Two Peds in a Pod: Recent Comments

Comment on Count down the pounds: six simple guidelines to helping overweight children

Two Peds in a Pod — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 21:46:22 GMT

Great questions! Within a week of instituting changes, you should see a change in behavior in your child, such as accepting more appropriate portions or becoming enthusiatic about increasing her activity level. Within a month you should expect to see that an overweight child has stopped gaining weight and maybe has lost 1-2 pounds from increasing exercise and cutting out calories. Remember to consult with your child's health care provider about her ideal weight for her height and how long it should take for her to achieve this weight in a healthy way.

Some examples of non-organized activities for kids to do inside include: hula hoop, jump rope, exercise to a video or game such as Wii Fit, or dance. You could join a Y or club and go swimming. For added outdoor activities, she could just play the usual "kid games" such as tag, hopscotch, and "running bases" (Two people play catch at two bases, the other kids have to run back and forth between them to try to get "on base" without being tagged out. Kids take turns being runners and catchers). Kids can also walk a dog, either their own or a neighbor's dog, go sledding (walking up the hill all those times really burns calories), just play in the snow, or ride bikes (depending on the weather where you live, of course!).

Again, keep it a family affair and make small but steady changes according to the 5-4-3-2-1-0 rules. We hope this helps!

Julie Kardos, MD and Naline Lai, MD

Comment on Count down the pounds: six simple guidelines to helping overweight children

Donna — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 19:30:58 GMT

Thank you for this information, it was helpful. Question i have is after you do all these things about how much time do you think it will take to see results? I also wonder what child activities you recommend to start out with. For example, my daughter loves gymnastics and tball. However that is only 2x a week. Are there other non-organized activities you would suggest doing to get that additional exercise in? Thanks again!

Comment on Tantrums, Anxiety and Tics in the Young School Aged Child- our first podcast party

Debbie Gilchrist — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 22:50:46 GMT

Thanks Dr. Lai for letting me know about your blogs & podcasts!! Great info & enjoyed listening to you & Dr. Kardos! What a great idea!

Comment on Tantrums, Anxiety and Tics in the Young School Aged Child- our first podcast party

Jill Jones — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 19:41:47 GMT

Thanks so much! Very helpful info!

Comment on STREP THROAT Part 2: diagnosis, treatment, and when to worry

Anonymous — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 15:43:24 GMT

Another sympton of Strep which is sometimes present is "Strep Breath", other wise known as "sick breath". To identify, simply take a smell sample of the mouth. If you need to pull back quickly, it's present.

Comment on What's up with Acetaminophen (Tylenol)?

Two Peds in a Pod — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 15:44:15 GMT

This is a commonly asked question. Usually tylenol is safe to give along with amoxicillin. However we do not know your child's medical history. In order to best individualize your child's care, we suggest that you consult with your child's health care provider and/or pharmacist. Kudos for checking about potential medication interactions. We hope all parents do the same. We wish your child a speedy recovery.
Two Peds in a Pod

Comment on What's up with Acetaminophen (Tylenol)?

Cathy — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 00:51:26 GMT

My son has an ear infection and is on amoxicillin. Can I give him tylenol too? He is 1 1/2.

Comment on Alcohol and drugs- what you can say when your student tells you the truth about college parties

Karl New — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 20:11:31 GMT

Hi...

We found the opportunities to drink already are available in early high school. Most of the conversations with our (17) year old daughter revolve around the number of different reasons people decide to consume alcohol and how they decide to consume it.

We have also discussed the responsibility that must come with drinking alcohol and the harsh and life changing potential for failing to grasp this responsibility. Unfortunately, there were many articles in the local paper and within our own family to easily bring up this topic for discussion.

I do have a standing bet with my Daughter that if she does not smoke or do drugs, that on her 21st birthday I will give her $1000. I did not do this because I felt the monetary award would be motivating to her (if it is, that will be an added bonus), I did it because there is an element of trust that must exist for her to collect the reward.

Our conversations have been open and I have acknowledged there is no way for me to stop her from drinking or doing drugs and that at some point in her journey through life she will absolutely be faced with making a key decision at a key moment and her parents will not be present. Will her decision be life changing? We preach not to put yourself in a position to find out. A bad decision is a bad decision. You may get lucky once (or you may not) or even a multitude of times, but it is only a matter of time before you experience how the world treats and rewards bad decisions.

I would recommend looking for opportunities to discuss alcohol and drug use with your kids as they enter middle school (around 7th grade). Don't preach, but probe for their opinions and why they hold that specific opinion. It will provide a much better dialog.

Comment on Bye-Bye Binkie: weaning the Nuk, pacifier or Binkie

Laura — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 21:29:22 GMT

Thisis so timely for our family.. thank you for some great tips! Our third child just turned three, and it's time to lose the binky. It's pretty much just for naptime and bedtime, but it is definately part of his going to bed routine. Even though we've done this twice before, it's never easy, I think!
With our first child, she decided she would stop herself. Fine for the first night, like you said, but got progressively more difficult. After three nights she sadly explained, "but it's my last thing (before going to sleep)." So we gave it back, and gradually she shortened her time with it, until one day she just was done with it. She had just turned three, also.
My other son, who was approaching three, was very "bink 'n bunny" (his stuffed bunny) dependent at bedtimes. We started to introduce a blankie - "bink 'n blankie", and then take away the binky. He had only one ratty one he was using at the time, and wouldn't take a substitute anyway. Both my husband and I caved a couple of times, until he got a stomach bug, and I threw it out.. buried deep in the trashcan out on the curb. A couple of tearful nights, but then he was done.

I'm going to keep in mind that we just have to get through the first week, and then we're in the clear!

Thanks!

Comment on Worry Wart : Getting rid of warts

Mei — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 14:36:14 GMT

Good Job, Naline. I like the article you published, very interesting and helpful. I have a wart on my middle finger that comes and go with compound W. Maybe I will try the duct tape.