Doctor Radio

From On Call For Kids:

The author of The Happiest Baby, Harvey Karp, discussed all the issues of putting babies to sleep. White noise and patience stretching are important tools. Patience stretching has to do with walking away for 5 seconds while baby is secure in crib for sleep. Then after 5-10 minutes of being with baby go out of the room for a little longer. This gets the baby used to you going out of site a little longer each time and feeling secure that you will come back. The baby will be relaxed and not anxious and then be able to fall off to sleep. New research also shows that swaddling is a very good thing. It's part of the five S's, according to Karp, the cornerstone of which is swaddling. It keeps babies from flailing their arms and legs and therefore waking themselves up. The rule of thumb is not to put babies asleep on their stomachs but so many parents say their babies wake up right away if they put them to sleep on their backs. This is because they are not swaddled. Karp says babies may seem fussy on their back but that is because they don't feel secure. Swaddling keeps them secure as they were in the womb. In addition, white noise at a lower octave imitates the noise environment of the womb.

From About Our Kids:

Dr. JoAnn Deak, author of Girls Will Be Girls, and Your Fantastic Elastic Brain, has a new book out entitled, The Owners Manual for Driving You Adolescent Brain. She highlighted the importance on sleep for adolescents. She explains how the brain and the body does it's growing during the night, not the day. Next to glucose, water and oxygen, sleep is most important for the brain and growth, Deak says. "Sleep for adolescents is very important, let them sleep. They need nine hours. Sleep and protein are key, the brain is growing massively." She talks about kisspeptin, a group of peptides in the body or protein that initiates hormones that start puberty. When Dr. Deak does talks with adolescents she likes to ask them, "have you been kissed (kisspeptin,KISS1) yet," in relation to the hormones and the start of puberty. She can tell if so by how sleepy they are. She stresses that kids at this age group also need naps. Her battle has been with the school districts to make the middle and high schools start later. She sites that test scores and attitude have changed tremendously since making middle schools start later. She finds that many adolescents have a hard time falling asleep before 10 or 11 p.m. This is because the KISS1 makes them sleepy but not until later. It's a slow melatonin release.

This is also a time when the prefrontal cortex is growing and that effects decision making. During adolesence, kids need to make mistakes in order to learn lessons for life. "This can have a better lifelong positive effect, much better than just parents saying it," she said. She added that parents should never say, "what is wrong with you?" or "you should know better." Another thing she said, especially pertaining to girls is that oxytocin is developing with estrogen this creates a need or desire for  others approval, bonding and building relationships. She said that even girls who are otherwise confident and self-assured will seem more needy for others approval.. Parents have to take heed and spend more time, not less, with their girls ages 10-20.

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Books: According to Diane Ravitch, Ph.D research professor at University of New York, says, "schools and teachers are under so much pressure to get students to pass that most of the school day is spent teaching to the test." This is due in part of No Child Left Behind. Subjects like art, science and history are being dropped from daily schedules. This contributes to an increasingly dysfunctional public school system. Her new book is entitled Reign of Error.

Another book dealing with children and education is How Children Succeed, by journalist Paul Tough.

Dr. Oz Tips:

Both Dr. Oz and his colleague Dr. Michael Roizen have some great tips in their book You Being Beautiful. Some tips...

- to have beautiful fingernails, more than trimming, buffing and polish, they need moisturizer. Always rub it into your nails when you moisturize your skin daily. Also do it after every hand washing.

-Vitamin E is a great skin helper and slows wrinkle production, protects against the sun while enhancing sunscreen.

-taking aspirin has been shown to produce a major 40 percent decrease in arterial aging. That aging is a large cause of memory loss. Aspirin cleans out the gunk that accumulates in the brain and improves circulation. It can also help you sleep better if you take it at the right time.

-calcium is a key component to keeping bones strong but a deficiency in magnesium may be even more common among women with weak bones. Almonds are a super bone food because they're rich in magnesium and calcium. Eat them with something more acidic like o.j. to help them get absorbed.

Upcoming dates of interest:

August 19- World Photography Day

September 2 - Coconut Day

September 5-Teachers'  Day

September 7- Forgiveness Day

September 8- International Literacy Day

Be Well and Stay Fit!

Marlo