Striving For A Happy Childhood
It is wonderful to be back with you all once again. I hope you are enjoying our monthly chat. Do post your comments and suggestions.
Your satisfaction is my mission.
This month is full of family occasions and I have tried to compile articles to fit each forthcoming occasion. I have chosen Parents Day for the article of the month. Parents make it all possible; friendships and sibling relationships.
Healthy happy children are the outcome of parents’ healthy lifestyle. Indeed, parents’ lifestyle influences child health. How? The article of the month should throw some light on the topic.
Enjoy and Ponder!
Table of Contents
Articles
Parents' Lifestyle Influences Child Health
Scroll down to read the full text. Today's special only for you.
For Friendship Day: Outdoor games are fun!
On Raksha Bandhan, the siblings day in India:
Psychosocial Development of Childhood Helps Siblings Be Friends for Life.
Child Health News
Know The Forthcoming Meningococcal Vaccine.
Aspirin A Miracle Drug: Not Recommended for Children.
Pearls From The Forums
A Child Always sick?
Prevent Choking Hazards.
Important Links and Need to Know Information
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Articles
Parents' Lifestyle Influences Child Health
Parents are children’s world; their friends, role models, providers, guide and source of affection. Through them children learn to love, care and be happy. Actually they subconsciously follow parents’ footsteps in all spheres of life including their lifestyle.
Long working hours
Competitive jobs eat on parents’ happy times with their kids. Their energy is drained and patience is exhausted by the time they reach home.
"Sharing a home-cooked meal helps frazzled families re-connect" is easier said than done! Even the simple family chores: meeting children’s emotional and physical needs, and getting a warm square meal ready, are preferably shunned away. The question of taking children for outdoor games is farfetched. Instead children find solace in computer games and social media, where their psychosocial development is lost in online anonymity.
Parents are often deprived of adequate rest and sleep.
Exhaustion, dissatisfaction and deprivation of basic needs like sleep and rest make parents irritable. Their patience dwindles. Mood swings, temper and abusive language that follow, make children hideaway. The parental influence is lost.
Attention deficit hyperactive disorder, behavior problems and psychological disorders are on the rise among children. Could this not be children’s expression of insecurity?
Addictions
Coffee, tea and chocolates
Caffeine
in coffee, tea, and chocolate is a potent brain stimulant that keeps us cheerful and attentive throughout the long working hours; but leaves behind many health issues. The worst is when a baby in the womb also becomes a victim to its harmful effects; and that too without the mother ever suspecting it. Yes, more than 2 small cups of coffee per day, can jeopardize
fetal growth:
Abortions, premature births, intra uterine growth retardations and stillbirths. It can even hamper the chances of successful in-vitro fertilization (IVF).
Tobacco smoking
Second hand smoke
is a serious child health issue all over the world.
Point to remember: “When parents smoke, their kids also smoke, including the baby in the womb.”
Opening windows or smoking outside the house does not decrease the ill effects of passive smoking. Have you been worried about your child’s aggressive behavior or learning difficulties? The answer may lie in his/her environmental tobacco smoke.
Alcohol
Alcohol is a well known health offender, yet we all indulge in it. However, expecting mothers should keep away from alcohol.
Point to remember:”There is No amount of alcohol and No time of pregnancy that is safe for the fetus”.
Exposed fetuses suffer lifelong from alcohol related neurodevelopment disorders and abnormal facial features:
Alcohol Spectrum Disorders.
Toxins in our life
Thousands of chemicals go into making of cosmetic and personal care products. According to prevalent law, the self grooming accessories and perfumes do not come under FDA control for safe use (FDA 1999). While exposure from occasional use of one product may not arouse concern, daily use of many products can make “Beauty” dangerous. Below are few well researched ones.
1. Hair dyes:
Coal tar is a carcinogen.
Lead is neurotoxic and can lead to behavior problems and learning difficulties in children.
Phenylenediamine (PPD) is mutagenic, carcinogen and skin irritant.
2. Skin lightening creams:
Mercury is toxic to nervous system, hampers childhood development and has harmful effects on many systems of the body.
3. Eye makeup:
Coal tar: (mentioned above)
Lead: (mentioned above)
Mercury: (mentioned above)
Formaldehyde is carcinogen, reproductive toxin, and exacerbates respiratory diseases. 4. Nail polish:
Glycol Ethers are hazardous to reproductive system, and irritant to eyes and skin.
Formaldehydes are carcinogen, reproductive toxin, and exacerbates respiratory diseases.
Phthalates have toxic effect on developing male reproductive system, can cause kidney diseases and liver injury.
5. Various hair styling products, shampoos, creams, shaving creams and even baby products:
“Parabens”, the commonest preservative used in most of the cosmetics. They have hormonal activity and are associated to breast cancer in a recent study.
6. Perfumes and deodorants have Parabens and Phytates (please see the effects above).
7. Artificial tanning and sunlight lamps use UV rays which are of short wavelength, high frequency and relatively high energy. They can damage the eyes and are generally harmful in high doses. Some people are adversely affected even at low dose of exposure.
UV rays are known for their potential to cause premature aging of the skin, sunburns and skin cancer. Children below 18 years of age and pregnant women should not use the tanning bed/booth.
Canned Foods
Bisphenol A (BPA), a plastic and resin ingredient is used to line metal food and drink cans. It is associated with birth defects of the male and female reproductive systems, and there are no safety standards limiting the amount of BPA used in canned food. Take care!
Don’t let any toxin mess your happy family life.
Happy Parenting!
Why Outdoor Games?
Outdoor games are fun indeed, but are also crucial for overall real life experiences. It is on the playground, children find friends; real friends, not chat room abstracts. An hour of playing together develops more comradeship than a year of chatting. Electronic advancements have locked children in the loneliness of multimedia communication system. Their identity is lost in the web world, where means are there but communication is lacking, images are there but human contact is missing, and voices are heard but friends are lost.
Read to know.
Psychosocial Development of Childhood
Siblings are peers at home. Peer group pranks and sibling rivalry often stress the relationship. Psychosocial development helps children cope with aches and pains of sibling rivalry and turn them into friends.
They are the companions for life who help and comfort each other through difficult tasks and difficult times.
Click here to read the full article.
News on Child Health
Meningococcal Vaccine
A new meningococcal vaccine in combination with Hib-another cause of meningitis in children has been approved by FDA for use in infants and toddlers.
Know the details.
Aspirin The Miracle Medicine
Though aspirin is forming headlines as miracle medicine, its use is not recommended in children. Regular low dose of daily aspirin, taken over few years, can reduce the chances of developing skin cancer – including squamous cell carcinoma and malignant......
Please do read the full article.
Pearls From The Forums
A Child Always Sick?
Wonder why!
Oh, there could be many underlying and environmental causes.
Click here for your answer.
Prevent Choking Hazards
Choking hazards due to half chewed food is quite common in children below 4 years of age. Minimise these life threatening episodes.
Click to know how.
Comments? Ideas? Feedback? I'd love to hear from you.
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Important Links and Need to Know Information
Create your own webpage.- It is free. - No registration. No Fees.
Guest post submissions.
Portal for submissions of high quality articles by the professionals on any topic related to child health.
Your child’s development diary.
Create a web page for your child. Record developmental milestones. Post pictures.
Forums that you can use.
Free forum for your child health concerns.
Askdoc.
Newborn Care
is a port for friendly and focused discussion, where both, parents and professionals are welcomed to participate.
Contribute. Your contributions are precious.
Child health news.
Parenting tips.
Recipes for children
Teenage Issues
Voice your opinion
School readiness.
Improvement in prevailing child health care systems.
Family book-shelf.
Books for children
- recommend good story books for children – your childhood favorites
Authors, introduce your own books here
- specifically on child health, child psychology, child nutrition and parenting.
Readers’ recommendations
of books on child health, child psychology, child nutrition and parenting or any other topic related to children's health issues.
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Happy Parenting!
With best regards,
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