We feel a little dizzy saying it, but back-to-school health prep starts now! Investing in your child’s (and your own) health starts with the foundations. Here are 5 simple, sustainable steps that can go a long way in setting a strong foundation for a happy, healthy & resilient season. Get Your ZZZ’s, Please Summer sunsets and late nights ‘round the campfire aside, getting a good night’s rest is essential to having happy moods and ready-to-learn days. Sleep deprivation is associated with numerous disorders including immune dysfunction (increased risk of infection) and depression. One simple way to spot-check whether your child is getting the sleep they need is if they wake without the help of parent or alarm clock with … Read More
“What’s That Rash?” Clearing Up Common Skin Questions in Kids
As naturopathic doctors working with kids, we get a lot of questions from parents about a new or ongoing rash they’ve seen cropping up on their baby or child’s skin. Rashes or other skin issue are a good reason to check in: the skin is the largest organ of the body, tends to be extra sensitive in little ones, and conveys a lot of information about his or her overall health status. Below The Surface You might be surprised to learn that most skin conditions aren’t “just” skin conditions. The skin happens to be one way that symptoms express themselves that we can easily see and observe. It’s also why we include a skin health exam with your baby or … Read More
Immune-Boosting Elderberry Gummies for Kids
We’re always on the lookout for easy ways to help you help your family prevent illness, and move through them faster if you do get sick. Elderberry is one of our favourite family herbs. Keep some dried berries or a commercially available syrup in your natural medicine cabinet at home so you can reach for it when a cold or flu hits the household. Elderberry has a long history of use in Europe for treating coughs, colds and fevers. It’s the perfect herb for flu season. Elderberry tastes nice, so it’s easy to get into kids as a syrup or warm or iced herbal tea, frozen pops or integrated into smoothies. It helps fight viral infections Gelatin is one of … Read More
Could Your Child Have PANDAS?
PANDAS – “pediatric autoimmune neuropsychiatric disorders after Strep” – is a category of nervous system conditions that children can develop after an infection, such as strep throat. Parents of children with PANDAS tell me their child’s anxiety, tics or OCD symptoms came on suddenly – “out of the blue”. When we ask a few more questions, they often recall a memorable illness their child had – such as a fever, sore throat, vomiting or diarrhea – within a few weeks of the onset of their child’s new, neurological symptoms. PANDAS was first defined in 1998 by Susan Swedo et al. (You’ll find the reference to the published medical journal article here). As an autoimmune condition, PANDAS symptoms may get worse … Read More
“Natural First Aid”: Homeopathic Medicine & Your Child
As your naturopathic doctor, one way I help is to empower you to create the conditions for health in your home and life. This includes giving you tools to help you and your kids recover from and prevent common family health concerns like colds and flus, bumps and bruises, stings and strains, tummy aches, headaches and more. More often than not, minor conditions and symptoms respond to safe and gentle self-care methods and natural remedies you can keep in your kitchen and medicine cabinet. It’s a passion of mine to help make sure all of the families we serve are equipped to do this successfully. My first experiences with “natural first aid” were as a child. By the time I began my formal medical … Read More
Can Hallowe’en Be Fun AND Healthy?
Boo! This time of year, parents of kids with foods sensitivities have more to be frightened of than the ghouls and goblins haunting their neighbourhoods. I got a scare myself when I heard on a CBC news report that our American neighbours spend over $4 billion on Hallowe’en candy every year – that’s more than they spend on costumes and decorations! That’s the annual GDP of Prince Edward Island (our country’s smallest province, but still – all the money generated by an entire province in a year!) Considering that candy is dirt-cheap, that’s one creepy, very expensive mountain of high-fructose corn syrup and plastic packaging. We can’t be too proud up here in Canada as we celebrate Hallowe’en in exactly the … Read More
How to Be Healthy All Year…
…Starting With the Kids! At Two Rivers Health we love to take care of families through the entire lifespan: preconception planning, pregnancy and birth right through to graceful ageing and vibrant elders! We find there’s no better time to work on kids’ health than September. At the start of every school year we receive tons of questions from concerned parents about how to strengthen their kids’ immune systems and get a edge up on cold and flu season…So they don’t have to repeat the cold and flu season they had last year. From sore throats to asthma to fevers or even pneumonia, parents know that when kids aren’t well the entire household is affected. Meanwhile, when kids are well: game-changer! Recognizing the huge … Read More