Are you not always sure if your child’s cough and sniffles warrant keeping him home from school? You’re not alone.

In fact, a new study shows that in the past year three out of four parents faced at least one situation in which they were not entirely sure whether or not to keep their child home from school when he or she had a cold.

The National Association of School Nurses (NASN) and Triaminic developed “Sick Day Guidelines” to provide parents with the key signs that they should consider keeping their children home from school, including:

* A fever of 100.4 degrees or … read more

Whether it is out-of-town house guests, battling shoppers, airline delays or feeling the pinch around the waistline, sometimes holiday-related stress can take the joy out of the season. This year, make a point to take control of your stress by maintaining good health habits to kick start a better lifestyle as you enter the New Year.

Don’t burn out before you even get a chance to get started with those resolutions. Here are four ways to help you make it from now to 2009 without going insane:

Make less room for bad food.
If there’s one certainty, the … read more

As you wait for your baby to be born, you child-proof the home ensuring that all the outlets have plugs, all detergents and other products used to clean are safely put on the top shelves and put safety locks on cabinets in the kitchen and bathroom, right? Yet, somehow, kids find a way to locate an item that can be toxic.

What are these items? Lets take a look. While you may not even give it a second thought, read what a pediatrician from a local hospital had to say: If you smell something in your … read more

According to the American Heart Association, 61.5% of children ages 9-13 do not participate in any organized physical activity during non-school hours and 22.6% do not engage in any free-time physical activity at all. This startling statistic accounts for the rise in obesity among children ages 2-5 years old. These results indicate how vital it is for kids to maintain an exercise program to ensure a healthy heart.

With obesity now a pandemic in our society, there is an urgent need to teach children from an early age why exercise is important. The American Heart Association … read more

As new parents, we want to give our children a healthy start in life. We can do so by utilizing the following tips:

* Think back to your fondest memories as a child and how your parents raised you. More often than not, their instincts were correct. Begin by following your own instincts.

* Children rely on you for everything. Thus it is important to live a healthy and productive life. Being a good role model for your child is the key.

* Treat your child with respect and they will treat you the same way.

* Communicate with your … read more

Although we are becoming a more health conscious society, it boggles the mind to understand why obesity is on the rise, especially in children. The rate at which children ages 2 to 19 years are obese, has risen 17%.

Thats quite more than a startling statistic. It is a call to every parent to reassess their kids dietary habits and come up with a plan to reduce their weight gain before they develop chronic illness as well as cardiovascular problems.

The eating habits of children have always been a concern for parents, the community and the nation as … read more