All Search Results
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Newborn Sleep Safety: Preventing SIDS
One of the most frequent concerns of new parents is getting their baby to sleep. And when it comes to this topic, there is no shortage of advice offered by family members, products to buy to make sleep easier, and advertisements to convince you of your need for these things.
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What to Know About Sickle Cell Disease
Sickle cell disease is the name of an inherited problem with red blood cells. Most people have red blood cells that are disc-shaped and move easily through blood vessels, but those with sickle cell have red blood cells that are C-shaped (like the farm tool called a sickle). The unusual shape of red blood cells, as well as their tendency to harden and become sticky as they travel through blood vessels, causes a variety of problems.
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The Impact of Music Therapy on Our Pediatric Patients
This blog was written in conjunction with Agnes Hsieh, a board-certified music therapist at Orlando Health Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children.
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Preventing Childhood and Adolescent Obesity
A lot has been written over many decades about the damaging effects of obesity on children and adolescents. In a recent pediatrics study, researchers found that despite nearly three decades of trying to raise awareness, the childhood obesity epidemic in the United States continues to worsen. Overall, the study shows that 1 out of every 5 children nationwide are obese, and the rate increases with age. By the time teens reach 16 to 19 years old, more than 40 percent struggle with obesity. This is a national health crisis because of the effects obesity can have as the child grows into adulthood.
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Ruby Makes a Difference with the Teen Leadership Council
Having a chronic disease, with frequent hospital visits, is always challenging. Particularly for teenagers who can feel isolated from their peers during their illness. For Ruby, it was no different. At the age of 16, she came to Orlando Health Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children with a diagnosis of gastroparesis and severe dysmotility of the GI tract. In other words, her digestive system didn’t properly move food from the stomach to the small intestine.
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5 easy things you can do to give your kids healthy teeth
So it’s happening. Your six-month-old baby is crying nonstop, and you finally found the reason: they have their first tooth! But what now? Everyone knows we’re supposed to brush our teeth. But when do you start teaching your child to brush? How often should your kids brush? What happens when they don’t take care of their teeth?
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One year later... how to help your children
As caregivers, we do our best to help and protect our children. When a tragedy like the pulse shooting happens, it is difficult for us as adults to make sense of it, much less to help our children do so. Usually, anniversaries of a tragedy bring back emotions and thoughts that may have already settled. Therefore, it is a good idea to have some tips handy in case you notice the following characteristics in your children that were not there before:
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Ringworm: a common skin condition you can treat at home
A few weeks ago, I noticed a round, reddened area on my son’s leg. When I asked him what caused it, he told me he got it from falling off his bed. I found it difficult to believe he had fallen on something so perfectly round that it made a complete circle on his leg, and he couldn’t pinpoint anything in his room that caused the mark. (Three-year-olds aren’t the best source of medical information, as you might imagine). I accepted his explanation for a day or two, but when I gave it second look I realized that it wasn’t an injury at all but a ringworm infection.
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What every parent should know about mental health in kids and teens
As a mental health provider, I often hear how parents and guardians of children tend to think their child is “too young” to have a mental health diagnosis. It is unfortunate, but I have noticed that the stigma of having a mental health condition gets in the way of understanding and treating children many times. Mental health conditions and disorders don't only affect adults. Children and teens can experience mental health problems, too. In fact, research shows that most mental disorders follow a developmental course that typically starts early in life. According to the National Institute of Mental Health “this is true not only of conditions such as autism and ADHD, which are well known for having onset in childhood, but also for mood, anxiety, and psychotic disorders. So, many people who suffer from depression, social phobia, obsessive compulsive disorder, bipolar disorder, or schizophrenia showed signs before they were 24 years old.”
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Why your pediatrician isn't a big fan of fruit juice
You may have seen some recent news headlines that state that pediatricians recommend that infants less than one year of age consume no fruit juice at all. While this is a change to previous recommendations stating that juice was not recommended in infants less than six months of age, the truth is that pediatricians have long been wary of kids drinking too much fruit juice. Even among older kids, the recommended serving sizes of juice they can consume in a day are shockingly small.
