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Information for parents and caregivers
May, 2008
A lot of bad habits start early, but many good ones do too. From promoting a healthy body image to encouraging healthy snacking, here's how to plant some early seeds of good health in your child.
General Health
Encouraging a Healthy Body Image
A healthy and positive body image means liking your body, appreciating it, and feeling grateful for its qualities and capabilities. Parents can help kids develop a healthy body image.
Snacks
If the right foods are offered at the right times, snacks can play an important role in managing your child's hunger and boosting nutrition.
Elementary Schoolers
For Kids: What Kids Say About: Arguing
Arguing is a fact of life. Find out who kids argue with the most - and how to get along better - in this article.
Tourette Syndrome
Tourette syndrome is a condition of the nervous system characterized by involuntary movements and vocalizations known as tics.
Motivating School-Age Kids to Be Active
Being active is a key component of good health for all school-age kids. So how do you get kids motivated to be active, especially those who aren't gifted athletes?
Teens
For Teens: Making a Change in Your Life
This interactive feature guides you in setting a goal and coming up with steps to reach it.
Q&A: Can You Get Mono Twice?
Can a person get mono more than once?
A Parent's Guide to Surviving the Teen Years
You've lived through 2 AM feedings, toddler temper tantrums, and the but-I-don't-want-to-go-to-school-today blues. So why is the word "teenager" causing you so much anxiety?
Fitness and Nutrition
For Teens: Choosing the Right Sport for You If you're having trouble choosing a sport, this article can help!
Cooking With Kids
Inviting kids into the kitchen to help you cook can be a great way to create quality together time and help your child learn and refine some basic skills.
Cholesterol and Your Child
When it comes to their kids, many parents don't even think about cholesterol. But some experts think that high cholesterol in children is a major underreported public health problem.
Emotions and Behavior
Night Terrors
A night terror is a sleep disruption that seems similar to a nightmare, but it's far more dramatic. Night terrors can be alarming, but aren't usually cause for concern or a sign of a medical issue.
Taming Tempers
Controlling outbursts can be difficult for kids - and helping them learn to do so is a tough job for the parents who love them. But just about every child can improve with the right coaching.
Allergies and Asthma
Celiac Disease
Kids who have celiac disease, a disorder that makes their bodies react to gluten, can't eat certain kinds of foods. Find out more - including what foods are safe and where to find them.
What's an Asthma Flare-Up?
When symptoms of asthma, such as wheezing, coughing, or shortness of breath, become more severe, more frequent, or both, it's known as an asthma flare-up.
Do Allergies Cause Asthma?
Although allergies and asthma are separate conditions, they are related. People who have allergies are more likely to have asthma. But not everyone who has allergies has asthma, and not all cases of asthma are related to allergies.
Diabetes
Diabetes Control: Why It's Important
Although healthy social and emotional development are key goals in managing a child's diabetes, you've probably heard your child's doctors or health care providers talk the most about diabetes control. What is diabetes control, and why is it important?
For Kids: Chandler's Diabetes Story
People who have diabetes have to pay special attention to what they eat and need to stay aware of the amount of sugar in their blood. So what's it like to have diabetes? Just ask Chandler!
Weight and Diabetes
A balanced diet and an active lifestyle are important for all kids, but for kids with diabetes, they're even more crucial. That's because weight can influence diabetes, and diabetes can influence weight.
See You Next Month!
We hope you enjoyed this month's Growing Great Girls newsletter. Please forward it on to your friends and family who are raising healthy and strong girls.
Important Note: All information is for educational purposes only. For specific medical advice, diagnoses, and treatment, consult your doctor.
Content last updated August 20, 2008
