During your child’s teen years, it’s inevitable that you will have all sorts of awkward conversations with them. Whether it’s a discussion about smoking, drinking, or relationships… there will be quite a few uncomfortable moments between the both of you. These days, there’s a new topic to add onto that list. Now more than ever, kids are inquiring about plastic surgery. How should you respond?

It’s More Serious Than You Think

Cosmetic surgery may seem like something innocent, but you need to consider your child’s underlying motives. Is she being teased in school for having too large of a nose or too small of a chest? Perhaps your child isn’t one of the popular kids and feels plastic surgery will be a magic solution? Reasons like these are often clues of an underlying self-esteem issue. When that’s the case, it’s highly recommended to have these issue addressed with a psychiatrist before cosmetic surgery is contemplated. (more…)

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The one certainty in parenting is that anything can happen. Some days just don’t end up the way you thought they would. Case in point: when I got up Thursday morning, I never imagined that it would be almost 36 hours before I saw home again. If I’d known, I’d have packed a change of clothes, or at least a toothbrush.

It all started early in the morning, so early that I’d call it late at night.  Our almost-9 year old son found his way into our room at 2 a.m. complaining of a stomachache.  Unusual, but nothing too troubling.  It was bad enough that we let him stay home from school without the standard third degree grilling. (more…)

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After my recent post about the swine flu, alert reader Sean Rushforth asked what I think about the swine flu pandemic. In a word: scary.  In several words, the swine flu pandemic is really, really scary.  (Just to buck the system and stick it to “the Man” at the CDC, I’m going to refer to the H1N1 virus as the “swine flu” throughout this article.)

Here’s the thing about the flu.  It kills people.  Not just the swine flu or Spanish flu or some super flu.  The plain old, garden variety flu kills a half a million people each year.  Virtually all of them elderly or with some form of compromised immunity.

But the last great flu pandemic in 1918 was a different kind of story.  It’s estimated that 1 out of every 3 people IN THE WHOLE WORLD were infected.  At least fifty million died.  The extra 49 million or so deaths were not additional elderly or sickly people.  They were otherwise healthy individuals that got the Spanish flu and then… died.

Enter the swine flu of 2009.  So far, there haven’t been a whole lot of deaths, at least  not in global population terms. That isn’t any consolation to the families of those who have died, however.  The greatly disturbing thing about the swine flu, the reason for you to pay attention, is that it is killing a disproportionate number of young and healthy people.  As a parent, it is enough that you should be concerned (which is not the same as being panicked, mind you).

Not only do parents need to be alert, parents-to-be need to keep this on their radar, too.  For reasons that aren’t especially clear at this point in time, pregnant women are especially susceptible to the swine flu.  As if pregnancy didn’t bring enough drama as it is.

Parents – get your kids vaccinated when the vaccine actually becomes available.  Potential parents – do what you need to do to protect mommy and baby before the birth.  Flu season is coming soon, and I think this may be for real.

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It started innocently enough.  The three year old, Lex, who normally has enough energy to power a small city, was pooped out.  ”Everyone gets tired,” I said, “even our little Energizer Bunny.”  My lovely wife was unconvinced.

The next day he had a fever.  Up to 103 it went.  ”He’s got the flu,” I said in my reassuring voice.  ”He’ll be fine in a couple of days.”  My lovely wife thought otherwise.

The next day, his fever still was bopping up and down, from a pleasant 99 to a worrisome 103.  We looked up the swine flu online.  Lex had about half the symptoms.  I said, “Well, it’s not swine flu, he’s only got half the symptoms.”  My lovely wife said “It’s swine flu!  He’s got half the symptoms!”

The Tylenol didn’t do much to lower his fever.  ”Take him to the pediatrician,” I said in my authoritative voice that I use to cover up the fact that she’s just going to do it anyway.  ”He’ll probably just tell us to keep him hydrated like he usually does.”  My lovely wife didn’t think so.

The doctor looked at Lex for all of seven seconds before declaring, “He’s got the swine flu.”  He didn’t say H1N1, like the World Health Organization (WHO) wants us to.  He said “swine flu”.  My lovely wife agreed.

They did a rapid flu test.  It involved sticking a giant Q-Tip down Lex’s throat.  Our pediatrician is always doing things like that, which is probably why Lex hates going there.  The test results came back in a couple of hours.  It was negative for swine flu.  My pediatrician disagreed.  Who knew that rapid tests have a high false positive rate?

The morals of the story:

1) My lovely wife should make all the healthcare decisions for our family.

2) Rapid testing must be a good job.  Nobody is surprised if you’re completely wrong.

3) ”Swine flu” is rapidly becoming a very scary term.  Although all our friends expressed sympathy (on the phone), nobody came to visit us all week.  Maybe that’s why the WHO wants us to say “H1N1 Virus”.  Somehow it’s less scary.

PS – He’s better now, thanks for asking.

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Summer vacation either has arrived or is right around the corner.  While it is important that children get some sort of exercise daily, it also is important to take precautions when the temperatures are hot.  I was able to speak with Diane King, Certified Specialist in Sports Dietetics and Certified Athletic Trainer, from Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta Sports Medicine.

When dealing with summer heat and exercise, it is very important to make sure your child is hydrated.  According to Ms. King, “An important thing to remember is that thirst is not a good indicator of when to drink.  By the time a child notices they are thirsty, they are already in early stages of dehydration.  And at that point, it may take a while to replace these losses.  Children have a considerably lower sweating capacity than adults.  Because of a greater ratio of body surface area to body mass, children absorb heat more quickly when the ambient temperature exceeds skin temperature. So they overheat more quickly especially if they have not been out in the heat much.”

For tips on how much fluid your child needs to stay hydrated, Ms. King referenced the Beverage Institute’s guidelines. The recommended amounts are:

• 12-16 ounces- 2 hours before start
• 8 ounces- 15 minutes before start
• 4-6 ounces every 20 minutes

“Sipping fluids every 15-20 minutes makes it easier on the tummy/gut, too. Gulping a lot of water all at once can slosh around depending on the activity. If they are drinking water from a water fountain, it’s hard to estimate the actual amount although in general, the estimate is 1/2 – 1 ounce per gulp.  So kids will say they had a lot to drink and it could turn out to be very little.”

It is important not only that children stay hydrated but also that they don’t overheat.  If children are involved in outdoor exercise or sports, there are several precautions that can be taken when the temperature rises.  Some of Ms. Kings’ suggestions were:

• Adjust the practice schedule accordingly.
• Schedule training sessions to avoid the hottest part of the day (10am to 5pm).
• Avoid radiant heating from direct sunlight especially in the acclimatization period.

Don’t forget to apply sunblock and keep hydrated, and then let your kids enjoy the outdoors and exercise all summer long!

Learn more about summer fitness, including warm-ups & cool-downs, workout suggestions, hydration tips, and exercise via your smartphone.

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