Healthy Children

Developing a healthy body image and sense of self in our children is so important. And as we round out the end of summer, you might be heading to the mall or other store to pick up some new clothes for your kids for this school year. So how can you keep that experience positive and constructive?

Ellen Rome, MD, MPH, currently serves as Head of the Center for Adolescent Medicine at Cleveland Clinic Children's Hospital. She is a board-certified pediatrician who was also among the first in the United States to be board-certified in Adolescent Medicine.

We talk today about eating disorders, social media, social standards and trends in fashion, as well as how parents can steer clear or talking weight in front of their kids.

Our kids are heading back to school soon, most likely in person this time. But after a year of staying home with no routines, it can be a bit nervewracking to think about heading back to the busy halls of a bustling school.

Dr. Jaime Friedman is back on the show today, she is a board-certified pediatrician in San Diego, California. She runs a practice in 4S Ranch for Children’s Primary Care Medical Group, which is affiliated with Rady Children’s Hospital.

Today these moms talk about making transitions to new schools or college, some red flags to keep an eye out in anxious children, restarting those old routines to get back to "normal," and tips for when the parents are the anxious ones heading into this school year. 

Climate change affects all of us. Your children may have concerns. You want to be able to talk to them about it without affecting them with your own anxiety.

Tell your children the truth but frame it with hope. We have the ability to act on climate change right now. Many of the things we can do to help the planet improve our own lives in the short term. Advocacy by young people brings attention to the concerns.

Work to empower your children to do what they can to improve conditions.

Listen to this encore episode from January 2020 as Dr. Aparna Bole, Chair of the AAP Council on Environmental Health, joins Melanie Cole, MS, to discuss how to talk to your kids about climate change.

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.

In this encore episode from February 2021, 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.

Protests in the summer of 2020 raged on in most major cities for weeks protesting the death of George Floyd, police brutality, and in support of black lives. All of these are incredibly heavy and complex topics to discuss with children, so where do you begin?

In this encore episode from last summer, Dr. Nia Heard-Garris joined Melanie Cole, MS, to help parents discuss this moment in history with our kids.

Dr. Heard-Garris is a pediatrician and a researcher in the Department of Pediatrics at Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University; and also in the Division of Academic General Pediatrics and Mary Ann & J. Milburn Smith Child Health Research, Outreach, and Advocacy Center at the Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago.

When are your kids old enough to make their own breakfast? There's no one-size-fits-all with breakfast preparation, but responsibility can vary by age range.

A four-year-old child could put prepared and measured ingredients into a very simple recipe. No knives, no electricity, no stoves or ovens. Yogurt parfaits are perfect for your child to mix with ingredients from containers.

Older children can take more responsibility, using the microwave or stove with supervision. 

Cultivate independence and self-confidence by allowing them to make breakfast at the right level for their age and ability.

Listen to this encore episode from February 2020 as Dr. Suanne Kowal-Connelly joins Melanie Cole, MS to discuss kids making breakfast.

As the summer gets into full swing, and we're starting to think about cookouts and gatherings again, it's important to remember both COVID-19 and regular safety rules when getting together for the 4th!

Dr. Jaime Friedman is a board-certified pediatrician in San Diego, California. She runs a practice in 4S Ranch for Children’s Primary Care Medical Group, which is affiliated with Rady Children’s Hospital.

She joins us to talk about social distancing rules, the danger of backyard fireworks (even sparklers!), and cautious grilling to keep your parties fun and safe.

A new dog or other family pet has brought so much joy to uprooted lives this pandemic. But with increased numbers of pet adoptions come more opportunities for bites, scratches, and other dog or pet woes.

Dr. Alison Tothy is back on the show, she is a pediatric emergency medicine physician and a spokesperson for the AAP, and says dog bites have increased with kids being home more this past year.

She tells us about this strange side effect of the pandemic, dealing with animal fears, allergies, and deciding as a family when to get a pet.