Healthy Children

Between the seasonal flu, COVID-19, and the rising number of kids with RSV, it's time to talk about this triple-demic.

Today we'll talk about the slight differences between these 3 big illnesses hitting us this winter, what kind of symptoms to look for, and what to expect for the rest of the year's flu season. 

Our guest for this conversation is Dr. Upma Suneja. Dr. Suneja is a Board-certified Pediatric Physician currently working as a part-time General Pediatrician at USF, Tampa. She graduated from Government Medical College in India after which she moved to the United States to pursue her Residency training in Pediatrics at Lincoln Hospital affiliated with Weill Cornell Medical College, New York.

Watching your child play sports is exciting. You can support your child as an organized sports participant both emotionally and physically.

Benefits of Organized Sports

Listen to this encore episode from September 2019 as Dr. Kelsey Logan joins Melanie Cole, MS, to discuss how all children can participate and benefit from organized sports.

Today's children grow up immersed in digital media, which can have both positive and negative effects on healthy development. And it can be difficult to know when your child should have a phone of their own. 

Well, to help you out, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and AT&T have teamed up to launch a new, free PhoneReady Questionnaire and a free, enhanced Family Media Plan tool to help parents and caregivers create healthy digital habits for their families.

Dr. Suzy Tomopoulos is an Associate Professor in the Department of Pediatrics at the NYU Grossman School of Medicine and a member of the AAP Council on Communications and Media. She joins host Melanie Cole today to discuss cell phone use in children, monitoring what they use their devices for, and deciding the right time for your child to get a phone.

You've probably heard the term jaundice before, and that it makes yellow babies, but you may not really understand what it is.

New guidelines released recently say jaundice is not something that we consider to be pathologic, but more physiologic, and it's actually quite common in newborn babies.

In this episode, we cover just what jaundice is and how our doctors treat it with Dr. Joanna Parga-Belinkie. She is an assistant professor of clinical pediatrics at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania.

Let’s face it, your child learning to drive can be very stressful for you as a parent. You want them to gain independence while still keeping them safe.

The most important investment you can make in terms of the safety of your driving teen is giving them a structured experience behind the wheel. The biggest single risk factor for teens is their lack of driving experience. Introduce them to safe but stressful situations while you’re in the car, like interstate driving and country roads. Be clear about driving restrictions for the first few months your child has a license.

Before that learner’s permit is in your child’s hand, you can be a good role model as a driver and avoid distractions.

Consider implementing the Parent-Teen Driver Contract provided by the AAP.

Listen as Dr. Brian Johnston joins Melanie Cole, MS, in this encore episode from July 2019 to discuss safe driving for teens.

Transgender, Gender Diverse, Non-Binary, Cisgender. There are a lot of words to describe sexual identity and presentation. And it can be difficult, especially if your child is figuring out who they are, and this may be new to you.

So we've brought in Dr. Ilana Sherer to break down some of these terms and answer some common questions on gender and more in this encore episode from March 2022.

Dr. Ilana Sherer has a general pediatrics practice in Dublin, California at the Palo Alto Medical Foundation/Sutter Health with a specialty in caring for gender-nonconforming and transgender youth. She is also a member of the AAP Section on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Health and Wellness.

If you're a parent, you know that it can be incredibly frustrating and even scary at times when your kids are constipated. It's really common and it's something that so many parents go through, but we're gonna learn about it today and get all the information that you need so that you have informed decisions and you know what's really going on with your children.

Joining us to discuss constipation in children is Dr. Patrick Reeves. He's an officer in the United States Army Medical Core with a clinical specialization in pediatric gastroenterology, hepatology, and nutrition. He's an assistant professor of pediatrics adjunct to the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences.

He chats with Melanie about what causes constipation, how dangerous it could be, and some supplements and tips for frustrated parents.

Now that our kids are back to in-person schooling, some of them don't always wanna go. But there are a number of reasons for that.

So today we're talking to Dr. Heidi Schumacher. She's a practicing pediatrician and she also serves as the Assistant Superintendent of Health and Wellness at the DC office of the State Superintendent of Education. So she is seeing many sides of this attendance issue, the anxiety issue, the whole school avoidance, and also the health implications and benefits of really that routine, that school attendance. 

In this episode, Melanie and Dr. Schumacher look at the research on school attendance, why kids are missing school these days, dealing with technological distractions and sleep, and how parents fit in the mix.

If your child is having trouble at school, your pediatrician may be able to help. Risk factors or difficulties during pregnancy or early life could contribute to a learning difficulty.

First, speak with your child’s teacher and/or principal. Ask questions about what’s happening inside and outside the classroom. Get more information on your child’s school life.

Next, speak with your pediatrician. As possible sources are eliminated, ask your pediatrician what else could be causing the difficulty.

Then, ask your child what kind of help you can provide to assist in learning. They may prefer help from a tutor instead of your watchful eye.

All children want to succeed.

Listen as Dr. Laura McGuinn joins Melanie Cole, MS, to discuss how your pediatrician can help with learning challenges.

The milk crate challenge, the blackout challenge, the sleepy chicken challenge, and of course the Tide pod challenge. These were all internet games based around the social media app TikTok.

While social media can be good for children who want to learn about the world at large or find other kids with common interests outside their school, it can also be quite dangerous when these challenges get risky or even lethal. 

Dr. Nicole Baldwin is a member of the AAP Council on Communications and Media and joins Melanie to talk about how these challenges come to be, the allure of going viral, and how to keep your kids from doing stunts for social media attention.