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I am here to help you

By Dr. R. Thomas

QUESTION: My children are home for the long holidays and are eating more than ever. What are some of the healthy choices that I can have available for them.

ANSWER:

It is never easy to get children to eat the healthy choices but here are some suggestions that can help you through the July/August vacation.

Guide your children's food choices instead of choosing for them. Having a wide variety of food choices in the house will allow your family to learn to select  healthy food options.

Water, water and more water. Don't have that traditional jug of juice in the fridge as children will drink that over water when given the choice. Make sure that the water is the only thing in the fridge to drink. Arrange to have the juice available at lunch time or dinner time.

Limit the fried foods. When going out for fast food, try to stay away from the fried chicken and chips or pizza, which are all loaded with fat. Try the healthier choices lie Rotisserie or barbeque chicken, and share the sides among you.

Keep fruits available. Always have a supply of fruits available in the fridge, cut up and ready to eat. Have some low fat yogurt as a topping for the fruit.

Limit convenience foods and snacks that have excess fat. Pretzels and popcorn are a wiser choice than potato chips, and baked chips are better than fried ones.

Here's a handy snack to keep at home

La Joya Party Mix

1 cup nuts such as almonds (best choice)peanuts, cashews,

2 cups dried fruits (not candied) such as raisins, cranberries, paw paw,pineapple, banana, apricots (cut up small to increase volume)

1 cup of sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds and/or sunflower seeds.

You can mix and match. Use whatever is available to you and which ever choice your child will lie

Remember that nuts are not recommended for children under 2 years.

Mix together and keep in an airtight container. This can also be used on top of your favorite yogurt

And finally, make sure that everyone in the house is eating the healthy choices. Children will only be able to adapt to the new way of eating if they see parents doing it as well.

If you have any questions you would like answered, then email us at

info@lajoyamd.com and we will post it on the website along with the answer.

 

The Role of Nutrition in Healthy Gums and Teeth

Dr. Tara Pollonais, Paediatric Dentist has given us some information to share with you on how nutrition affects your gums and teeth

  • Stick to a well-balanced diet from the 4 basic food groups. Diets low in certain nutrients (folic acid, calcium and phosphorus) can make it harder to ward off gum disease.
  • If you have to eat sweets, restrict them to mealtime. Each time the bacteria in your mouth produce acids from sugar, these acids attack your tooth enamel for as long as 30 mins. Each time you eat sugary food, you encourage an acid attack. Multiple attacks promote tooth decay.
  • Beware of starches. Most carbohydrates, including those in bread and pasta can be fermented in the mouth. Make sure you brush and floss the harmful effects away after eating
  • Sticky foods such as raisins, honey and toffees cling to the teeth and give the acids more time to attack. Snack on raw vegetables, nuts, popcorn and yogurt instead, and rinse your mouth afterward
  • Look for hidden sugars. Many processed foods, even peanut butter, contain sugar as flavour-enhancers. Read labels. Even fruit contains natural sugars that feed plaque bacteria.
  • Eat more fiber, less sugar, salts and fats. People tend to eat what is easy, creating nutritional imbalances that can hurt teeth as well as bodies.

Dr. Pollonais has also found that during stressful exam times like SEA, CXC and CAPE there is a fall off in dental hygiene and she sees more patients with dental caries during these months. So remember to keep brushing and flossing, and visit your dentist yearly.

Pulmonary Function Testing

Asthma season is starting back with a bang and we have seen many of our regulars coming in for treatment. For those of you who need lung function testing, Pulmanologist, Dr Michelle Trotman will be available for  lung function testing by appointment. Please call us if you are interested and we will make the arrangements

She can evaluate both parents and children.

LOVE AND LOGIC®

Here at La Joya Paediatrics, we continue to tell all our patients about Love and Logic®, the new fun way of parenting. We receive lots of valuable information from their website and from Linda Anderson, the local Love and Logic® organizer.

This month, we feature an article aimed at parenting toddlers, which deals with common myths about discipline. For more Love and Logic® articles, click on  the Love and logic link on this website, or check out the hard copies at the office.

IT’S NEVER TOO EARLY TO START

 

Better Now Than Later

 

Over the last twenty years, people have shared lots of fun Love and Logic success stories with us.  Some have even used it successfully on their spouses!  Kids can be a challenge, but with a few Love and Logic tools, you can up the odds that the early years---and beyond---will be a joy.  What’s the most important advice we give parents?  Start as early in the child’s life as possible.

 

              Imagine that you’ve joined a camping trip for parents and their toddlers, and you’re out in the bush, sharing this joyful experience with your four-year-old, who’s been enjoying the new scenery, the layers of leaves and mulch, the tiny creatures he’s discovered on the ground, and the sounds of the rainforest. 

              On the trip is a mother with a strong-willed toddler.  Suddenly, the peacefulness of the forest is pierced by her child’s whiney voice.  “Mummy, look at this.  Mummy, come over here and look at this worm.  Mummy, hold my hand.  Mummy walk slower!  Mummy, I want my bucket and shovel so I can dig up this anthill!  Mummy!  Mummy!  Mummy!”

              The mother looks at you with some embarrassment and says, laughing nervously, “Jake is always so bossy.  I don’t know why.”

              You smile politely and move on, but you think to yourself, “I know why.”  This is another mother who is waiting until “later” to teach her child about responsibility and treating others with respect.  You hope she doesn’t wait too much longer.

 

Why do some parents wait until later to begin setting limits and enforcing them?  Why do some allow their toddlers to get out of control and begin running the home?  Some parents believe that young children are too young for discipline.  Don’t fall into that trap.

 

Three Common Myths about Discipline

 

Let’s take a look at three common myths about discipline and young children.

 

Myth #1:  Discipline and learning require language.

              Some people believe that children cannot learn or benefit from discipline until they can converse.  Nothing is further from the truth!  Can the family dog learn how to sit, stay, come, fetch, and lie down?  I’ve never met a pooch who talked, but I have met some parents who seem to believe and act like the family dog is smarter than their kids.  How sad!

              By the age of nine months, human babies are more intelligent than any other animal creature on the planet.  Wise parents begin teaching discipline during the early months through simple, loving actions---not words.  If your child, for example, throws her bottle, remove it for a while.  If your child won’t sit in the high chair, fasten his seat belt.  If you child runs away from you in the store, pick him up and gently carry him. Replace lectures, warnings and lots of words with actions.

 

Myth #2:  A little child cannot remember and learn.

              Have you ever promised a two-year-old a trip to the park or his favorite fast-food restaurant---and then forgotten to deliver?  Will they ever let you forget?  Never underestimate what young children can remember, and learn.

 

Myth #3:  Setting limits will break a young child’s spirit.

              Some parents worry about making their toddlers angry.  These parents seem to reason, “If I make sure that she’s happy all the time, then she’ll grow up to be a happy, nice person.”

              Wrong!  At the Love and Logic Institute we’re all for happy kids.  That’s why we encourage parents to set limits early.  Why?  Children who are made happy all of the time by their parents experience a major shock when they begin to grow up.  Ironically, they soon become the most unhappy and demanding kids, and adults, you’ll ever meet.

 

When children act out, what they’re saying is, “Please love me enough to set some limits!”
Patient Education Resources

 

 

Procedure Description:

 

Please read the updated booklet on Immunization so that you are aware of the vaccine your child is getting.

Don't forget to bring your child's immunization card in, or a copy of an old one.

 

Pre-Procedure:

For older children, an anaesthetic cream can be applied thirty to forty minutes before, to minimize pain. You can hold your baby, and breast feed if you wish.

All effort is made to give the fewest number of injections possible.

 

Post-Procedure:

Acetaminophen (Tylenol or Panadol) is routinely given as one dose after shots. To calculate the dose, multiply your child's weight in kg x 10.

Therefore, an 8 kg child, gets 80 mg = 1 dropper.

You may expect a small lump which may last for months in injections to muscle.

Extreme swelling and redness, or very high fever, should be reported right away!