|
INTRO: You can’t take the health of your child for granted. Just being young isn’t a protection from the many dangers that can threaten a child’s current and future life. Take an active role in promoting good health for the child you love and you’ll never regret it.
STEP 1. If your child isn’t covered by private insurance, he or she may be eligible for CHIP: Children’s Health Insurance Program. Estimates are, five million uninsured children who might be eligible for CHIP coverage aren’t enrolled in the program. If you have uninsured children, look into CHIP even if you’ve previously applied and been rejected. Recently passed legislation has made more children eligible for this program than were previously eligible.
STEP 2. Children today are much heavier, on average, than any previous time and this weight gain has many negative consequences for their present and future health. If your child is overweight, don’t ignore the problem or expect them to grow out of it. Talk to a pediatrician about a healthy weight for your child and don’t shrink from the consequences. If life style changes are needed, make a commitment to those changes and work with your child on the problem. If you’re feeding your child larger portions than necessary, cut back on them.
STEP 3. How active is your child? Healthy young people should be filled with energy and hard to keep still, but if your child tends to be sedentary, you need to inject some physical activity into his/her life. All children should get at least an hour of vigorous activity every day, running around, riding a bike, playing sports, whatever. If your child is sitting in front of a computer screen or television screen, be proactive and add some activities. Your child’s health depends on it.
STEP 4. Did you know children are regularly injured, sometimes fatally, from cheer leading stunts? It’s a big thrill to be chosen for a cheer leading squad, but a recent report from the National Center for Catastrophic Sports Injury Research cited cheer leading as the most dangerous sport for female athletes in high school and college. There are national guidelines for cheer leading coaches to follow. Make sure your child’s school is using those guidelines.
STEP 5. Autism was once considered rare, but is now being diagnosed in much greater numbers. Signs of autism can show up in infants and the earlier it’s caught the better chance there is of treating it. Does your baby make eye contact? Is your baby imitating your speech and trying to decipher language or is he or she disinterested in what is happening around them. You can have your baby screened for autism before the age of two which many doctors highly recommend.
STEP 6. Is your child old enough to recognize body changes taking place? If you haven’t spoken to your child about puberty yet, you need to start that dialogue. In fact, it’s best to start talking before the changes occur and to keep the conversation going as your child develops. If you’re embarrassed to do this, talk to other parents with older children and find out how they approached it. Whatever you do, don’t leave the subject to a child’s peer groups. A lot of bad information can get circulated that way.
STEP 7. Young people need more sleep than adults. It’s what growth requires. Make sure your child is in bed by 9 or 10 pm and if there are too many distractions to sleep in their room, move some things out. Children shouldn’t be watching late night television or chatting on the Internet late at night. Studies find sleep deprivation in children can lead to chronic depression later on, as well as an inability to concentrate and failing grades.
TIPS: If your child has an allergy to various food products, explore programs that could help overcome this with minute exposure. For example, peanut allergies are being gradually overcome by feeding children tiny amounts they can tolerate until they build up an overall tolerance.
WARNINGS: Get actively involved in maintaining and improving your child’s health. Don’t take good health in young people for granted.
 |
Health 
