Healthy Children

In a previous episode on sex and dating, we didn't focus as much as we could have on the boy's side of the conversation. How do we teach our sons and other young boys in our life how to respect women when it comes to dating? Well, we brought Dr. Gary Kirikilas back on to talk about just that.  

He is a pediatrician in Phoenix, Arizona with a unique mobile practice, as well as a spokesperson for the AAP.

So in this follow-up show, Dr. Kirkilas covers consent, the public conversation that has grown around the topic in recent years, condoms, starting the conversation with our boys, and navigating sex, alcohol, and drugs. 

This week is Poison Prevention Week (March 21 - 27 2021) so we're talking about keeping chemicals away from our kids. It's so scary and really so easy for kids to get into things like laundry pods, drugs and alcohol, and other household goods. 

Dr. Kevin Osterhoudt is an attending physician in the Division of Emergency Medicine and the medical director of the Poison Control Center at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP).

He talks about the importance of safety locks, keeping adult beverages and items up and away from kids, small batteries, and other things you might not have thought of. 

The National Poison Control Hotline is (800) 222-1222

Our kid's schedules are all over the place these days, that also includes their eating schedules. Some kids are stressed and not eating at all, while others are bored and home all day eating more and more. So how can we tell when a problem is budding, and how can we get our kids back to eating healthy?

Dr. Anisha Abraham, MD, MPH is a frequent guest on Healthy Children, she is a board-certified pediatrician and adolescent health specialist with 25 years of global experience.  Anisha treats and counsels young people with a variety of issues including social media use, drug use, and stress.  

She tells us about all of the different terms associated with eating disorders, signs to keep an eye out for that may be red flags, and cultivating a healthy and happy self-image. 

As sexuality and gender continue to expand and be more fluid, it can be hard to catch up as a parent with what our kids identify as.

Here to help us break down all of these terms and identities is Dr. Naveen Mehrotra, he is a board-certified pediatrician with a special interest in child development and early Intervention. He utilizes his interest in complementary and alternative medicine to bring an integrated approach to improving a child's health. 

He talks about what he sees in his own practice when it comes to sexuality and sex, pronouns, and making sure they are supported and understood in their journey.

Even with the pandemic going on, it's still important to catch up with well visits and routine vaccines in person.

Dr. Anisha Abraham, MD, MPH is a board-certified pediatrician and adolescent health specialist with 25 years of global experience.  Anisha treats and counsels young people with a variety of issues including social media use, drug use, and stress.  

Anisha's clinical and research work combined with her experience with cultures and transition is the basis for her passion and interest in making the lives of global teens better.

Today she talks with Melanie about the #CallYoupediatrician campaign, why these visits can't be done over zoom, why vaccines are important in general, and a bit about the COVID vaccine. 

The last few years have been difficult, and for a while, it felt like every day we were presented with a new and unfathomable piece of news. And social media keeps us more engaged than ever, almost too much.

Dr. Donald Shifrin is a Clinical Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Washington School of Medicine, and on the show today he'll break down kids accessibility to news and media these days, dealing with news from uncredible sources, creating hope for your family, and using this onslaught of news as teachable moments.

Resiliency is so important to build in our children, but it's especially important during these winter COVID months when we're stuck indoors because of the cold and the pandemic.

Dr. Anisha Abraham, MD, MPH is a board-certified pediatrician and adolescent health specialist with 25 years of global experience.  Anisha treats and counsels young people with a variety of issues including social media use, drug use, and stress.  

Anisha's clinical and research work combined with her experience with cultures and transition is the basis for her passion and interest in making the lives of global teens better.

She joins Melanie on the show again this week to talk about having resiliency and bounce, "R.E.S.P.E.C.T," self-care for kids, and maintaining routines during this extra difficult time of year. 

Today we are diving into a new and interesting topic here on the show: cross-cultural kids.

Dr. Anisha Abraham, MD, MPH is a board-certified pediatrician and adolescent health specialist with 25 years of global experience.  Anisha treats and counsels young people with a variety of issues including social media use, drug use, and stress.  As a recognized educator, Anisha provides training on adolescent health and wellness to faculty, teens, and parents.  

Anisha's clinical and research work combined with her experience with cultures and transition is the basis for her passion and interest in making the lives of global teens better.

She talks with Melanie about what a cross-cultural kid is, the challenges that parents face, and how we can teach our children who may have grown up in one place to be global citizens.

Drug abuse has been an issue that really all generations have had to deal with. And Gen Z is no different.

But what should we tell out reens about using drugs, and what should we mention about our own history with drugs?

Dr. Gary Kirkilas is back to help us discuss drugs with our teens and young adults. He is a pediatrician in Phoenix, Arizona with a unique mobile practice, as well as a spokesperson for the AAP.

He'll tell us all about what age to start talking about drugs, how to approach these conversations, and what the future of legalization means for teenage drug use.

Approaching the dating & sex talk with our kids is difficult. What age is appropriate, what words to use, and what do they actually know already from being online?! Well, Dr. Gary Kirkilas is here to help us out. He is a pediatrician in Phoenix, Arizona with a unique mobile practice, as well as a spokesperson for the AAP.

He'll tell us how to talk about pregnancy, babies, good & bad touch, terminology, and more, to help you get the conversations going within your own families.