Gut Feelings – Food Safety

Suns out, buns out. . . hot dog and hamburger buns that is.  With warmer days ahead, outdoor gatherings and cookouts are around the corner.  Summertime always brings the risk of significant illness from poorly cooked foods or foods left to the heat of the sun and flies.   Foodborne illnesses are preventable.  The onset of…

Prediabetes & Type 2 Diabetes in Children

Type 2 Diabetes (T2D) happens when blood sugar levels are too high because the body cannot use insulin properly. Prediabetes is when the blood sugar levels are higher than normal, but not high enough to meet the cutoff for diabetes. Prediabetes is usually present before someone is diagnosed with overt T2D. Interestingly, people with prediabetes…

Looking Back: Car Seat Safety

Car accidents are the leading cause of death in children over 1 year of age. Every year, hundreds of children die, and thousands are injured in motor vehicle collisions. In 2019, 1,053 children under 14 years of age died in a car accident. Of these, 38% were not properly restrained with car seats, booster seats,…

Let’s Read

Early childhood literacy has been shown to be a pillar of school success and to set children up to be successful adults. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, 34% of fourth graders are below their basic reading level. Being illiterate as a child can lead to difficulties with students graduating from high school…

Stress Less This Holiday Season

It’s the most wonderful time of the year! If you’re not careful, this can also become one of the most stressful times of the year. The pressure to have a beautifully decorated home, find the perfect gifts, and have smiling, grateful children at holiday gatherings can put a damper on the joy of the holiday…

Happy Hallow-teen!

October is upon us.  With October comes Halloween! Traditionally, Halloween safety is thought of in terms of younger children, trick-or-treating, and supervised school parties.  However, Halloween season is not just for the little ones. You may find your teenager wants to help decorate the house. They may want to go trick-or-treating or go a Halloween…

Chest Wall Deformities

The two most common chest wall problems that cause concern for children or their caregivers are pectus excavatum and pectus carinatum. Pectus excavatum is more common in boys and is caused by an abnormality of the cartilage that attaches the ribs to the sternum (or breastbone). The result is that the sternum is pushed backward,…

Healthy Habits for the New School Year

Summer vacation is winding down, and families have been busy preparing for another school year. Back to school can be anxiety provoking for parents and students alike. With a little preparation—packing bags and lunches the night before, meeting the teacher before the first day of class—getting back in the swing of things doesn’t have to…