Kids health has to be put at the top of today's medical agenda. The most precious, and at the same time the most vulnerable, members of today's society is our children. The future of this society depends on them.

Unfortunately, children seem to be the most exploited members of our society, and kids health is taken for granted. This exploitation is both intentional and unintentional. I want to deal with the unintentional exploitation. This exploitation affects children's physical health, mental state, and emotional well-being.

Go to menu for kids health

Kids health is important. Let me explain what I mean about unintentional exploitation. It is unfortunate that environmental chemicals, as well as chemicals in ordinary household products, canned food products, and food in general are negatively affecting kids health. Specifically, these chemicals disrupt the endocrine system.

These chemicals, many of which are carcinogenic, and others untested, are so thoroughly embedded in our modern society, that every American is affected to some extent.

Typically a girl reached puberty at the age of 13 years old. Not any more. Girls are now reaching puberty at 8 years of age. This trend is more pronounced among African-American girls. Signs of puberty include menstruation, breast development, and growth of pubic and underarm hair.

According to current data, if girls get their first period before the age of 12, their risk of breast cancer is 50 percent higher than girls who get their period by 16 years old.

Reaching early puberty is a significant risk factor for breast cancer. This happens because these girls are exposed to more estrogen. Early puberty increases the risk for social and emotional problems too.

The potential causes of early puberty are: obesity and inactivity, feeding infants formula instead of breast-feeding them, family stress, and environmental and household chemicals. Our high-tech society is sabotaging kids health.
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Kid's are now experiencing diseases which in the past were associated with adults. Type 2 diabetes, also known as adult-onset diabetes and non-alcoholic related fatty liver disease are two of the more prominent ones. Medical researchers are blaming the development of fatty-liver disease on too much high glycemic carb intake (soft drinks, candies, cakes, cookies, white bread and rice, french fries, etc.)

A recent study finds that obese children or children at risk for obesity show early signs of heart disease. This study was conducted by researchers at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. It was published in the winter 2007 issue of Journal of Cardiometabolic Syndrome.

Recent studies have shown that children taking prescription drugs for heartburn and other digestive problems have jumped by 56 percent in the last few years. It is speculated that obesity and overweight are the possible culprits. There seems to be an overwhelming conspiracy against good kids health.

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Diets low in vegetables and high in omega-6 fats increase the risk of developing cancer later in life, as well as during childhood. The good news is that dietary changes can lower cancer risk in children. For instance, one study found that increasing omega-3 oil intake during pregnancy significantly reduced the risk of breast cancer later in life in female newborns.

ADHD Drugs and kids health

Recent research has shown that drugs used to treat ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) are ineffective in the long term, and work against kids health. Common ADHD drugs such as Ritalin and Concerta do not work any better after three years than therapy.

Long-term use of these drugs can also prove disastrous. They can stunt a child's growth. Findings bear out the fact the these drugs' benefits have been grossly exaggerated.

Research conducted by the University of Adelaide in Australia has discovered that fish oil corrects the symptoms of ADHD without any of the dangerous side effects of pharmaceutical drugs. Fish oil contains omega-3 fatty acids. In addition, fish oil does it a lot more effectively!

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After reviewing 24 scientific studies, CSPI (Center for Science in the Public Interest) believes that food colorings and certain foods can negatively effect a child's behavior. Their report was entitled Diet, ADHD, and Behavior.

CSPI's report cited that 17 controlled studies found that diet adversely effected some children's diet--some dramatically. Most of the studies focused on artificial colors in food. The late Dr. Ben Feingold, a pediatric allergist who practiced in San Francisco, claimed 30 years ago that his patients improved when they removed food dyes and other ingredients from their diets.

Great Britain's Lunchables (Oscar Mayer/Kraft packaged food combinations targeted to children) are free of artificial colors. The United States has no such restriction. And it was the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) which sponsored one of the first small studies which discovered an adverse effect of food dyes.

ADHD�s main symptoms are reduced attentiveness and concentration, excessive levels of activity, distractibility, and impulsiveness.

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A study conducted by scientists at the University of Florida found that children who take stimulants to treat ADHD are 20 percent more likely to visit a doctor with heart-related symptoms. The study was published in Pediatrics.

55,000 children between the ages of 3 and 20 who had undergone treatment for ADHD using central nervous system stimulants between 1994 and 2004 were examined. The health profiles of these children were compared with almost two million other children in the Florida Medicaid database.

Drugs such as Ritalin and Adderall which are classified as methamphetamines have been known to cause serious cardiac side effects.

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New research conducted in Paris, France reveals that one of the major factors in the development of ADHD is low iron levels. And even more exciting, that supplementation by iron is just as effective as Ritalin and other drugs.

There have been other studies which show that children with ADHD as a matter of course have below-normal levels of iron in their blood.

A greater supply of oxygen is necessary in childhood to support the rapid growth that takes place. The oxygen is transported by an increased number of red blood cells containing iron-rich hemoglobin.

When children have insufficient iron levels, they experience anemia or pre-anemia resulting in constant fatigue, brain fog, and erratic behavior

Kidney Stones and kids health

According to Alicia M. Neu, MD, clinical director of pediatric nephrology at John Hopkins Children's Center in Baltimore, Maryland, kidney stones are being found in more and more children. These excruciatingly painful stones are more common in middle-aged adults.

Some possible explanations for this increase of kidney stones in children are: (1) not drinking enough water (2) eating too much chocolate or nuts (3) or drinking a lot of herbal or regular tea. Chocolate and teas are high in oxalate which is commonly found in kidney stones.

To help prevent kidney stones from forming, make certain that your child drink enough water every day. You should also monitor your child's consumption of processed, convenience and fast foods all of which are loaded with sodium.

Sleep Deprivation and kids health

Researchers at the John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health analyzed epidemiological studies. They found that each extra hour of sleep a child has cuts his or her risk of becoming overweight or obese by 9%. In contrast, children who got the least amount of sleep experienced a 92% greater risk of becoming overweight or obese than those who got enough sleep. Often overlooked in kids health, adequate sleep is important.

"Our analysis of the data shows a clear association between sleep duration and the risk for overweight or obesity in children. The risk declined with more sleep," said Youfa Wang, a senior author of the study. The study was published in the journal Obesity

Asthma and kids health

Asthma and allergies can be triggered by thirst. When the body is dehydrated, it attempts to compensate by releasing histamines. Histamines constrict blood flow and reduce the need for water. However these same histamines can trigger asthma and allergies.

Be certain to drink enough water so that your urine is a pale yellow.

Ordinary household products can cause asthma. They give off fumes that trigger asthmatic attacks in children. One such chemical is monoethanolamine. A British study showed that children who were exposed to fumes known as volatile organic compounds (VOCs), were 4 times as likely to suffer an attack as those who weren't.

Volatile organic compounds are found in: solvents, paints, hobby supplies, floor adhesives, cleaning products, polishes, room fresheners, and fitted carpets

Breastfeeding and kids health

A study was recently published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition which suggests that a mix of bacteria gut may influence whether an infant will become overweight or obese later in life. Babies with a high count of the bacteria bifidobacteria and a low count of the bacteria Staphylococcus aureus may be protected from excess weight gain.

Bifidobacteria is present in the guts of breastfed babies. These babies have a lower risk of developing obesity later in life.

Studies have shown repeatedly that breast-fed babies have a lower risk of developing obesity or becoming overweight. The risk is lowered from 13% to 22%. When it comes to kids health, no stone should be left unturned.

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Recent research shows that breastfeeding your baby can reduce SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome) death by one-third. The research was performed by the Foundation for the Study of Infant Deaths (FSID). It is based on a meta-analysis of 27 different studies conducted as early as 1965.

Sudden infant death syndrome is the major cause of death for infants up to one year old. "This conclusion shows that the more breastfeeding you do, the healthier the baby. Even some breastfeeding is better than none, so people only have to have a go at it" (Dr. Richard Wilson, consultant paediatrician at Kingston-on-Thames hospital in London and a trustee for the FSID .)

Depression/Violence/Hyperactivity and kids health

Sixty percent of the brain is fat. The majority of this fat that constitutes nerve cell membranes is the omega-3 fatty acid DHA. When the diet does not include sufficient omega-3 fatty acids, the body substitutes omega-6 fatty acids for the membranes.

Studies have shown conclusively that less than optimum levels of omega-3 fatty acids are linked directly to increased amounts of depression, suicidal tendencies, aggression, hostility, and violence. Joseph Hibbeln, a psychiatrist and physician with the National Institutes of Health (NIH), discovered relationships between omega-3 deficiencies and violence and depression.

Hibbeln found that when the omega-6/omega-3 balance was disturbed, there was a linear increase in murders and depression. He compared the increase in omega-6 consumption in 38 countries since the 1960s. These countries saw an increase in violence and depression. In countries where omega-3 was high and omega-6 was low, like in Japan, murder and depression rates remain low.

Animal studies have revealed that when they are deprived of omega-3 fatty acids over a period of two generations, their progeny lose the ability to release the neurotransmitters dopamine and serotonin effectively. Hibbeln says, "The extension of all this is that children are left with low dopamine as a result of early deficits in their own or their mother's diets, they cannot experience reward in the same way, and they cannot learn from reward and punishment. If their serotonin levels are low, they cannot inhibit their impulses or regulate their emotional responses."

The standard American diet (SAD) creates a great imbalance between omega-6/omega-3 fatty acids. Ideally the ratio should be anywhere from 1:1 to 4:1. Our refined and processed food diet provides anywhere where from 25:1 to as much as 50:1! This is disastrous for not only kids health, but adult's health too.

Gut Bacteria and Obesity and Kids Health

A study by Finnish researchers seems to point to the fact that the kinds of bacteria in a baby's gut may determine their future risk of becoming overweight or obese. They examined fecal samples from 49 babies, 25 of whom were overweight or obese by the age of 7. They found that babies with high numbers of bifidobacteria and low numbers of Staphylococcus aureus appeared to be safe from excess weight gain.

Bifidobacteria counts taken at 6 months and 12 months were twice as high in normal weight children than they were in children who became overweight. Staphylococcus aureus levels were lower in normal weight babies.

The researchers think that Staphylococcus aureus may cause low grade inflammation in a child's body leading to obesity. Breast-fed babies, who are at are at a lower risk of obesity, have guts flourishing with bifidobacteria bacteria.

Processed foods should be limited and the diet supplemented by fish oil, omega-3, or krill oil capsules.

Autism and Kids Health

The cells (neurons) and connections in a child with autism either don't develop properly or get damaged somehow. It particularly affects communication, the emotions, and the senses. An autistic child may not be able to connect the feelings expressed by a smile. Or he may feel uncomfortable being touched.

The incidence of autism in the early 1980s was 1 in 10,000. By 2005 it had grown to 1 in 250. Today it is 1 in 150! According to Dr. Russell Blaylock, MD, this alarming rise in autism has paralleled a dramatic change in the **vaccination programs of the United States and other countries. This includes a drastic increase in the number of vaccines given to children at a very early age.

Over-vaccination of our children weakens their immune systems making them easy prey for any number of infections and less able to fight them. Mercury is an immune system suppressant. Some vaccines contain this toxic substance.

Another immune system suppressant as well as a generator of inflammation is omega-6 fatty acids. The standard American diet is replete with omega-6. Common vegetable oils such as soybean, corn, canola, safflower, sunflower, and peanut are omega-6 oils. Consumed in the quantities that the typical American does poses a severe health risk for everyone.

Dr. Blaylock says, "...we see that giving a live, immunosuppressant vaccine early in life can dramatically increase the risk of autoimmune disorders, increase microglial brain injury as well as increase the risk of infection by other immune-suppressing viruses and pathogenic organisms. And, it dramatically increases the risk of your child developing one of the autism spectrum disorders."

Excitotoxicity is instrumental in autism. That's why an autistic child must avoid all excitotoxins such as MSG (monosodium glutamate), hydrolyzed protein, vegetable protein extracts, soy protein or soy protein isolate, natural flavoring, yeast enzymes, etc. They should also avoid all sources of omega-6 acids. These are found in grain-fed meat and fish too.

** vaccines also contain ethylene glycol (antifreeze), formaldehyde (a carcinogen), and thimerosal (a mercury based preservative.) Mercury is the second most toxic substance known to man--plutonium is the most toxic. Mercury doesn't metabolize and is very difficult to remove from the body. The effects of mercury in the body are cumulative.

Here are Dr. Mercola's ten-point recommended plan to combat autism:

1. Carefully review the vaccination issue, including the conventional vaccination schedule. Know that in most U.S. states you have the right to opt out of vaccines. You may also want to review some of the recommendations for a more sensible vaccination schedule.

2. Avoid exposure to as many environmental toxins as you can, such as pesticides, herbicides, and sources of mercury, aluminum and fluoride.

3. Avoid exposure to cell phones and other wireless technology, such as Wi-Fi in your home.

4. Have your child eat a diet tailored to their nutritional type for optimal health. In my experience, nearly ALL children seem to respond favorably to the dietary changes when properly implemented.

5. Pasteurized milk restriction is an ABSOLUTE imperative to the treatment of autism. Anyone managing this illness without restricting milk is deceiving themselves. This includes all milk products, such as ice cream, yogurt and whey. Even natural flavorings in food must be avoided unless the processor can guarantee, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that caseinate is not included

6. Complete elimination of sugar, juice, soda, French fries and wheat (pasta, bagels, cereal, pretzels, etc) is also highly recommended

7. Get proper sun exposure, as an additional theory that makes a whole lot of sense is the link between rampant vitamin D deficiency and the proportionate jump in autism. The vitamin D receptor appears in a wide variety of brain tissue early in the fetal development, and activated vitamin D receptors increase nerve growth in your brain

8. Use an effective intervention to address any emotional stresses as soon as possible � avoid having destructive thoughts and emotions fester. Potent energy psychology tools such as the Emotional Freedom Technique are excellent for this purpose

9. Secretin has proven effective in relieving certain symptoms of autism. It is a powerful hormone, which has the ability to reduce intestinal permeability (leaky gut). I have even observed one three-year-old who had no speech prior to secretin speak in full paragraphs just days after the infusion

10. Homeopathy may also help ameliorate symptoms

Source: Mercola.com, "How Jim Carrey and Jenny McCarthy's Son Recovered From Autism" (http://articles.mercola.com/ sites/ articles/archive/2008/04/24/how-jim-carrey-and-jenny-mccarthy- s-son-recovered-from-autism.aspx?source=nl)

Breakfast Cereal and Kids Health

A new study has found that breakfast cereals which are marketed for children are not as healthy as those marketed for adults. Further, those cereals that are marketed the most aggressively have the worst nutritional quality.

Dr. Marlene B. Schwartz of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, lead researcher of this study examined 161 brands of cereal. She commented, "The cereal the parent is eating him or herself is probably better than what they're feeding their child."

Dr. Schwartz and her colleagues discovered that cereal manufacturer health claims are often misleading. Cereals which are marketed as "low fat" or "low sugar" are not low in calories as a parent might expect. Brands advertised as "whole grain" did have more fiber, but just as much salt, sugar, and fat as other brands, and the same calorie content.

Cereals marketed for children had more sugar, sodium, carbohydrate, and calories, and less protein and fiber per gram than adult cereals. On average, children's cereals had more than one-third of their weight in sugar compared to adult cereals which had less than one-quarter.

Dr. Schwartz advised parents to read labels carefully. They should look for brands containing no more than 4 grams of sugar per serving, and at least 4 grams of fiber per bowl of cereal.

Vitamin D Deficiency and Kids Health

A 380 patient study conducted by researchers at Children's Hospital in Boston has found that many young children are vitamin D deficient. Two out of five children ages 8 months to 2 years old who were a part of the study had low blood levels of vitamin D.

According to lead researcher Catherine Gordon, the 40% deficiency rate "...is higher than expected in a country that has vitamin D fortified milk...what was striking to us was how many infants were vitamin D deficient but they were asymptomatic. The silence of what we saw worries me more."

Breast milk does not contain vitamin D. This adds to the conclusion by many alternate medicine practitioners that our body was designed to get vitamin D from the sun.

Vitamin D deficiency can lead to a higher risk of cancer, artery disease, and kidney disease. It can also lead to rickets-a softening of the bones. Children with below average levels of vitamin D can have bowed legs or bones that can easily fracture. Low levels can also lead to minerals being leached out of bones.

The study found that even 6 percent of the children who were given vitamin D fortified milk were deficient.

Children as well as adults need to get more sunlight to combat the vitamin D deficiency which is affecting all age groups.

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A new study was undertaken to find out optimal levels of vitmin D for children. Children ages 10 to 17 were recruited and given various levels of vitamin D or a placebo (sugar pill.)

The study revealed that only children who were given 2,000 IUs of vitamin D daily increased their body's levels to optimum levels. This amount is 10 times the amount (200 IUs) recommended by the government.

Constipation and Kids Health

According to research conducted at Nationwide Children's Hospital, the negative impact on children suffering from constipation, as well as the associated costs, are about the same as those found from children suffering from asthma and ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.)

This study found that children who suffered from constipation used healthcare services more than children who were free of this condition. The additional healthcare services cost $3.9 billion! The findings will be published in the Journal of Pediatrics in early '09.

"Despite being considered by many a relatively benign condition, childhood constipation has been shown to be associated with a significantly decreased quality of life. The day-to-day struggle caused by constipation can often be emotionally devastating, and can also have an impact on the overall health and well-being of affected children and their families," said Carlo Di Lorenzo, MD, head of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition at Nationwide Children's Hospital, the leader of the study.

Constipation is considered to be hard or infrequent bowel movements. But what constitutes constipation differs depending on who you ask. Mainstream medicine considers a person to be normal whether he has bowel movements three times a day or three times a week.

However, natural and alternative medicine takes the position that everyone should have at least one bowel movement a day. And some think that there should be a bowel movement for every meal eaten.

There are natural methods to combat constipation. Plenty of fruits and vegetables should be a part of your diet. Processed and junk foods should be minimized or eliminated as they can lead to constipation.

Flaxseed and psyllium are natural foods which will make bowel movements easier. Prune juice is also a good remedy.

Vaccinations and Kids Health

Due to concerns about mercury toxicity, several vaccines, with the exception of the flu vaccine, were phased out during the years 1999 through 2002. They were replaced by either low-mercury or thimerosal-free vaccines.

What is not common knowledge however is that these vaccines still contain another dangerous neurotoxin, aluminum. Aluminum has been linked to Alzheimer's disease. The aluminum is used as an immune adjuvant-a toxic substance used to heighten the immune response. Other adjuvants are mercury and MSG (monosodium glutamate.)

"Aluminum is not perceived, I believe, by the public as a dangerous metal. Therefore, we are in a much more comfortable wicket in terms of defending its presence in vaccines," said Dr. John Clements, WHO vaccine advisor.

When vaccinated with an aluminum-laced shot, the aluminum travels to the brain, and accumulates there. This happens regardless if the patient is a child or an adult. The aluminum activates the microglia in the brain and causes it to remain excited for long periods of time.

The next vaccine triggers an inflammatory response. The more the immune system remains in a state of heightened response, the more likely you will develop a neurodegenerative disease.

Aluminum is used in vaccines to fight hepatitis A and B, the Pentacel cocktail for diptheria, pertussis, tentanus, polio, and meningitis. It has been associated with symptoms found in patients suffering from Parkinson's disease, Lou Gehrig's disease (ALS), and Alzheimer's disease.

By following the immunization schedule as established by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), a baby will be injected with almost 5 mg of aluminum by the th time they are 18 months old! The FDA (Food and Drug Administration) considers up to 0.85 mg of aluminum to be safe! Do the math!

What's a parent to do? Here's a friendlier vaccination schedule devised by Dr. Donald Miller:

no vaccinations until a child is two years old

no vaccines that contain thimerosal (mercury)

no live virus vaccines

the following vaccines should be given one at a time (not as a combination vaccine), every six months, beginning at age 2: (Pertussis (acellular, not whole cell), diphtheria, tetanus, polio (the Salk vaccine, cultured in human cells.)

(The danger of vaccinations is not new. It was recognized as early as 1920. In a book named Horrors of Vaccination Exposed, a petition directed to then president Woodrow Wilson asked that compulsory vaccinations be discontinued. Download this free Ebook here. (Right click on the link and save to your hard drive.))

Short Bowel Syndrome and Kids Health

Short Bowel Syndrome or SBS is the term given to a medical condition in which the sufferer has lost part of the small intestine or bowel. According to Children�s Hospital Boston�s Center for Advanced Intestinal Care, SBS, though rare, affects thousands of people in the United States.

SBS can happen at birth when part of the the intestine doesn't form properly, or from an infectious inflammatory disease which strikes premature newborns.

SBS is not limited to children. Adults can suffer from it when they undergo surgery for Crohn's disease, when the bowel is taken out because of disease or injury, or intestinal volvulus (which occurs when the bowel gets twisted), and other causes.

When children develop short bowel syndrome, the standard treatment is to feed them intravenously. This is due to the fact that their bodies cannot absorb vital nutrients from the foods they eat. The intravenous supplement was made from soybean oil. Unfortunately the soybean oil caused liver damage. This resulted in liver transplants, or failing that, death.

However doctors noticed that when children were given Omegaven which is made of fish oil, their condition improved. Fish oil is loaded with omega-3 fatty acids.

The fish oil supplement was given to 112 SBS children sufferers at Children's Hospital. Over 90 percent of them are still alive. So dramatic were the results that 70 hospitals worldwide now use fish oil intravenous feeding.

Soybean oil is composed largely of inflammation-producing omega-6 fatty acids. Omega-3 fatty acids on the other hand are proven inflammation fighters. Studies show that omega-3 prevents fat accumulation and liver damage.

SIDS and Kids Health

According to the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome) is the leading cause of death for babies up to one year of age, and the third leading cause of infant mortality in the United States. Over 2,200 deaths are due to SIDS every year.

What causes SIDS? One theory is that babies who contract SIDS may have abnormalities of the brain which prevent them from waking up when they don't get enough oxygen when they sleep. Most likely an immaturity of the central nervous system (brain and cardiovascular) is the cause of SIDS. Prevention through optimized nutrition for the mother during and after pregnancy is needed.

A study published in 2002 found that babies lacking the full complement of brain neurons because of inadequate nutrition are at risk of contracting SIDS because they are unable to develop appropriate heart and lung control during an important developmental period. This is why breast milk, which is the perfect food for babies, is so important to their health in those first fragile months.

A new study has found that breastfeeding reduces the risk of children developing and dying from SIDS. The study examined 300 infants who died from SIDS and almost 1,000 age-matched control infants. Eighty-three percent of the control group at two weeks old was breastfed compared to 50 percent of the SIDS group at two weeks old. At one month, exclusive breastfeeding halved the risk of SIDS. Partial breastfeeding also reduced the risk of SIDS.

Brain Cancer and Kids Health

According to a recent study, children who live in homes where their parents use pesticides are twice as likely to develop brain cancer as children from homes in which no pesticides are used. Brain cancer is the second most prevalent cancer that children get. It has been unquestionably established that many pesticides cause cancer in animals.

Medical authorities know that genetics play a role in the development of some brain cancer but they are largely in the dark about what causes it. They believe that brain cancers not due to genetics are associated with environmental factors.

The authors of this recent study explain that "parental exposures may act before the child�s conception, during gestation, or after birth to increase the risk of cancer." Exposures at each time period may trigger different changes that lead to cancers, such as genetic mutations or changes in gene expression or hormone and immune function.

Heavy Metals, Kids' Behavior and Kids Health

There is a growing body of evidence that trace metals can lead to behavioral problems in children. Neil Ward, a professor of chemistry at the United Kingdom's University of Surrey, says that heavy metals can lead to aggressive and antisocial behavior.

Lead causes nutrient depletion which can lead to antisocial behavior. Antisocial behavior has also been associated with aluminum because it competes for the binding sites of biochemical receptors of other metal ions such as iron and zinc.

Unfortunately, in today's high-tech and fast-paced society it is virtually impossible to avoid heavy metal contamination. (See this page for sources of heavy metals and their effects on the human body.)

There have been several documented studies associating heavy metal contamination and disturbing behavior. For example, one 1996 study that looked at lead levels and delinquency found that lead exposure is associated with an increased risk of antisocial and delinquent behavior, and that the effect increases with age. This was corroborated again in another study that found adjudicated delinquents were four times more likely to have elevated lead concentrations in their bones.

What can be done to limit our exposure to harmful heavy metals and eliminate those which have accumulated in our bodies? Eating a healthy organic diet is a good start. There are also supplements which can be taken along with natural foods that will expel stored toxins (visit this page for detoxification information.)

C-Section and Asthma Risk and Kids Health

C- or cesarean section is medically justified only in cases in which the infant's or mother's life would be endangered if the infant were to be delivered via the vagina. C-sections have risen dramatically (46 percent) since 1985. Now they comprise over 30 percent of all births. Many of these C-sections are not medically justified; they are requested by the mother.

A study has discovered that C-section deliveries raise the risk of children developing asthma and allergies later in life over infants delivered vaginally. This study was conducted by scientists from the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment in Bilthoven, the Netherlands.

The researchers looked at and compared the rates of asthma and allergies among 2,917 eight-year-olds who had been delivered through C-section with those delivered by the natural vaginal way. The risk of developing asthma was an astounding 79 percent higher in children who had been delivered through c-section. The risk of developing asthma was even higher in children born to one or both parents who suffered allergies.

"Our results emphasize the importance of gene-environment interactions on the development of asthma in children," the researchers wrote. "The increased rate of cesarean section is partly due to maternal demand without medical reason. In this situation, the mother should be informed of the risk of asthma for her child, especially when the parents have a history of allergy or asthma."

Medical authorities already know that c-section deliveries raise a child's risk of developing diabetes by 20 percent!

Methamphetamine and Kids Health

According to the online issue of Neurology, children who were exposed to methamphetamine during their mother's pregnancy suffered changes in the maturing of the white matter of their brains. This finding was suggested by MRIs.

"Methamphetamine use is an increasing problem among women of childbearing age, leading to an increasing number of children with prenatal meth exposure," senior author Dr. Linda Chang, from the University of Hawaii, Honolulu, said in a statement. "But until now, the effects of prenatal meth exposure on the developing brain of a child were little known."

Methamphetamine is an extremely addictive drug that attacks the central nervous system. Medical uses for this drug are very limited.

Lead author of the methamphetamine study is Dr. Linda Chang of the University of Hawaii, Honolulu. She and her colleagues performed MRIs by which an assessment of the brain's microstructure can be made. The tests were given to 66 children whose ages ranged from 3 to 4 years old. Twenty-nine of these children were exposed to methamphetamine prenatally-the rest were not.

The methamphetamine-exposed children showed 2 percent to 4 percent less diffusion of molecules in the frontal and parietal white matter compared with the unexposed controls. There was also evidence of more extensive variation in the left frontal white matter among exposed children.

Gastroenteritis (Stomach Flu) and Kids Health

A common parental treatment for children who develop diarrhea and vomiting is flat coke, fruit juice, or lemonade. The prevailing thinking is that these sugary drinks will calm the child's stomach. Unfortunately not only is this a myth, but these drinks could make matters much worse.

According to the National Institute for Health and Clinical excellence, treatment with sweet drinks is a harmful myth which can worsen the illness.

Over 3.5 million children develop acute viral gastroenteritis in the course of a year. This results in 500,000 office visits, 55,000 hospitalizations and 30 deaths in the United States. Globally, gastroenteritis or stomach flu is the leading cause of death among infants.

A number of viruses can cause a stomach flu. The most common are Rotavirus which causes between 30 to 50 percent of all severe diarrhea according to estimates, and a group of related viruses known as Noroviruses. These account for over 90 percent of stomach flu outbreaks in the United States.

The stomach flu doesn't just target children but adults as well. It is highly contagious and adheres easily to objects. If these objects are touched, the virus can be transferred to a human host through the mouth, eyes, or nose. Symptoms of the stomach flu can suddenly appear. They may include several of the following:

Headache

Fever

Abdominal cramps (stomach ache)

Cough

Runny Nose

watery diarrhea

vomiting

nausea

The stomach flu can last anywhere from one to ten days-depending on your general health.

Preventive measures include washing your hands with soap and water, trying not to touch your mouth, eyes, or nose, and not sharing items such as towels, cups, etc.

The common concern if you do happen to catch gastroenteritis is to not become dehydrated. That can lead to death. If vomiting has occurred, rest your stomach for at least three hours. Do not eat or drink anything during this time. After three hours has passed and you have not vomited further, sip a little water over a period of one to two hours. If your stomach has stabilized, you are ready to take a huge amount of probiotics. Get a quality brand and take large doses every 30 to 60 minutes. If needed, take the entire bottle in a twenty-four hour period.

Crohn's Disease and Kids Health

Crohn's Disease is a chronic inflammatory disease which can affect the entire gastrointestinal tract from the mouth to the anus. The disease can result in extreme pain, bleeding, weight loss, and diarrhea.

Doctors don't have an explanation for the cause of Crohn's Disease. There is a popular theory which says that people afflicted with Crohn's disease have improperly functioning immune systems. The immune system mistakes food, bacteria, and other beneficial substances for enemy invaders. An attack is launched by the immune system which produces chronic inflammation which leads to ulcerations and bowel injury.

Standard medical treatment for Crohn's disease is steroid based drugs given in high doses. Serious side effects include malnutrition and growth retardation.

There is now an alternative to steroid drugs. Dr. Raanan Shamir of Tel Aviv University's Sackler School of Medicine and Schneider Children's Medical Center used a high nutrient cocktail developed by NASA (National Aeronautical Space Administration) for astronauts. Dr. Shamir states, "[a] cocktail" of nutrition can put the majority of these youngsters into remission without drugs."

The high nutrient drink has a high success rate of 60 to 70 percent of youngsters who drank it non-stop for 6 to 8 weeks. Crohn's disease in these children went into remission and there were no side effects.

"People have to be committed and eat nothing else during the period of time they are on nutrition therapy, and it is difficult to do -- but if they do it, they go into remission," says Dr. Shamir.

The researchers noted that children who include the high nutrient drink in their diets for 20 to 25 percent of their total calories remained Crohn's-free for years.

Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL) and Kids Health

The most dominant form of cancer in children is acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). ALL is a malignant disease which attacks the bone marrow.

Nearly one-third of all children cancers are diagnosed as ALL. It usually hits children between the ages of 3 and 7. Tragically, it kills almost 15 percent of the children who develop it.

A new study now associates ALL with common household pesticides. This study involved 41 matched pairs of children who have ALL along with their mothers and 41 matched pairs of healthy children with their mothers.

The children tested lived in an urban environment--namely the Washington, DC metropolitan area. Urine samples were collected and analyzed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) from the sick children and their mothers.

In addition to the urine samples taken, questionnaires were handed out to both groups of mothers. As it turns out, 33 percent of the mothers of the sick children used pesticides while only 14 percent of the mothers of the healthy children did.

"We know pesticides -- sprays, strips, or 'bombs,' are found in at least 85 percent of households, but obviously not all the children in these homes develop cancer. What this study suggests is an association between pesticide exposure and the development of childhood ALL, but this isn't a cause-and-effect finding...," says the study's lead scientists Dr. Offie Soldin, Ph.D, an epidemiologist at Lombardi.

While Dr. Soldin was quick to state that this study does not prove a definitive cause and effect between ALL and pesticides, the fact that there is a definite relationship between the two is enough to discontinue pesticide use in the home.

Infant Formula and Kids Health

Synthetic versions of any nutrient are problematic, and some are potentially dangerous. In 2002 infant formula manufacturers began fortifying their products with synthetic versions of DHA AND AA.

DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) is an omega-3 long-chained polyunsaturated fatty acid; AA (arachidonic acid) is an omega-6 long-chained polyunsaturated fatty acid. Both fatty acids are found in breast milk, and both have been associated with brain development.

There is evidence however that the synthetic DHA/AA are causing severe reactions in some infants. Studies have shown that once these fortified formulas are removed from the babies' diets, the problems disappear.

To date, the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) has received hundreds of concerned parents about the harm these formulas are doing to their children. Not only are parents concerned, but medical professionals too.

Here is Karen Jensen's story. Unable to breastfeed her child, she fed her Neocate which is fortified with DHA/AA:

"At two weeks, my daughter would often stop breathing in her sleep and was having various other serious health conditions. She cried constantly and couldn't sleep due to gastrointestinal upset.

After many trips to the hospital, a CT scan, an EEG, time on an apnea monitor and thousands of dollars in bills, "we tried the Neocate without the DHA/ARA in it. Within 24 hours, we had a brand-new, entirely different baby. She had no abdominal distress, no gas, she smiled and played, and for the first time ever we heard her laugh" (www.alternet.org)

Not only does DHA/AA fortified infant formula causes severe distress to infants, it has never been proven to improve the cognitive development of infants.

A team of researchers published their review of all available literature concerning synthetic DHA/AA. Their findings are thusly summarized: "feeding term infants with milk formula enriched with [DHA and ARA] had no proven benefit regarding vision, cognition or physical growth."

Despite the harm it causes, DHA/AA has even won approval for use in organic infant formulas and organic milk. Parents beware. Breastfeeding is the best way to feed your child.

Fever and Kids Health

A fever in a child tends to bring about distress to a parent. It is one of the leading causes of doctor visits in America. Many parents are unaware of the fact that a fever is the body's method of fighting an unwelcome intruder. It is an invaluable asset to maintainin kids health.

Normally fevers signal that your child's immune system is functioning normally. However, when a fever strikes a child under 3 months of age, or the child has a seizure while feverish, there is a cause for concern. A physician's evaluation is necessary.

Other than the conditions specified above, a fever is your child's immune system's method of fighting bacterial or viral infections.To attempt to lower the fever is to work against your child's natural defense system.

Here is what the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) says: "Fever is not an illness, rather, it is a symptom of sickness and is usually a positive sign that the body is fighting infection."

Regarding fever-reducing drugs known as antipyretics, the AAP says the following:

"Fevers generally do not need to be treated with medication unless your child is uncomfortable or has a history of febrile convulsions. The fever may be important in helping your child fight the infection.

Even higher temperatures are not in themselves dangerous or significant unless your child has a history of seizures or a chronic disease. Even if your child has a history of a fever-related convulsion and you treat the fever with medication, they may still have this kind of seizure ... If he is eating and sleeping well and has periods of playfulness, he probably doesn't need any treatment."

Listed below are a few of the kids health benefits of a fever:

• Increase in antibodies -- cells trained to specifically attack the exact type of invader that your body is suffering from
• More white blood cells are produced to help fight off the invading bugs
• More interferon, a natural antiviral and anticancer substance, is produced, which helps block the spread of viruses to healthy cells
• Walling off of iron, which bacteria feed on
• Increased temperature, which directly kills microbes (most bacteria and viruses actually grow better at temperatures lower than the human body)
• Improved ability of certain white blood cells to destroy bacteria and infected cells
• Fever also impairs the replication of many bacteria and viruses

Fevers can typically run as high as 104 or 105 degrees fahrenheit. If your child doesn't seem to be unusually uncomfortable, the fever should be allowed to run its course. Fevers have a tendency to spike in the late afternoon and evening, so you shouldn't be overly concerned.

There are several studies which support the contention that a fever should not be treated with anti-fever drugs. An article entitled Fever in Children -- A Blessing in Disguise and orginally published in Mothering Magazine, lists several of these studies. Look at the following:

• A study of adults with colds found that aspirin and acetaminophen suppressed production of antibodies and increased cold symptoms, with a trend toward longer infectiousness
• In a study of children with chickenpox, acetaminophen prolonged itching and the time to scabbing compared to placebo treatment
• In test-tube studies, therapeutic levels of aspirin suppressed the ability of human white blood cells to destroy bacteria
• Another study found that a host of pain relievers, including aspirin and ibuprofen, inhibited white-cell production of antibodies by up to 50 percent

So what does a fever do exactly? It stimulates the immune system and creates an inhospitable environment for invading organisms, essentially turning up the heat high enough that the invading microbes cannot live.

What should you as a parent do when your child comes down with a fever? Make certain he or she gets plenty of rest and remains hydrated. High temperatures which accompanies fevers increase fluid loss.

As mentioned earlier, there are times when a fever will require medical attention. They include (1) when it occurs in an infant younger than 3 months old (whatever the temperature) (2) when it is above 102.2 degrees fahrenheit and the child is between 3 months and 3 years of age, and appears ill and (3) anytime it goes over 104.5 degrees fahrenheit.
Source: www.Mercola.com.

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