by Mindy Calandro | Jun 11, 2017 | In The News, The Safety Files
As if the idea of drowning didn’t strike enough fear into the heart of every parent, recent news headlines and social media posts have brought a new term to the forefront…”dry drowning.” You might be thinking, “Well of course my kiddo has had a cough a time or two after their face inadvertently went into the water. Is this something to worry about?” Here is what parents need to know about so called “dry drowning.” What is “dry drowning”? To get scientific, there are actually two entities here: Dry drowning- This occurs when a small amount of water gets into the nose or mouth, and this water causes a sudden spasm of the airway where it shuts close. It is almost like the airway is “over protecting” itself from the water that isn’t supposed to be there. With dry drowning, there is no water in the lungs. In these cases, you will see symptoms almost immediately after the water gets into the airway (the airway will not spasm if the water isn’t there). Delayed or Secondary drowning- In delayed drowning, a child inhales a bit of water through their nose or mouth, and the water actually does make it down into their lungs. Once in the lungs, the water begins to cause significant irritation and inflammation (after all, water is not supposed to be in our lungs) which leads to something called pulmonary edema. This can occur anywhere from 1-24 hours after the initial inhaling of the water. You can see that while these two terms mean something different from a medical standpoint, the term “dry drowning” is often...
by Mindy Calandro | May 29, 2017 | Kid's Health
You may have heard that the American Academy of Pediatrics published new “recommendations” in regards to juice consumption in children. I put the word recommendations in quotes mainly because, as a pediatrician, I RARELY recommend or encourage a parent to give juice to their child (some types of juice can do wonders for short term issues with constipation). Now, I have nothing against the juice industry! However, I am all about helping parents understand ways to keep their kiddos healthy and growing, and in my mind, fruit juice does not have a place in the daily diet of children. But let’s get back to those new “recommendations” for just a second. Children under 1 year of age should not be given juice unless instructed to do so by your child’s pediatrician. For children 1-3 years of age, up to 4 oz of juice can be offered while 6oz can be offered to those 4-6 years of age. And finally, for children 7 and older, up to 8oz of juice per day can be offered. Let’s put those amounts in perspective…a regular Capri Sun pouch is 6oz. Your typical fruit juice box is 6-8oz, and those fruit juice bottles sold near the checkout counter at your local grocery store come in at almost 16oz. So you can see that none of these options are “appropriate” for the recommended juice amount for toddlers. Juices really do not add anything nutritionally for kiddos, especially if your child is eating fruits. Fruit juices do not give more vitamins than eating “real” fruits and in fact, the bottled version of your favorite fruit likely...
by Mindy Calandro | May 25, 2017 | Kid's Health
After reading my post from earlier this week, you know what to look for on the front of that bottle of sunscreen (click here in case you missed it). As you head out to the store to stock up on your broad spectrum, SPF 30, water resistant sunscreen before your weekend trip to the pool/beach/T-ball tournament, you happen to stumble across a headline on your Facebook news feed that reads something like “Sunscreens can be dangerous for your children.” Geeze! As a parent who is just trying to protect their child from those harmful UV rays from the sun, now you read a story proclaiming that the exact thing recommended to keep them safe, can in fact, cause them harm. What is a parent to do? Well, first let’s try to understand what these headlines are really about, and this time, we will go to the back of the sunscreen bottle. There are two main classes of ingredients used in sunscreens- mineral and chemical filters. Mineral based sunscreens contain either zinc oxide or titanium dioxide which provide a physical barrier on the skin to protect it from the sun’s rays…they literally make the UV rays bounce off the skin. These provide protection from both UV A and B rays. These are probably my favorite kind of sunscreens especially for sensitive skin kiddos since these are not absorbed into the skin. The downside to mineral based sunscreens?? They can be difficult to rub in leaving a lovely white film covering the skin (or hot pink or blue if you remember those zinc noses that lifeguards had in the 90’s). Here are a...
by Mindy Calandro | May 23, 2017 | Kid's Health
Swimsuit? Check! Goggles? Check! Sunscreen? Uhh…since the mostly empty bottle from last year that was caked in food crumbs in the bottom of my diaper bag probably wasn’t going to cut it, I headed to the local drug store to stock up. Now, I always like options when I am shopping, but my goodness! Have you seen the sunscreen aisle recently? Literally hundreds of products on store shelves. In my next two posts, I will discuss the finer points of picking out a sunscreen to keep everyone in your family from getting burned this summer. Let’s start at the beginning and understand what we are trying to protect ourselves from when we use sunscreen. Ultraviolet (UV) rays are part of the light spectrum that is emitted from the sun. Two types of UV rays, A and B, have long enough wavelengths to penetrate into the Earth’s atmosphere. UV A rays have the longest wavelength and can therefore penetrate the deepest into the skin. These rays are the ones responsible for skin aging and wrinkling related to sun damage (think UV A- Aging). UV A rays are present year round at about the same intensity throughout the day, and these rays can penetrate through clouds and even glass. UV B rays are responsible for the actual redness on the skin that is associated with sunburn (think UV B–Burn). The amount of UV B rays you are exposed to is dependent on the time of day, the time of the year, as well as your location on the Earth. Here in the US, we receive the most UV B rays from...
by Mindy Calandro | Mar 8, 2017 | Kid's Health
You know the feeling. The sign posted on the door of daycare announcing the current illness that is floating around. Oh the dreaded sign! “We want to inform you that cases of hand, foot and mouth disease have been diagnosed here at the center.” GREAT! There are likely two questions that are running through your head: 1) So what are we going to do when our child comes down with this latest illness? and 2) What exactly is Hand, Foot and Mouth disease? Well, that first question is one that I have struggled with many times in my own household, and unfortunately, I can’t help you answer, but that second question…I CAN help with that one! Hand, foot and mouth (HFM) disease is a very common viral illness in children, particularly those under 5 years of age. Older children, teens and even adults can get HFM, but it is much less common as most people have had HFM by that time and therefore have natural immunity to these viruses. This illness is typically seen in the late summer to fall, but especially here in Louisiana with our mild climate, I will see cases of HFM year round. The virus is spread through contact with droplets of someone who is infected, so it is spread by sneezing and coughing as well as the saliva that children “share” with each other on toys. It is not uncommon to see mini “epidemics” of HFM that spread through daycare centers or other child care facilities. The incubation period for HFM is 3-6 days, so I generally tell parents to be on the lookout...
