Just as it is unhealthy for you to smoke while you are pregnant it is also unhealthy to smoke while breastfeeding.  It isn’t something that we hear about all of the time, but some of the harms of this would be:

• increased chest problems
• increased allergies
• increased asthma
• increased respiratory disease
• increased risk that they are going to hook their child
• the child will be predetermined to be addicted to cigarettes and smoking

Another factor that needs to be considered are things like the patch, these things can actually put just as much nicotine into your baby’s system.

If you have quit smoking while you were pregnant, try to not to go back to it.  I know this is easier said than done, but why not give it a try?

If you feel like you just can’t quit, then when you smoke do it away try to stay outside while smoking, try to smoke as few cigarettes as possible, and wait until after you feed your baby to smoke.

I have done different things with Alex to get him to brush his teeth.  We started brushing before he even had teeth, just to get him used to the pattern and the feel.

Now I help him brush his teeth after meals (if we are home) but at least in the morning and before bed.   By help him I mean I do it for him enough to sing a song or two just to make sure they are getting cleaned.  After I do that, I let him brush them too, while I am brushing my own teeth.

I like this pattern because he is getting a since of independance, but they are still getting cleaned.  Also, he likes to sing songs and to brush our teeth together.

If you are having a hard time with your toddler wanting to brush their teeth try this out and see how it works for you.

I will start this by saying that you should ask your child’s doctor before giving your child ANY supplement. There is such a thing as too much of certain vitamins.

Giving children too much Vitamin A or Zinc could actually have negative affects, by damaging the immune system. Children should not be getting more than 100% a day.

Good vitamins for your child to have are Calcium and Fiber. A good way to judge this with Fiber is to take your child’s age then add 5 for the amount of Fiber your child should have in a day.

With Calcium your child, ages birth to 3 years should be getting about 500 mg (a cup and a half of milk). Ages 4 to 8 should be getting about 800 (2 and a half cups of milk). Ages 9 to 18 should be getting about 1,300 mg (4 and a half cups of milk).

Some things that are key in a daycare are the staff ratios.  Every state is different so I can’t tell you what they should be, but you can check your local Health Department to get that information.  Them check the day care to see if they have met that regulation.

Also, look to see if every age group has a different room.  Infants should not be sharing a room with toddlers, and so on.

Check the outdoor space too, and see how often your child will be going outside.  Ask to see what equipment your child will be using.  Ask if the toddler equipment is shared with the older kids.

If you still need to ease your mind you could ask what training the care providers have that will be watching your child.  Ask if they know CPR and First Aid, not everyone has done this, but there may be someone in the room that has.

There was an old saying that the baby’s shoes should be firm when learning to walk.  That is not the case, in fact the earlier the stage of walking the thinner, more flexible the shoe should be.

When you are at the store take out the shoe and bend it and see how flexible they are.  If it is hard for you to bend then you probable should leave it at the store.  Also try to stick to natural materials to allow your baby’s feet to breath.

When at all possible it is also a good idea to let your baby walk barefoot.  This helps make strong ankles  and builds the arches in the feet.

Bisphenol A is a synthetic hormone that could cause infertility, cancer and hormonal imbalances in kids.  This is a problem in baby bottles when they are heated, because it causes the Bisphenol A to leak out of the plastic. 

When this study was being done, all 19 polycarbonate bottles were found to leak the Bisphenol A.  95% of the bottles in the US and Canada contain Bisphenol A. 

Some of the ones tested were Avent, Disney/The First Years, Dr. Brown’s, Evenflo, Gerber and Playtex and they all released the synthectic hormone when heated.

There is an immediate moratorium put on Bisphenol A, since it is unnecessary.  I will keep you all posted in this event.

If you have a walker or a saucer try to limit the time to about 20 minutes a day. There are studies being done that are saying the too much time in these toys are causing back pain when the babies get older.

Babies are normally walking between 11 to 15 months, and if a baby isn’t yet walking by 18 months it may have something to do with the amount of time spent in their walker or saucer. When they are in the walkers or saucers they arch their back in a strange way and that posture can cause back pain in adults, and there it could cause long-term disability.

If you need to put your baby somewhere safe so that you can get things done or just take a break play pins work great.

Research has been done on what a great vitamin this is to take while you are pregnant.  There are new studies are showing that if you have been taking it one year prior to being pregnant it can reduce your chance of having a premature baby by 70%.  I encourage any woman at least 18 years of age to start taking Folic Acid to make sure that to get that full year in.

This is something that is mandatory at certain check ups, but you can go in and have it done any time. If they see a rise in the level they will ask to repeat the blood work with another sample of the blood. Really anything above a zero is not great, but they don’t worry too much about levels 0-9. From the research that I have done anything above a 44 is considered pretty dangerous. Anything for 20 to 40 will require some medicine treatment for a couple of weeks and then having the level checked again to make sure that the medicine has worked.

If you do see a rise in the level the biggest thing that you can do is to find the source. First go through all of your child’s toys, if it is not coming from them another option is to have your home checked by a professional for any lead in the paint or in the soil surrounding your home. Another cause could be lead in the water or in the piping under the house. A professional should be able to locate the cause.

Lead doesn’t have any dramatic outward affects, so you may not notice if your child has been exposed, so just make sure that you are getting your baby checked regularly.

The common symptoms that I have found for children are:  loss of sleep, decreased appetite, trouble learning, lowered I.Q., anemia, vomiting, diarrhea, constipation, stomach ache, and feeling tired.

This book titled Deceptively Delicious By Jessica Seinfeld is a great cook book because it teaches you how to cook foods that the children will enjoy without letting them know that they are eating healthy! She even takes it one step further by not just giving you the recipes but telling you what is in the different fruits and veggies and why they are good for us and our children. Then the author tells you how to stock your pantry and what cooking equipment to use! It really is a great cook book and with these ideas you will never have to ask twice your your child to eat their veggies!!