Healthy Children

Among all the things canceled this year, school and other sports have all but been canceled. Some are missing out on whole seasons of training and competition.

Dr. Christopher Snyder is a pediatric cardiologist at UH Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital in Cleveland, and he is on the show today to talk about staying healthy and getting movement in during lockdown, the importance of school sports both physically and socially, and how to ease back into exercise if you did get COVID-19. 

A lot of parents, including our host Melanie, are wondering about well visits for our children. Is it worth it to head to the doctor's office during COVID-19?

To help us navigate doctors' visits and staying up to date on vaccinations during this crazy time is Dr. Candice Jones, a pediatrician, and spokesperson for the AAP.

She talks about safety precautions doctors' offices are taking to stay clean, the importance of immunizations, and the myths about vaccines and autism. 

You can also listen to Dr. Candice's own podcast KIDing Around with Dr. Candice.

Today we are discussing postpartum and maternal depression, a difficult but important topic to discuss and watch out for in new moms.

Dr. Marian Earls has extensive experience in this field. She is a developmental and behavioral pediatrician, is the medical director of Guilford Child Health (GCH), Inc., a large, non-profit, private pediatric practice in her home state of North Carolina that serves families at or below 200 percent of the federal poverty level.

She tells us about her work in early childhood development and mothering, how common these issues are, the difference between postpartum and baby blues, and looking for red flags in the mothers in our lives. 

We are all going through an unprecedented time and our stress levels are extremely high. For our kids, however, this can be magnified as they may be feeling the strains of social isolation and intense worry.

Joining to help us to understand COVID 19 and kids is Dr. Margaret Stager is the Director of the Division of Adolescent Medicine at MetroHealth Medical Center and a spokesperson for the AAP.

How do we go about leveling expectations? Can my kid have one or 2 friends over outside? Can they use the bathroom inside? Can they safely hang out with friends that have also been "good?" We go over all this and more. 

We've had months to learn it, but virtual learning just doesn't seem to get any easier - for parents of the kids! We're all homeschoolers at this point, and it's driving some of us a little mad.

Dr. Arthur Lavin has been in pediatric practice for more than 25 years. He has served on several national committees of the AAP, as president of the Northern Ohio Pediatrics Society, and continues his work in Cleveland, Ohio. 

He is back on the show to talk about maintaining those old school day routines, knowing your child's learning styles, getting good sleep and the mental health effects of not going to in-person school.

One of the hardest parts of this pandemic is not being able to see or hug our older loved ones. Whether it's parents or grandparents, we have to be extra careful to not get these people in our lives sick, and staying away is really the easiest way to do that, even when it hurts.

Dr. Arthur Lavin has been in pediatric practice for more than 25 years. He has served on several national committees of the AAP, as president of the Northern Ohio Pediatrics Society, and continues his work in Cleveland, Ohio. 

He is on the show today to help us maintain relationships with our grandparents and older relatives during this ongoing pandemic.

He and Melanie talk about the best ways to stay in touch without visiting in person (including the old fashion phone call) and cultivating some optimism