The Health Blog

Down syndrome is often considered as a lifetime problem, so patients really need a lot of support and to learn coping measures to deal with the different challenges. The response of patients will differ, as well as their personal, mental and emotional ability to handle the new situations. Find out the best approaches that lead to independence and wellness.

Expert Advice

It is important that you consult the professionals first, before determining the proper approaches that lead to a better and healthier lifestyle. You may belong to an online forum or local support group. Start to talk about the situation with others who share the same concerns and sentiments with you. It is important to know that patients’ reactions can differ depending on their own personal experiences and capabilities.

Find out the most reliable ways and coping measures that worked for most patients. Talk therapy, physical therapy, occupational therapy and other rehabilitative methods are some of the proven ways. There are also medications that may be prescribed, if other symptoms or conditions are present. These should only be used if truly recommended by the experts.

Help Starts Within

You need to start by finding the right coping measures for yourself to provide full support to your child. You may experience feelings of guilt, fear, shock and disbelief. Take note that your baby is the one who needs the most attention and support at this time. Take charge of your emotions and understand the ways to improve and adjust accordingly. You can start by rearranging the home to offer safety and security for the baby, changing your schedule to provide more time for him or her and knowing the right diet, toys and other tools for independence.

Family Support

Other members of the family should also help during the most critical stages of the child’s life. Although milestones may be reached at a later age, every person in the house should contribute to boost overall wellness. If you intend to breastfeed your baby, you should ask your physician first, since babies with Down syndrome tend to have low muscle tone or hypotonia. They may have difficulty breastfeeding properly. Breastfeeding can actually help in immunity and other functions for the baby.

Siblings can take turns taking care of the baby. Other relatives can also come over to help the child improve social skills and communicating. Take your child to different venues with different people to boost its confidence. The family should coordinate well to meet the needs of the baby until it is ready to do things alone.

Taking It Slowly

The coping techniques need to be incorporated slowly for patients to deal with the challenges and learn to become independent. Do not pressure the patient so much to reach new heights and give compliments and praise for small efforts. Parents should also be kind to themselves and stop blaming the wrong reasons. Down syndrome is a genetic condition that people truly do not have any control over.

The effects and symptoms of Down syndrome usually last a lifetime so individuals and families need to be ready for these. Parents should not also stop themselves from giving birth to more kids because they have a history of the condition. Although it is not entirely impossible, a lot of parents can actually continue giving birth to normal children despite the previous one being afflicted with Down syndrome.

Your newborn goes through a lot right after he’s born. Whether the birth was natural or assisted, he experiences a great deal of stress as he copes with the abrupt change in the world as he knows it. No wonder he’s a little out of sorts those first few weeks.

The first days home with baby can be trying. He’s adjusting. You’re adjusting. Everyone is a bundle of nerves. If you stay calm, however, these simple tips will ease the transition for both of you.

*Sing and talk to your baby. Your newborn begins to hear your voice while still growing inside you. By the time he is born, the familiarity of that sound has a remarkable calming effect. Talk to him, sing your favorite lullaby, and read books to him, especially stories that rhyme.

*Make eye contact. While baby’s do not have 20/20 vision at birth, they can see you. By making eye contact with your baby when you talk to or massage him, you are communicating with him, and if you watch his cues, you’ll learn how he communicates with you.

*Touch your baby. It’s natural act, yet so powerful. Stroke his arms, legs, head, and back. The sensations relax both of you and enhance your bonding. If possible, learn about infant massage techniques and incorporate them into your daily routine. Research suggests that simple massage strokes relieve colic and constipation, as well as help infants establish regular sleep patterns and form stronger bonds with their caregivers.

Diabetes in children is also known as juvenile diabetes, but more commonly known as type 1 diabetes. It is the most common form of diabetes in children with ninety to ninety-five percent of carriers being under 16.

Juvenile diabetes is caused by the inability of the pancreas to produce insulin. It is an autoimmune disease, which means the bodies own defense system attacks the body’s tissues or organs.

In the last 30 years the number of juvenile diabetes had increased three times over and in Europe and the US we are now seeing type 2 diabetes in children for the first time.

Obesity easily explains type 2, but not why there is such a rise in type 1 diabetes in children. It is believed that a mixture of genetics and environmental factors are what triggers juvenile diabetes. But the majority of children don’t have a family history of diabetes.

The symptoms for juvenile diabetes are the same as in adults. Thirst, weight loss, fatigue, frequent urination is typical, but diabetes in children can also increase stomach pains, headaches and behavior problems.

Doctors should consider the possibility of diabetes in children who have unexplained stomach pains for a few weeks, along with the typical symptoms.

I visited my dentist today and while waiting for my turn, I killed the time browsing on some dental magazines. And I found a great article about oral hygiene – talking about how to brush and floss properly.

Plaque-covered teeth, inflamed gum, and smelly breath are due to poor oral hygiene. Hence, the importance of cleaning your teeth as soon as these appear or erupt in the oral cavity to achieve zero cavity.

Correct tooth brushing and flossing are the most effective mechanical defenses against gum disease and halitosis (smelly breath).

Here’s how to brush properly:

1. Employ a circular brushig motion at a 45-degree angle and move from the outside to the inside of the teeth.

2. Brush using upward stroke for lower teeth and downward stroke for upper teeth.

3. Pay particular attention to the chewing surfaces and in-between teeth.

4. Avoid the back-and-forth motion. It may cause your gums to recede and irritate the roots and surfaces of your teeth.

5. Brush at least twice a day for a full three to four minutes – the average song length. So why not tun on your radio while brushing?

6. Brush your tongue or you may use a tongue scraper.

A study conducted by Oceana found high mercury levels in fresh tuna, swordfish and sushi, they tested from a variety of grocery stores in 26 different cities across the US.

Oceana found out that:

• Mercury levels in tuna were much higher than the FDA data suggest
• One-third of sushi tuna samples exceeded the FDA “action level” of 1 part per million
• Nearly 90 percent of seafood counter attendants either did not know the FDA advice about mercury in fish, or gave a wrong interpretation of this warning
• Two-thirds of swordfish tested were above the FDA “action level”, which would permit the administration to remove these fish from sale
• Sushi tuna samples, on average, contained higher levels of mercury than fresh tuna samples from Oceana’s grocery stores and the FDA’s data on fresh tuna
• Average mercury levels in sushi tuna were higher than king mackerel, a fish the FDA advises women of childbearing age and children to avoid due to high mercury levels

Because of the recent incident of food poisoning at this years Chicago Food Festival, parents were alarmed about the seriousness of this case, thus continue to seek immediate care for food poisoned patient. Here are some useful tips or home remedies while waiting for medical attention:

Short episodes of vomiting and small amounts of diarrhea lasting less than 24 hours can usually be cared for at home. Do not eat solid food while nauseous or vomiting but drink plenty of fluids.

• Small, frequent sips of clear liquids (those you can see through) are the best way to stay hydrated.
• Avoid alcoholic, caffeinated, or sugary drinks, if possible. Over–the–counter rehydration products made for children such as Pedialyte and Rehydralyte are expensive but good to use if available.
• Sports drinks such as Gatorade and Powerade are fine for adults if they are diluted with water because at full strength they contain too much sugar, which can worsen diarrhea.

Reuters – More than 100 students and teachers from a school in Bangladesh have been admitted to hospital after suffering convulsions, police said on Saturday.

The cause of their sudden illness was being investigated.

The victims fell ill at Adiabad School and College near Narshingdi district town, 55 km (34 miles) northeast of the capital Dhaka, a police inspector said.

Twenty-three people died in Bangladesh in 2004 from a mysterious disease later diagnosed as an encephalitis, or inflammation of the brain caused by a viral infection. Dozens more were infected with the disease, which some had feared was bird flu.

A new children’s book written by award-wining writer Debjani Chatterjee encourages young people to follow their dreams and also provides self-management tips on asthma.

Funded by Asthma UK through the Challenge Fund, the book, entitled ‘A Special Assembly’, tells the story of a young south Asian boy called Raj, who has asthma and wants to follow in the footsteps of his favourite cricket player.

The book was commissioned by the Asian People’s Disability Alliance (APDA), a voluntary organisation managed and run by Asian people with disabilities. Alongside the story it provides information on managing asthma in a south Asian cultural and social context, with guidance notes for parents in English, Gujarati, Urdu and Bengali.

Healthday News – Pets can help build your child’s self esteem and self-confidence, according to the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.

They can also enrich your child’s emotional development by:

• Offering your child important exposure to issues like reproduction, birth, illness, accidents, death and grief.
• Teaching your child responsibility.
• Providing a connection to nature and teaching respect, empathy and patience for other living things.
• Offering unconditional love, loyalty, affection and comfort.

The world of Jeffrey Modell, the son of Fred and Vicki Modell, in 1987 was a far different world than we have today for patients with genetic Primary Immunodeficiency (PI) disorders and diseases. There were few answers, little hope and no support networks. Jeffrey and his family had nowhere to turn to get answers; no one with whom to talk and not even enough pediatricians with any real clinical experience, with these life threatening disorders. The thing is that no one really knew what a primary immunodeficiency was or how to make a precise diagnosis. They didn’t know how many different kinds of primary immunodeficiencies there were or could even imagine a world with 150 different genetic defects on over 100 genes, but there are at least that many already classified by the World Health Organization (WHO).

Primary immunodeficiencies are a broad spectrum of problems with the immune system and not just one disease. These underlying genetic Primary immunodeficiencies ,of the immune system, affect all organ systems and are as varied as there are disorders and diseases, but they all had one thing in common; they were caused by genetic defects either inherited or as a result of the in utero environment; genes replicating in the wrong way before a child was born. Primary immunodeficiencies are congenital; you can’t catch them or become infected by them; you are simply born that way.

All toys, no matter how safe, may not be appropriate for children of all ages. Other toys may have moving parts or sharp edges that make them inappropriate for children of any age.

Here are suggestions on how to choose safe toys for your child, courtesy of the American Academy of Family Physicians:

* Don’t give your child toys with small parts that can be easily removed or broken.
* Follow safety information and age guidelines listed on toys.
* Look for toys that say “non-toxic,” or “washable/hygienic materials” on stuffed animals that can be washed.
* Make sure your child only has access to toys that are appropriate for her age.
* To prevent choking, don’t allow young children to play with marbles, or other small toys less than 1 3/4 inches diameter or 2 inches long.