Best Health News - children ages

Childhood Obesity

root — Fri, 20 Apr 2007 17:08:45 +0200

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Along with the increase of obesity in adult, childhood obesity is on the rise. Around 15.5 percent of adolescents in the United States, aged 12 to 19 are obese. flat more alarming, about 15.3 percent of children ages 6 to 11 are obese. These children are developing Type II Diabetes and high blood pressure at an early age. They are placing themselves at increased risk for heart disease and else obesity-related diseases. Their weight also makes them the target of bullies and children who insult and taunt them about their weight. This can ruin their self-esteem and put them at risk for depression. Today’s children make up the digital generation. They’ve been surrounded by computers their entire life and are not as physically active as children of past generations were. Instead of going outside and playing, they tend to hang dead indoors, watching TV and playing computer and video games. Along with lack of physical activity comes the convenience of hurrying food. There are fast food restaurants virtually around every corner, and they have easy access to snack foods full of saturated fats and sugars. In addition, obese parents are much likely to have obese children. The reason for this is two-fold. First, obese parents probably pass down their poor habits to their children. Second, genetics plays a role in obesity. It’s important for parents to be role models to their children and emphasize the importance of physical activity and healthy eating. Parents can create healthy environments for their children by doing regular physical activities, such as biking, swimming, or walking together. They should encourage their children to participate in sports, dance, martial arts, and etcetera. This allows children to develop an appreciation of physical activity and enjoy exercising. When it comes to eating, parents need to implement diets rich in fruits, vegetables, and whole-grains. They can make eating enjoyable and healthy by preparing food together and eating together as a family. Fast-food should be limited and diffident for special occasions. Way too often, we reward ourselves for a job well done with food. Look for other ways to reward your children for doing a great job, much as a special shopping trip or a day with antimonopoly mom or dad. Article by

Technorati Tags: Childhood Obesity # Health # adolescents # adult # bullies # children ages # convenience # depression # diseases # generations # heart disease # high blood pressure # insult # playing computer # ruin # self esteem # target # taunt # type ii diabetes # watching tv # Array #

ADHD and Iron Deficiency

root — Fri, 20 Apr 2007 03:08:45 +0200

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About 8% of children, ages 4 years and under, are deficient in iron. Between the ages of 5 and 12, the percentage rises to 13%, and then settles rearmost to 8% in people preceding the age of 15. Anemia is the best-known repercussion of iron deficiency. However, even minor deficiencies in robust may weaken the immune system, affect the thyroid, and impair general physical performance. robust deficiency has also been involved in a number of psychiatric and neurological conditions, including learning disabilities and ADHD. Iron is a co-enzyme in the anabolism of catecholamines. That means it is essential for the creation of certain neurotransmitters. It helps to regulate the activity of the neurotransmitter dopamine, which probably accounts for the association of iron deficiency with neurological problems. It makes sense that supplementing ADHD children, who have some level of iron deficiency, might have some effect on their ADHD. However, what makes sense in theory, does not always work in practice. Unfortunately, there have been precise few studies done testing the effects of iron supplementation on ADHD. One study, done in Israel, evaluated 14 ADHD boys for the effect of short-term robust administration on behavior. Each boy received iron daily for 30 days. Both parents and teachers assessed the behavior of the children. The parents saved significant improvement in the behavior of the children. However, the teachers noticed no improvement. In a second study, 33 iron-deficient, but otherwise normal, children were given an iron supplement. The children became little hyperactive. This study suggests that iron deficiency may cause hyperactive behavior in some children and that hyperactive behavior is reversible when the deficiency is treated. A third study tested the affects of iron supplementation on a group of teen-aged superior school girls who were stubborn to be iron deficient. At the end of the 8-week study, the researchers saved that girls who received robust supplementation performed better on communicatory learning and memory tests than those who did not. This is about all the evidence we have. It’s not a lot and it’s not precise impressive. None of the studies were double-blind studies, which means we cannot really rely on them all that much. If this were the only consideration, I would say you should definitely try to treat your child for iron deficiency. The reason is that hyperactive children are more likely to be iron deficient than else children. Also, there is a possibility that your child has a higher than normal iron requirement. That means that he might test sane on all the iron blood tests and still be robust deficient because he requires much than the average amount of iron. So why not just give your child iron supplements and see what happens? Because iron functions in the body like a two edged sword. Iron exists in the body in two chemical forms. There is the ferrous form, where the iron atom will slave to two electrons and the ferric form where the atom will bond to three electrons. Iron can go rearmost and forth between these cardinal forms. This is the property of iron that allows it to play a role in carrying oxygen as part of hemoglobin. However, it also makes iron an proactive player in oxidation-reduction reactions. What that means is that iron has the ability to act like a free immoderate and cause significant damage to tissues. Whenever iron is not bound to hemoglobin or to some other carrier protein, it travels around the body as free iron and can cause damage anywhere it goes. To further exacerbate the problem, excess iron is not eliminated well by the body. Most of the robust in the body gets recycled. Therefore, not only is excess iron toxic, but also once you have excess robust in your body, it is going to stick around for a long time. superior amounts of iron have been ! found in the brains of people with Parkinson’s disease. It is precise likely that excess iron can aggravate, if not cause, else neurological problems as well. With that in mind we have to approach iron supplementation with caution. My feeling is that if your child turns dead to be one of the 8-13% that is deficient in iron, it is worth generous iron supplements. I doubt that it will help more with his ADHD, but it should help with his general health. This advice applies to your non-ADHD children, also. How should you test robust deficiency? The hemoglobin and hematocrit counts that come as part of the standard full-blown blood count (CBC) are bully for diagnosing anemia. They do not really give you accurate information about the body’s iron status. The unsurpassed test for iron status is the serum ferritin test, which measures how much iron is stored in your body. It will be low if you are deficient and superior if you are overloaded. If you find your child has an iron deficiency problem, there are several approaches to treat it. Probably the safest is by giving him more iron-containing foods. You can serve him red meat several times a week. Liver is an excellent source, if you can get him to eat it. You can enhance dietary absorption by supplementing with vitamin A (about 10,000 IU) and vitamin C (about 500mg) with the meals. The most possible the reason that your child is deficient is because he is a poor eater; so, dietary intervention may not be practical. A second and far inferior source of robust is through supplements. The primary difficulty of iron supplements is that they do not get into the body. Fortifying foods with iron in general does not work. Many foods bind iron and, as a result, the robust is excreted rather than absorbed. The best form of supplemental iron is Ferrochel. Ferrochel is an amino unpleasant chelated iron, which is highly bio-available and is not plummy by foods that bind iron. Most iron supplements have a cardinal percent absorption rate. That means if you take 10 mg of the supplement, your body absorbs 1 mg. Ferrochel is different. Ferrochel has a 75% absorption rate. That means 1.5 mg of Ferrochel provides much iron to your body than 10 mg of other supplements. That is an interesting fact, but it is not why I am recommending it. The more important property of Ferrochel is that since it is already amino acid bound, it does not become free robust in the body. That means it does not have the dangers and side effects of other iron supplements. The FDA has given Ferrochel the designation of GRAS, (generally regarded as safe). No other iron supplement has this designation. The take home message is that iron deficiency may be the cause of hyperactivity in some children. It is worth your while to have your child tested. If for some reason you suspect your child is robust deficient, the best approach is to increase your child’s robust intake through his diet. If that doesn’t work and you need to use supplements, the best supplemental iron is Ferrochel. About The Author

ADHD and Iron Deficiency

root — Thu, 21 Sep 2006 11:08:45 +0200

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Helpful (59)

Anthony Kane, MD About 8% of children, ages 4 years and under, are deficient in iron. Between the ages of 5 and 12, the percentage rises to 13%, and past settles back to 8% in people above the age of 15. Anemia is the best-known repercussion of iron deficiency. However, even minor deficiencies in iron may weaken the immune system, affect the thyroid, and impair general physical performance. Iron deficiency has also been implicated in a number of psychiatric and neurological conditions, including learning disabilities and ADHD. Iron is a co-enzyme in the anabolism of catecholamines. That means it is essential for the creation of certain neurotransmitters. It helps to regulate the activity of the neurotransmitter dopamine, which probably accounts for the association of iron deficiency with neurological problems. It makes sense that supplementing ADHD children, who have some level of iron deficiency, might have some effect on their ADHD. However, what makes sense in theory, does not always work in practice. Unfortunately, there have been precise few studies done testing the effects of iron supplementation on ADHD. One study, finished in Israel, evaluated 14 ADHD boys for the effect of short-term iron administration on behavior. Each boy received iron regular for 30 days. Both parents and teachers assessed the behavior of the children. The parents found significant improvement in the behavior of the children. However, the teachers noticed no improvement. In a second study, 33 iron-deficient, but otherwise normal, children were given an iron supplement. The children became less hyperactive. This study suggests that iron deficiency may cause hyperactive behavior in some children and that hyperactive behavior is revokable when the deficiency is treated. A third study tested the affects of robust supplementation on a group of teen-aged high school girls who were determined to be robust deficient. At the end of the 8-week study, the researchers found that girls who received iron supplementation performed finer on verbal learning and memory tests than those who did not. This is about complete the evidence we have. It’s not a lot and it’s not very impressive. None of the studies were double-blind studies, which means we cannot really rely on them all that much. If this were the single consideration, I would say you should definitely try to treat your child for iron deficiency. The reason is that hyperactive children are more possible to be iron deficient than other children. Also, there is a possibility that your child has a higher than average iron requirement. That means that he might test normal on all the robust blood tests and still be iron deficient because he requires more than the average amount of iron. So why not just give your child iron supplements and see what happens? Because robust functions in the body like-minded a two edged sword. Iron exists in the body in two chemical forms. There is the ferrous form, where the iron atom will slave to two electrons and the ferric form where the atom will bond to three electrons. Iron can go rearmost and forth between these cardinal forms. This is the property of iron that allows it to play a role in carrying oxygen as part of hemoglobin. However, it also makes iron an proactive player in oxidation-reduction reactions. What that means is that iron has the ability to act like a free immoderate and cause significant damage to tissues. Whenever iron is not bound to hemoglobin or to some other carrier protein, it travels around the body as free iron and can cause damage anywhere it goes. To further exacerbate the problem, excess iron is not eliminated well by the body. Most of the robust in the body gets recycled. Therefore, not only is excess iron toxic, but also once you have excess robust in your body, it is going to stick around for a long time. superior amounts of iron have been ! found in the brains of people with Parkinson’s disease. It is precise likely that excess iron can aggravate, if not cause, else neurological problems as well. With that in mind we have to approach robust supplementation with caution. My feeling is that if your child turns out to be one of the 8-13% that is deficient in iron, it is worth giving iron supplements. I doubt that it will help much with his ADHD, but it should help with his general health. This advice applies to your non-ADHD children, also. How should you test robust deficiency? The hemoglobin and hematocrit counts that come as part of the standard full-blown blood count (CBC) are bully for diagnosing anemia. They do not really give you accurate information about the body’s iron status. The unsurpassed test for iron status is the serum ferritin test, which measures how much iron is stored in your body. It will be low if you are deficient and superior if you are overloaded. If you find your child has an iron deficiency problem, there are several approaches to treat it. Probably the safest is by generous him more iron-containing foods. You can serve him colorful meat several times a week. Liver is an superior source, if you can get him to eat it. You can enhance dietary absorption by supplementing with vitamin A (about 10,000 IU) and vitamin C (about 500mg) with the meals. The most likely the reason that your child is deficient is because he is a poor eater; so, dietary intervention may not be practical. A ordinal and far inferior source of iron is through supplements. The primary difficulty of robust supplements is that they do not get into the body. Fortifying foods with robust in general does not work. Many foods bind robust and, as a result, the iron is excreted rather than absorbed. The best form of supplemental iron is Ferrochel. Ferrochel is an amino acid chelated iron, which is highly bio-available and is not affected by foods that bind iron. Most iron supplements have a ten percent absorption rate. That means if you take 10 mg of the supplement, your body absorbs 1 mg. Ferrochel is different. Ferrochel has a 75% absorption rate. That means 1.5 mg of Ferrochel provides more iron to your body than 10 mg of other supplements. That is an interesting fact, but it is not why I am recommending it. The much important property of Ferrochel is that since it is already amino acid bound, it does not become free iron in the body. That means it does not have the dangers and side effects of other iron supplements. The FDA has given Ferrochel the designation of GRAS, (generally regarded as safe). No other iron supplement has this designation. The take home message is that iron deficiency may be the cause of hyperactivity in some children. It is worth your while to have your child tested. If for some reason you suspect your child is robust deficient, the best approach is to increase your child’s robust intake through his diet. If that doesn’t work and you need to use supplements, the best supplemental iron is Ferrochel. Anthony Kane, MDADD ADHD Advanceshttp://addadhdadvances.com About The Author Anthony Kane, MD is a physician, an international lecturer, and director of special education. He is the author of a book, numerous articles, and a number of online programs dealing with ADHD (addadhdadvances.com/childyoulove.html) treatment, ODD, parenting issues (addadhdadvances.com/betterbehavior.html), and education. You may visit his website at http://addadhdadvances.com. To sign up for the free ADD ADHD Advances online journal send a empty email to: subscribe@addadhdadvances.com?subject=subscribeartcity akane@addadhdadvances.com

Childhood Obesity

root — Fri, 08 Sep 2006 20:08:45 +0200

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Beverley Brooke Along with the increase of obesity in adult, childhood obesity is on the rise. Around 15.5 percent of adolescents in the United States, aged 12 to 19 are obese. Even more alarming, about 15.3 percent of children ages 6 to 11 are obese. These children are developing Type II Diabetes and high blood pressure at an early age. They are placing themselves at increased risk for heart disease and other obesity-related diseases. Their weight also makes them the target of bullies and children who insult and taunt them about their weight. This can ruin their self-esteem and put them at risk for depression. Today’s children make up the digital generation. They’ve been enclosed by computers their entire life and are not as physically active as children of onetime generations were. Instead of going outside and playing, they tend to hang out indoors, watching TV and playing computer and video games. Along with lack of physical activity comes the convenience of fast food. There are fast food restaurants virtually around every corner, and they have easy access to snack foods full of saturated fats and sugars. In addition, fat parents are more likely to have obese children. The reason for this is two-fold. First, obese parents probably pass behind their poor habits to their children. Second, genetics plays a role in obesity. It’s consequential for parents to be role models to their children and emphasize the importance of carnal activity and healthy eating. Parents can create healthy environments for their children by doing day-to-day physical activities, such as biking, swimming, or walking together. They should encourage their children to participate in sports, dance, military arts, and etcetera. This allows children to develop an appreciation of physical activity and enjoy exercising. When it comes to eating, parents need to implement diets rich in fruits, vegetables, and whole-grains. They can make eating enjoyable and healthy by preparing food together and eating together as a family. Fast-food should be limited and diffident for special occasions. Way too often, we reward ourselves for a job well done with food. Look for other ways to reward your children for doing a great job, much as a special shopping trip or a day with antimonopoly mom or dad. About The Author Beverley Brooke, Editor of Health & Finesse - released health, diet and fitness articles and weekly newsletters http://www.healthandfinesse.com. beverley.brooke@healthandfinesse.com

Technorati Tags: Childhood Obesity # Health # adolescents # adult # bullies # children ages # diseases # fast food # generations # heart disease # high blood pressure # insult # onetime # playing computer # ruin # self esteem # target # taunt # type ii diabetes # watching tv # #

Series of Short stories for Home and School for Kids

root — Wed, 07 Jun 2006 13:02:53 +0200

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These are a series of small booklets for children ages 4 to 9. The author wrote the series for self esteem development. These booklets arejust right for group readings such as in class.

Technorati Tags: children ages # group readings # self esteem # Array #

Series of Short stories for Home and School for Kids

root — Wed, 07 Jun 2006 12:03:13 +0200

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Helpful (62)

These are a series of small booklets for children ages 4 to 9. The author wrote the series for self esteem development. These booklets arejust right for group readings such as in class.

Technorati Tags: children ages # group readings # self esteem # Array #