Tag Archives: health

Learning another language singing

The best time to learn another language is when children are young.Their brains are programmed to acquire language and there is no limit on the number of languages ​​that can be learned at a time.

It is well known that we all learn best in a relaxed and entertaining environment.We know that when we enjoy learning be do much better.In the case of children, something that is greatly enjoyed is singing and dancing.

Take advantage of moments of play to play children’s songs in English or French!Allow the child to imitate the sounds you are hearing.Many of these songs have instructions on what to do to follow the music, like the Hokey Pokey, encourage children to dance.Other songs have choreography, like Itsy Bitsy Spider, teach him the moves and have fun playing.

The child’s ear will get used to the new language and before you know he will speak it.One way to support this learning is reading stories with illustrations with the child sitting on the lap and following the action.

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Children become readers on their parents the laps

This is the motto of an online campaign to promote reading habit among children.Children learn by example and their main role model is their parents.The child will imitate what his parent does, if the parent chooses reading as a means of entertainment, the child will do the same.If, however, the father prefers the television or computer, the child will too.

Besides the example, another thing we can do to promote the habit of reading is to read to children when they are babies.As the slogan says, children sit on our lap as we read stories of fairies, beautiful princesses and brave princes, and why not, brave princesses too!

There are stories about animals, about the different stages that the child is going through as potty-training, dropping the bottle and the pacifier, the arrival of a sibling, or a dog;also on how to help in sad moments such as a separation.

Choose books with pretty pictures and big letters and let the child follow the reading with his eyes while you point the letters with your finger.

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Bald Barbie

Girls of all ages and of all countries in the world play or have played with dolls.In their symbolic games they recreate real life and create fantasies as part of their cognitive, psychological and social development.But what happens when the reality the child is living is a cancer and chemotherapy that leave her bald?How does that little girl, who has grown up thinking that beauty includes a long and beautiful hair, feel?

For girls and parents who are going through this ordeal, and in response to strong Facebook campaign started by a mom, Mattel agreed to create a bald Barbie.The doll is called Ella and famous Barbie’s friend.She doesn’t have hair but has wigs and accessories.It has written message from Barbie, introducing her beautiful friend who is beautiful despite not having hair like the girl who is receiving the doll.

This doll is not available in stores; it can only be received through NGOs who care for patients with cancer, as a donation.

Since then they have created other bald dolls and campaigns continue.The next step is to make Disney create a bald princess.

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Children and homework

These days’ schools are much more demanding than they were when we attended.Children are taught things at least a year earlier than 20 years ago.This means that they are being taught things that do not yet have the maturity or level of development to understand by themselves and therefore need a lot of support from parents or from a private tutor.

To start I want to say that I completely disagree with this practice that I find totally useless.However unless you enroll your child in an alternative school, you will have no choice but to deal with this issue.

Organize the time so that your child can do some homework and study every day so that everything is ready in time for the deadline.Provide an area that is well-lit and free from distractions.Get them used to having everything they will need so that they will have no interruptions.Give him the necessary support for them to do their own homework, guide but don’t do homework for them.

Finally, keep in touch with teachers to know what is happening at school.

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Overweight Children

Being overweight is a serious health problem in children and adults.It is important to maintain a healthy weight in childhood and adult life.In addition, in children it can cause social problems as the other kids may make fun of him or her and that affected his self-esteem can make it hard to make friends.

To help a child reach a healthy weight it is best to encourage good habits.Buy and prepare only healthy food for the whole family, so that good food is natural and not a sacrifice or something imposed.

Keep healthy snacks on hand, fruits, vegetables, crackers, and yogurt or skim cheese, so that the child can eat when he is hungry instead of chips or cookies filled with fat and sugar.

Promote an active lifestyle.Choose activities to do as a family that revolve around the games and sports, rather than around the food.Go to the park instead of the movies.

Finally, always approach the weight issue as a health issue rather than aesthetics.It is important that the child know that you love him as he is, and you are encouraging him to lose weight for his health.

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Safe Toys

The safety of children is an important part of their care and this aspect includes toys. And is that you cannot let children play with items that can do damage. For example, although the puzzles develop various aspects of the child’s abilities, it is important that they are not formed by tiny parts that the child can take and swallow. This applies to any toy that contains parts that can be removed.

Battery toys are another aspect to take care of. First, the compartment where the batteries are placed should not be opened easily to prevent the child from the kick, especially if they are the so called “button” type batteries that are round and flat and that the child can swallow easily. Everyone knows the damage it can cause in the body of the child.

While very young child is given crayons and mastics to learn to paint and mold, you have to be careful that the material given to them is not toxic, as the kids brings all to their mouth. To avoid this you have to read product labels which must clearly state that they are not toxic.

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The grocery list

In addition to the advice that you should not to go to the supermarket hungry because you end up buying more than you need and lots of unhealthy foods, there’s an advice not to go to the grocery store without a shopping list. And it has its reason.

You should make the list at home, calmly, verifying what you have and what you need, in order to buy what you need and not any more. This is a way to avoid forgetting something and have to go back to the supermarket to buy it. It is also a way to control purchasing non healthy things. Once you get to the grocery store, stick to the list and buy only what you put into it.

If you go to the grocery store without a list that forces you to walk through the corridors to see what is in each one so you can remember what you need. The danger of it is that you see what you need and more, which can drive you to buy things that otherwise you would not have purchased. Unless you are a really disciplined person, do not go to the supermarket without a shopping list.

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Home Safety for Children

When children begin to crawl parents must check the house and verify that nothing can harm them. There are certain standard measures to undertake the work: cover electrical cords and outlets, put safety latches on drawers, doors and toilet, and put out of reach any hazardous substance.

You should also remove little things out of the child’s reach, as they could put them in their mouths and choke on them or put them in the nose or ears. You should cover the gas taps on the stove so that the child does not open them and put ornaments that break high up in case the child stands up holding on to furniture.

A little known danger young children face is the risk of being crushed. Children are naturally curious and may try to climb furniture to grab something that is on top of it. If the cabinet is not anchored to the floor or wall he can pull it over and be crushed to death.

Remember that as your child grows he reaches higher, so you have to check the house periodically reviewing and modifying as needed.

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Constipation

Constipation in children is a concern to many parents. The first thing to do is to define constipation to know whether the child actually suffers it or not. Constipation is defined as a condition in which the person has difficulty evacuating and has hard stool. The mere fact that the child does not go to the bathroom in a day or two does not necessarily mean they are constipated. If the day they go they do so without difficulty and the stool is soft, you don’t need to worry.

To prevent constipation is advisable to eat a diet high in fiber, fruits, vegetables and whole grains. It is also important to drink plenty of water. Indeed eating lots of fiber and little water is worse than eating little fiber. Excess fiber accumulate in the intestine and in the absence of liquid would harden and be more difficult to come out.

There are some fruits that are especially good for helping to evacuate, the prune is the most effective. In the market there are children’s cereal made ​​with oatmeal and prunes that promote bowel movements.

If the problem persists, consult your doctor.

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Breastfeeding Myths IV

I close this series of articles on the myths of breastfeeding with a common one: until when is breast milk nutritious and when it becomes water? WHO has a very clear answer to that, but I start answering with a question so you can find the answer yourself: even when does cow’s milk stops being nutritious and when does it become water? It’s amazing how by repeating or hearing something enough times we end up believing it without realizing the absurdity of the statement.

Breast milk is a living element that adapts to the changing needs of the baby. It always nourishes and never becomes water. According to WHO babies should be exclusively breastfed until 6 months of age. From that moment you should start introducing other foods but until year old breast milk remains their main source of nourishment, which nourishes more than cereals or fruit, so it’s a mistake to reduce nursing sessions to make him eat more solids.

WHO recommends continuing breastfeeding until at least 2 years and thereafter as long as mother and child wish. Some say that this recommendation is only for poor countries that cannot afford to feed children any other way, for this reason, the WHO states that its recommendations apply to all children in all territories.

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