Chocolate Flavored Formula?

I bet you can guess, this is not something I would buy. I am wondering why toddlers need formula. I mean really-what percentage of toddlers actually NEED formula? I read the response from Enfagrow. Maybe the population WANTS chocolate/vanilla flavored toddler formula. Who knows! This is strange to me.

FROM NBC: Variety may be the spice of life. But should toddlers get their 'formulas' in a variety of flavors? That's become a concern, now that chocolate and vanilla are being offered by a leading maker of children's nutritional products. "All right. Give it the nose test. Mmmm-hm. Yeah, yeah." "

I mean, it's something you and I could drink." "Yeah, it's pretty tempting." "But I don't know about a one-year-old." MaryLou Scott's daughter Johnna is many months away from becoming 'of age' for flavored toddler formula. And MaryLou won't hear of that. It'll be milk and natural juices for Johnna. Not a concoction flavored with chocolate or vanilla. Mary Lou: "And when you look at our endemic of childhood obesity these days -- that makes me a little bit nervous.

I'd rather he be more of a natural baby (Johnna burps). Right sweetie? Yeah." Dr. William Hitchcock, Pediatrician:"Y'know, I can just see the kid sit there and say no, stomping their feet, pursing their lips and so forth." Pediatricians tell us, and the maker of enfagrow acknowledges, that the flavored formulas are meant to be 'niche' products for finicky eaters -- and phased out sooner than later. Dr. William Hitchcock, Pediatrician:"Y'know, in moderation, for a short term fix, it's okay. But I would agree that you want to get the child back on regular milk or nonfat milk, and certainly on fruits and vegetables in a well-rounded diet."

MaryLou Scott, Mom: "This still isn't something that would enter into your thought process, that it might help if she's a picky eater?" "I don't think so. Because in a way she already is a picky eater, 'cause she's on a really sensitive formula right now. But baby formulas -- all of them don't taste well. And we're talking about birth to 12 months."

MaryLou is a nurse practitioner, and says the more sugar and other chemicals that are added to formulas, the greater the chances of allergies and adverse reactions. Mead Johnson nutrition company, the maker of Enfagrow, says the products are comparable to those of competitors, and contain more nutrients than milk.

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

What if you could look younger? Soderstrom Skin Institute was one of the first medical facilities to offer laser services in Central Illinois 20 years ago and today provides one of the most comprehensive laser treatment programs available. Call 674-7546 to schedule your FREE CONSULTATION today!

Cord Clamping

My third little baby needed oxygen right after he was born. This story makes me wonder if he wouldn't have needed it had they waited to clamp the cord. Can you wait to clamp the cord when the baby is born c-section? I don't know. I just know that because he had oxygen, he had to be monitored in the level 2 nursery the first 24 hours and I was devastated!

FIVE REASONS NOT TO CLAMP CORD IMMEDIATELY
FROM NBC: New mothers may want to have their doctors wait just a few minutes to clamp the umbilical cord after delivery. It's common practice for doctors to clamp the cord seconds after a baby is born, cutting off the flow of blood from the mother.

But a new study finds there may be benefits in delaying clamping for a few minutes, because cord blood has stem cells that can regenerate. Researchers say the delay may prevent anemia in full-term infants and might reduce brain bleeding, sepsis and jaundice in preemies.

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

What if you could look younger? Soderstrom Skin Institute was one of the first medical facilities to offer laser services in Central Illinois 20 years ago and today provides one of the most comprehensive laser treatment programs available. Call 674-7546 to schedule your FREE CONSULTATION today!

McDonald's Shrek Glass Recalled

I don't mean to sound negative, but I think it's ridiculous that our government lets toys and other children's items go out on shelves when they contain toxic chemicals. It is always a recall. Why aren't these manufacturers forced to follow the guidelines in the first place?

FROM ABC: There is a major consumer recall tonight involving 12 million children's drinking glasses sold by McDonalds. A toxic metal, cadmium, has been discovered in the designs painted on the glasses. And even thought he level is low, the consumer product safety commission is warning consumers to immediately stop using them. So what does this mean for children?

The glasses capitalize on the popular movie Shrek, a way to entice kids and their parents into the local McDonald's. An anonymous tip to a Congresswoman raised concern about cadmium contamination.

Don Mays/Consumers Union: "Cadmium is a toxic element, in fact, it's a potential carcinogen that it can attack the kidneys." The Consumer Product Safety Commission then began testing the glasses and found the painted designs do contain the hazardous metal cadmium although we're told at low levels. We wanted to see for ourselves and asked an consumer product testing company to examine the glasses with a special xray device that can show the presence of metal in objects.

Michael Travers/VHG Labs:"So I'm basically pointing the analyzer at the glass as a screening device we've identified that there is cadmium present in the sample." And how worrisome would this be then? "We couldn't determine that without doing further analysis." This is enough that we'd want to do further analysis. Cadmium has been a growing concern. This year, there've been three product recalls. And even though these glasses have low levels of cadmium, the government and McDonald's didn't want families to take any chances.

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

What if you could look younger? Soderstrom Skin Institute was one of the first medical facilities to offer laser services in Central Illinois 20 years ago and today provides one of the most comprehensive laser treatment programs available. Call 674-7546 to schedule your FREE CONSULTATION today!

Attitudes about Teen Sex

The last sentence in this article is shocking to me. A large percentage of teens don't care if they get pregnant or get a girl pregnant? What in the world! I can't imagine anyone thinking that when I was in high school. What is going on with teens today? Do they not realize the responsibility of becoming a parent? Obviously not. It is just too bad that this mentality is increasing. I wish I had a solution!

FROM NBC: Just as many teens are having sex today as they were in 2002 -- about 42-percent. But a new study suggests some of their attitudes about sex have changed over the years.

The CDC's National Center for Health Statistics finds more and more teens are using the rhythm method for birth control. this means they're not having sex during the time of month they think they or their partners are most fertile. Many experts say the rhythm method is not very reliable for teens because it's very difficult to use it accurately.

And the percentage of teen boys who find it OK for unmarried females to have babies rose from 50- to 64-percent. Researchers say these factors may give some insight into why the teen birth rate hasn't dropped much in recent years.

Also -- just under a quarter of teens say they'd be pleased if they found out they were pregnant, or got a girl pregnant.

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

What if you could look younger? Soderstrom Skin Institute was one of the first medical facilities to offer laser services in Central Illinois 20 years ago and today provides one of the most comprehensive laser treatment programs available. Call 674-7546 to schedule your FREE CONSULTATION today!

Mary had a little COW

I am now partnering with Bright Horizons e-family news letters to bring you some great kid articles they publish a few times a month.

When I opened this article today, I was cracking up because we do play some of the musical games mentioned. All of my kids love music, but my three-year-old really gets into it. I always sing No Doubt's "Hey Baby, hey baby hey, girls say, boys say." Then I catch him on the floor with the baby saying, "Hey Baby, girls talk, boys talk." He is so funny.

So when this article said to try and change the words to a popular kid's song and see what happens, I jumped right on that.

I said, "Mary had a little SPIDER." He started giggling and then immediately sang, "Mary had a little COW, little COW, little COW." Then it was, "Mary had a little PIG, little PIG, little PIG." And on and on. I suggest you try it. It was an entertaining morning for us!

Music as Children Grow Children of all ages express themselves through music. Even at an early age children sway, bounce, or move their hands in response to music they hear. Many preschoolers make up songs and, with no self-consciousness, sing to themselves as they play. Kids in elementary school learn to sing together as a group and possibly learn to play a musical instrument. Older children dance to the music of their favorite rock and roll bands and use music to form friendships and share feelings.

Infants Infants recognize the melody of a song long before they understand the words. They often try to mimic sounds and start moving to the music as soon as they are physically able. Quiet, background music can be soothing for many infants, especially at sleep time, but loud background music may over-stimulate an infant by raising the noise level of the room. Sing simple, short songs to infants in a high, soft voice. Try making up one or two lines about bathing, dressing, or eating to sing to them while you do these activities.

Toddlers Toddlers love to dance and move to music. They enjoy the repetition of songs which encourages the use of words and memorization. Silly songs make them laugh. Try singing a familiar song and inserting a silly word in the place of the correct word, like “Mary had a little spider” instead of lamb. Let them reproduce rhythms by clapping or tapping objects.

Preschoolers Preschoolers enjoy singing just to be singing. They aren’t self-conscious about their ability and most are eager to let their voices roar. They like songs that repeat words and melodies, rhythms with a definite beat, and words that ask them to do things. Preschool children enjoy nursery rhymes and songs about familiar things like toys, animals, play activities, and people. They also like finger plays and nonsense rhymes with or without musical accompaniment.

School-Age Children Most school-age children are intrigued by songs that involve counting, spelling, or remembering a sequence of events. Songs and musical activities with other school subjects also are effective during this developmental stage. School-age children begin expressing their likes and dislikes of different types of music. They may express an interest in taking musical lessons.

Teenagers Teenagers may use musical experiences to form friendships, and to set themselves apart from parents and younger kids. They often want to hang out and listen to music after school with a group of friends. Remember those days of basement and garage bands? They often have a strong interest in taking music lessons or playing in a band, the lure of becoming a rock idol. School-agers and teenagers might need a reminder to keep the volume down, particularly with headsets. If we can hear music through an MP3 player headset when it's not in our own ears, it’s probably too loud.

Inappropriate Music The sharing of musical tastes between parents and kids in a family can be lots of fun, especially for us, but there often comes a time for tweens and usually teens, when they prefer music to be a part of their separate world. According to the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Medicine, it is quite common for teenagers to get pleasure from keeping adults out and causing adults some distress, if not total shock. It probably didn’t require clinical research for us to know that, but it is reassuring to know that it’s not just our teenager that seeks separateness. Okay, but if our teens are not sharing their music, then how do we know what our children are listening to? As a family, you don’t have to listen to “their” music together, but as a parent, you can still control what they listen to by telling your child what is inappropriate for your family, by paying attention to your teenager's purchasing and downloading. Some super stores have stickers that indicate appropriate material. Trying an open discussion without criticism may be helpful. There are also many parental control software programs for music and internet usage.

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

What if you could look younger? Soderstrom Skin Institute was one of the first medical facilities to offer laser services in Central Illinois 20 years ago and today provides one of the most comprehensive laser treatment programs available. Call 674-7546 to schedule your FREE CONSULTATION today!

The Storm

I think my kids actually slept through the storm last night! Me? Well, not so much. It was loud!

Eating for Two?

I am actually a lot more careful about how much and what I am eating when I am pregnant. I was the little baby to get the right nutrients and I don't want extra weight to lose after he is born! It is stressful enough to have a newborn! I was at the top part of the normal range.

FROM NBC: Pregnancy isn't an opportunity to eat for two -- and doing so may be putting the baby's health at risk. The study out of the UK followed over five thousand women and their children from pregnancy until the kids were nine years old.

They found women who exceeded the recommended amount of weight gain while pregnant were more likely to have children who weighed more, had higher blood pressure and lower levels of "good" cholesterol. The increased risks were highest among women who gained about a pound or more each week after the first trimester.

The Institute of Medicine recommends underweight women gain 28 to 40 pounds during pregnancy -- normal weight women should gain 25 to 35 pounds -- and overweight women should gain 15 to 25 pounds.

Obese women should gain 11 to 20 pounds. The study looked at mostly white, European women. The IOM's guidelines call for women who are considered underweight, with a body mass under 18.5, to gain 28 to 40 pounds during pregnancy. Those who are normal weight, a BMI of 18.5 to 24.9, should gain 25 to 35 pounds. Overweight women with BMI of 25 to 29.9 should gain 15 to 25 pounds. Obese women with BMI more than 30 should gain 11 to 20 pounds.

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

What if you could look younger? Soderstrom Skin Institute was one of the first medical facilities to offer laser services in Central Illinois 20 years ago and today provides one of the most comprehensive laser treatment programs available. Call 674-7546 to schedule your FREE CONSULTATION today!

More recalled Kids medicine

I filled out the form to get a refund on my kid's recalled medicine. I was surprised the Benadryl we have was not included on the list. We have an 8oz. bottle and only the 4oz. bottle can be returned. That makes me nervous. Were the 8oz. bottles made at a different factory? That seems unlikely. I guess I will just dump it and buy some generic to be safe. I would have liked to get my money back for it though!

FROM NBC: The huge recall of children's pain relievers and allergy products has expanded. Four Pedia-care products have been added to the list -- including multi-symptom cold, long-acting cough, decongestant and allergy & cold. Blacksmith Brands issued the voluntarily recall as a precaution because they were made at the same Pennsylvania plant where Johnson & Johnson's liquid Tylenol, Motrin, Benadryl and Zyrtec were made.

The Food and Drug Administration had found quality control problems at the plant during inspections. There have been no problems linked to the Pedia-Care products. Blacksmith says it will produce new lots of the medicine at other plants.

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

What if you could look younger? Soderstrom Skin Institute was one of the first medical facilities to offer laser services in Central Illinois 20 years ago and today provides one of the most comprehensive laser treatment programs available. Call 674-7546 to schedule your FREE CONSULTATION today!