This article highlights the importance of touch supervision, discussed in my last blog, for young children around water. Remember that young children can drown in just 2 inches of water! Keep your children within an arms reach around any amount of water.
http://yourlife.usatoday.com/parenting-family/story/2011/06/Portable-pools-pose-drowning-risk-for-tots/48622550/1
Our daughter Lydia proudly marched down the stairs the other day in her bathing suit and sunglasses and announced, “I’m ready to play in the wading pool!” Never mind the fact that it was 48 degrees and rainy outside. Our kids LOVE the water, and they both jump at any opportunity to play in it.
Once the weather is warmer, playing in the water becomes more appealing to everyone. But we mustn’t forget the very real dangers that even small amounts of water represent, especially to infants and toddlers. Compared to adults, infants and toddlers proportionally have much larger heads yet are still relatively weak in the neck and upper body. As a result, if they were to fall head first into water, they may not be able to push themselves up and hence can drown in even just a few inches of water. So before your children go splish-splashing, here are a few tips:
Remember that kids move fast, and an accident can occur around water in an instant. A scare has even happened to us. My husband and I had Liam and Lydia at the pool, and Lydia was having a great time jumping into my arms from the side of the pool. I turned my head to say something to my husband when Lydia decided to plunge in without her usual countdown of “1-2-3 jump!” Thankfully, we were practicing “touch supervision”, so when I heard her splash I was able to turn around and grab her ankles as she sank to the bottom because she was within one arm’s reach. It was a scary moment, but thankfully Lydia was okay. As easy as it is to be distracted by cell phones, e-mail, or even your friends, try not to take your eyes off your child!
Lydia was quite disappointed that we wouldn’t let her play in the wading pool on that cold, rainy day. But by following these rules, we will have lots of water fun on our hot, sunny summer days!
I have a confession to make. I deserve another “bad mother of the year” award. Recently, I forgot to put sunscreen on my children, and they burned. Oops! In my defense, it was a mostly cloudy day in the mountains with intermittent snow showers. We were swimming (yep, we swim when it snows!), and I just didn’t even think about that all-important sunscreen. And the kids weren’t alone—my husband and I burned, too.
As summer approaches, it seems like a good time remind everyone of the importance of sun protection. Here are some “fun in the sun” tips:
Remember that protecting our skin from the sun is the key for preventing skin cancer. Make a habit of putting sun block on your child first thing in the morning before he even ventures outside, and set an example for your child by putting sun block on yourself. And don’t stop using the sunscreen in the winter—though it may be cold, the sun can still burn especially if it is reflected off snow!
As parents, one of our most important jobs is to protect our children. We make them hold our hands to cross the street. We give them helmets to wear when riding bikes or scooters or skiing. We buckle them into car seats or booster seats. We even do simple things like putting hats and gloves on them to protect them from the cold. But parents often feel ill-equip to protect their children from the unthinkable: sexual predators. Even many pediatricians often find the topic a difficult one to broach with their families.
From my perspective as a pediatrician, I encourage my families to do two things. First, please teach your children the appropriate anatomical names for their genitals. By doing so, you empower your children but you also protect them by giving them the appropriate vocabulary. Not everyone is open to little children knowing the terms “penis” and “vagina.” My own mother was horrified when my daughter announced loudly one day, “I have a vagina!” But Lydia knows what it is and knows that it is for her only.
Secondly, I encourage parents to start teaching children about “private areas” at a young age. In general, “private areas” are any part of the body covered by a bathing suit (an easy concept for young children) and are meant for them and them alone.
Feather Berkower co-authored Off Limits: A Parent’s Guide to Keeping Kids Safe from Sexual Abuse and leads Parenting Safe Children seminars in the Denver metro area. She has crafted some fantastic “Body Safe Rules” for children (Copyright Parenting Safe Children (2010). Used with permission from Parenting Safe Children. www.parentingsafechildren.com):
1) No one is allowed to touch your private body parts, except to help you clean them or if the doctor or nurse needs to examine them. (This includes siblings.)
2) You are not allowed to touch someone else’s private body parts.
3) It is OK to touch your own private body parts as long as you do it in private.
4) You and all of your family members are allowed to have privacy when bathing, dressing, and using the toilet. (Model privacy for your children.)
5) No one (adult or teenager) is allowed to take pictures of your private body parts or show you pictures of naked people.
6) When playing with friends, play with your clothes on.
7) No one is allowed to make you kiss or touch them if you don’t want to. No one is allowed to kiss or touch you if you don’t want them to, including relatives. You are allowed to choose who you kiss and touch and when you kiss and touch people.
8) You have permission to say NO and get away if anyone tries to touch your private body parts or tries to break any of your body safety rules. You never have to do what an adult or anyone tells you to do if the person is breaking a body safety rule or making you unsafe (e.g. touching private parts or keeping secrets).
9) If someone tries to or does touch your private body parts, try to get away and then go tell a trusted adult!
10) If someone tells you to keep a secret about touching private body parts, tell an adult.
A word about secrets: they may seem innocent, but encouraging your child to keep “secrets” creates a vulnerable child. Rather than saying, “Let’s keep Daddy’s birthday gift a secret!” try the phrase, “Let’s keep Daddy’s birthday gift a surprise!” By encouraging an open family that doesn’t have secrets, your child is much more likely to follow the last body safety rule. Your child will also understand that someone who cares about him would not want him to keep a secret from his parents.
Remember that your job as a parent is to educate and empower your children. Don’t be afraid to discuss sexual topics with your children because the more you talk about body safety with children, the safer they are. Also use resources such as Feather’s book, website (www.parentingsafechildren.com), and seminars to help guide you if needed. And as always, feel free to discuss any questions or concerns you have with your provider at the office.
I mentioned in a recent post that Lydia has been sick. So has Liam. It’s been a long winter—it seems like one or the other has been sick for the past two months. And invariably, these illnesses have involved the dreaded five letter word: FEVER. For parent, few things seem to cause such worry as fever. And certainly, I have my degree (no pun intended) of concern as I watch the thermometer tick up: “102, 103, wow, 103.7—you’ve got a pretty good fever today!”
But as scary as a fever may seem, remember that it is a sign that the body’s immune system is doing what it is supposed to be doing: fighting an infection. For the most part, a fever is not dangerous, but it can make you feel pretty crummy. Personally, I feel awful if my temperature hits 100.5—quite honestly, I don’t understand how kids tolerate the high fevers that they get!
As a parent, here are a few things that you should remember about fever:
1) PLEASE call our office IMMEDIATELY if your child is less than 2 months and has a rectal temperature over 100.4. This fever in an infant of that age needs to be evaluated right away; if it is the middle of the night, our doctor on call will advise you as to where you need to have your child seen.
2) Most fevers are due to viruses, and most viral fevers will last in the range of 24-72 hours (1-3 days). If a fever lasts longer than 3 days, we would recommend that you contact our office.
3) A truly DANGEROUS fever (ie, that brain damage concern that we all have) is in the 107-108 range. Hard to believe, I know, but fevers CAN get very high in kids.
4) Do call, however, if your child’s temperature is over 105. They have a higher chance of having a bacterial (treatable) cause of fever if the temperature is that high, although most fevers in that range are still caused by viruses.
5) We give medications like acetaminophen (Tylenol) or ibuprofen (Motrin/Advil) to make a child comfortable with fever. Your child’s fever may or may not come down when given these medications, but she should feel more comfortable. Fever also often will wax and wane over the course of the day, so don’t be surprised if your child’s fever returns in the evening.
6) Always call if you think your child is laboring to breathe (look at his naked chest and watch for pulling in between the ribs or using his tummy to breath), listless or lethargic even after Tylenol or Motrin, seems to have a stiff neck, or in general you feel uncomfortable with your child’s fever.
I myself only treat my kids’ fevers if they seem uncomfortable. If it is the middle of the night and they feel hot, I wait to see if they wake up. During the day, I see how crabby or inactive they seem. So the next time your child has a fever, don’t panic! But do watch them closely during their illness, and don’t hesitate to call with questions or concerns. I will post a blog on Tylenol/Motrin dosing and usage soon.
