Babies – Health – Naturally

Empowering Information to Create Vibrant Health in Children

Category : Babies and Health

1 In 3 Children Is Overweight or Obese – Here Is A New View on WHY!

June 10th 2010 Posted at Babies and Health
6 Comments

I found this article very interesting in it’s suggestions as to why we have become such an obese nation.

First let’s deflate a few myths

We aren’t fat because of TV’s or Gameboys. Allow me to suggest to you that those props are a result rather than the cause obesity. If a child is highly energetic and healthy, he’s going to be bored by TV and Xboxes. He’ll want to run around outside instead.

But today’s children are less healthy and their energy levels are lower than the children of previous generations. As a result, the less energetic child finds solace in watching TV and sitting in front of a computer.

There are three undiscussed reasons for our fatness…

Read the full article at this hub.

I had always looked at TV and video games as a cause but I can completely understand what this author is saying. Given a choice, my son is going to go outside, no doubt about it.

I really recommend that you click on the link above and read this article in it’s entirety. You may be very surprised by the reasons he proposes for our obesity epidemic.
Read the comments as well. It looks like an intelligent crowd visits this site!

Related Articles…

Here We Go Again…Another Tylenol Recall…Do You Need Any More Reason to Stop Using These Products?

May 11th 2010 Posted at Alternative Medicine, Babies and Health
2 Comments

According to CNN, more than 40 over-the-counter children’s drugs are being recalled due to the fact they don’t meet quality standards. Those drugs include Tylenol and Motrin among others. The recall was issued after Consumer Healthcare, Division of McNEIL-PPC consulted with the Food & Drug Administration and determined the OTC drugs didn’t measure up in terms of quality.

According to the Consumer Healthcare organization, the recall is not due to any reported “adverse medical events” but rather as a precautionary measure. Parents shouldn’t use the recalled products for their kids. These include Tylenol Infants’ Drops, Children’s Tylenol Suspensions, Children’s Tylenol Plus Suspensions, Motrin Infant Drops, Children’s Motrin Suspensions, Children’s Zyrtec Liquids in Bottles and Children’s Benadryl Allergy Liquids in Bottles. The drugs were manufactured in the United States and distributed to other countries – Canada, the Dominican Republic, Dubai, Fiji, Guam, Guatemala, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, Panama, Trinidad & Tobago and Kuwait.

Source:Tylenol recall 2010 – CNN reports 40 plus OTC childrens drugs recalled By Matt Clark

I don’t use over-the-counter medicines for my son because I don’t believe that the medicine itself is safe but now on top of that we have new concerns. Keep reading.

According to CNN reports, the FDA conducted an inspection is April that concluded in a lapse of quality and security.

To begin, McNeil (manufacturer) did not take “corrective and preventative action” during the 2009-2010 complaints about black specks being seen within the medication.

The lab was also cited for not following quality control and maintaining adequate lab conditions.

To make your stomach turn even more, McNeil purchased raw materials that were infected with a bacteria, which had not been identified by the FDA. McNeil is on the defense saying this raw material did not reach the finished products – that’s questionable considering what we are learning about their work, safety and health ethics.

Factory workers are not given proper training on good manufacturing practices and written procedures.

And to top of the poor quality and low ethics at McNeil, “tiny particle” found in the children’s medicine line may be manufacturing residue such as tiny metal parts!

Source: UPDATE Tylenol Recall 2010: Shocking Factory Conditions (FULL RECALL LIST) by Charissa Woodrow

Here is a full list of the RECALLED ITEMS

Please realize that there are alternatives to these despicable products put out by big pharma.

Go to your local health food store and talk to the owner. Browse around the quality online stores that I have recommended over and over.  You will find safe, effective products for any ailment you can possibly think of and you will never have to worry about side effects.  Homeopathic and herbal remedies are easily available for us and our children if we only just take the time to find them.

Better yet, learn how to support your child’s immune system so they have less of a need for any medications at all.


While we are on the subject let’s discuss the reason for giving these medicines to begin with.  I think that most parents use Tylenol and Ibuprofen to lower a fever, which in most cases is unnecessary.

Yes, I said unnecessary. A fever is the body doing exactly what it is supposed to be doing, killing the offender.  When you give fever reducing medicines you are interfering with the body’s natural defense system and even prolonging the illness.

The most brilliant yet common sense thing my doctor ever told me was  ‘the body will never elicit a fever high enough to harm itself ‘.   Just think about it.  The body creates a fever in order to defend itself from the invader, it is not going to harm itself in the process.

Now certainly this is different for children who have conditions such as febrile seizures or serious illnesses like meningitis or even poisoning or heat stroke that can cause dangerously high fevers.  That is an artifically caused fever and not a natural response of the body. And you should absolutely discuss this with your doctor to determine if fever reducing medicine is really necessary.  In most cases doctors only recommend these drugs in order to appease worried parents, not because it is necessary.

What I am referring to is the everyday cold or flu that sparks a natural bodily response in the form of a mild or moderate fever causing parents across the continent to run for the Tylenol.  If your child is relatively comfortable and can power thru the fever then why risk giving repeated doses of a drug that has monumentally proven itself unsafe?


Related Articles…

Mommy Don’t Make Me Fat

April 22nd 2010 Posted at Babies and Health, Nutrition
0 Comments

“Parents’ obesity, especially mom’s, tied to kids’ risk…

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – Having two obese parents may substantially raise a child’s risk of becoming obese, with mom’s weight playing a particularly important role, a new study suggests.

The reasons for that finding are not certain, according to Wardle. However, she said, mothers may be relatively more important because their weight and diet during pregnancy affect fetal development — and may, research suggests, help set a child’s future appetite regulation and weight.

Mothers’ weight may also be a bigger factor than fathers’ because moms are typically the ones who take charge of the children’s diets, Wardle and her colleagues note.”

American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, online April 7, 2010.

With all the buzz about our obese children you can’t help but pay attention.  Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution sheds some particularly interesting light on what our children are eating and of course the food industry has infiltrated our grocery store shelves with every conceivable convenience food for the busy lives of parents.  If you can call that food.

We can blame it on the food industry, we can blame it on the school lunches, but who is really responsible?

I don’t know about you but I take complete responsibility for everything that goes into my son’s body.  I’m his mother, that’s my job.  Everything he eats, every medicine he takes, everything he drinks, every chemical he is exposed to.  I take it upon myself to educate myself about what is healthy for him and what is not.  I also take it upon myself to make the best choices I can for him and hope that it rubs off when he is old enough to make choices for himself.  I am not perfect but I make every effort to be better than average!  If you take your two year old to a fast food restaurant twice a week, every week, you are responsible for the repercussions.  If you don’t think there are any repercussions to letting a two year old eat fast food every week then you need to wake up and smell the chemicals.

What I am really hoping is that my son’s taste buds are going to be so trained to taste real food that any processed food he comes across at a cafeteria line is going to be disgusting to him.  I can hope can’t I?

What we do or don’t do when it comes to our eating habits, our physical fitness and our self-worth is going to be reflected in our children.

I have struggled with my weight my entire life and let me tell you, pregnancy did not do me any favors in that department!  What I have discovered is that I have a new impetus to take care of myself.  I may not have found the drive in the past to take excellent care of myself, always assuming that nothing will ever happen to me.  But since the birth of my son, that has all changed.  I am acutely aware of everything in his life now that may cause harm later.  I am also acutely aware that what I do with my own health now will determine how long I am around to see him grow up.  Now that is a driving force to take care of me with the same effort that I take care of him.

The above article just reinforced that for me.  If I don’t take care of myself now, it is going to be reflected in him.  It is going to have a direct effect on him.  The two cannot be separated.  I want him to grow up not just knowing ‘lack of disease’ but knowing peak health and fitness.  I want him to enjoy the endorphin rush of physical fitness and get addicted to that rather than the hundreds of other toxic addictions out there.

I think I’m going to work on finding that endorphin rush myself.  How about you?

And by the way,  a new study found that as little as 20 minutes of exercise a day has a big effect on your health.  The key is to spend those 20 minutes alternating between high and low intensities.  Short bursts of interval training for twenty minutes — not so bad, huh?

Twenty minutes for the health of our children.

More Resources for Childhood Health

Excerpt from my newly released e-book – Brave Parenting …

March 19th 2010 Posted at Alternative Medicine, Babies and Health, Natural Immunity, Nutrition, Pregnancy and Birthing, Toxin Free Living
1 Comment

Babies and health go hand in hand.  A brand new little life with a vibrant, untainted immune system.  As parents, we have the opportunity to take advantage of that healthy start by providing baby with every opportunity to keep that immune system strong.  It should be easy, but in today’s world it is a never ending battle against chemicals, poor nutrition and misinformation that slowly starts to degrade the perfect immune system and sets your infant up for unnecessary illnesses.

My son is two years old and he has never had an ear infection.  As a baby, he rarely lost a meal to spit-up.  He has never been on antibiotics or received any over-the-counter medications.  He almost never gets diaper rash and when he does it is gone within a day or less.  When he gets a common cold it is  mild and he is over it within a day.  He is smart and beautiful and loves to smile. This is how it should be!

Most parents just accept that it is “normal” for a baby to have constant ear infections and diaper rash and spit up after every single meal.  We think nothing of it when the doctor injects a newborn with foreign substances.  If the doctor said it’s necessary then it must be, right?  In the most extreme cases, we just accept that there is nothing we can do to prevent childhood diseases like leukemia and asthma.

I would like to introduce you to the idea that you do have control.  You have the ability to educate yourself and make informed choices about so many things that affect your babies and their health.  Do not make the terrible mistake of relying on a doctor or a government agency to protect you and your baby because it won’t happen.

I was blessed to have become a mother for the first time at the age of 36.  I was young enough to be healthy yet mature enough to be educated and independent minded.  I looked around me and saw so much illness and suffering, cancer and drugs, I knew that this was not normal! I did my homework, I researched, I learned and I made an informed decision about my son’s health.

  • I am not afraid of a fever- because I am educated.
  • I know the most important factor in supporting 80% of his immune system-because I am educated.
  • I know how to stimulate his brain to form neurons-because I am educated.
  • I know the truth about how to prevent SIDS-because I am educated.
  • I trust Mother Nature-because I am educated.

Parents please never take your baby’s health for granted.

We should never assume that a baby will be born healthy whether we take our prenatal vitamins or not.  We should never trust that our child will glide through life with no lasting effects from the pesticides in their fruit and the chemicals in their snacks.  We know all too well that innocent children suffer from lead poisoning, nutritional deficiencies, allergies, cancer all of which can be prevented if only we were proactive about educating ourselves and taking control of our childrens’ health instead of blindly handing it over to the food manufacturers and a doctor that has been educated by the pharmaceutical industry.

Your baby’s health is in your hands.  The choices you make will affect your babies health for the rest of their lives.  I challenge you to open your eyes, research and educate yourself and then decide how to keep your baby healthy.  Don’t take my word for it.  Don’t trust me, don’t trust your doctor, don’t trust the government or the pharmaceutical industry, trust your heart and your educated mind.  Don’t sit idly by and assume that your babies will be healthy no matter what you feed them or expose them to.  That is the ultimate sin of the parent – taking your child’s health for granted.


Get the e-book now!  Go to Brave Parenting for a special introductory price and instant download!

About | Contact Us | Privacy Policy | Sitemap


Related Articles…

SPECIAL REPORT About Your Child’s Health – DON’T MISS THIS!

January 23rd 2010 Posted at Babies and Health, Natural Immunity
6 Comments

As I was researching on the internet the other day I came across an invaluable website.

www.HealthyChild.com

It is completely in alignment with what I try to convey here at Babies Health Naturally.   So naturally, I signed up for their e-newsletter.

The other day I received a Special Report from them entitled “10 Ways to Dramatically Increase Your Child’s Health“.   I  was so impressed with the information in the report that I actually wrote to the author to share my joy!

I highly recommend you visit and bookmark  Healthy Child and then sign up for their newsletter.  It won’t cost you a penny and you will receive the valuable special report.

You will learn the 10 most important things you can do to bring optimal health to your child.  All very simple.  Every step even comes with links to additional information.  And no, they are not trying to sell you something.   Every step is a legitimate and valuable health enhancing action.  I practice every one of them with my son!

Just like at Babies Health Naturally, our primary goal is to educate and enlighten you and along the way we may share some trusted and quality products with you.

Whether or not you use those recommended products is your decision.

What we really hope is that you use the information!

This report has information you should definitely use!

Go get the report…

www.HealthyChild.com

If you are a new parent this will give you the absolute best start to protecting your new baby’s health.

If you are a seasoned parent there is sure to be something in the report to help you bring your child’s health to the next level.

Enjoy the journey.

Subscribe to the HealthyChild Newsletter

Who Can You Trust In The Baby Industry?

January 17th 2010 Posted at Babies and Health, Toxin Free Living
4 Comments

The short answer is absolutely no one.  You can only trust yourself to be educated about the products in the baby industry and choose what is best for your child’s health.  Assuming that the ingredients in your lotions, soaps, bubbles and sunscreen are safe simply because they are made for babies and children is a big mistake.

Johnson & Johnson, the most trusted name in the baby industry….WRONG!  Let’s stop right there.

I’m sure there is not a mother out there that does not know Johnson & Johnson baby products.  You see that name on the shelf and you put a certain amount of trust in that product.  Here is a stunning example of why you cannot trust a company that operates on a multi-billion dollar level…

St. Louis Post Dispatch, Saturday, January 16, 2010…

Reported by Natasha Singer of the New York Times

“Johnson & Johnson paid kickbacks to the nation’s largest nursing home pharmacy to increase the number of elderly patients taking the antipsychotic Risperdal and several other medications, according to a complaint filed Friday by the office of the United States attorney in Boston.”

“Johnson & Johnson said in an e-mail: “We believe airing the facts will confirm that our conduct, including rebating programs that the government now challenges, was lawful and appropriate.”"

The supposed rebating programs from Johnson & Johnson to the pharmacy were to the tune of tens of millions of dollars.

In that same paper another article appeared, reported by Andrew Zajac of the Tribune Washington Bureau.

“McNeil Consumer Healthcare, a division of Johnson & Johnson, realized it had a problem with products in September 2008, but didn’t notify the FDA until September 2009 and didn’t begin recalling products until November.”

“McNeil pulled 500 lots of Rolaids, Motrin, Children’s Tylenol, regular, extra-strength and eight-hour Tylenol, Benadryl, St. Joseph’s Aspirin and Simply Sleep caplets.  Consumers have complained of …nausea, vomiting, diarrhea or other stomach distress..”

“McNeil has linked the illness to 2, 4, 6-tribromoanisole, or TBA, a chemical used to treat pallets that contained packaging material used in the tainted products.”

I think that says it all.  A multi-billion dollar company does not care about your health or the health of your innocent child.

Do your homework and make educated choices.

Here are a few of the products and companies that I personally trust for my baby…

EarthMama-AngelBaby

Kabana Skin Care

NaturalEco Organics

Burt’s Bees

Our Green House

High Fructose Corn Syrup-The Proof Is In The Pudding, and the Ice Cream, and the Juice…

January 7th 2010 Posted at Babies and Health, Nutrition
5 Comments

To me, this is the perfect example of a piece of information that as parents, we need to dissect and look at from a logical perspective.  Just use common sense, think like Mother Nature and be suspicious of any news that comes from mainstream media.  The high fructose corn syrup industry is a $2.6 BILLION business – do you trust them to tell you the truth??

So why is high fructose corn syrup(HFCS) so widely used?  The bottom line is that it is cheaper than sugar and extends the shelf life of processed foods.  That means more money in the pockets of the corn industry and the food manufacturers.

For an interesting and in depth look at how fructose is metabolized and how it adversely affects the body – click here.  In short, high fructose corn syrup is not a naturally occurring sugar, it is manipulated by chemistry.

I won’t bore you with chemistry talk but I would like to tell you a story.

I raise my son on as natural a diet as I can.  I breastfed to start and then he received organic formula, then organic baby food.   He graduated to fruits and whole grains and natural meats.  If he ate something not organic it was at least free of bad preservatives and HFCS.

When he was about 18 months old I noticed an odd behavior for the first time.  He was running back and forth in a small area and babbling non-stop.  I laughed at first but as it continued I looked at him with a furrowed brow and wondered what in the world he was doing, this was not normal behavior for him.  It wasn’t normal toddler playing.  It had a frantic feel to it.  I jokingly asked myself “what did he eat?” and then it came to me.  His niece was visiting that day and she brought a bag of those cute little chocolate graham crackers in the shape of teddie bears!  My son had gotten a hold of the bag and helped himself to a few.  I looked at the ingredients and sure enough…high fructose corn syrup.  That was his first experience.

Several weeks later he found a box of regular plain old graham crackers and asked for one so I gave him a square.  A few minutes later the same thing.  Babbling like a crazy man.  I never thought it would be in plain graham crackers but sure enough again, I checked the ingredients and there it was…high fructose corn syrup.

Again one evening as we all shared ice cream…needless to say, bedtime did not come easily that night.  We are much more careful these days.

So in a way, this was my blind study.  I noticed the behavior first and found a common culprit each time.  That is my proof.  I take into consideration my personal knowledge, the debates between doctors and the corn industry and apply it to the outrageous assault on our childrens’ health and behavior over the past decade and I make my own logical conclusion.  If a tiny bit of HFCS affected my son in such a noticeable way then I have no problem believing that a diet high in this sugar would cause symptoms of ADHD.  The crime is that parents have no idea that their children are bombarded with HFCS because the food industry has put it in every conceivable food.

HFCS has taken such a beating lately that the corn industry actually made a commercial defending it.  That right there leads me to be suspicious.  Why do they care if consumers eat products with HFCS or not?  Because it will eat into their profits, that’s why.  They even have a website trying to pass it off as beneficial and healthy.   What was most amusing was their statement that any sweetener should be used in moderation!  HA!  Take a look at this list of foods that contain HFCS…

  • ketchup
  • spaghetti sauce
  • ice cream
  • fruit juice
  • soda
  • sports drinks
  • graham crackers
  • peanut butter
  • bread
  • pop tarts
  • almost all crackers
  • breakfast syrup
  • seasoned bread crumbs
  • pretty much all  cereals
  • frozen waffles and pancakes
  • pretty much all cookies
  • cough syrup
  • jelly
  • preserves
  • salad dressing
  • applesauce
  • pickle relish
  • baked beans
  • stuffing
  • BBQ sauce
  • steak sauce
  • cream cheese
  • pickles
  • cranberry sauce
  • pretty much all processed snack foods

Need I go on?  Would you consider this moderation on the part of the food industry?

I would recommend avoiding HFCS completely, especially for your children.  Their brains are so busy developing that they need all of the nutrition you can offer.  High fructose corn syrup has no nutritional value.

Whether you are going all-out HFCS-free or if moderation is what you strive for you better open all your cupboards and start reading labels!!

Do your research and make an informed decision.

Still not convinced?  Study Finds High-Fructose Corn Syrup Contains Mercury


Related Articles…

Babies and Health – Nutrition During Pregnancy Has Lifelong Effects on Your Baby

January 7th 2010 Posted at Babies and Health, Natural Immunity, Nutrition, Pregnancy and Birthing
18 Comments

It may seem unbelievable but the research is in.  This is monumentally important to the health of your baby and possibly the easiest thing for you to control.

Your diet during pregnancy.

Scientists believe that a baby’s lifetime of good or poor health is determined by the nutrition it receives during your pregnancy.  Poor nutrition during pregnancy and in the first few months of life may lead to higher risks of obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

Professor Koletzko of the University of Munich and coordinator of a Europe wide research project on Early Nutrition Programming said: “Major differences in risk factors for significant health problems – such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, obesity, bone health, immune function, cognitive development and behaviour – have already been observed in children who experienced different diets in the first few months of life, or whose mothers were given different supplements during pregnancy.”

Do your homework …

My Naturally Well Baby – a website set up by Dr. van der Veer and offering wonderful, detailed yet easy to follow information about diet for your pregnancy.

Ask Dr. Sears – the author of some of my favorite books on baby care, this web page guides you through the ins and outs of your diet during pregnancy.

Prenatal Vitamins

Even the most complete diet cannot provide everything that a mother and baby needs for optimal health during pregnancy and breastfeeding.  A supplement is the best way to cover your bases.  However, I recommend you steer away from the prescription that your doctor may hand you and look for higher quality elsewhere (unless you have an enlightened doctor who is educated in integrative medicine).  Most prescription prenatal vitamins are made by large commercial manufacturers that are going to use the cheapest ingredients possible, many of which may not even be in “usable” form for the body.

If you do your prenatal vitamin research you may find the name Rainbow Light coming up frequently.  Women love these vitamins.  Rainbow Light is the creator of the first ever food-based line of supplements that offer natural, usable vitamins to the body.  They are complete with digestive enzymes and even probiotics.  Both very important to your health.

Rainbow Light Complete Prenatal System – Click to read product details and reviews about Rainbow Light.  If you are not able to take 6 pills a day from the Complete line they also offer an all in one pill.  Take a look around at all of their wonderful products.

Babies Health Naturally provides information about products and health issues of children for educational purposes only. It is not intended to be a substitute for medical advice. We encourage parents to take responsibility for any information obtained from any source by investigating, educating themselves and making informed decisions. This web site contains links to web sites operated by other parties. Such links are provided for your convenience and reference only. We are not responsible for the content or products or services obtained from outside websites. The author may be compensated with an affiliate commission on some products mentioned within this website. It is the author's intention to provide direction toward what is in her opinion a quality product, regardless of the potential for affiliate compensation. The author assumes no responsibility and makes no guarantee of any product mentioned within.

Copyright 2010 Babies – Health – Naturally | Powered by WordPress | Designed by Diamonds Designers