How Much Sleep Do Children Need?

The amount of sleep a child needs varies depending on the individual and certain factors, including the age of the child. Following are some general guidelines:

1-4 Weeks Old: 15 - 16 hours per day
Newborns typically sleep about 15 to 18 hours a day, but only in short periods of two to four hours. Premature babies may sleep longer and colicky ones shorter.

Since newborns do not yet have an internal biological clock, or circadian rhythm, their sleep patterns are not related to the daylight and nighttime cycles. In fact, they tend not to have much of a pattern at all.

1-4 Months Old: 14 - 15 hours per day
By 6 weeks of age your baby is beginning to settle down a bit, and you may notice more regular sleep patterns emerging. The longest periods of sleep run four to six hours and now tends to occur more regularly in the evening. Day-night confusion ends.

4-12 Months Old: 14 - 15 hours per day
While up to 15 hours is ideal, most infants up to 11 months old get only about 12 hours sleep. Establishing healthy sleep habits is a primary goal during this period, as your baby is now much more social, and his sleep patterns are more adult-like.

Babies typically have three naps and drop to two at around 6 months old, at which time (or earlier) they are physically capable of sleeping through the night. Establishing regular naps generally happens at the latter part of this time frame, as his biological rhythms mature. The midmorning nap usually starts at 9 a.m. and lasts about an hour. The early afternoon nap starts from 12 to 2 p.m. and lasts an hour or two. And the late afternoon nap may start from 3 to 5 p.m. and is variable in duration.

1-3 Years Old: 12 - 14 hours per day
As your child moves past the first year toward 18-21 months of age he will likely lose his morning nap and nap only once a day. While toddlers need up to 14 hours a day of sleep, they typically get only about 10.

Most children from about 21 to 36 months of age still need one nap a day, which may range from one to three and a half hours long. They typically go to bed between 7 and 9 p.m. and wake up between 6 and 8 a.m.

3-6 Years Old: 10 - 12 hours per day
Children at this age typically go to bed between 7 and 9 p.m. and wake up around 6 and 8 a.m., just as they did when they were younger. At 3, most children are still napping while at 5, most are not. Naps gradually become shorter as well. New sleep problems do not usually develop after 3 years of age.

7-12 Years Old: 10 - 11 hours per day
At these ages, with social, school, and family activities, bedtimes gradually become later and later, with most 12-years-olds going to bed at about 9 p.m. There is still a wide range of bedtimes, from 7:30 to 10 p.m., as well as total sleep times, from 9 to 12 hours, although the average is only about 9 hours.

12-18 Years Old: 8 - 9 hours per day
Sleep needs remain just as vital to health and well-being for teenagers as when they were younger. It turns out that many teenagers actually may need more sleep than in previous years. Now, however, social pressures conspire against getting the proper amount and quality of sleep.

Source:
http://www.webmd.com/parenting/guide/sleep-children

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) in children

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is an anxiety disorder. It is an illness that causes people to have unwanted thoughts (obsessions) and to repeat certain behaviors (compulsions) over and over again. We all have habits and routines in our daily lives, such as brushing our teeth before bed. However, for people with OCD, patterns of behavior get in the way of their daily lives. Most people with OCD know that their obsessions and compulsions make no sense, but they can't ignore or stop them. All kids have worries and doubts. But kids with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) often can't stop worrying, no matter how much they want to. And those worries frequently compel them to behave in certain ways over and over again.

What are obsessions?
Obsessions are ideas, images and impulses that run through the person's mind over and over again. A person with OCD doesn't want to have these thoughts and finds them disturbing, but he or she can't control them. Sometimes these thoughts just come once in a while and are only mildly annoying. Other times, a person who has OCD will have obsessive thoughts all the time.
Kids with OCD become preoccupied with whether something could be harmful, dangerous, wrong, or dirty — or with thoughts about bad stuff that might happen. With OCD, upsetting or scary thoughts or images, called obsessions, pop into a person's mind and are hard to shake. Kids with OCD may also worry about things being out of "order" or not "just right." They may worry about losing "useless" items, sometimes feeling the need to collect these items.

What are compulsions?
Obsessive thoughts make people who have OCD feel nervous and afraid. They try to get rid of these feelings by performing certain behaviors according to "rules" that they make up for themselves. These behaviors are called compulsions. (Compulsive behaviors are sometimes also called rituals.) For example, a person who has OCD may have obsessive thoughts about germs. Because of these thoughts, the person may wash his or her hands repeatedly after using a public toilet. Performing these behaviors usually only makes the nervous feelings go away for a short time. When the fear and nervousness return, the person who has OCD repeats the routine all over again. Similarly, a child with OCD feels strong urges to do certain things repeatedly — called rituals or compulsions — in order to banish the scary thoughts, ward off something dreaded, or make extra sure that things are safe or clean or right. Children may have a difficult time explaining a reason for their rituals and say they do them "just because." But in general, by doing a ritual, the child with OCD is trying to feel absolutely certain that something bad won't happen.

What are some common obsessions?
The following are some common obsessions:
Fear of dirt or germs
Disgust with bodily waste or fluids
Concern with order, symmetry (balance) and precision
Worry that a task has been done poorly, even when the person knows this is not true
Fear of thinking evil or sinful thoughts
Thinking about certain sounds, images, words or numbers all the time
Need for constant reassurance
Fear of harming a family member or friend

What are some common compulsions?
The following are some common compulsions:
Cleaning and grooming, such as washing hands, showering or brushing teeth over and over again
Checking drawers, door locks and appliances to be sure they are shut, locked or turned off
Repeating, such as going in and out of a door, sitting down and getting up from a chair, or touching certain objects several times
Ordering and arranging items in certain ways
Counting over and over to a certain number
Saving newspapers, mail or containers when they are no longer needed
Seeking constant reassurance and approval

What causes OCD?
No one has found a single, proven cause for OCD. Some research shows that it may have to do with chemicals in the brain that carry messages from one nerve cell to another. One of these chemicals, called serotonin (say "seer-oh-tone-in"), helps to keep people from repeating the same behaviors over and over again. A person who has OCD may not have enough serotonin. Many people who have OCD can function better when they take medicines that increase the amount of serotonin in their brain.

Evidence is also strong that OCD tends to run in families. Many people with OCD have one or more family members who also have it or other anxiety disorders influenced by the brain's serotonin levels. Because of this, scientists have come to believe that the tendency (or predisposition) for someone to develop the serotonin imbalance that causes OCD can be inherited through a person's genes.

Signs and Symptoms of OCD
OCD in kids is usually diagnosed between the ages of 7 and 12. Since these are the years when kids naturally feel concerned about fitting in with their friends, the discomfort and stress brought on by OCD can make them feel scared, out of control, and alone.

Recognizing OCD is often difficult because kids can become adept at hiding the behaviors. It's not uncommon for a child to engage in ritualistic behavior for months, or even years, before parents know about it. Also, a child may not engage in the ritual at school, so parents might think that it's just a phase.

When a child with OCD tries to contain these thoughts or behaviors, this creates anxiety. Kids who feel embarrassed or as if they're "going crazy" may try to blend the OCD into the normal daily routine until they can't control it anymore.

It's common for kids to ask a parent to join in the ritualistic behavior: First the child has to do something and then the parent has to do something else. If a child says, "I didn't touch something with germs, did I?" the parent might have to respond, "No, you're OK," and the ritual will begin again for a certain number of times. Initially, the parent might not notice what is happening. Tantrums, overt signs of worry, and difficult behaviors are common when parents fail to participate in their child's rituals. It is often this behavior, as much as the OCD itself, which brings families into treatment.

Parents can look for the following possible signs of OCD:
raw, chapped hands from constant washing
unusually high rate of soap or paper towel usage
high, unexplained utility bills
a sudden drop in test grades
unproductive hours spent doing homework
holes erased through test papers and homework
requests for family members to repeat strange phrases or keep answering the same question
a persistent fear of illness
a dramatic increase in laundry
an exceptionally long amount of time spent getting ready for bed
a continual fear that something terrible will happen to someone
constant checks of the health of family members
reluctance to leave the house at the same time as other family members
Environmental and stress factors can trigger the onset of OCD. These can include ordinary developmental transitions (such as starting school) as well as significant losses or changes (such as the death of a loved one or moving).

Diagnosing OCD
If your child shows signs of OCD, talk to your doctor. In screening for OCD, a doctor or mental health professional will ask about your child about obsessions and compulsions in language that kids will understand, such as:
Do you have worries, thoughts, images, feelings, or ideas that bother you?
Do you have to check things over and over again?
Do you have to wash your hands a lot, more than most kids?
Do you count to a certain number or do things a certain number of times?
Do you collect things that others might throw away (like hair or fingernail clippings)?
Do things have to be "just so"?
Are there things you have to do before you go to bed?

How is OCD treated?
The most successful treatments for kids with OCD are behavioral therapy and medication. Behavioral therapy, also known as cognitive-behavioral psychotherapy (CBT), helps kids learn to change thoughts and feelings by first changing behavior. It involves exposing kids to their fears, with the agreement that they will not perform rituals, to help them recognize that their anxiety will eventually decrease and that no disastrous outcome will occur.

For example, kids who are afraid of dirt might be exposed to something they consider dirty on numerous occasions. For exposure to be successful, it must be combined with response prevention, in which the child's rituals or avoidance behaviors are blocked. For example, a child who fears dirt must not only stay in contact with the dirty object, but also must not be allowed to wash repeatedly. Some treatment plans involve having the child "bossing back" the OCD, giving it a nasty nickname, and visualizing it as something the child can control. Over time, the anxiety provoked by dirt and the urge to perform washing rituals gradually disappear. The child also gains confidence that he or she can "fight" OCD.

OCD can sometimes worsen if it's not treated in a consistent, logical, and supportive manner. So it's important to find a therapist who has training and experience in treating OCD. Just talking about the rituals and fears have not been shown to help OCD, and may actually make it worse by reinforcing the fears and prompting extra rituals. Family support and cooperation also go a long way toward helping a child cope with OCD.

Many kids can do well with behavioral therapy alone while others will need a combination of behavioral therapy and medication. Therapy can help your child and family learn strategies to manage the ebb and flow of OCD symptoms, while medication, such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), often can reduce the impulse to perform rituals.

Helping Kids With OCD
It's important to understand that OCD is never a child's fault. Once a child is in treatment, it's important for parents to participate, to learn more about OCD, and to modify expectations and be supportive.

Kids with OCD get better at different rates, so try to avoid any day-to-day comparisons and recognize and praise any small improvements. Keep in mind that it's the OCD that is causing the problem, not the child. The more that personal criticism can be avoided, the better.
It can be helpful to keep family routines as normal as possible, and for all family members to learn strategies to help the child with OCD. It is also important to not let OCD be the "boss" of the house and regular family activities. Giving in to OCD worries does not make them go away.

Sources:
http://kidshealth.org/parent/emotions/behavior/OCD.html#
http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/common/mentalhealth/anxiety/133.html

H1N1 in children

H1N1 flu is highly contagious. It spreads from person to person through droplets that form when an infected person coughs, sneezes, laughs, or talks. The virus can also live for hours on surfaces. A person can become infected by touching acontaminated surface then touching their eyes, nose, or mouth.

About half of the confirmed H1N1 flu cases in Singapore involve young people below the age of 20. At KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital (KKH), the average age of a patient is 10 years old, with the youngest being just 14 months.

Children are more susceptible to H1N1 because they have no underlying immunity to the virus, and also because children do not practise good hygiene most of the time. They may cough and sneeze and won’t even remember to cover their mouth and nose. Parents should always pay special attention to children under 5 years of age, because they are more likely to become seriously ill than older children.

H1N1 flu symptoms are about the same as regular flu symptoms. These include fever and chills, headache, body and muscle aches, dry cough, runny nose, and weakness. The child may also have sore throat, diarrhea, or vomiting. Young children may have difficulty breathing and low activity, but few other symptoms. Children with Influenza A (H1N1) are likely to have a higher fever than adults.

If your child, particularly small children, exhibits any of the following warning signs, seek emergency medical care:

Trouble breathing, including rapid breathing.
Gray or bluish skin color
Not drinking enough fluids
Not waking up or not interacting
Being irritable and not wanting to be held
Not urinating or no tears when crying
The symptoms improve but then return with fever and worse cough

Parenting styles

There are three types of parenting styles: Authoritarian, Permissive, Democratic or authoritative. Research on children's development shows that the most positive outcomes for children occur when parents use democratic styles. Children with permissive parents tend to be aggressive and act out, while children with authoritarian parents tend to be compliant and submissive and have low self-esteem.

Authoritarian
Authoritarian parents always try to be in control and exert their control on the children. These parents set strict rules to try to keep order, and they usually do this without much expression of warmth and affection. They attempt to set strict standards of conduct and are usually very critical of children for not meeting those standards. They tell children what to do, they try to make them obey and they usually do not provide children with choices or options.

Authoritarian parents don't explain why they want their children to do things. If a child questions a rule or command, the parent might answer, "Because I said so." Parents tend to focus on bad behavior, rather than positive behavior, and children are scolded or punished, often harshly, for not following the rules.

Children with authoritarian parents usually do not learn to think for themselves and understand why the parent is requiring certain behaviors.

Permissive
Permissive parents give up most control to their children. Parents make few, if any, rules, and the rules that they make are usually not consistently enforced. They don't want to be tied down to routines. They want their children to feel free. They do not set clear boundaries or expectations for their children's behavior and tend to accept in a warm and loving way, however the child behaves.

Permissive parents give children as many choices as possible, even when the child is not capable of making good choices. They tend to accept a child's behavior, good or bad, and make no comment about whether it is beneficial or not. They may feel unable to change misbehavior, or they choose not to get involved.

Democratic Or Authoritative
Democratic parents help children learn to be responsible for themselves and to think about the consequences of their behavior. Parents do this by providing clear, reasonable expectations for their children and explanations for why they expect their children to behave in a particular manner. They monitor their children's behavior to make sure that they follow through on rules and expectations. They do this in a warm and loving manner. They often, "try to catch their children being good" and reinforcing the good behavior, rather than focusing on the bad.

For example, a child who leaves her toys on a staircase may be told not to do this because, "Someone could trip on them and get hurt and the toy might be damaged." As children mature, parents involve children in making rules and doing chores: "Who will mop the kitchen floor, and who will carry out the trash?"

Parents who have a democratic style give choices based on a child's ability. For a toddler, the choice may be "red shirt or striped shirt?" For an older child, the choice might be "apple, orange or banana?" Parents guide children's behavior by teaching, not punishing. "You threw your truck at Mindy. That hurt her. We're putting your truck away until you can play with it safely."

Source: http://pediatrics.about.com/od/infantparentingtips/a/04_pntg_styles.htm

Haircut for kids

Babies and kids tend to get scared and cries during their haircuts. It's perfectly normal for toddlers to feel anxious during haircut time, especially when they are being wrapped in a plastic cape, surrounded by unfamiliar sights and sounds, squirted with water, and attacked with a pair of sharp scissors or an electric shaver by a stranger! Thus a friendly and familiar environment is very important to them. Imagine, if you could take your child to a hair salon especialised for kids, which they can sit in an airplane/fire truck/race car and watch a DVD while getting their hair cut, isn't it wonderful?

Several hair salons have sprung up specially for children, complete with fun chairs and distractions like cartoons to watch and XBox 360 gaming consoles that will make the whole experience child's play and make them forget they are having their hair cut.

If your toddler has hair-cutting phobia, try bring them to these specialised kids salon:

Hua Xia
The salon's chairs come in the shape of toy car, airplane or truck, where kids can pick a DVD to watch while they have their hair cut. Its hairdressers also make home visits for babies too young to leave the house, charging the usual fee for a cut plus transport fees.

Price: S$16 per cut and the fifth cut is FREE!

Location:168 Punggol Field #02-09 Punggol Plaza

Website: http://www.babyswimming.com.sg/babies_and_kids.html


Junior League Children's Style Salon
Kids are pampered with candy, balloons, toys and stickers. Each chair even comes fitted with its own TV screen, playing popular cartoons like Dora The Explorer and Tom And Jerry. Its first outlet was opened at United Square, and has now grown to a chain of four. Its three other outlets are at Suntec City, Parkway Parade and inside VivoCity's Toys "R" Us.

Price: S$18 per cut

Location:
Forum Mall #03-03/25 (in Toys "R" Us)
Vivo City #02-183 (in Toys "R" Us)
Parkway Parade #02/52
Suntec City #03/K02
United Square #01-76A

Website: NIL


Curly & Spike
From the funky décor to the specially designed kids styling stations, everything is set up just for kids. Equipped with special dwarf-size seats, each comes with a 19-inch flat screen TV, a DVD player and XBox 360 with the latest games like Shrek and Superman to pacify the scissor-avoiding squirmer.

Price: $20 per cut

Location: 81 Clemenceau Avenue#02-14 UE Square

Website: http://www.curlynspike.com.sg


Other places:
Kitz Kid's Salon
80 Marine Parade Road
#02-52 Parkway Parade
Tel: 63465818

Cost: $16

Toddler recipes

Are you pulling at your hair because your toddler refuses to eat anything you serve? Have you exhausted all tricks to make him eat? Many parents are concerned that their finicky eater will go hungry or will not receive the proper nutrition necessary to grow big and strong. We know that forcing food on a child is not a good idea. It is always best to teach your children about the value of healthy eating and have them take part in the fun.

If you are still at wits' end, maybe try out other interesting menus for toddlers from some recipes here:

Food for tots
http://food-4tots.blogspot.com/

Toddler dish
http://www.toddlerdish.com/recipes.html

Toddler recipes
http://www.recipezaar.com/recipes/toddlers

Use of antibiotics in children

Antibiotics are powerful drugs used for treating many serious and life-threatening infectious diseases. Antibiotics are only effective against bacterial infections, certain fungal infections and some kinds of parasites. Most infections result from either bacteria or viruses. Antibiotics can't help you if a virus is responsible for your child's illness.

Below are some bacterial and viral infections:

Bacterial infections cause:
Some ear infections
Severe sinus infections
Strep throat
Urinary tract infections
Many wound and skin infections
Most ear infections

Viral infections cause:
Colds Influenza (flu)
Most coughs
Most sore throats
Bronchitis
Stomach flu (viral gastroenteritis)


How antibiotic resistance develops
The misuse of antibiotics has caused problems. Their frequent use, often for conditions or infections that aren't caused by bacteria, has given rise to bacteria that are resistant to many commonly used antibiotics. Superbugs emerge when an antibiotic fails to kill all of the bacteria it targets, and the surviving bacteria become resistant to that particular drug and frequently other antibiotics as well. Doctors then prescribe a stronger antibiotic, but the bacteria quickly learn to withstand the more potent drug as well, perpetuating a cycle in which increasingly powerful drugs are required to treat infections.

Safeguard effective antibiotics
What you can doUsing antibiotics too often or incorrectly is a major cause of the increase in resistant bacteria. Here are some things you can do to promote proper use of antibiotics:

Understand when antibiotics should be used. Don't expect to take antibiotics every time your child is sick. Antibiotics are effective in treating most bacterial infections, but they're not useful against viral infections, such as colds, acute bronchitis, or the flu. And even some common bacterial ailments, such as mild ear infections, don't benefit much from antibiotics.

Don't pressure your doctor for antibiotics if your child has a viral illness. Instead, talk with your doctor about ways to relieve the symptoms of his/her viral illness — a saline nasal spray to clear a stuffy nose, for instance, or a mixture of warm water, lemon and honey to temporarily soothe a sore throat.

Take antibiotics exactly as prescribed. Follow the doctor's instructions when taking prescribed medication, including how many times a day and for how long. Never stop treatment a few days early if your child is starting to feel better — a complete course of antibiotics is needed to kill all of the harmful bacteria. A shortened course of antibiotics, on the other hand, often wipes out only the most vulnerable bacteria, while allowing relatively resistant bacteria to survive.

Usually, the length of antibiotic therapy will be a minimum of 5 days. In most cases, if your child has missed one dose of antibiotic, you should not double the next dose. Instead, you should continue to let him/her take his/her doses as normal.

Source:
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/antibiotics/FL00075

Constipation in infants

Constipation is an abnormal pattern of bowel movements in which stools are passed less frequently than usual and are often harder than usual. Everyone has a different normal pattern. For example, some children have bowel movements only once every 2-4 days. It is normal for breast-fed babies to have large, soft bowel movements without pain up to 7 days apart. Others have bowel movements 2-4 times daily. However, a child is constipated whenever his/her pattern slows down noticeably.

Causes
Very rarely, disease causes constipation. In this case the problem usually begins in the early weeks of life. In most children, there is no disease but once constipation begins, it tends to continue. Some of the factors that may contribute to the onset of constipation are:

1. Formula.
Babies who breastfeed exclusively are rarely constipated. If your baby is on formula, it's possible that something in her formula is making her constipated. Ask your baby's doctor about switching brands.

2. The introduction of solids.
Don't be surprised if your baby becomes mildly constipated as she steps up to solid food. That's often because rice cereal, usually the first food given during this transition period, is low in fiber.

3. Dehydration.
If your baby isn't getting enough fluid, she'll become dehydrated and her system will respond by absorbing more fluid from whatever she eats or drinks — and from the waste in her bowels, as well. The result is hard, dry bowel movements that are difficult to pass.

Prevention
1. Make sure that your child's diet contains adequate fluids and high-fibre foods that act as natural laxatives (Fruit juices, fruits, particularly prunes, vegetables and salads, cereals).

2. If over 2 months old, give diluted fruit juices, such as prune juice twice a day.

3. If over 4 months old, add strained foods with high fibre content, such as cereals, apricots, prunes, peaches, pears, plums, beans, peas, or spinach twice daily.

4. Decrease consumption of constipating foods, such as milk, ice cream, cheese and cooked carrots.

5. Do not give your baby an enema or suppository (medicine in the rectum) unless advised by your doctor.

6. When your child is old enough (about 2 to 3 years old) help him/her establish regular bowel habits. Have your child spend a few minutes on the toilet or the "potty" once or twice daily immediately after meals. The position should be comfortable with knees up. For a small child using the toilet a footrest will be necessary so the legs don't hang down and the knees are up in a crouched position. Such a position eases bowel movement.

Sources:
1. Baby Center
2. NUH Kids

Handling a fussy eater

Here are some tips from Baby Center:

It's perfectly normal for young children to suddenly decide they will only eat a few foods and refuse everything else - even foods they loved yesterday. They may eat these same few foods over and over again at every meal, while turning up their noses at anything new. Children like things to be familiar, whether it's their bedtime routine or their cheese sandwich, so many children won't try new foods until they've been exposed to them several times.

Picky eating can also be a child's way of exerting his independence ("You can't make me eat that") and may have less to do with the actual food than his need to push the limits of your authority and to assert some control over his life. This is why pressuring a child to eat often backfires. Finally, it may seem like your toddler cannot sit still long enough to eat very much at one sitting because of his short attention span. But children are generally good at getting what they need, even if it doesn't seem like much to you.

Here are some more specific tips on how to handle a picky eater:

• Provide a variety of good foods for your child to eat at each meal.
Keep in mind that it takes multiple exposures to a new food for a child to see it as familiar and OK to try. So, be patient. When you do offer a new food, simply place it on the dinner table with everything else, and don't make a big fuss about it. Eventually, after he's seen you eat the food a few times, he may feel more open to trying it himself.

• Limit the options at mealtimes.
"If you say, 'It's dinnertime. What do you want to eat?' your child will probably choose something familiar to him, and he'll seem like a picky eater," says Hudson. "However, if you say, 'Here's dinner,' he'll choose from among the foods you're offering." Of course, you can't offer an entire meal of unfamiliar foods because your child simply won't eat them. Instead, offer a meal that includes at least one thing you know your child likes.

• When introducing new foods, offer just one or two, and present them in small quantities.
If by some miracle your child is willing to try a new food, give him just a taste before putting a whole serving on his plate. This way he won't feel overwhelmed - and it won't seem like a waste of food to you.

• Some children's palates are more sensitive than others.
They simply won't like the texture, colour, or taste of some foods. This is why a child will often claim to dislike a food he has never even tried. Likewise, some children may have an aversion to a food because it reminds them of a time when they were sick or has some other negative association. If your child complains that a particular food will make him ill, stop offering that food for a while. You can always try again when your child is a little older.

• Whenever possible, let your child be involved in food decisions.
This includes shopping or making his lunch. This will give him a sense of control over his diet, and he'll be more likely to eat something that he's chosen for himself. (This works best if you let your child choose from a small selection of healthy foods you've already picked out!)
As your child's world expands and he begins attending playgroup or nursery, his taste in foods might broaden as well. When he sees his friends eating new and different kinds of food, it might inspire him to eat new things, too.

Your child has an innate sense of how much food his body needs to grow and be healthy, and it's his job to decide what he's going to eat. The best thing you can do is to provide a wide variety of healthy foods in a positive, relaxed environment so that mealtimes will be enjoyable for everyone involved.

Post-natal abdominal exercises (Part 2)

Single leg circle
1. Lie on your back, arms by side, palms down. Inhale.

2. As you exhale, pull your abs up and in toward your spine, bring your right knee to your chest, then raise your right leg in the air, keep it straight. Rotate your raised legs slightly so that your heels point toward your stable leg and your toes point away from the right side of your body.

3. Keep your body pressed to the floor, esp the back of your hips.

4. Breathe normally, making a small circle in the air with your right foot in a clockwise direction. Repeat for 5 more circles. Then do 6 circles in the opposite direction. Then bring your leg to the floor.

5. Repeat exercise 6 times with the left leg raised.