Tag Archive for: health

Keeping Fitness on Track at School

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Your elementary and middle school child spends the majority of his or her week in school– 7-7.5 hours per day, 5 days per week adding up to 35-37.5 hours per week. But don’t forget the average Blog-Fitness-Main-Landscapeof 3 hours per week of homework for kindergarten-8th graders. With long days in school sitting at desks, doing homework, increased time in front of televisions, on cell phones, or in front of computers, now, more than ever, it is important to make sure your child has ways to stay active. With so much time spent in school each week, what better avenue could there be to incorporate fitness in your child’s routine than in school? Physical education classes are a great start, but is there more they could be doing?

Here are Some Options You Can Present to Your PTA for Additional Fitness Programming:

  1. Apex Fun Run

Instead of using the old-school chocolate bar or wrapping paper sales, Apex is a company that utilizes fitness as a means of fund raising. Their goal is to encourage fitness and healthy lifestyles among elementary school-aged children while also helping schools raise money. Apex team members spend 2 weeks at a school teaching a curriculum about healthy lifestyle choices, ways to stay active, and assistance in getting the kids sponsors, culminating in the fun run!

https://www.apexfunrun.com/

  1. NFL Play 60 – School

Play 60 school is a program sponsored by the NFL to encourage 60 minutes of play every day. The NFL has partnered with the National Dairy Counsel, American Heart Association, and Brax Fundraising to create different programs for incorporating fitness in schools. This includes a focus on healthy food choices, implementing activity breaks during daily curriculums, and fundraising by selling various sports team SpiritCups.

http://www.nflrush.com/play60/school

  1. Presidential Fitness Testing

Most schools already implement Presidential Fitness Testing in their regular physical education curriculum. However, if your school does not or if you are interested in more information about the programming, take a look at the website. The Presidential Youth Fitness Programming allows students to individually track their fitness progress and achievements.

https://www.presidentschallenge.org/challenge/pyfp.shtml

Sources:

http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2014/02/27/students-spend-more-time-on-homework-but-teachers-say-its-worth-it

https://apexfunrun.com/Home/PlayfForApex

NSPT offers services in Bucktown, Evanston, Highland Park, Lincolnwood, Glenview, Lake Bluff, Des Plaines, Hinsdale and Milwaukee. If you have questions or concerns about your child, we would love to help! Give us a call at (877) 486-4140 and speak to one of our Family Child Advocates!

Meet-With-A-Physical-Therapist

The Importance of Sleep in Adolescence

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Sleep is vital for everyone.  Many children and adolescents do not get enough sleep on a nightly basis.  Research has demonstrated that there are some major concerns with an adolescent’s social and academic behavior when he or she does not get enough sleep.

There have been several studies examining later school start days in which the adolescents are able to get more sleep due to later morning awakenings and the positive results with their academic and behavioral functioning (Beebe, 2011).

These studies indicated that these adolescents who are able to attain more sleep demonstrate the following:

  • Less subjective and physiological sleepiness
  • Improved high school enrollment stability
  • Better attendance among the least stable students
  • Less tardiness
  • Fewer automobile accidents
  • Fewer sick days

Anytime an adolescent exhibits concerns with academic, social, emotional, or behavioral functioning, it is always recommended to assess that individual’s amount and quality of sleep.  Click here to read more on how a lack of sleep affects children.

If you have concerns about your teen’s sleep, contact our neuropsychology department for more information.

Reference: Beebe, D. (2011).  A brief primer on sleep for pediatric and clinical neuropsychologists.  Child Neuropsychology.

Physical Activities to Get your Child Moving | Pediatric Therapy Tv

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In today’s Webisode, a pediatric physical therapist will explain creative ways to help your child get up and get active!

In this video you will learn:

  • What indoor games are best for encouraging physical activity with your child
  • What outdoor activities increase muscular activity
  • What gaming system is best for enhancing your child’s activity

Video Transcription:

Announcer: From Chicago’s leading experts in pediatrics to a worldwide
audience, this is Pediatric Therapy TV, where we provide experience and
innovation to maximize your child’s potential. Now you’re host, here’s
Robyn.

Robyn: Hello, and welcome to Pediatric Therapy TV. I’m your host Robyn
Ackerman, and today I’m standing here with Leida Van Oss, a
pediatric physical therapist. Leida, can you tell us some
physical activities that we can use to get our children
moving?

Leida: Sure. When you want to get your kid moving and active, it’s
really important that it’s something that’s fun to them. So
if they’re really interested in doing board games, there
are a couple different board games you can do, such as
Hullabaloo or I Can Do That by Cat in the Hat or Twister.
If they like to go outdoors, then do something like a
sport, like swimming or soccer, or if there’s snow on the
ground, you can build forts or go sledding. But it’s really
important to pick something that they’re going to be
interested in so that they get really active.

If they really like video games, there are a lot of good active video
games you can do, especially with the new system, the
Kinect. Things like Just Dance or Dance, Dance Revolution
are all really good games that incorporate the video game
aspect with being really active.

Robyn: All right. Well, thank you so much for those tips, and thank
you to our viewers, and remember, keep on blossoming.

Announcer: This has been Pediatric Therapy TV, where we bring peace of
mind to your family with the best in educational
programming. To subscribe to our broadcast, read our blogs,
or learn more, visit our website at LearnMore.me. That’s
LearnMore.me.

Food Choices for a 1 Year Old | Pediatric Therapy Tv

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In today’s Webisode, a pediatric registered dietitian provides food suggestions for a 1 year old.

In this video you will learn:

  • What model is used to determine food choices for a 1 year old
  • What food is best for a 1 year old to consume at different periods of the day
  • How many meals and snacks should a 1 year old consume in a day

Video Transcription:

Announcer: From Chicago’s leading experts in pediatrics to a worldwide
audience, this is Pediatric Therapy TV, where we provide experience and
innovation to maximize your child’s potential. Now, your host, here’s
Robyn.

Robyn: Hello, and welcome to Pediatric Therapy TV. I’m your host, Robyn
Ackerman. I’m standing here today with a Pediatric Registered Dietician,
Stephanie Wells. Stephanie, can you tell our viewers what are some food
choices that are preferable for a one-year-old?

Stephanie: Sure. When you’re making meals for a one-year-old, you want the
plate to reflect what’s called the Healthy Plate Model. So the plate should
be divided in half, where half of the plate has grains and protein, and the
other half has fruits and vegetables.

In terms of the grains, about half of the grains should be whole grains.
And in terms of the protein, it could be from a variety of sources, such as
meat, beans, eggs, tofu, and even cottage cheese and yogurt are good
sources of protein. The fruits and vegetables could be a variety of fresh,
frozen, dried, or cooked. One-year-olds should eat three meals and about
two snacks per day. They should drink whole milk with their meals and water
in between, and limit juice to zero to four ounces per day.

In terms of an example of a one day meal plan for a one-year-old, you could
offer at breakfast scrambled eggs, oatmeal or cereal and blueberries. A mid-
morning snack could be something just simple like crackers or pretzels. At
lunch you could offer grilled cheese, green beans, and cut up peaches. For
the mid-afternoon snack, you could do something like a rice cake or if they
like edamame, they could try that. Just watch out because it could be a
choking hazard. At dinner time you could offer something like spaghetti and
meatballs, and cooked carrots and apple sauce.

Robyn: All right. Well, thank you so much for even providing that menu as
well. Thank you to our viewers, and remember, keep on blossoming.

Announcer: This has been Pediatric Therapy TV, where we bring peace of mind
to your family with the best in educational programming. To subscribe to
our broadcast, read our blogs, or learn more, visit our website at
learnmore.me. That’s learnmore.me.

What is Failure to Thrive and What Can Be Done About It? | Pediatric Therapy Tv

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In today’s Webisode, a Registered Dietitian discusses Failure to Thrive and how you can help.

In this video you will learn:

  • The causes of Failure to Thrive
  • Steps and measures to take when your child shows signs of Failure to Thrive
  • How a dietitian and a doctor can help when your child has Failure to Thrive

Video Transcription:

Announcer: From Chicago’s leading experts in pediatrics to a worldwide
audience, this is Pediatric Therapy TV where we provide experience and
innovation to maximize your child’s potential. Now your host, here’s Robyn.

Robyn: Hello, and welcome to Pediatric Therapy TV. I’m your host, Robyn
Ackerman. I’m standing here today with a registered dietician, Stephanie
Wells. Stephanie, can you tell us what failure to thrive is and what can be
done about it?

Stephanie: Sure. Failure to thrive is diagnosed in children that are less
than two years old when their weight for length is less than the fifth
percentile on the growth chart and for kids that are over two years old, if
their BMI is less than the fifth percentile on the growth chart.

So in terms of what can be done, first a doctor and a registered dietician
can assess if there are any medical factors that are causing the failure to
thrive and then address those medical issues if that’s necessary. Second,
then a dietician can meet with the parent and the child and put together a
high calorie, high protein diet that includes three meals and two to three
snacks per day. Third, often these children need to be on some sort of a
high calorie, high protein formula or oral supplement beverage which the
dietician can recommend and get a prescription for, if needed. And then
from there, the dietician and doctor will closely monitor the child’s
weight and growth to make sure that they’re moving in the right direction
and meeting the goals that the dietician has made for the child.

Robyn: All right. Thank you, Stephanie, for that explanation and thank you
to our viewers. And remember, keep on blossoming.

Announcer: This has been Pediatric Therapy TV, where we bring peace of mind
to your family with the best in educational programming. To subscribe to
our broadcast, read our blogs, or learn more, visit our website at
learnmore.me. That’s learnmore.me.

Food as Medicine

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The seasons are about to change, school has resumed, and it’s only a matter of time before kids start getting sick. You can do your best to try to shave off those dreaded illnesses by ensuring proper nutrition and rest every day. But there’s just no avoiding it sometimes. Try not to get too stressed if your child has decreased intake when he or she is ill. It’s normal, and likely they will rebound after and make up for it by eating more of what they need for re-nourishment. Drinking adequate fluids is very important, however, as dehydration can have serious consequences. Also, adequate hydration helps the body “flush out” the bacteria, viruses, and immune factors causing symptoms.

sick child eating

For the following illnesses, here are some nutrition considerations:

Sore Throat. Eating and drinking can obviously be painful. Focus on cold, liquid foods.

  • Applesauce. Stir in quinoa for extra protein. Just cook the quinoa, let it cool, refrigerate, and stir into applesauce when your child is interested in eating.
  • Yogurt
  • Smoothies, made with yogurt, frozen fruit, and baby spinach leaves.
  • Gazpacho
  • Frozen bananas
  • Frozen fruit puree popsicles
  • Pediasure, especially if your child is on the low end of the growth chart, has other chronic medical issues, or otherwise has poor nutrition.

Diarrhea and/or Vomiting.

Gastrointestinal illnesses can occur for a variety of reasons. Likely eating or drinking will induce nausea. Hydration and electrolyte balance/replenishment are important with prolonged diarrhea and vomiting. Call the pediatrician if the vomiting or diarrhea persists longer than 24 hours. Seek medical care immediately if you see blood in the stool or emesis, and also if your child seems dehydrated. Some signs of dehydration are decreased urine output, darker colored urine, urine with a strong odor, dark circles under the eyes, lack of tears when crying, “tenting” of the skin (when you pull it up it doesn’t retract quickly), dry mouth, and lethargy. The best you can do is to encourage drinking fluids and eating small amounts as able. Focus on easily digested foods that are low in fat.

  • The BRAT diet (bananas, rice, applesauce, toast). These foods are easily digested, and the bananas and applesauce contain soluble fiber, which absorbs fluids in the gut and promotes a bulkier, more formed stool. This counteracts loose, watery diarrhea.
  • Congee is used to treat diarrhea, and versions of it are used in African, Indian, and Asian cultures. It’s basically rice that has been cooked for a long time with extra water so that it boils into a soupy mixture that is easily digestible .
  • Offer electrolyte replacement beverages, such as those discussed in my exercise hydration post. A great, natural option is called Recharge and can be found at Whole Foods and other natural grocery stores.
  • Some studies have shown improvement in duration of gastrointestinal symptoms with taking probiotics. See my probiotics blog for more recommendations.

Common cold or flu. Warming, soothing foods are usually best accepted.

  • Soups or stews. Take advantage of the opportunity to get some quality nutrition in these meals. Butternut squash soup is a good source of vitamin A, tomato soup is a good source of vitamin C, potato soup is a good source of potassium, and beef or chicken stew provides good protein.
  • Bone broth. This traditional soup is made by actually boiling bones for a prolonged time, which creates a broth full of the nutrients stored in bones. You can use bones from a whole chicken after cooking it and using the meat for another meal. Put them in a crock pot on low over night or simmer on the stove for 8-12 hours. Use the broth to make soups, noodles, congee, or drink it warmed.
  • Offer good vitamin C sources such as fresh citrus fruits.

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5 Ways to Get Your Picky Toddler to Eat　

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toddler not eating dinner

Struggling to get your toddler to eat a variety of foods? Tired of watching them eat the same foods from the same food group over and over again? Have no fear! NSPT’s very own dietitian is here! 🙂

First and foremost, is your child a picky eater? Do they refuse to eat any of the healthy foods that you offer? Have you tried unsuccessfully to get them to eat different healthy　foods? Is the number of foods they are willing to eat so limited it concerns you? If you’ve answered ‘yes’ to any of those questions, your child may be a selective eater. However, in many cases, picky eating has nothing to do with food and has more to do with control.

5 Tips for a Picky Eater

1. Set a schedule. Children tend to respond well to routine, so try to schedule a set time for breakfast, lunch, dinner and at least two small snacks. The more consistent the timing, the more your child will　get accustomed to eating every two to three hours.

2. Take advantage of food jags. Does your toddler only eat plain macaroni orr pieces of cheese? Have no fear – the good news is that they’re eating! It’s safe to assume that eventually they will get over these “food jags”, and now is the time to experiment with healthier alternatives without taking away their favorite food. For example, try pasta with added fiber or cheese made with two percent milk for healthier alternatives.

3. Don’t give up. When it comes to getting your picky eater to try new foods, be patient. Studies show that it can take up to 15 to 20 consistent tries in a period of one to two months for a child to even consider trying a new food. If your child doesn’t want to eat chicken on Monday, try again on Friday or the following week.

4. Participation is key. Try to get your child involved with grocery shopping and meal preparation. Let them pick out fruits and vegetables at the local farmers’ market and get them involved in the kitchen. The more you get them involved with what they can eat, the more likely they’ll be to try it.

5. Remember the rule of thumb: your child will decide what he or she will eat, but you as a parent decide what foods and how often. Especially during the ages of two to five, children try to gain their independence with their eating behavior. The less you try to force them to eat, the more likely your child will be able to control their own food intake.

What is your secret to get your picky eater to eat? What has worked for you? Do share!