Grandchildren Need Work

by Adair Lara
May 18, 2009

Painting a room gives one grandmother a break from the playground grind.
Okay, I do take my grandkids to the playground, where I push them on the swings beside all the parents who push children with one hand while manipulating their Black Berrys with the other.

Fresh air exercise, all that I get it.

But I don’t like playgrounds. They’re made-up worlds with weird spongy stuff underfoot and too many things to duck under. And the slides nowadays are more like long polished downward oozes than slides, as the fun-spoilers have made sure no one goes too fast on them.

My thinking is this: Instead of my following the kids to Kid land, why don’t they follow me to Adult land? It’s a much more interesting place, and they’ll live in it eventually anyway, so why not take an excursion there now? My dad took me to building sites with him and to this day, I can pound a nail straight, not to mention I still love the heavenly smell of freshly cut two-by-fours.

So when I was asked to take the two grandkids for the day a couple of Mondays ago, I didn’t let the fact that I was painting an apartment that day stop me. (It was a day off from school – “teacher training.”)

Off we went in my Jetta, which was filled with drop cloths, paint rollers, the girls, and the dog, to the apartment I was getting ready to rent out after finally dislodging my ex-son-in-law from it by getting him to move in with my son.

The girls were dubious at first about the idea of a day spent “learning to paint.”

“I already paint at my school every single morning,” 3-year-old Maggie pointed out.

“Is it work like cleaning my room? Because I hate cleaning my room,” 5-year-old Ryan chimed in.

It took only five minutes at the small three-bedroom to change their minds. Maggie was dazzled by the idea of painting an entire wall. Ryan found a tiny paint roller her own size and plunged it into the tan paint the three of us had compromised on as a color for the bedroom. The girls used their best Dora the Explorer Spanish – they believe they’re fluent – to chat with and fire questions at Carlos and Joel, the men from El Salvador I hired to do some additional work on the apartment. “Dónde hola buenas dias!”

The girls that morning had elected to wear their red velvet Christmas dresses, a choice I always approve because velvet blocks the San Francisco wind so well. They scorned my offer of their dad’s T-shirts to keep the paint off, on the grounds that the shirts would cover up the pretty dresses.

What an educational day! Ryan learned about primer, and about wiping the brush on the edge of the paint can before aiming it at the wall. Maggie learned that it’s better to put your paint roller together before you dunk it in paint, and also that, when you’re finally persuaded to take off your red velvet Christmas dress, it’s best to take off your green plastic gloves dripping with Bronco Beige first. I learned that Bronco Beige will not come out of red velvet, and that a rag and Windex will get most of the paint out of a wall-to-wall carpet, but not off an antique armoire.

All in all, it was a great day, and I did not have to go to the park, play “store,” assemble tiny plastic corrals, or pretend ten times in a row to be getting a puppy who looked like Maggie out of the pound. (We keep a cardboard box in the closet for just that purpose.)

When the kids, the dog, and I returned home in the late afternoon, we were tired and happy, filled with the satisfaction of a job if not well done, then at least eagerly attempted. Mom got to work all day, where I imagine she Googled the best approaches for getting Bronco Beige out of little girls’ hair.

 Source: Grand Parents

 

 

Incredible Journey comes to an End

By Dante A. Ciampaglia
May 22, 2009

For seven days, the cargo bay of the space shuttle Atlantis was a kind of interstellar repair shop. Astronauts aboard the shuttle pulled the Hubble Space Telescope out of its orbit and brought it into the cargo bay for some much-needed repairs and upgrades.

They added new cameras. They replaced gyroscopes. They repaired equipment that stopped working years ago.

It was the fifth and final Hubble repair mission. The installation of all this new and refurbished equipment gave Hubble a new lease on life. Scientists expect Hubble will remain operational for at least five more years, thanks to the astronauts. Without them, Hubble would have stopped working much sooner.

After five spacewalks and more than 36 hours outside the shuttle, astronauts finished servicing Hubble.

On Tuesday, Atlantis astronaut Megan McArthur used the shuttle’s robotic arm to lift Hubble out of the cargo bay. The robot arm let go of Hubble, and Hubble floated back into its place, 350 miles above Earth.

“There are folks who thought we couldn’t do this,” lead flight director Tony Ceccacci said. “They told us ‘You’re too aggressive.’ I don’t want to say ‘We told you so,’ but we told you so.”

The astronauts worked on parts of Hubble that were never meant to be accessed in outer space. Thanks to special tools, they were able to work on delicate equipment in their big, bulky space suits, with little trouble.

There was one piece of Hubble that did pose a problem, though.

During one of their spacewalks, astronauts needed to access Hubble’s Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph camera. To reach it, they had to remove a handrail. But a bolt attaching the rail to the telescope wouldn’t come off.

They used every tool in their kit to remove the bolt. Nothing worked. Finally, they used good old-fashioned brute force, and ripped the handrail off.

The stuck handrail was frustrating for the astronauts. But in the end it was a small problem on an otherwise “incredible journey,” according to Atlantis commander Scott Altman.

“It’s amazing to look back at how hard things looked a couple of times-more difficult than I ever expected,” Altman said. “And then to overcome and wind up with everything done in the way that it was-we were very successful.”

With their mission over, the Atlantis crew is preparing for their return home. They were scheduled to return to Earth Friday. But bad weather in Florida forced NASA to postpone their return trip until Saturday.

Meanwhile, scientists on Earth are anxious to put the upgraded Hubble to use. The new equipment will allow researchers to look 13.2 billion light years into space. That’s farther than ever before.

“I truly believe this is a very important moment in human history, and I think it’s an important moment for science,” Hubble project scientist David Leckrone said. “Just using what Hubble’s already done as a starting point, it’s unimaginable that we won’t go dramatically further than that.”

All of the new equipment and cameras should be ready for use by late summer. Hubble should start sending data and images sometime in September.

Source: Scholastic News Online

White House Locks out Kindergarteners for Steelers!

By Anne Reynolds
May 22, 2009

Thursday was supposed to be the highlight of the year for more than 100 kindergarteners from Stafford County, Va. They got up early and took a chartered bus to the White House for a school field trip. But when they arrived, all the 5-year-olds got was a lesson in disappointment.

The buses from Conway Elementary arrived at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue a little later than planned, and they were locked out.

“We were going to the White House, but we couldn’t get in so I felt sad,” 5-year-old Cameron Stine said.

Parents say they were just 10 minutes late for their scheduled tour. School officials say White House staff said they needed to get ready for the president’s event with the Super Bowl champion Pittsburgh Steelers, so they couldn’t come in.

“I was angry cause they were disappointed,” parent and chaperone Paty Stine said.

The Steelers and the Obama administration used their time together to create 3,000 care packages for U.S. troops as part of a Wounded Warriors initiative.

A lot of preparing had gone into the trip. Conway Elementary teachers had been planning the trip for months, each child paid $20 for a seat on the chartered bus, and names were submitted to the White House for clearance.

Parents say they tried to make it on time, but their chartered buses hit heavy traffic that slowed them down substantially. They thought they were supposed to show up by 10:15, but they say they arrived at 10:25 instead, and couldn’t get in.

“The person who headed this White House trip up came out and said, ‘I’m sorry, the White House tour’s off.’ There were a lot of crying kids,” parent Barbara Stine said.

The White House tells a slightly different story. A spokesperson said the group was actually supposed to be there at 9:30, but they held the gates for the group until 10:30, 15 minutes longer than they told the group, but when they still hadn’t arrived, they had to draw the line.

Paty Stine said the White House staff should have made an exception. She feels the kindergarteners were snubbed for the Steelers.

“Here we have President Obama and his administration saying, ‘Here we are for the common, middle class people,’ and here he is not letting 150 5- and 6-year-olds into the White House because he’s throwing a lunch for a bunch of grown millionaires,” Stine said.

Thursday night the White House released this statement: “The President and First Lady are dedicated to opening the doors of the White House to the public, and it is unfortunate to see young people miss a tour. The visitor’s office is already working to reschedule the group.”

Parents say it’s probably too late. The school year ends in a few weeks and they doubt the tour can be made up in that time.

Source: NBC News

47 Million-year-old Fossil Public Debut

By Laura Leigh Davidson
May 21, 2009

 

Scientists unveiled a 47-million-year-old primate fossil at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City on Tuesday. Scientists say it is “the most complete primate fossil ever found.”

Dr. Jorn Hurum of the University of Oslo in Norway led the team of scientists who studied the small monkeylike female. Hurum nicknamed her “Ida,” after his own 6-year-old daughter.

Hurum’s team thinks she may be a distant ancestor of monkeys, apes, and humans. That means that studying Ida could tell scientists more about how modern human beings developed.

Ida was found in an area of Germany that is rich with ancient fossils, called the Messel Pit.

Ida is so well-preserved that impressions of her fur are still clear. Scientists also found evidence of food where her stomach would have been. The animal’s last meal was fruit and leaves.

Hurum’s team says Ida has many humanlike characteristics. She has opposable thumbs and fingernails instead of claws. X-rays show both baby and adult teeth. She had eyes that faced forward, which allowed her to see in three-dimensions and judge distance.

Scientists believe Ida was about 9 months old when she died.

Ida’s debut has sparked a lot of debate among scientists. They have different opinions about how closely linked she is to the prehuman animals that evolved after her.

One thing scientists do agree on is the quality of the fossil primate.

“There’s certainly a lot more information about this individual than probably any other fossil primate that’s ever been recovered,” said primate expert Dr. John Fleagle. (Fleagle is not a part of the research team that has been studying Ida.)

Hurum says there is much more to learn from the 47-million-year-old fossil.

“She tells so many stories,” Hurum told reporters on Tuesday. “We have just started the research on this fabulous specimen.”

Since her big debut on Tuesday, Ida has returned to her permanent home at the University of Oslo Natural History Museum in Norway. But a plaster version of the fossil has become a part of the “Extreme Mammals” exhibit at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City.

The History Channel will air a documentary about Ida called The Link, on Monday, May 25. You can learn more about Ida online at

Source: Scholastic News Online

 

Cold Case Heats Up Part One

By FBI/PIO
May 19, 2009

The innocent face of 8-year-old April Tinsley is projected from a large screen in front of the conference room as about 50 law enforcement officials-including a special team from the FBI-begin their meeting.

April’s picture was a powerful reminder of why the group had gathered: on Good Friday 21 years ago, the young girl was abducted from her neighborhood in Fort Wayne, Indiana and then raped and murdered. Her killer is still at large.

The meeting at the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children in Virginia took place because state and local Indiana law enforcement officers-who remain dedicated to solving the case-have asked for help from our Child Abduction Rapid Deployment Team, known as CARD.

CARD Teams were created three years ago to bring together a variety of experts in child abduction cases who could quickly respond on the ground to help local authorities with time-sensitive investigations.

Team members include:

a. Personnel from our Behavioral Analysis Unit, who profile offenders’ personality traits and possible motives;

b. Agents and analysts from our Crimes Against Children Unit;

c. Coordinators from the National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime

d. Representatives from the Violent Criminal Apprehension Program (VICAP).

CARD consists of 48 members organized into 10 teams in five regions around the country. Since the program’s creation, teams have deployed 38 times and aided in the recovery of 18 children.

As the name suggests, CARD Teams respond rapidly in cases of non-family abductions, ransom abductions, and the mysterious disappearances of children. But CARD also works cold cases, such as the April Tinsley murder. And as team members discovered, there is enough evidence-including notes, pictures, and DNA left by the killer years after the murder-to make investigators hopeful they can break the case.

It was a chilly Friday afternoon in 1988 when April was abducted walking home from a friend’s house. Her body was found three days later about 20 miles away in a rural area dotted with Amish farms.

Despite an intensive search, police were unable to find her killer. Two years later, a message written in pencil or crayon appeared on a barn door not far from where April’s body had been discovered. The writer claimed responsibility for the murder.

Then, in the spring of 2004, four notes appeared at various residences in the Fort Wayne area-several placed on bicycles that young girls had left in their yards-believed to be written by the killer. The notes, all on lined yellow paper, were placed inside baggies along with used condoms or Polaroid pictures of the killer’s body. Several of the notes referred to April Tinsley.

During the spring of 2004, the killer left four similar notes at residences in the Fort Wayne area.

Since those 2004 notes, the killer has not been heard from. But he has left a trail of evidence that the CARD Team hopes to exploit during its deployment to Fort Wayne, tentatively scheduled for later this spring. Investigators believe the case is “highly solvable,” and after 21 years, their desire to bring April Tinsley’s killer to justice is stronger than ever.

We need your help.

Contact your FBI

Meet Special Agent Bobby Bureau

By Special Agent Bobby Bureau
May 19, 2009

Editor’s Note: We are always looking for ways to inform parents of programs that will help them raise their children. Well we found one it is called “Special Agent Bobby Bureau”. We will be joining him to give you tips for kids of all ages. The best way to tell you about this agent is to let him tell you himself.

The Kids’ Page is designed for children and their parents to learn more about the FBI through age-appropriate games, tips, stories and inter actives. We also introduce you to our working dogs and show how FBI special agents and analysts investigate cases. First, can you help Special Agent Bobby Bureau get in disguise for his undercover assignment? He’s depending on you. You have to visit the sight to sign up as a special agent.

 

 

There are some very important things that you need to keep in mind when you’re on your computer at home or at school.

• First, remember never to give out personal information such as your name, home address, school name, or telephone number in a chat room or on bulletin boards. Also, never send a picture of yourself to someone you chat with on the computer without your parent’s permission.
• Never write to someone who has made you feel uncomfortable or scared.
• Do not meet someone or have them visit you without the permission of your parents.
• Tell your parents right away if you read anything on the Internet that makes you feel uncomfortable.
• Remember that people online may not be who they say they are. Someone who says that “she” is a “12-year-old girl” could really be an older man.

To read more about new privacy rules, visit the Federal Trade Commission’s Web site at FBI . There is a special section just for kids.

Patient of the Week – Noelle Parziale

By CDH/PIO
May 13, 2009

 

Noelle Parziale of Springboro is an active 7-year-old, who enjoys swimming, ballet and soccer. Noelle also has type 1 diabetes. Her mother Karen Parziale remembers the time three and a half years ago when she learned 3-year-old Noelle had diabetes.

Noelle had wet the bed two nights in a row, which was highly unusual, so I thought she had a urinary tract infection. I called her pediatrician and made an appointment,” she recalls. Her pediatrician took a urine sample and performed a blood test. He came back into the room and told Karen that Noelle’s blood sugar levels were so high they did not even register on the equipment in the office. He then told Karen she needed to take Noelle to Dayton Children’s emergency department right away.

“I was in total shock,” Karen recalls. “I’ll never forget the drive to Children’s. Noelle’s elder sister, who was then 7, was in the back seat crying. Our cat had died from diabetes a month earlier and she thought the same thing would happen to Noelle.”

Noelle was hospitalized at Dayton Children’s for about five days, with two of those days spent in the pediatric intensive care unit. She was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. During that time, the Parziales met with Maria Urban, MD, a pediatric endocrinologist at Dayton Children’s, as well as members of the care team, who educated them about diabetes, counting carbs, checking Noelle’s blood, giving insulin and nutrition and exercise.

The Parziales have been “thrilled” with the care they have received at Dayton Children’s. “Dr. Urban and her staff are so wonderful. They are always willing to answer all our questions. They encourage me to be proactive in Noelle’s care. Dr. Urban is always willing to listen to my observations about Noelle and work with me to determine what’s best for her.”

Cynthia Cohoon, RN, is the diabetes care coordinator at Dayton Children’s. “Type 1 diabetes is the most common form of diabetes diagnosed in children,” she says. Cohoon explains that type 2 diabetes, formerly known as adult-onset diabetes, is on the rise in children. This type of diabetes is most likely to occur when someone is overweight.

“No one knows for sure what causes type 1 diabetes,” Cohoon says.

According to the experts, genes play some role in diabetes, but it does not always run in families. For some unknown reason, the body sees its cells as foreign and starts making antibodies against those cells. In diabetes, these antibodies attack and destroy the insulin-making cells in the pancreas so they are not able to make insulin anymore. A virus or other environmental factors may cause this to happen, which means the body will need another source of insulin to get energy from food.

This other source of insulin most often takes the form of insulin shots. According to Karen, Noelle gets four to six shots every day: two in the morning, one after lunch and dinner, and others as needed. Checking her blood sugar level and giving shots as needed has affected the family’s lifestyle.

“We are very fortunate that there is a full-time school nurse at Incarnation Catholic School in Centerville, where Noelle just finished first grade,” Karen says. “She gives Noelle her shots as needed and calls me if we need to make a judgment call. That’s been wonderful.”

Karen explains that her family is more conscientious of nutrition. “Noelle is on a regimen, but the whole family eats a lot of whole grain breads, pasta, fresh fruits and vegetables. We avoid sugary, processed foods. We also need to think long term about Noelle’s health, since diabetes can lead to heart disease, stroke, and kidney, liver and eye damage.”

Karen makes it a point to keep Noelle “positive and empowered. There are so many new treatments on the horizon, I want to let her know there is hope for her and others like her.”

The Parziales’ attention to Noelle’s health has paid off: The active 7-year-old competes on a swim team and soccer team and takes ballet classes. She is a youth ambassador for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation International (JDRF) and will be attending a summer camp sponsored by the Dayton Area Diabetes Association.

At Dr. Urban’s invitation, Noelle recently spoke to a group of medical students at Wright State University Boonshoft School of Medicine about what it’s like to have diabetes. “She loved it,” Karen says. “Afterward she told me ‘Wow, I’m actually helping these people who are going to be doctors.'”

Source: Childrens Dayton

Soldier of the Week – Major John Clagnaz

By Dan Samaria
Publisher/YC
May 14, 2009

Major John Clagnaz, the son of European immigrants and a first generation American, is known for leading from the front. His decisive actions and leadership throughout his tour in Iraq resulted in his receipt of a Bronze Star.

On June 18, 2006, “he led a Combat Camera team on a patrol with the 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team in Mosul that resulted in the seizure of a substantial enemy weapons cache,” according to the narrative that accompanied his Bronze Star Medal.

He recalls a mission with Bravo Company, 2-6 Infantry in the suburbs of Ramadi on August 16, 2006, when the patrol came under intense sniper fire while dismounted and performing random vehicle searches.

“One U.S. Soldier was hit by enemy sniper fire in his back while returning to his vehicle,” said Clagnaz. A few feet away one of his videographers documented the scene with members of the patrol dragging the injured soldier out of the line of fire and treating him.  Once the Soldier was stabilized, he was moved to a Bradley Fighting Vehicle for medical evacuation. “Suddenly, the patrol came under heavy fire from the enemy position across an open field approximately 100-150 meters away,” Clagnaz described. “Members of the patrol returned fire.”

Now two men short – one soldier wounded and another administering first aid -his combat camera team stepped up to fill the vacancies as the convoy raced across the field to capture the enemy combatants firing at the patrol.

Not new to combat, Clagnaz led a total of 74 Soldiers, Sailors, and Airmen at 17 Forward Operating Bases across Iraq, accomplishing documentation of 923 coalition missions.

Clagnaz joined the U.S. Army right after high school.  He had his first combat tour during the invasion of Panama.  During his second combat tour in August 1990, immediately after Iraq invaded Kuwait, he deployed as an Apache helicopter turbine engine mechanic.

“My unit fired the ‘first shots’ of the Allied Offensive, destroying two Iraqi early warning/ ground control intercept radar sites,” explained Clagnaz. “This opened a radar-black corridor to Baghdad and marked the beginning of Operation Desert Storm.” He later returned to the States, received an Air Force ROTC scholarship and earned his commission in 1998.

Fast forwarding to his most recent deployment, Clagnaz downplayed his acts of heroism and noted that it was really his team who deserves the recognition. In the midst of fighting, they documented imagery of key events including the aftermath following the termination of Al-Qaeda terrorist leader Abu Musab al Zarqawi, the search and recovery of two kidnapped U.S. Soldiers, and the Regime Crimes Liaison Office’s Iraqi High Tribunal investigative hearings. This documentation and the installation of two satellite terminals improved imagery transmission by 75 percent and created a robust network architecture that expanded the military’s situational awareness in the region.

Source: Defense Link Military

Help with Hives

By Elana Pearl Ben-Joseph, MD
May 13, 2009

 

After eating some big, red strawberries, you decide to walk to your friend’s house. Just as you’re turning the corner, you notice reddish bumps and patches on your arms and chest. What are these itchy welts or blotches on your skin? Should you turn around and head home?

What Are Hives?

Hives are pink or red bumps or slightly raised patches of skin.  Sometimes, they have a pale center. Hives usually itch, but they also can burn or sting.

Hives can occur anywhere on the body and vary in size and shape. They can be small like a mosquito bite or big like a dinner plate. Hives also might look like rings or groups of rings joined together. Hives can appear in clusters and might change locations in a matter of hours. A bunch of hives might be on a person’s face, then those might go away. Later some more may appear on a person’s arms.

Hives are common – between 10% and 25% of people get them at least once in their lives. They are usually harmless, though they may occasionally be a sign of a serious allergic reaction. (So, yes, you should go home and tell your mom or dad.)

The medical term for hives is urticaria (say: ur-tuh-kar-ee-uh). When a person is exposed to something that can trigger hives, certain cells in the body release histamine (say: his-tuh-meen) and other substances. This causes fluid to leak from the small blood vessels under the skin. When this fluid collects under the skin, it forms the blotches, which we call hives.

Why Do I Get Hives?

People can get hives for lots of different reasons. Often, the cause is not known. One common reason for getting hives is an allergic reaction. Some common allergic triggers are certain foods (like milk, shellfish, berries, and nuts), medications (such as antibiotics), and insect stings or bites. Other causes of hives are not related to allergies and these can include:

• exposure to the cold (like diving into a cold pool)
• exercise
• sun exposure
• nervousness or stress
• infections caused by viruses

No matter what the cause, a case of hives can last for a few minutes, a few hours, or even days.

What Will the Doctor Do?

Doctors usually can diagnose hives just by looking at you and hearing your story about what happened. The doctor can try to help figure out what might be causing your hives, although often the cause will remain a mystery. If you’re getting hives a lot, or your reaction was serious, your doctor might send you to another doctor who specializes in allergies.

Sometimes, doctors will suggest you take a type of medication called an antihistamine to relieve the itchiness. In many cases, hives clear up on their own without any medication or doctor visits.

Less often, hives can be a sign of a more serious allergic reaction that can affect breathing and other body functions. In these cases, the person needs immediate medical care. Some people who know they have serious allergies carry a special medicine to use in an emergency. This medicine, called epinephrine, is given by a shot. Ordinarily, a nurse gives you a shot, but because some allergic reactions can happen really fast, many adults and kids carry this emergency shot with them and know how to use it, just in case they ever need it in a hurry.

Can I Prevent Hives?

Yes and no. The answer is “yes” if you know what causes your hives – the strawberries at the start of this article, for example. If you know they cause you trouble, you can just avoid them. If you get hives when you’re nervous, relaxation breathing exercises may help. But if you don’t know why you get hives, it’s tough to prevent them.

Some kids get hives when they have a virus, such as a bad cold or a stomach flu. Other than washing your hands regularly, there’s not much you can do to avoid getting sick occasionally. The good news is that hives usually aren’t serious and you might even grow out of them. Who wouldn’t want to give hives the heave-ho?

Source: Kids Health

What every family can do: The 5-2-1-0 rule

By COF/PIO
May 11, 2009
Every child and every adult has a healthy body shape that is just right for them. However in today’s world it is easy for us all to gain excessive, and unhealthy, weight. Weight gain occurs when energy intake (food and drink) is more than energy burned off (physical activity). The best thing you can do to help your child achieve the healthy body that is just right for them is by creating healthy habits for the entire family.

5 or more servings of fruit and vegetables per day

Fruits and vegetables contain many nutrients that a child’s body needs and they should be taking the place of high calorie food from a child’s daily food menu. According to a 2004 Canadian Community Health Survey, children who eat five or more servings of fruit and vegetables a day are significantly less likely to develop overweight and obesity than children who eat less than 3 servings per day. Additional evidence supports the linkage between high fruit and vegetable consumption and decreased cancers, diabetes and heart disease rates. Ensure your child eats fruit and vegetables at every meal and as a snack. Dinners can begin with a salad, a clear vegetable broth soup or raw vegetables in order to fill everyone up before the main course.

2 hours of screen time or less per day

The latest Canadian Community Health Survey data indicates that children who watch more than 2 hours of screen time (TV, computer, video games) per day have double the incidence of overweight and obesity when compared to children who watch less than 1 hour per day.

• Limit screen time to 2 hours or less per day and keep children physically active. We recommend the use of a timer to avoid quarrels as to how much time has elapsed.
• Children should not be allowed to watch TV before 2 years of age and there should be no TV in the children’s bedroom, no matter what the child’s age.

1 hour or more of physical activity per day

There is significant improvement in both physical and mental health when children and teenagers obtain their required 60 minutes of physical activity per day. But more than half of 5-17 year olds are not reaching activity levels sufficient for optimal growth and development. Encourage your child to be active! According to Canada’s Physical Activity Guide, children should engage in:

• 30 minutes a day of vigorous physical activity such as running and playing soccer
• 60 minutes a day of moderate physical activity such as playing outdoors or biking

Ideas to help your child become more active from the BC Medical Association:

• ensure activities are fun for your child
• provide space and time for physical activities
• be active as a family: consider skating, hiking, biking, swimming, trips to the zoo or park, roller skating, miniature golf or anything else that can be enjoyed by the entire family
• involve children in household activities such as car washing, dog walking, lawn mowing or other active household chores
• walk to school, the bus or shops when appropriate – organized sports aren’t necessary to achieve one or more hours of physical activity per day

Remember, parents and adult family members are role models. Kids will learn from your activity levels.

0 sugar sweetened beverages per day

We know that one of the major contributors to the childhood obesity epidemic is the over consumption of sugar sweetened beverages (SSB’s). Examples of SSB’s are soft drinks (pop), fruit “beverages” , “punches” or “cocktails” (bought or homemade), flavoured milk, sports drinks and flavoured coffees. These beverages are liquid candy and should rarely be served. 100% pure fruit juice does not contain added sugar but may well contribute to excess weight gain and portions should be limited.

Provide your child with plain milk and water to drink. Fruit juice should be limited to one small glass (125 mL) per day. Fruit juice contains the sugar of fruit but at higher amounts than in fresh fruit since it takes many fruits to make one glass of juice. Give your child fresh fruit instead of juice. Pack water or milk in your child’s school lunch instead of a juice box.

Most people will eat the same amount of food at a meal whether they drink water or an SSB. All those extra calories are saved as fat. Children who drink one can of pop per day increase their risk of childhood obesity by 60%. Studies show that 30-50% of Canadian teenagers drink at least one can of pop per day. A 13 year old boy needs to jog 50 minutes per day to burn off the 260 calories contained in each 20oz (590ml) bottle of pop.

Aside from weight gain, a child who drinks too many SSB’s may also have tooth decay and loose bowels or diarrhea due to problems digesting the sugars in the drinks.

What else can a family do to prevent childhood obesity?

Become knowledgeable and take time

Learn about healthy eating and active living and take the time to help your child achieve and maintain a healthy body weight. No parent can follow all of these tips every day. Do what you can do when you are able.

Eat breakfast together

Studies show that students who eat breakfast have increased test scores, improved attendance, reduced tardiness, and better academic, behavioural and emotional functioning.

Eat most meals at home and eat as many meals as possible together

Studies show that the more meals a family eats meals together, the more likely the children are to eat fruit, vegetables, grains and calcium-rich food and beverages. They are also more likely to feel connected to their family. They do better in school and are half as likely to run into problems with substance abuse as teenagers.

Portion sizes should be age appropriate

Avoid ordering super-sized foods and serve appropriate sized portions at mealtimes.

Lead by example

Children will do what you do, not what you say. Model healthy lifestyle choices such as exercising regularly and eating healthy food. Children with overweight parents are less active, and are more likely to prefer sedentary activities. Studies show that older children are twice as likely to be active if their mothers are active and are almost six times more likely to be active if both parents are active.

Be authoritative

Set the standards for meals, snacks and physical activity and do not hesitate to limit access to screen time and sugar sweetened beveragesEncourage children to drink more water. Keep healthy snacks where children can easily find them.

Do not set your child up for failure

Don’t stock the kitchen with sugar sweetened beverages and high caloric snack food – clear the house of junk food and junk drinks.

Start early

Strive for a healthy pregnancy and avoid excess or insufficient weight gain. Both overweight and underweight infants are at risk for obesity problems later in life.

Breastfeed

This is modestly protective against the development of overweight or obesity.

A note about diets:

Placing a normal or overweight child on a diet is known to harm a child’s health. It can affect their normal growth and development, and damage their delicate self-esteem. Focusing on a child’s weight can stigmatize a child and may cause further over-eating. Focus on the child, not their weight. Regardless of your child’s weight or shape, help them to love and respect themselves by praising their skills and strengths.

Family involvement in healthy lifestyle change provides an overweight child with emotional support, and benefits the health of each family member.

• Talk to your children and support them regardless of their size or shape
• Discourage negative talk about body weight

Source: Childhood Obesity Foundation

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