Don't let swine flu stop you from sending your kids to camp this summer. Image: sxc.hu
Cases of swine flu may popping up at summer camps all over the country, but both medical experts and the American Camp Association say there's no reason to keep your child home this summer.
"It's important for parents to know it's safe to send their healthy child to camp. Camp is an extraordinary experience, providing friendship, leadership, and enrichment activities," says Peg Smith, chief executive office of the American Camp Association. "ACA-accredited camps have been monitoring the H1N1 situation since mid-April, and they are doing everything they can to provide a safe and healthy environment."
Indeed, camps like the Frost Valley Y.M.C.A camp in Claryville, NY are adding some new chores to their pre-camp checklist, such as wiping down doorknobs with bleach and preparing three negative-pressure isolation rooms to accommodate any campers who may fall ill.
"We think we're ahead of the curve, but who knows?" says Jerry Huncosky, chief executive officer of Frost Valley. "I think it's the 'who knows?' that we're preparing for."
New York City physician Dr. Erika Schwartz is medical director of Cinergy Health, and she says Frost Valley is doing exactly what it should to prepare for the swine flu -- and, she says, it is also what camps already know how to do.
For years I dreaded sunset on the Fourth of July. You see, after a day of fun and good food with family and friends, when our three boys pulled out their arsenal of fireworks they'd purchased at a roadside stand (are all boys pyromaniacs?) my stress level spiked to the red zone.
Bill said I was over-reacting. He reminded me that fireworks must meet consumer safety standards and promised to make sure the boys followed safety precautions. This never relieved my angst. So I did what I always do when a fun activity is also a potentially harmful activity: I take precautionary measures -- and I pray (a lot). Whether your day includes a cookout, camping, a parade or a day at the lake, here are some good things to know and do to avoid the Emergency Room this weekend.
Sam's Club targets children with ill-advised pharmacy promotion. Image: Pam Roth/sxc.hu
Competition in the pharmacy business must be pretty tough these days. In order to get your business, pharmacies have begun promoting themselves like never before. These efforts to lure customers are not always met with approval. Like when some pharmacy chains started giving away free antibiotics and insinuating that the drug could be used to help fight cold and flu viruses. Experts worried that this type of promotion might send consumers the wrong message about the proper use of antibiotics.
If experts are worried about pharmacies handing out prescription drugs like candy, I wonder how they would feel about a pharmacy that hands out candy like prescription drugs. That is exactly what a Sam's Club pharmacy in Salisbury, Maryland was doing last week.
Sams' Club is a membership store and has a checkpoint at the entry where shoppers must show their identification before entering. But at this particular store, employees weren't just checking member cards, they were also promoting the in-store pharmacy by giving children prescription medicine bottles filled with candy.
Popeye and his spinach. George H.W. Bush and his (hatred of) broccoli. Mom leaning over you and admonishing, "Eat your greens!" The leafy green vegetables we're told more and more often to eat by the shovelful evoke strong feelings or memories for many of us. But are all greens as healthy as they've been made out to be? Read on to find out ...
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Spinach Spinach is loaded with vitamins A, C, E, and K, carotenoids, folic acid, potassium, magnesium, and iron--in short, it's a nutrient-dense food containing many of the phytochemicals that help prevent chronic disease. But like its relatives chard and beet greens, spinach is very high in oxalic acid, which leeches calcium and iron from the body. Verdict: Consume spinach in moderation--eating a spinach salad every day is not the best idea. While cooking spinach with fat-containing foods like cheese, seeds, eggs, or oil will help counteract the effects of the oxalic acid, it's best to alternate between spinach and some low-oxalate greens, like kale and collards.
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Lettuce While many types of lettuce are full of vitamins and minerals, the most commonly consumed lettuce in the U.S. is iceberg, which offers little more than water and a small amount of fiber. For comparison, romaine lettuce, the staple of Caesar salads, contains six times more Vitamin C. Verdict: Eat the darker lettuce varieties. And watch what kind of dressing you put on your salad--creamy dressings are often loaded with fat, sugar, and additives, and will turn your healthy salad into something with the caloric profile of a fast-food meal.
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Cabbage Cabbage is one of the world's most widely grown vegetables. A member of the cruciferous vegetable family, cabbage contains sulforaphane, which helps guard against the development of cancerous tumors. And when fermented to make sauerkraut, cabbage does everything from helping to foster clear skin to promoting the growth of healthy flora in the digestive tract. Verdict: An underappreciated nutritional powerhouse. And sauerkraut is truly a health food if bought fresh and unpasteurized (pasteurization kills the beneficial bacterial cultures) or made from scratch.
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Wild Greens Edible wild greens--including such common weeds as dandelion, lamb's quarters, chickweed, and amaranth--are often more nutritious than the cultivated greens available in your supermarket. If you take a class or go on a nature walk with a knowledgeable guide who can help you ID these plants, you've got yourself a way to add some exotic flavors, for free, into your diet. Verdict: Put away that weed-whacker! If you're up for a little experimentation, wild greens are worth checking out.
For parents of kids with ADHD, medication can often seem like a godsend. Recent studies have shown that kids who take these drugs specifically for a diagnosed condition perform better in school, for example. But a new study released this week in the online edition of the "American Journal of Psychiatry" is raising red flags: The study found that teens and children taking ADHD medications are seven times more likely than their peers to die suddenly.
That's disheartening news for many kids and their parents.
Crying isn't Necessarily Cathartic Think a good cry will make it all better? Maybe not, at least not in any measurable physiological way. The value of a crying jag is all in the social response of the people around you. If they're sympathetic, the crying helps. But if they're not, you won't feel any better.
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Long-Term Breastfeeding We all know that breast is best, but how long would you nurse to give your baby the best start? Six months? A year? How about eight years? Some moms do, but it's a controversial decision, to say the least.
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Tanning beds Summer's coming and your tween wants a nice glow for the pool. But a tanning bed isn't the way to get it -- tanning beds are a fast track to skin cancer. Hand her some self-tanner instead, preferably one with an SPF of 15 or higher, just to be on the safe side.
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Lice Once upon a time, that kid in kindergarten with the lice had to stay home until he (or she) was nit-free. Not any more. Some schools are letting nit-infested students back into the classroom. Makes you itchy just thinking about it, doesn't it?
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Autism and Vaccines After a decade of worry, it turns out that the doctor who linked autism and the MMR (measles, mumps, and rubella) vaccine faked his data. This is a double whammy. We're no closer to knowing what causes autism, but some parts of the world, like Great Britain, are seeing reductions in vaccination rates and an increase in childhood illnesses.
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Probiotics Trying to keep your kids healthy? Take a look at their diet -- and their prescriptions. One mom cured her son's gastrointestinal issues by introducing a milk-like drink containing probiotics into his diet.
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Stress Makes Kids Fat We blame junk food and television for kids' weight problems, but a new study has found that a stressful home life can double a child's chances of being fat. Kids whose families are going through stressful life events -- an illness or death, a divorce, or a financial crisis -- are at higher risk for obesity and it's related health concerns.
A Big Butt is a Sign of Good Health Here's a common post-baby complaint: "My butt is huge now!" Stop complaining -- that extra padding in the back may actually be protecting your health. Adults with pear-shaped bodies -- carrying their weight in their hips and thighs -- are less prone to Type 2 diabetes. Embrace your butt!
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An estimated 2.5 million American children take ADHD medication; in the early 1990s there were several cases of sudden unexplained deaths of children taking these meds. But because the cases were so rare, scientists were unable to gather a large enough sample to draw any real conclusions.
This new study compares 564 cases of sudden death in children ages 7 to 19 which occured between 1985 and 1996. Those cases were compared with an equal number of deaths of children who died in car accidents. The scientists sifted through data to weed out any complications that might have caused the unexplained deaths, including asthma and heart problems. Once they did that, they were left with ten unexplained deaths. Those ten cases were compared to cases of kids the same ages who had died in car crashes; the children on the stimulant medication were found to be 7.4 percent more likely to die suddenly.
Doctors are stumped by girl's severe allergies. Image: sanja gjenero/sxc.hu
According to doctors, Molly Harrad was born about a century too late. The 10-year-old, who lives in England, suffers from a rare condition in which she is severely allergic to just about everything she comes into contact with in our modern world.
Everyday items from cleaning products and soap to plastic and magnets cause Molly's immune system to react, leaving rashes and blisters on her skin. She can't wear normal shoes, socks or clothes or come into contact with carpet. She wears special cotton gloves at all times to minimize her exposure and bathes in a solution that leaves a protective coating on her sensitive skin. She does attend school, but must eat a specially packaged lunch under adult supervision.
The first signs of Molly's sensitivities appeared when she was just a few days old. Doctors diagnosed a milk allergy but were baffled when the blisters and rashes continued. Since that time, Molly has been in and out of the hospital and doctors have been unable to successfully treat her condition.
"Is that sunscreen in your hand?" Photo courtesy of stockxchange.com.
For some families, this delicious weather also brings a delightful daily battle: Child vs. Sunscreen-Applier! There is nothing like a long, drawn out war-by-the-door over sunscreen application, am I right?
So when I got this question, I was eager to find out the answer: "How bad is it to leave off the sunscreen sometimes? I mean, if my kids run out the door for a few hours to play in the late afternoon, is that fine? Isn't vitamin D good for them?"
To find out, I called Dr. Fred Kemp, a dermatologist in Illinois at the Dreyer Medical Clinic, who often sees kids and families in his practice.
Eggs are very high in cholesterol, there's no question about that. But does that automatically mean they're bad for you? And what about the salmonella issue? Read on to find out whether you should be dropping eggs in your frying pan -- or the garbage can.
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Your Basic Egg Eggs are one of those very controversial foods--some experts say they raise cholesterol levels and therefore the risk of heart disease, while others counter that the cholesterol in the yolk does not necessarily raise your cholesterol levels and that the vitamins B12 and D, riboflavin, and folate in eggs can lower your risk for heart disease. As for salmonella, tighter government regulations are helping to reduce contamination of eggs, but if you're worried, cooking your eggs thoroughly will kill off any harmful microbes. Verdict: Recent research has shown that up to one egg a day does not increase heart disease risk in healthy individuals--so scramble away. For people who have heart disease or diabetes, three egg yolks per week should be your limit.
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Eggs With Extra Omega-3s Eggs that contain extra omega-3s--fats which have been shown to help prevent heart disease, stroke, and other chronic conditions--are laid by chickens that have been fed a diet rich in fish oil and/or flaxseeds, two foods high in the essential fatty acids. Of course, you can take fish oil and eat flaxseeds yourself and cut out the chicken middleman. Verdict: If you don't mind paying a lot more for your eggs, there's certainly no harm in eating these.
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Organic/Free-Range Eggs Organic eggs come from hens that eat organic feed, are allowed access to the outdoors, and are inspected to ensure that these rules are followed. Truly free-range, pasture-raised hens are allowed to run around on a field and eat grass, clover, and bugs. Verdict: Best choice. A Penn State study has shown that pasture-raised hens lay eggs with much higher levels of omega-3s and vitamins A and E. In addition, organic eggs are less likely to contain residues of antibiotics and other foreign compounds.
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Egg Beaters/Egg Whites With all the worry about the cholesterol content of eggs over the years, a slew of egg-white-only products was inevitable. These products tend to contain the whites, some coloring and vegetable gums, and a long list of supplementary vitamins and minerals, added in to replace the nutrients that got lost with the removal of the yolks. Verdict: These products are fine if you're super worried about cholesterol and don't mind the additives. But for most people, nothing beats a real, naturally nutritious egg.
Loose tire mulch is annoying enough with its strong scent and uncanny ability to infiltrate sandals and Crocs. More importantly, EPA scientists have called for a wider health study, pointing to gaps in the scientific evidence. Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility objects to the EPA's endorsement of recycled tires without broader research, recently releasing a January 2008 EPA/Denver office memo addressed to EPA/Washington that requested a neutral stance on recycled tires for play areas until more is known about potential health risks to children. New York City is even backing away from tire crumbs for any new sports fields.
The EPA expects results from a limited study shortly, but remains undecided on broader testing. Perhaps a call from above will ignite new research -- President Obama's daughters are jumping in this stuff over at the new White House playground. Here's one solution: How about returning to carcinogen-free grass and a little mud on rainy days instead?
June is National Safety Month, Mom. Are your children safe? Although you can't control everything that happens, there are lots of things you can do to prepare your children for emergency and make your home and yard safe for play this summer.
Take this short quiz, and then check your answers to discover what steps you might need to take to protect your children from harm. It may be the most important few minutes you spend today.
Swimming lessons alone won't keep your child safe around water. Image: sxc.hu
Most of us, whether we live near the water or not, want our children to learn to swim as early as possible. Not being able to swim is a safety concern and a valid one at that. But how early is too early to start the lessons? Judging by the readers at Cafe Mom, there is no such thing too early.
"My DD is 9 months old and we started swim classes 2 weeks ago and absolutely love it...something that WE can do together. They do fun songs, put their faces under water and she does just great! I'm so glad we are doing them."
There are water programs available for babies as young as several months and many parents are signing their kids up. But despite the growing popularity of infant swim lessons, there is a persistent belief that children who take swimming lessons at a young age are actually more likely to drown than those who don't.
Pork First, let's get this out of the way: You cannot get swine flu from eating pork. The World Health Organization has made this very clear. As for that other cause of pork paranoia, trichinosis, you should have no worries at all about contracting this parasite as long as you cook pork to an internal temperature of 160 degrees -- which often means the center can be a bit pink (this is good if you want a non-shoe-leather texture). But are there other problems with pork?
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Bacon Aah, bacon. What's not to love? Well, sadly, there are serious issues with this popular breakfast food and burger-topper. Bacon is one of the dreaded "processed meats" we're told to avoid as it significantly raises the risk of colon cancer, largely due to the nitrates used to preserve its color and hinder microbial growth. Nitrates themselves are harmless, but they convert to a cancer-causing compound when digested. Verdict: Buy nitrate-free bacon. It's worth tracking down--it can often be found at farmers markets and natural-food stores. While nitrate-free bacon will look more brown than red, it tastes great.
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Ham There are many varieties of ham: fresh, cured, or cured/smoked. While fresh ham, which is the color of a fresh pork roast, is uncured, most cured hams contain nitrates, and so pose all the problems commercial bacon does. Verdict: Choose fresh ham, or high-quality dry-cured country ham or prosciutto, which don't contain nitrates. Like nitrate-treated bacon, deli/sandwich ham should be eaten only on a rare occasion, if you must consume it at all.
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Sausage Some sausages contain nitrates, some don't. But all fall in the processed meat category, and all tend to be packed with saturated fats and meat byproducts (organs, scraps). Two breakfast pork sausages contain more calories (140) and fat (12 grams) than three strips of bacon (120 calories, 9 grams fat). Verdict: Sausages are the worst choice of all the processed pork products. That mystery-meat component is a bit of a turnoff too, no?
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Pork Chops/Tenderloin While they are technically classified as red meats (despite the pork industry's "the other white meat" ad campaign), pork chops and pork tenderloin are much lower in fat than many other meats. Tenderloin, for instance, is as lean as boneless, skinless chicken breast, and contains thiamin, niacin, vitamin B6, zinc, iron, and choline. And hooray! These meats are not processed. Verdict: If you're going to eat pork, tenderloin and chops are the way to go.
Parents are being arrested for failing to seek medical care for their kids. Photo: Greenville Co Sheriff's Office/AP.
Alexander Deundray Draper is 14 years old; he weighs 555 pounds. Last week, Alexander's mother, Jerri Althea Gray, was arrested on a charge of medical neglect, for failing to get her son proper care. "The understanding was that the [Alexander] was of the weight where it was decided by medical authorities that he needed treatment that was not being provided for by his mother," Matt Armstrong, a spokesman for the Greenville County Sheriff's Office in Greenville, South Carolina, said. Alexander and his mother live in Travelers Rest, South Carolina; they were picked up in Baltimore, Maryland, after missing a family court appearance on May 19.
At the hearing, Alexander was ordered into state custody, both because of his weight and his mother's failure to appear in court. State officials have said that Alexander "is possibly at a stage of critical health risk."
Jerri Gray isn't the only parent in trouble with the law for neglecting her child's health. Daniel Hauser and his mother, Colleen, have been in the news this past week as well; Daniel, who is 13, has Hodgkin's lymphoma. His parents had decided not to pursue further treatment for his cancer, despite the fact that a tumor in his chest has grown larger since January, when Daniel was first diagnosed. The tumor is pressing against his chest wall, at the site where a port was installed for a previous round of chemotherapy. Daniel has told his doctors that he is in pain and is having trouble breathing.
Make sure Fido is the only one using your pet door. Image: sxc.hu
Pet doors that let your animals come and go as they please please may be handy little inventions, but I've never had one. While I can appreciate the convenience of not having to repeatedly open and close the back door at the whim of a fickle cat, the benefits are canceled out by the possibility, however slim, that some non-domesticated creature may make use of that door as well.
Visions of rabid raccoons tearing through my house have prevented me from ever having a pet door, but there is an even better reason to think twice about installing one: Child safety. According to new research, more than 100 children have died or been seriously injured in the past ten years after squeezing through pet doors and ending up outside alone.
When Carole Rafone's 2-year-old son Matthew got out of the house via a pet door, he made his way straight to the backyard swimming pool where he drowned. She is now suing the manufacturer of PetSafe doors because she believes that they had an obligation to warn parents of this danger on their product packaging and instructions.
It's too soon to bring out the lollipops. Experts say swine flu parties aren't smart. Image: Pink Sherbet Photography on Flickr
Here's one from the "No Kidding" file: Don't intentionally let your family get infected with the swine flu. Seems like common sense, right? But while most of the country spent the last few weeks stocking up on hand sanitizer and face masks, a few brave souls were contemplating the benefits of a swine flu party.
The idea isn't a new one. Even back in the 1950s, mothers used to bring their kids to chickenpox parties, letting their kids -- for once -- share space and spoons with an infected friend. Knowing that chickenpox is less severe for children than adults, moms wanted to get the infection over with while kids were still young. Chickenpox parties are still around today -- though they're controversial -- among parents who are wary of the chickenpox vaccine.
The same theory is circulating about the swine flu: Some people think that if they get the infection now, while it causes an apparently mild case of influenza, then they'll have immunity against a new, more serious strain if it returns in the fall. But here's the thing: H1N1 is not chickenpox. Health experts want people to understand that not only can the current version of swine flu cause serious illness, but that immunity theory might not hold water if the virus changes.
