It is probably correct that no matter which winter season festival is your family’s tradition, toys are a major part. Toys are an important part of a child’s development. It helps with eye-hand coordination, with learning basic words for shapes and colors, to develop imaginations and storytelling, and to learn social skills of sharing and cooperation.

Air pollution is a worldwide problem with worldwide involvement. It is important to strongly encourage and support policies that reduce emissions and improve air quality for all children and families from all backgrounds.

Sensory processing disorders are not recognized as a medical diagnosis and sometimes it is hard to get insurance to pay for therapy. Ask your health care provider for help with associated diagnoses.

What many faith practices have in common is a celebration of beliefs that center on family, togetherness, understanding and acceptance. What they also have in common is stress that comes with changes in routine and extra demands on time. Every family member, regardless of faith, wants this time to be special and something to be remembered. Enjoy the holiday by having time to be with your family.

Teach your child how to handle conflicts safely and peacefully. No one is prefect but we can all improve with kindness.

The treatment is that is best is lifestyle change: cutting back on processed sugars and fats and increasing daily exercise. If fatty liver is not treated it can lead to scarring and eventually to liver failure. It is the most common cause of liver transplants in adults.

All reading is good reading. Let children know that reading is great no matter what they are interested in. It can be fiction, biographies, children’s magazines, comic books or even a cookbook. Having books within reach makes it more likely that they will pick up one and read. Reading is fundamental for success. Shared reading is great experience not only reading but for building family relationships.

Dyslexia is NOT one size fits all. Having dyslexia does not reflect a person’s intelligence. As many as 1 in 5 children in the US have dyslexia and it does run in families. It is a disorder in the complicated neural circuits necessary for reading. Due to the complexity of reading it is not possible to diagnose dyslexia with a single test. Reading specialists will have to test each child to find out what the specific needs are and determine the best way to help them.

We live in troubled times! Today’s teenagers are having an especially hard time with an increased incidence of mental illness seemingly linked to the pandemic and to social media

The pathways for language and cognition are not as efficient and established so the work of reading is harder. It is harder for child readers not previously exposed to the squiggly lines and their sounds (phonics) as they have not been able to use the neural pathways needed.

September was Childhood Cancer Awareness Month

September was Childhood Cancer Awareness Month

September was Childhood Cancer Awareness Month

The growth of AI has been so rapid that U.S. legislation has not been able to keep up protecting children.

We can all reach out and offer support to parents and caregivers on a regular basis. There are lifeline resources such as the suicide and crisis lifeline (988). There is a Parent Support Network (mhanational.org/mental-health-resources-parents) that provide free local and online support meetings for any parent or guardian.

Let your doctor know if you or your family have been exposed to flea dirt and have the above symptoms and are not responding to the usual treatments.

Most of all it is important that parents take care of themselves and talk to their doctors when stressed.

Water is the most vital of human’s macronutrients. Without water we die and quickly.

When should a parent or caregiver be worried about drooling? If an ill child with a sore throat has excessive drooling and difficulty breathing call 911 immediately as it may be a life-threatening emergency called epiglottis. Thanks to vaccines this is less common today.