Many people think that children can grow out of asthma, however, this is not entirely correct.
Even though your child might not have asthma symptoms for hours, days or years, this does not mean they do not have asthma. Asthma may improve with age and attacks may become less frequent and/ or severe, but the tendency is always there.

Some children can experience long periods of time without symptoms, typically during the teenage years. Nevertheless, it is not uncommon for children with asthma to not show symptoms for years and then have a recurrence of symptoms later in life. For every young children with asthma, improvement is generally due to increases in body size, overall improvement in health and fitness, muscle development etc, rather than a ‘cure’. However, asthma return at any time including later in life. Even though they might not display recent asthma symptoms, a person who has had asthma should always carry their blue reliever medication. Although there is currently no cure for asthma, it can be controlled and managed.

Cigarette smoke is a trigger for many people with asthma, including children. Children have smaller and more delicate airways and are therefore more affected by tobacco smoke and the chemicals it contains. Unfortunately 2 in 5 children with asthma live with a smoker.
Children of smokers are more likely to have asthma symptoms such as coughing, wheezing, and breathlessness. Asthma is more common among children of smokers.

Passive smoke
Children with asthma that are exposed to secondhand smoke have a greater risk of developing symptoms at a younger age. They tend to have more asthma attacks and are more likely to use asthma medications more often and for a longer period. It is estimated that children of parents who smoke are exposed to the same amount of nicotine as if they were actively smoking 60 to 150 cigarettes a year.

Smoking in the family car
Travelling in a smoke filled car can be harmful to the overall health of your children, and can trigger an attack in children who have asthma. Therefore a school should strongly encourage parents to don’t smoke in the car when they have their children.

We parents strive hard to send our kids to a good school to help make him smart. our desire to raise intelligent kids, however, many of us overlook the fact that good education goes hand in hand with proper nutrition.
When it comes to food, children in the growing up stage 1 to 3 years do not fare very well. While feasting on their hotdog breakfast and persistently snubbing bittermelon (ampalaya) and liver, chances are, they may be missing out on an important nutrition.
Iron deficiency is the most common and widespread nutritional disorder in the world according to The World Health Organization. It affects 2 billion people over 30 percent of the world’s population.
But more than being a global health issue, the more urgent problem iron deficiency poses is its impact on a child’s development. When a child doesn’t get enough iron, it can lead to a condition known as Iron Deficiency Anemia (IDA)
According to WHO, one of the most dramatic health effects of Iron Deficiency Anemia is its negative consequences on cognitive and physical development of children. There is a considerable evidence that iron is important for neurological functioning and development. What’s more, there is evidence that the effects of iron deficiency on our nervous systems are irreversible.

Good Iron Sources include:
liver and other meats
whole grains
shellfish
green leafy vegetables and nuts

Iron is one of the nutrients added to enriched cereals and breads. If you’re child eats little or none of these foods, make a special effort to include other sources of iron in his diet, like a good iron supplement.

Raising kids is not an easy task. What more if your spouse is working abroad? There are bills to pay, work to attend to, and a home to maintain. The good news is, not all things in life are hard to do, like keeping your children healthy.
Your children’s future is important. That’s why you need to take care of their health so that they grow up bright and strong. This can only be achieved with a healthy diet. Eating food with Zinc and Iron is a good way to start.
Zinc is an important nutrient in keeping the skin smooth and healthy. It speeds up the healing of wounds so they don’t develop into scars which are perfect for kids, because they enjoy running and playing outdoors.
Zinc also keeps the body healthy inside out. It helps in the production of white blood cells which fight all forms of infection in the body, making it stronger.
Iron, on the other hand, is one of the most important nutrients our body needs, especially the young ones. This is so because it carries oxygen to help in energy production, so children become alert.
What’s more, Iron sharpens the mind as it helps distribute oxygen throughout the body. Lack of iron (which means little oxygen in the brain) could result to a slower thinking process.
With the range of benefits you can get Zinc and Iron, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t make your kids get these nutrients. One source of Zinc and Iron is eating red meat like beef. As you always have, continue taking care of your children. Make them healthy and strong, so they can really enjoy their childhood.

The age of 6 months is a significant period in an infant’s life. This could be termed as the age of discovery as the infant is able to creep, crawl, stand with support and exhibit strong curiosity and exploration traits. Language skills are discovered, mental abilities initiated and social skills are exhibited. Literally, the world is at infant’s footstep.

With this exciting phase of your child’s life, it is important to equip him with the proper protection in this age of exploration. The latest recommendation of the Philippine Foundation for Vaccination, Philippine Pediatric Society, Philippine Infectious Desease Society, United States Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices and the American Center for Desease Control is to vaccinate infants against the flu from 6 months onwards.

Studies have shown that children less than 2 years old–even healthy children–are more likely than older children to end up in the hospital with serious complication if they get influenza. These complications can include pheumonia, dehydration, worsening of long-term medical problems like heart disease or asthma, encephalopathy, and other bacterial infections, including sinus and ear infections. In some cases, these complications can lead to death.

Extending this age of exploration, one would expect a more active child during the toddler age group. This would make him more prone to getting the flu. Rightfully so as clinical studies have also shown that children aged 24-59 months have more outpatient and emergency room visits primarily due to the flu than any other illness! A recent New England Journal of Medicine article by Poehling, et al., demonstrated that there is an under-recognized burden of influenza in young children, with outpatient visits 10 to 250 times as common as hospitalizations, with the highest rates in children 24 to 59 months of age. The New England Journal of Medicine is a peer-reviewed medical journal published by the Massachusetts Medical Society and is considered as one of the most popular and widely-read peer-reviewed general medical journals in the World.

Based on this and other evidences, the United States Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommendation was expanded to endorse flu vaccination recommendations for children beginning at 6 months up to 5 years old. The ACIP consists of advisors to the Center for Desease Control and Prevention, selected by the Secretary of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, to provide advice and guidance on the most effective means to prevent diseases through nation-wide vaccination campaigns. ACIP recommendations serve as one of the references for local immunization practices which are endorsed by the Philippine Pediatric Society, Philippines Foundation for Vaccination and the Pediatric Infectious disease Society of the Philippines.

To protect their health, all children 6 to 59 months old should be Vaccinated against flu!

Two doses must be administered at least 28 days apart for children 8 years old and below who have been vaccinated against influenza before. Children previously vaccinated only need one dose yearly. The best time to give the flu vaccine is from February to June. This corresponds to the period just before the flu peak season especially in the Philippines.

So get rid of flu by having your kids vaccinated. It is a small investment to a wealth of protection.

A lot. As natures perfect baby food, breast milk is the nuritional basis of formula.or artificial baby milk. But since breastmilk is specifically designed by nature for babies, the composition of its nutrients, in the right proportions, remains unmatched.

Species-specific milk
All mammals species produce milk, but the composition of their milk is species-specific. The milk of each mammal species is intended to supply its offspring with appropriate requirements for its optimal growth, development and survival.
Some species milk, like those of elephants and pigs, are high in fat to effectively coat their bodies with a thick layer of fat. Others, like those of rats and seals, have high protein content for rapid growth and maturation. For species, like humans, that readily need available resources of sugar for their rapidly growing brains, milk is high in carbohydrates.
Since humans are the slowest growing and maturing mammals, but with the most advanced brain, human milk has relatively low protein content and high level of carbohydrates.

Breast milk composition
Human breast milk has unique components that offer optimal absorption of nutrients and minerals, protection from harmful bacteria, and assistance in the digestion of fats. It also has special growth factors and hormones that comtribute to the child’s optimal development. And since breastmilk is a living biological fluid, its composition changes as the baby grows to meet the child’s changing nutritional needs.
Some of its components that are absent of deficient in pasteurized cow’s milk are:
. Maternal antibodies to protect against infection
. Fat – and water- soluble vitamins
. Minerals like calcium, phosporus and zinc
. Lactose that aids in calcium absorption
. Bile Salt Stimulated Lipase that aids in digestion of fats
. Cystine that is essential in (preventing) immune dysfunction
. Taurine as a dietary essential nutrient
. Secretory Immunoglubin A
. Lactoferrin with antibacterial and antiviral properties
. Lysozyme that breaks cell walls of bacteria in the gastro intestinal tract
. Bifidus factor that inhibits growth of harmful bacteria
. Why protein
. Polysaturated fatty acids
. Essential fatty acids like linolenic, linolenic and arachadonic

Research shows that the unique composition of breast milk provides protection against illnesses, increases a child’s I.Q., reduces risk of obesity, improves the effectiveness of immunization, and enhances emotional security.
Studies shows that babies who do not receive breast milk have higher rates of pneumonia, childhood diabetes and cancers, SIDS and gastroenteritis.

‘Human milk are for babies as cow’s milk are for…’
Breast milk advocates declare that cow’s milk are not intended for babies because they are unfit for infant consumption. There is substantial evidence that these “lactivists” speak the truth.
Most, if not all, milk formulas are made from cow’s milk.
Whole cow’s milk also contain sufficient vitamin E, iron, sodium and potassium that may put a strain on the infant’s immature kidneys. Moreover, the protein and fat in whole cow’s milk are more difficult for infant to digest and absorb than breast milk’s. This is the reason why most formula-fed babies experience intestinal irritation and anemia.
Although some milk companies have added some of the breast milk components to their milk formulas, the special composition of human milk remains to be vastly superior. Antibodies found in breast milk just cannot be added to formulas.
Breast milk is truly a unique and special substance that gives a healthy start in life.

So if you have not started yet, you better go for human milk for the best of your precious. I myself do used breast milk for my babies but only until one month. It is better than nothing because it is really proven to be the best nutritious milk than any other.