Ravina Sewani

Wool is a clothing material containing natural oil called lanolin, which is the cause of many children's wool allergies. Children who are allergic to lanolin will show allergic reactions to other products containing lanolin. Symptoms:<ul><li>Skin Irritation - rashes and hives</li><li>Eye irritation - redness, itching and puffiness of the eyes</li><li>Nasal Problems - runny nose, sneezing, nasal congestion</li><li>Narrowed airways</li><li>Trouble in breathing</li><li>Drop in blood pressure</li><li>Asthma</li><li>Ear and lung infections</li><li>Anaphylaxis (in more severe cases)</li></ul> Diagnosis:<ul><li>Wool allergies are sometimes misunderstood with wool sensitivity. To know whether your child is allergic to wool or just sensitive, you can try to make him/her wear a layer of clothing between their skin and the wool clothing. If your child does not experience any allergic symptoms, it's clear that your child is only sensitive towards wool. Your child can use wool products as long as they don’t come into contact with their skin.</li><li>Wool allergy is confirmed when your child develops an allergic reaction even if the wool didn't come in direct contact with your child’s skin. To confirm the allergy, you need to take your child to a doctor who will ask for your child’s medical and health history, your family’s medical history, and perform either a skin-prick or blood test.</li></ul> Wool Allergy Sources:<ul><li>Wool clothing - sweaters, scarves, bonnets, socks and gloves</li><li>Wool wax</li><li>Cosmetic products and personal products with lanolin</li></ul> Treatment:There's no permanent cure for wool allergy. Your child can, however, be given antihistamines and allergy shots to subdue the symptoms of the allergy. Guidelines to soothe your child’s skin after an allergic reaction:<ul><li>Keep the skin clean and moisturised with a gentle, fragrance-free lotion</li><li>Let the skin be exposed to air as much as possible</li><li>Avoid hot baths or showers, which may further irritate the skin</li><li>Try to stop scratching, which can make the rash worse</li><li>As a precautionary measure, avoid using woollen clothes or products containing lanolin for your baby.</li></ul>

Wool allergies are quite common but are often confused with wool sensitivity hence it is important to get a proper diagnosis done by an allergist.

Wool allergies

Palak Vyas

Dry eyes describe a condition when the eye is unable to produce tears properly or does not produce tears of a suitable consistency. Symptoms associated with dry eyes:<ul><li>Your child may experience stinging or burning sensation in the eye.</li><li>He or she feels something is caught in his/her eye.</li><li>They may have red or painful eyes.</li><li>There may be stringy discharge from the eyes.</li><li>They may experience blurred vision.</li><li>Their eyes may feel tired easily after watching TV or reading.</li></ul> Home remedies for dry eyes:<ul><li>Apply water compresses to the eye.</li><li>In cold weather, you can use a bedside humidifier at night.</li><li>Avoid taking your child in the breezy atmosphere.</li></ul> If the situation persists for more than a few days, consult a doctor.

Dry eyes can lead to constant itching and so it becomes all the more necessary to treat it at the right time.

Dealing with Dry eyes

A balanced diet for a young child means having variety of foods.&nbsp;From the age of two, a child should be moving towards a diet that is similar to the rest of the family.Follow below mentioned measures to increase weight of your underweight child in a healthy manner:<ul><li>Your child should have at least five portions of a variety of fruit and vegetables every day.</li><li>The meals should be based on potatoes, bread, rice, pasta or other starchy carbohydrates.</li><li>Some dairy or dairy alternatives (such as soy drinks and yogurts). Choose lower-fat and lower-sugar options.</li><li>Some beans and pulses, in case you prefer non-vegetarian food, fish, eggs, meat and other protein. Aim for two portions of fish every week – one of which should be oily, such as salmon or mackerel.</li><li>Plenty of fluids such as water, milk, fresh juice making up to – 6-8 cups/glasses a day. Energy-dense foods such as whole milk, yogurt, cheese and oily fish can also be given.</li><li>By the time your child is five, they should be eating a healthy low-fat diet. There are a few steps you can take to increase your child's calorie intake until they reach a healthy weight, while still providing a healthy diet.</li><li>Bulk up mashed potato by putting milk or cheese in it</li><li>Put grated cheese on beans on toast</li><li>Make milk puddings</li></ul> Try not to give more of:<ul><li>Sugary drinks and foods – It's not recommended to give your child high sugar drinks and foods. The longer and more often sugar touches your child's teeth, the more damage it causes. If your child does have sugary foods or drinks, it's best to give them at mealtimes to minimise damage to their teeth.</li><li>Saturated fats – These are unhealthy fats, such as those contained in burgers, sausages, pies, biscuits, cake and cheese. Try not to give these too often.</li><li>Whole grains – Wholegrain foods, such as wholemeal pasta, bread and brown rice, can be high in fibre and may fill up your child before they've taken in the calories and nutrients they need. After the age of two, you can gradually introduce more wholegrain foods.</li></ul> Note: It’s normal to worry that your child is not getting the food that he or she needs to grow. But kids are more than capable of knowing whether they are hungry or not. Unless your doctor tells you that your child isn’t getting the nutrients that he or she needs, you should not worry about the lack of food intake. As long as your child's weight is fine, (s)he is sleeping well and has normal bowel movements, there is no need to worry that whether your child is eating enough or not.

Underweight children require foods and diet that can provide them with enough nutrition and sufficient calories.

Underweight child

<ul><li>If the child gets sick again and again, the parent considers it as weak immunity but this is not true because every time a child falls sick, (s)he gets back to normal on their own so the immunity is fine. The immunity is weak when the child doesn’t heal and stays sick for long extended periods.</li><li>As a child grows, (s)he does not stay at one place or with just one person. This leads to a child getting exposed to outside environment and a lot of new people. Due to this, the chances of catching infections again and again are very high. And so the child falls sick frequently.</li><li>This does not mean that the immunity is less. In fact, the child should not be given medication again and again. The infection will be cured within a week as a child’s body learns to fight against outside germs. Fighting against germs will only make your child’s immunity stronger.</li><li>A child’s immunity completely develops by 5 to 7 years.</li></ul> To increase your child's immunity:<ul><li>Breastfeed your baby.</li><li>Encourage exercise:&nbsp;It enhances immune system through stress-reduction. Thus encouraging your kids to opt for age-appropriate exercise regularly, will&nbsp;make them physically fit and support their immunity. Regular moderate intensity exercise increases child’s immunity.</li><li>Give them nutritious diet: Deficiencies of Vitamins A, C, E, B6 and Folate, are also associated with reduced immunity. Micro-nutrients such as Zinc, Selenium, Iron and Copper are also important in developing a healthy immune system. Thus, a properly balanced diet with all required nutrients is extremely important, especially in the growing years when the immune system is still maturing.</li><li>Inculcate healthy sleep habits: Sleep is a restorative process that plays a critical role in the proper functioning of the immune system. It is important to develop and follow a healthy and optimum sleep pattern for your children.</li><li>Serve more fruits and vegetables.</li><li>Develop a good habit of washing hands: You should pay particular attention to their hygiene before and after each meal and after playing outside, handling pets, blowing their nose, using the bathroom, and arriving home from daycare. When you're out, carry disposable wipes with you for quick cleanups. To help kids get into the hand-washing habit at home, let them pick out their own brightly coloured hand towels and soap in fun shapes, colours, and scents.</li><li>Keep your babies away from second hand smoke: If you or your spouse smokes, quit. Cigarette smoke contains more than 4,000 toxins, most of which can irritate or kill cells in the body.</li></ul>

Your child getting sick again and again does not mean that (s)he has a weaker immunity.

Increasing child’s immunity

It is very for children to get acne between the age of 0-6 years. Generally it affects on the onset of puberty (puberty is the age where children reach sexual maturity).But it can occur at any age out of hormonal imbalance or sensitive skin. There is no natural remedy for pimples. Things you can follow to reduce pimples:<ul><li>Make your child drink enough water.</li><li>Wash his/her face a few times during the day with clean water.</li><li>Follow healthy lifestyle.</li><li>Reduce the intake of oily, fried, and spicy food.</li></ul>

It is rare that your child would get pimples or acne at this age. If it does happen, it is always advisable to consult your paediatrician.

Dealing with acne

Dr Ajab Primuswala

<ul><li>The first thing to keep in mind is that you need to identify at which level of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) your child is.</li><li>The second thing is whether it is has been diagnosed and whether you are working on it or not.</li><li>On certain level of ASD scale, media can positively help children with ASD in expressing their feelings, their thoughts and their uneasiness. There are specific apps and specific websites which can help ASD children in their development.</li><li>Children with ASD usually cannot make direct eye contact hence, a few expert recommended applications can help an ASD child with expressing their feelings better.</li><li>At the same time, it is important to keep an eye on which kind of media an ASD child is using. If the child is randomly using phones or TVs from which (s)he is not learning anything positive, such media use needs to be avoided.</li><li>The media which an ASD child consumes should lead to progressive development in their condition. The media should not suppress their already delayed development.</li><li>Consult with a child psychiatrist or child psychologist to know whether the ASD scale of your child needs media usage or not.</li><li>Age of the child also needs to be considered before letting them consume content from media.</li></ul>

Media can be helpful to some children with autism while it might suppress a child's growth as well. It is better to consult an expert (psychologist or psychiatrist) before exposing your child to media.

Media use and Autism Spectrum Disorder

Good dental health includes cleaning teeth regularly.<ul><li>For an infant, using a soft cotton cloth is a better option. Wrap the cloth around your finger and clean the teeth and mouth using your finger. Get started with a soft toothbrush when the child turns 2. Use only rice-sized fluoride toothpaste.</li><li>Brush your child’s teeth twice a day, in the morning and before going to bed. For the babies of 6-9 months offering water to drink between the feeding is considered to be a better choice to keep their mouth clean.</li><li>After the age of 3, start using pea-sized toothpaste to clean the teeth. This amount of fluoride toothpaste is considered safe for children and helps to prevent tooth decay.</li></ul> Brushing properly:<ul><li>Get a small, child-sized, soft-bristled toothbrush. Soak the brush in warm water for a few minutes before brushing to make the bristles softer.</li><li>Apply a rice sized paste on the brush and get started with proper brushing habit, gradually increase the amount of toothpaste.</li><li>Brush the teeth for 2 minutes; concentrate on space between the teeth and black portion on the tooth. This is an area where cavities often first develop.</li><li>Replace toothbrush after 3 to 4 months and never share it with others.</li></ul>&nbsp;If your child does not like to brush his/her teeth try this:<ol><li>Become a role model and start the practice in early years of childhood. If you want your child to develop good dental care routine start brushing your teeth in front of kids twice a day.</li><li>If toothpaste is the cause of concern, try to eliminate it for a few days. Let the child brush the teeth with a wet brush, this is just to develop the habit of brushing once they get used to it you can get started with a small amount of toothpaste.</li></ol> Never lose your patience, remember this will make things difficult for both you and your child. Narrate stories and try to make it a fun loving activity rather than a daily practice.

Brushing habits should start in early years of childhood.

When and How to get started with brushing?

If your baby cries for excessively for too long and cries frequently despite your best attempts to soothe or console, your child might be having Infantile colic (I.C). Infantile colic starts at about 3 weeks of age and self-resolve by 6 months. Do not feel guilty about not being able to soothe your child because more children than you would assume have infantile colic. Colic and crying are different. All babies cry but not all are colicky. When babies cry it is to grab your attention to matters like hunger, wet diapers, tummy troubles, teething, or an underlying illness. And this is not colic. Ideally a colicky infant cries for more than 3 hours a day, for more than 3 days a week, and for over 3 weeks. Babies with colic are healthy, gain weight normally, and do not have digestive complaints or other known ailments. Other symptoms of colic are flushed red face when the babies cry, fussiness with arching back, drawing knees to the stomach, or clenching fists. The exact reasons for colic are still a mystery. The digestive system of infants is immature and this can lead to colic. Your child’s doctor will diagnose colic based on the symptoms, intensity and duration of the crying episodes. Managing my colicky baby:<ul><li>Ensure that your baby is not hungry or cold. Make sure to change the diapers regularly.</li><li>Always hold your baby upright while feeding and burp your baby after feeding. This prevents swallowing of air.</li><li>Bathe your baby in warm water, while gently massaging your baby's stomach.</li><li>Identify the time your baby gets fussy determine if anything seems to trigger or relieve the crying baby. Talk about your diet with your doctor, the doctor may suggest to skip some gas-producing foods from your diet.</li><li>Try new positions with your baby, swaddle them tight or massage may help. Try to turn your baby on your lap, make them sleep on stomach, and gently massage on back.</li><li>You can also try some sounds, a car ride or take them out in a pram. Sometimes changing the surroundings and outdoors may do the magic.</li><li>Take turns with family members to handle a the baby when they fussy.</li><li>When the baby is crying cradle or rock your baby in your arms. The comfort of your arms might calm your baby!</li><li>Sometimes, your child’s doctor might prescribe colic drops for your baby’s relief. But mind well that colic drops should only be given to a child after a doctor’s prescription.</li></ul> Seek immediate medical help if your baby develops other complications like breathing problems, turns pale, refuses to feed and vomits green fluid, or has traces of blood while passing motion.

Crying and colic are not the same thing and so it is important to identify the difference and address it.

Crying & Colic Symptoms & Solutions

Experts are still learning about how to protect the body against coronavirus. There are far fewer cases of the virus reported in children. Most children catch the infection from someone they live with or from a family member. The virus seems to cause a milder infection in children than in adults or older people. Symptoms : Common symptoms: fever, tiredness, dry coughSome children may experience aches and pains, nasal congestion, runny nose, sore throat, diarrhoea, conjunctivitis, headache, rashes. IN severe cases, there is difficulty in breathing as well. On average it takes 5–6 days from when someone is infected with the virus for symptoms to show, however it can take up to 14 days. Seek medical attention if your child has a fever, a cough, and difficulty in breathing. PrecautionsBelow practices will help you and your child keep safe from Corona Virus:<ul><li>Avoid contact with people who are known patients of coronavirus.</li><li>Wash your and your baby's hands well with soap for at least 20 seconds. Wash them often.</li><li>Avoiding travel and crowded places.</li><li>Teach them not to touch their eyes, nose, and mouth, especially if they haven’t washed their hands.</li><li>Use a sanitiser.</li><li>Avoid close contact with anyone who has a fever or cough.</li><li>Cover your mouth when coughing or sneezing.</li><li>Clean and disinfect surfaces and objects that people touch a lot.</li></ul> FAQs: Can children get infected by coronavirus?Studies suggest that children are equally likely to get infected as adults. However, the severity is less in children. Difference between Coronavirus and Covid-19?Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses known to cause respiratory illnesses in animals and humans. Whereas, Covid-19 is the disease caused by a coronavirus. How does Covid-19 spread?People can catch this infection from someone who has it. It is primarily by the small droplets expelled from the nose or mouth when a person with Covid-19 sneezes, coughs or speaks. These droplets can stay on surfaces so when someone touches those infected surfaces, they might catch the infection. Is there a vaccine, drug, or treatment available?Some traditional medicines and home remedies might soothe the suffering from the infection but there is no specific vaccine, treatment, or drug available as of now. Difference between quarantine, isolation, and distancing?<ul><li>Quarantine means separating people who are not ill themselves but may have been exposed to Covid-19. Self-quarantine means separating yourself even if you are not ill but believe that you might have been exposed to the virus.</li><li>Isolation is separating the people who are ill with Covid-19 symptoms.</li><li>Physical distancing is to stay at a distance of at least 1 metre to avoid catching the virus. This needs to be followed by everyone regardless of whether someone has symptoms or not.</li></ul>

conjunctivitis health concerns

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