Bloom Kids Summer 2016

Catholic Health Initiatives Non-Profit Org US POSTAGE

20%

PAID

Denver, CO Permit No. 4773

OFF

6071 E. Woodmen Road, Suite 225 Colorado Springs, CO 80923

the purchase of one item

Help Mom and Baby get off to a great start with a gift from the Lactation Center Boutique at St. Francis Medical Center. We specialize in breastfeeding support products, including nursing pads, comfort gels, nursing bras and tanks, and more! We also offer services such as private appointments with a lactation consultant or a certified bra fitter, plus a wide array of non-breastfeeding gifts perfect for new moms and great gifts for baby showers!

Address | 6001 E. Woodmen Road, 3rd Floor Phone | 719-571-3100 Hours | Mon-Fri: 9 a.m.-5 p.m.; Sat: 10 a.m.-3 p.m.

Expiration date: 10/1/2016 Excludes consultations and rentals.

kids

Centura Health Physician Group Pediatrics NorthCare is part of Centura Health, the region’s leading health care network. Centura Health does not discriminate against any person on the basis of race, color, national origin, disability, age, sex, religion, creed, ancestry, sexual orientation, and marital status in admission, treatment, or participation in its programs, services and activities, or in employment. For further information about this policy, contact Centura Health’s Office of the General Counsel at 303-804-8166.

Copyright © Centura Health, 2016.

Risky Foods

Learn to avoid the quicksand of snacks

Also inside:

Time for Play

Lack of attention or lack of sleep?

Helping parents raise healthy toddlers, tots, and teens

Summer 2016

Solving Mom’s Incontinence

Volume 1, Issue 1

sneaky side of The

After-Delivery

snacks Y

ou’ve banned sodas from your house and limited desserts. But your toddler still may be eating more sugar and sodium than you know, thanks to hidden sources in snacks. Nearly three-quarters of packaged toddler dinners are high in sodium, according to a study in the journal Pediatrics. And a third of toddler dinners and the majority of toddler snacks have more than one added source of sugar.

Melaina Bjorklund, MS, RD, a clinical dietitian at Penrose-St. Francis Health Services, offers busy parents these tips:

Pizza is the top source of sodium for kids 2-19.

Know the name. Check labels for all types of sugar, such as corn syrup, fructose, dextrose, barley malt, and evaporated cane juice.

Assess sodium content. Aim to feed your child less than 1,500 milligrams of sodium per day.

Bread, cheese, and cold cuts are all high-sodium kid favorites.

Pack wisely. Opt for healthier snacks when possible. “Try the squeeze pouches of organic fruits, vegetables, grains, and/or protein mixtures,” Bjorklund says.

Visit bloomkidshealth.org to read how nutrition during teen years impacts heart health later and get healthy lunch box ideas.

What you can do about postpartum incontinence

Y

our new baby makes you laugh, but she also might make you pee a little. One in three women will experience urinary incontinence following childbirth, says Kristina Koch, a women’s health certified physical therapist with Colorado Sports and Spine Center at St. Francis Medical Center.

“The most common type is stress incontinence — leakage with coughing, sneezing, lifting, or running.”

Performing Kegel exercises can help — if you do them properly.

“It’s very important to isolate the pelvic floor muscles and not substitute with the abdominals, buttocks, or inner thighs,” Koch says. “Imagine a marble in the vagina that you are trying to squeeze and lift up.”

Start by contracting two to three seconds. Repeat 10 times, three times a day. Work up to contracting for 10 seconds at a time.

We Can Help At least half of women with urinary incontinence have difficulty isolating their pelvic floor muscles correctly. Come to a FREE seminar on Aug. 9 to learn the proper way to exercise the pelvic floor and get your questions answered. Register at penrosestfrancis.org/ nolaughingmatter.

Q: When should my child get the HPV vaccine?

A: Both males and females should be getting the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine at age 11 or 12, but it can be given as early as age 9 or up to age 26, says Mikhal Schiffer, MD, a pediatrician at Centura Health Physician Group Pediatrics NorthCare. It should be administered before a person becomes sexually active.

Nearly every person who is sexually active will contract HPV at some point in his or her life, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The most dangerous HPV strains, which are prevented by the vaccine, cause cervical cancer, genital warts, and some forms of throat cancer.

“It’s expected that in the next few decades, cancer rates are going to drop significantly because there’s a new generation of kids getting vaccinated,” Schiffer says. bloomkidshealth.org

Watch a video about HPV and your child at bloomkidshealth.org and download a FREE infographic about teen vaccines.

CHPG Pediatrics NorthCare

play s ’ the thing the

Making time for fun is essential to your child’s development

A

s a parent, do you watch your kids in the yard and think how nice it would be to just play all day? Kids play because it’s fun, and they don’t have responsibilities holding them back. But in a sense, play is a child’s responsibility.

“Physical activity is important for children, not just to help promote a healthy lifestyle and provide exercise, but to help children develop the fundamental motor skills needed for movement,” says Pennie Schultz, MD, a pediatrician at Centura Health Physician Group Pediatrics NorthCare. “As children begin to master these skills, they develop self-confidence and self-esteem, which in turn leads to better cognitive development and the desire to explore, create, and learn more.”

Ways to play Play is so important that the United Nations High Commission for Human Rights has designated it a right of every child, according to the journal Pediatrics. The skills developed during play are age-specific.

6 to 12 months Basic movements like rolling, scooting, pulling/pushing with arms/legs, sitting, reaching, and grabbing.

1 to 2 years Walking, running, and climbing, which allow toddlers to explore and learn about their environment.

2 to 3 years Basic motor skills of running, jumping, hopping, kicking, throwing, and catching; and the basic manipulative skills of squeezing, grasping, and pinching.

3 to 5 years Development of balance and coordination, continued refinement and mastery of basic motor and manipulative skills.

6 and up Development of eye tracking and hand-eye coordination, and early development of more complex movements and specific skills.

Play also helps children develop cognitive, language, and social skills, which build aptitudes for communication and sharing. Sports and other structured activities, such as dance and martial arts, are important, but many kids miss out on free play because of overly packed schedules. “Children learn best through active play, and part of this play needs to be unstructured and self-guided,” Schultz says. “Being outside when possible or in a larger/open indoor space allows children to practice these fundamental skills at their own pace on their own terms.”

Is your child getting the right types of activity to fully develop gross motor and fine motor skills as well as eye-hand coordination, eye tracking, and even speech? Go online to bloomkidshealth.org to get ideas of activities essential to development.

ADHD or Apnea?

Attention issues could be due to lack of sleep

Is your child constantly waking up on the wrong side of the bed? Is he disruptive in school?

Does she have trouble paying attention in class? You may be thinking ADHD, but there is another possibility: sleep apnea.

“Obstructive sleep apnea is stopping breathing due to an obstruction of the airway during sleep,” says Athena Stroud, manager of the Penrose-St. Francis Sleep Disorders Center, which provides sleep studies for children 4 and older. “It’s basically the same thing for children as it is for adults. One main difference is that children who are chronically tired don’t behave the same way as adults who are chronically tired.”

Sleep apnea symptoms in children include: Snoring, snorting, or gasping for breath during sleep Restless sleep Bed-wetting Daytime sleepiness Inattention and behavioral problems Sleep apnea is sometimes misdiagnosed as ADHD because of the behavioral implications. It’s key to talk with your child’s doctor, who may recommend a sleep study where medical staff will monitor your child’s sleep for a full night in a comfortable bedroomlike setting. “One typical treatment for obstructive sleep apnea in a child is a tonsillectomy, as many times it is the crowding in the back of a child’s throat that causes sleep apnea,” Stroud says.

One in three children will develop a sleep issue. Learn the sleep disorders to look for in children and tips on getting them back to sleep at bloomkidshealth.org.

Meet the Centura Health Physician

Group Pediatrics NorthCare physicians

Sarah Amoroso, DO Pediatrics is Dr. Amoroso’s passion, and she has a special interest in infant care and breastfeeding. As an osteopathic-trained physician, she employs physical therapies to help her patients.

Mikhal Schiffer, MD Dr. Schiffer loves working with children and has a special interest in urgent care, mental health, teens, and patients with diverse backgrounds. She speaks Spanish, Hebrew, and some Portuguese.

Pennie Schultz, MD Dr. Schultz enjoys taking care of children and feels privileged to watch them grow. Her goal is to partner with parents to provide quality, compassionate care for each child to help them reach their full potential.

We are conveniently located at 6071 E. Woodmen Road, Suite 225, in Colorado Springs.

CHPG Pediatrics NorthCare is accepting new patients and scheduling back-to-school physicals. Call 719-571-7130 for an appointment.

Heads Up!

Protect your child with proper bike helmet care

You know it’s important to properly place a bike helmet on your child’s head. But did you know

there are proper ways to take care of a helmet when it’s on the shelf, too?

“Proper care and storage, and replacing worn-out helmets are key to keeping your child safe,” says Anne Wardrop, RN, trauma director at Centura Health for southern Colorado.

When storing, don’t place items inside the helmet or hang it off a hard object that could damage the inner foam. Follow manufacturer instructions for washing.

Replace any helmet that: • Has been involved in a crash • Has been dropped and the foam cracked • Has been stored in a hot car or been exposed to extended extreme heat or sunlight • Does not have a hard plastic outer shell • Lacks a certification sticker from Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), ASTM, or Snell

head to the ER If your child sustains an injury to the head and experiences loss of consciousness (even for a few seconds), confusion, or headache, he or she needs to go to an ER. View Penrose Hospital and St. Francis Medical Center emergency room and urgent care wait times at penrosestfrancis.org.

bloom kids is published four times annually by Penrose-St. Francis Health Services. As part of Centura Health, our mission is to nurture the health of the people in our community. The information herein is meant to complement and not replace advice provided by a licensed health care professional. For comments or to unsubscribe to this publication, please email us at bloomkids@centura.org. bloom kids is produced by Clementine Healthcare Marketing. Executive editor is Jill Woodford.

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