what to think about if your child asks for that cell phone.

Parenting Twins - aired January 5, 2009

Expectant parents and grandparents have been doubling up their questions asking me what to expect if they're welcoming twins into their family. Well let me give birth to some information that may help them with this particular concern. Turns out some people will say, oh, you're having twins, you're never going to sleep and it's going to cost you a lot more. Well, having twins can be an incredibly rewarding experience. If you're worried about that sleep, all you need to do is wake up when your first twin wakes up, wake the second twin up, feed them both at the same time to coordinate your schedules and result in less sleep interruptions. And as to cost, well, breastfeed your twins, another great reason to breastfeed, some moms will breastfeed both twins at once. If you have any difficulty breastfeeding your twins, talk to your child's or your twin's doctor or their office staff or a lactation consultant and they can help. It's also important to pump your breast milk and put it into some bottles so that other friends, family, relatives can help you with the feeding and that gives you a little chance for a break. And speaking of a break, it's important to have a network of support involving friends and family to allow you and your partner to get that rest and relaxation you need when you're bringing up twins. And speaking of supports, it's also great to get connected to a twin support group in your community and your doctor's office can point you in the right direction to get other tips from families that have twins. Finally, it's important to realize that as your twins start to get older and certainly by six months, they're going to develop their own unique personalities and you need to celebrate that. Rather than always calling your babies the twins, call them by their first names and as much as you want to dress them in identical outfits, make sure they have separate clothes, separate clothing drawers and even at birthdays give them separate cakes and separate gifts so you can cultivate each of their own different identities. In this way hopefully you'll find tips like this to be twice as valuable when it comes to celebrating the arrival of twins into your family.

First with Kids can also be heard every week on WOKO

WCAX.COM Local Vermont News, Weather and Sports-First With Kids

First With Kids

More on the Web

Click Here For Complete

Health More>>

'Third-hand smoke' could be troublesome, too

3 home habits help youngsters stay slim

Medications for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)

Hepatitis C self-care

Government to pay for more than half of U.S. health care costs

Very obese people may be missing genes

Cholesterol Center

Heart Health News

Latest Health News More>>

Soft drinks could boost pancreatic cancer risk

3 home habits help youngsters stay slim

Cleaning agent tied to Parkinson's in study

Health tip: spot unsafe playgrounds

Kids born early in year more likely to be athletes?

Fibroids may raise risk of stillbirth

Herbals not the answer for asthma, study shows

Depression in pregnancy may lead to antisocial teens

Health tip: getting cardiac rehabilitation

Health tip: understanding ear tube surgery