All Search Results
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Can a smart device save your baby’s life?
If there were a device available for purchase that could protect your infant from sudden, unexplained death and keep your family from the pain and suffering of the loss of a child, would you buy it?
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If your child has been diagnosed with cleft lip or palate, here’s what you need to know
You may be surprised to learn that cleft lip and cleft palate are among the most common birth defects in children born in the United States, occurring in about one in every 600 to 700 births. The good news for families who find themselves faced with a diagnosis is this- while a cleft lip or palate requires ongoing medical care throughout childhood and into adulthood, the condition is highly treatable and children go on to lead normal, healthy lives.
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Are our kids influenced by the bad behavior of others?
There’s a question that’s been rolling around in my head the last couple of weeks. You know the kind- one of those nagging thoughts you try to put out of your mind but it keeps coming back without any answer on the horizon. If I’m being totally honest, though, it hasn’t only been the last couple of weeks. I’ve been struggling with some version of this question since my oldest started kindergarten, when she emerged from the cocoon of preschool into the big world of elementary school.
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What to do when your new baby is crying
Being a parent for the first time is an exciting adventure, with many moments of joy but certainly also many moments of anxiety when facing the unknown, whether it be feeding techniques, putting a baby to sleep, etc. Parents often talk about their baby being fussy, or crying. It’s a common parental concern raised at office visits and is one worthy of delving into, as it could be a sign of something common or that something may be very wrong.
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So you have a child that isn’t talking yet. What should you do?
As a pediatric Speech-Language Pathologist, I see children with a variety of speech and language disorders. One of the most common is what is known as expressive language delay, which is when a child is not using the vocabulary and phrase/sentence length that is appropriate for their age. Although there can be specific medical reasons for the delay, it can also happen with no other diagnosis. For those kids who seem to understand everything but are not communicating at their age level, I encourage parents to work on building their child’s “intent to communicate.”
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How to help your kids get the most out of playing sports
Why are your kids playing sports?
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How to know when a child is having an allergic reaction to food
Food allergies can be a scary thing. If you have a child who suffers from food allergies, you know just what I mean. If you’re wiping your brow and muttering a silent thank-you that you don’t have to deal with food allergies in your household, wait just a minute. It’s true that the majority of food allergies are diagnosed in early childhood, but what you may not know is that about 1 in 4 severe reactions that happen in schools involve children with no known history of food allergy.
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Why your teenager’s friendships are more important than you realize
Adolescence is often panned in parenting circles as a season of child-rearing that is fraught with challenges and frustration. Gone is the child you thought you knew, and in his place stands an awkward, often unhappy stranger who understands himself and his own motivations about as well as you do, which is to say hardly at all.
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One dietitian's secret to helping your whole family drink more water
We all know it is important to drink at least 8 cups of water per day for proper hydration. Unfortunately, some of us (like myself) have a difficult time meeting this recommendation due to the “boring” taste of water. Sometimes powdered sugar-free drink mixes can be a good option, but for some people it might not be.
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How we help teens get healthy in a healthy and enjoyable way
The Teen Xpress program is part of the Howard Phillips Center for Children and Families. We offer health care, mental health counseling, case management, and nutrition and dietary services to teens at select schools in Orange County. As the Teen Xpress mental health therapist, I meet with adolescents every day that are interested in changing their lives. Usually, the teens I work with want to make changes behaviorally or emotionally, but they often also express interest in making physical changes as well. It is not unusual to hear teens say that they want to lose weight.
