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Tuesday, December 29, 2009

Spa treatment lolls toddlers to sleep

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Get Healthy in 2010

Parents
For You
Tuesday December 29, 2009

Holidays ideal time for family history
Spa treatment lolls toddlers to sleep
CDC says the gift of health lasts all year
Get Healthy in 2010
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Holidays ideal time for family history

ATLANTA (UPI) -- Once presents have been opened and holiday is turkey eaten, U.S. health officials suggest putting together a family health history.

"Most people do not think that chronic diseases such as heart disease and type 2 diabetes affect children, but children with a strong family history of these diseases can show signs in childhood," officials at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say in a statement. "However, having a family history of a disease does not mean that your child will get that disease. Children with a family history of chronic diseases can benefit from developing good lifestyle habits, such as exercising and eating healthy, right away."

To collect a family health history:

-- Record the names of a child's close relatives from both sides of the family and include conditions each relative has or had and at what age the conditions were first diagnosed

-- Use the U.S. Surgeon General's online tool "My Family Health Portrait" at: https://familyhistory.hhs.gov/fhh-web/home.action

-- Update a child's family history information regularly and share new information with your child's doctor. Remember that relatives can be newly diagnosed with conditions between doctor's visits

-- The best way to learn about your family history is to ask questions. Talk at family gatherings and record your family's health information -- it could make a difference in your child's life

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Spa treatment lolls toddlers to sleep

LUBBOCK, Texas (UPI) -- A U.S. child development researcher says massage can help young children fall asleep.

Sybil Hart of Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas, offers 12 techniques to help young children to sleep at bedtime.

Hart says research has shown that massages can help ease pain and anxiety in children and improve their cognitive performance. However, she said, the trick is coaxing a restless toddler into sitting still long enough to receive a massage.

"How do you sit an active, rambunctious 2-year-old down and give them a massage?" Hart says in a statement. "Children are the people on Earth who need massages most and they often get them the least."

The program entitled "Lullaby Massage: Rhyme & Touch Massage for Infants and Children," combines rhyming lyrics -- which act as instructions for the parents and distractions for the children -- with motions mimicking activities such as painting or answering the phone to accomplish the massage.

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CDC says the gift of health lasts all year

ATLANTA (UPI) -- For those who resolve to take better care of themselves so they can enjoy many more holidays, U.S. health officials have several suggestions.

Officials at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say the gift of health and safety for yourself and others is a gift that lasts.

To finish the holiday season and start the new year right, the CDC recommends you:

-- Wash hands often.

-- Bundle up to stay dry and warm.

-- Manage stress. Don't over-commit yourself.

-- Don't drink and drive or let others drink and drive.

-- Avoid smoking and second-hand smoke.

-- Fasten seat belts while driving or riding in a motor vehicle.

-- Get medical exams and screenings.

-- Get vaccinations.

-- Keep potentially dangerous toys, food, drinks, household items and other objects out of children's reach.

-- Never leave fireplaces, space heaters, stoves or candles unattended.

-- Prepare food safely: wash hands and surfaces often, avoid cross-contamination, cook foods to proper temperatures and refrigerate promptly.

-- Eat plenty of fruits and vegetables, limit portion sizes of foods high in fat and sugar.

-- Be active for at least 2.5 hours a week and help kids and teens be active for at least 1 hour a day.

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