“Best of” Back-to-School Health and Safety Tips 2011: Part II

If you are someone who takes care of kids in any way, shape or form (which I’m assuming you are if you’re reading this) one phrase has probably dominated your world for the past couple of weeks: “back-to-school”. It is likely that you have not spent a day, opened a newspaper or a journal or gone to the sites you typically visit online without seeing these words staring back at you in an article offering you advice on: “How can you best prepare your kids”, “The 101 things you should know about your child’s health and/or safety before you send them back to school…” etc.

Unfortunately, too much of a good thing is not always a good thing… With so many articles and so much information it can be a bit overwhelming at times. With that in mind, I’ve done a little searching and pulled together a “best of” health and safety tips across all the expert information I’ve found. While last week’s back-to-school health and safety tips focused on everything to consider before they head off to school, today’s tips focus on what you need to know to send them off and make sure they return safely. Hopefully it will save everyone a little time that they could be otherwise be using to get 5 more minutes (or 1 extra hug) with their kids. (*Please note: as with my last post, I am sourcing other author’s tips and will cite all references below – all copyrights, credit and thanks belong to them)

Heading to School:

Getting on the Bus Safely:

• When the bus arrives, stand at least three giant steps (6 feet) away from the curb.
• If you have to cross the street in front of the bus, walk on the sidewalk or along the side of the road until you are five giant steps (10 feet) ahead of the bus. Then you can cross the street.
• Be sure the bus driver can see you and you can see the bus driver.
• Never walk behind the bus.
• If you drop something near the bus, tell the bus driver. Never try to pick it up first because the driver may not be able to see you.

While on the bus:

• When on the bus, find a seat and sit down. Loud talking or other noise can distract the bus driver.
• Never put head, arms or hands out of the window.
• Keep aisles clear—books or bags are tripping hazards and can block the way in an emergency.
• At your stop, wait for the bus to stop completely before getting up from your seat, then walk to the front door and exit, using the handrail.

Getting off the Bus:

• If you have to cross the street in front of the bus, walk at least ten feet ahead of the bus along the side of the road until you can turn around and see the driver. Make sure the driver can see you.
• Wait for a signal from the driver that it’s safe before beginning to cross…then, walk across the road keeping an eye out for sudden traffic changes.
• Stay away from the wheels of the bus at all times.

Walking to school:

• Walk to school with a group of kids and always have a responsible adult with you.
• Always walk on the sidewalk if one is available. If no sidewalk is available, walk facing the traffic.
• The safest place to cross is at a street corner or intersection.
• If you are 10-years-old or younger, you need to cross the street with an adult. Before you step off the curb, stop and look all ways to see if cars are coming. When no cars are coming, it is safe for you to cross, but look left-right-left as you do and hold the adult’s hand.
• Walk, don’t run. This gives time for drivers to see you before you enter the roadway.
• Don’t dart out in front of a parked car. The driver of the car coming down the street will not be able to see you.
• In neighborhoods with higher levels of traffic, consider starting a “walking school bus,”  in which an adult accompanies a group of neighborhood children walking to school.

Riding a bike to school:

• Always wear your helmet and make sure it fits correctly. The helmet should fit low on your forehead so that two fingers fit between it and your eyebrows.
• To ride safely, you need to know the “rules of the road”. Ride on the right side of the road in a single file line in the same direction as other vehicles and come to a complete stop before crossing streets. Wait for a driver’s signal before crossing the street.
• Wear bright colors during the day and right before the sun rises or sets.
• Riding at night can be dangerous. You should have a white light on the front of your bicycle and a red reflector on the back. You also can get lights and reflective materials to put on your shoes, helmet and clothing.

By the Way – Here’s a great brochure by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) that uses graphics and humor to teach little kids how to be safe on their way to school.

Teen Driving:

• Graduated Driver Licensing allows teens to practice driving skills in low risk situations, moving through driver license stages with gradually increasing responsibility. GDL reduces teen driver crashes and deaths by up to 40%. You can implement life-saving GDL practices in your home by following these tips:
  • Extend the learner’s permit period until at least 6 months of practice has passed.
  • Set a nighttime driving restriction – no unsupervised driving after 10pm.
  • Set a passenger restriction – no one younger than 18 allowed during a teen’s first 12 months of driving.
  • Ban cell phone use and make safety belts mandatory while driving. Prohibit alcohol – zero tolerance for underage drivers.

During the School Day:

Eating during the day:

• Most schools regularly send schedules of cafeteria menus home. With advance information, you can plan on packing lunch on the days when the main course is one your child prefers not to eat.
• Try to get your child’s school to stock healthy choices such as fresh fruit, low-fat dairy products, water and 100 percent fruit juice in the vending machines.
• Each 12-ounce soft drink contains approximately 10 teaspoons of sugar. Drinking just one can of soda a day increases a child’s risk of obesity by 60%. Restrict your child’s soft drink consumption.

Bullying:

• “Bullying is when one child picks on another child repeatedly. Bullying can be physical, verbal, or social. It can happen at school, on the playground, on the school bus, in the neighborhood, or over the Internet”. The American Academy of Pediatrics has detailed guidelines on managing bullying from the perspective of the child being bullied, the child who is the bully and the bystander. Across all 3 categories, what is consistent is involving a parent or another adult to develop a proactive solution. Rather than try and abbreviate this section, if this is an issue for your child, well documented and excellent guidelines can be sourced here.

School Sports

• Acclimate children to hot weather workouts by gradually increasing time outdoors about ten days to two weeks before official practice begins to help prevent heat injuries.
• Make sure children drinking plenty of fluids and take frequent breaks: every 10-15 minutes while playing outdoor sports. Also make sure they wear light clothing and limit their exposure to the sun in the hottest part of the day. Apply towels soaked in ice cubes and water to the head and neck to stay cool.
• When heat illness is suspected, move the athlete into the shade or coolest area nearby. Try to cool them as quickly as possible by exposing the skin to ice/cold water and cool circulating air.
• Young athletes with asthma should use preventative inhalers 20-30 minutes before exercise, do a gradual warm-up and should have a rescue inhaler available to them during practices and during competition.
• Make sure children wear a well-fitted helmet if they play football, softball or baseball to prevent severe injuries such as concussions.
• Remind children to immediately tell the coach or trainer if they feel dizzy or have a lapse in memory after taking a blow to the head. They should not return to the same practice, game or contest and should be evaluated by a physician prior to return to play.

Keeping them safe at school:

• Ask your child about safety in his or her school. Where do they feel most safe? Least safe? Why?
• Identify comfort levels and methods for reporting safety concerns. Do students have at least one adult and/or method through which they would feel comfortable reporting safety concerns at school?
• Examine access to your school. Are there a reduced number of doors that can be accessed from the outside (while still allowing children to exit from the inside in an emergency)? Does faculty know who is in their school?
• 5 excellent questions that your school’s crisis management team should know the answer to – if not, get involved:
  • How do you dial 9-1-1 from the school phones? Do you need to get an outside line first?
  • What is the actual street address of the school if asked by a 9-1-1 dispatcher?
  • If your school’s nearby walking evacuation site is a community church, does someone have the keys to get in if no one from the church is there when you arrive?
  • How long does it really take to mobilize your school bus drivers in the middle of the day if you need to evacuate multiple buildings?
  • Have you ever trained students NOT to open doors to people on the outside trying to get into the school?

After School:

Getting home from school safely and staying that way:

• Make sure your child walks home with a group of friends or a responsible adult.
• Make sure to have an adult at the bus stop after school to ensure the kids get home safely.
• Make a code word that will be used when someone else they do not know will pick them up. Every time you have someone pick your child up from school they have to know your secret code word or your child will not get in the vehicle.
• Let them know that if an adult makes them feel uncomfortable or is following them they should call 911 and find a safe place – go back to school, to the police, or to a friend’s home as quick as possible.
• Along those lines – teach your children “No, Go, Yell, Tell”: Say No! loudly if they feel they’re in danger; Go! run fast and far to the nearest safe place; Yell! as loudly as they can while they run; Tell! a trusted adult exactly what happened as soon as they reach safety.
• If they are going to be alone in the afternoons, teach them to go straight home, lock the door and only open it for people with permission to enter the house. Never open the door to delivery people.
• They should never tell someone on the telephone or on the internet that they are home alone. If asked about mom/dad say something like “He or she is busy right now. Can I take a message?”

So folks, I know it was a long list, but I hope it’s one you’ll find useful. Until next time, keep them healthy and keep them safe…

*******************************************************************************************************************

As we did with “Best of” Back to School Health and Safety Tips 2011: Part I, we’d like to send out our thanks and recognition to some very smart folks for some really terrific advice:

1. Waiting for the Bus, While on the bus, Getting off the Bus, Walking to school and Riding a bike to school: (Traveling to School: Safety tips to share with your children: National Safety Council)
2. Teen Driving: (Teen Driving Safety: Graduated Driver Licensing saves lives: National Safety Council)
3. Eating during the day and Bullying: (Back to School Tips: American Academy of Pediatrics 2011)
4. School Sports (Children Should Rely on Safety Equipment to Prevent School Sports Injuries: Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center)
5. Keeping them safe at school: (Parents & School Safety – Can you Prevent Another Tragedy? How Safe is Your Child’s School: Ken Trump, president of National School Safety & Security Services)
6. Getting home safe and staying that way bullets #1,2,3,4: (Children’s safety tips to remember for back to school: Melina Ann Collison, St Louis Crime Examiner, July 27, 2009)
7. Getting home safe and staying that way bullets #5: (Living Safe – Teach your children “No, Go, Yell, Tell”: Katherine Cabaniss Crime Stoppers)
8. Getting home safe and staying that way bullets #6,7: (After-school safety tips from the American Red Cross)

“Best of” Back-to-School Health and Safety Tips 2011: Part I

It’s that time of year again… back to school. A time filled with carpools, backpacks and homework…and on many parent’s minds, a question… How can I keep my kids healthy and safe without following them around 24/7? We know they need to experience independence, learn how to develop friendships and how to make good decisions, yet we’re torn with a desire to protect them in every way possible. Unfortunately the hazards they face – bullying, gangs, drug sales, reckless drivers and predators, just to name a few – can happen before, during or after school. The best we can hope for is to make sure they are healthy before they walk out the door, ensure their trip to and from school is “uneventful”, and equip them with the tools, knowledge and resources to help them keep themselves safe and healthy until they are once again in our care.

To assist our efforts, experts provide us with articles and blog posts of “back-to-school” health guidelines and safety tips do and don’t lists. In fact there is a wealth of knowledge on the web on how to best prepare your child and send them off to school. Hello information overload! So, in an effort to save you a little time – which at this time of the year we all know is in incredibly precious – I’d like to share with you our compiled list of the best back-to-school tips we’ve been able to find. In “Back-To-School” Part I, we’ll cover everything you need before they head out the door. Part II will keep them safe until they come home. (*Please note – I am sourcing other author’s tips and will cite all references below – all copyrights, credit and thanks belong to them)

Before School Begins:

Prep for back-to-school physicals:

• Bring five questions with you to be discussed during the visit. This helps parents to start thinking about their child’s health concerns earlier which may prevent parents from forgetting topics they want to discuss.
• Be sure to know the name and dosage of all medications your child is on.
• Bring shot records with you – especially if you’re changing pediatricians as vaccine schedule recommendations can change.
• Bring sports physical forms. Pediatricians can fill these out and conduct the sports physical exam in tandem with the yearly checkup.
• Bring report cards and conduct grades. If your child has special needs or classes, bring that information in as well. This information can help pediatricians look into, and potentially address, any underlying medical reason behind low marks.

Review your back-to-school health check list:

• Immunization: Ensure your child’s preschool immunization is completed prior to entering Kindergarten to protect her against vaccine-preventable diseases. Check here for the CDC 2011 Child & Adolescent Immunization Schedules.
• Vision screening: Have your child’s vision tested before he starts Kindergarten (ideally by age three) and annually until age 18. As much as 80% of learning is visual, so ensuring children can see properly will help them reach their full potential in the classroom.
• Hearing/speech screening: If you suspect your child may have a hearing or speech problem, check with your doctor for a referral to an audiologist and/or speech specialist. An undetected problem could interfere with your child’s learning.
• Dental checkup: Regular dental checkups should begin by age three. If your child hasn’t had her teeth examined prior to starting school, now is a good time for it. Regular checkups and cleanings help detect and prevent dental problems early.
• Mental Health Check: Pediatricians are now requesting that patients and their parents fill out questioners to monitor behavior and psychological healthiness. For children ages 18 months to two years this can help doctors rule out pervasive developmental disorders such as autism. For teens and pre-teens this can help doctors determine whether the child should be treated for depression.
• Emergency contacts: Make sure the school has up-to-date emergency numbers, including contact information for parents, physicians, etc.
• Health conditions: Ensure the school has up-to-date information about any physical impairments or medical conditions your child may have, including allergies. Also inform the school about any medications your child takes. Check here for more detailed information on preparing children with asthma to return to school
• Nutrition plan: Ensure your child has a healthy breakfast before heading to school in the mornings, and help her pack a nutritious lunch. Planning meals ahead of time and involving children in planning and preparation can make this task more manageable and fun.

Conduct a Back-to-school backpack check:

• A child’s backpack should weigh no more than about 15% of his or her body weight. This means a student weighing 100 pounds shouldn’t wear a loaded school backpack heavier than about 15 pounds.
• Select a pack with well-padded shoulder straps. Shoulders and necks have many blood vessels and nerves that can cause pain and tingling in the neck, arms, and hands when too much pressure is applied.
• Adjust the shoulder straps so that the pack fits snugly on the child’s back. Wear the waist belt if the backpack has one. The bottom of the pack should rest in the curve of the lower back. It should never rest more than four inches below the child’s waistline.
• Distribute weight evenly by using both straps. Wearing a pack slung over one shoulder can cause a child to lean to one side, curving the spine and causing pain or discomfort.
• Load heaviest items closest to the child’s back (the back of the pack). Arrange books and materials so they won’t slide around in the backpack.
• Check what your child carries to school and brings home. Make sure the items are necessary for the day’s activities.
• If the backpack is too heavy or tightly packed, your child can hand carry a book or other item outside the pack. If the backpack is too heavy on a regular basis, consider using a book bag on wheels if your child’s school allows it.

Deciding when they’re too sick for school:

• Fever: Fever is a common symptom of viral infections, like influenza. If your child’s temperature is 100.4 degrees or higher, keep your kid at home. While at home, encourage your child to drink plenty of liquids. If you have concerns about your child’s health, get in touch with her pediatrician. A child should be fever-free for 24 hours (without medicine) before returning to school.
• Mild Cough/Runny Nose: If there’s no fever and the child feels fairly good, school is fine.
• Bad Cough/Cold Symptoms: Children with bad coughs need to stay home and possibly see a doctor. It could be a severe cold or possibly bronchitis, flu, or pneumonia. But when the cough improves and the child is feeling better, then it’s back to school. Don’t wait for the cough to disappear entirely — that could take a week or longer!
• Diarrhea or Vomiting: Keep your child home until the illness is over, and for 24 hours after the last episode (without medicine).
• Sore Throat: A minor sore throat is usually not a problem, but a severe sore throat could be strep throat even if there is no fever. Other symptoms of strep throat in children are headache and stomach upset. Keep your child home from school and contact a doctor. Your child needs a special test to determine if it is strep throat. He or she can return to school 24 hours after antibiotic treatment begins.
• Earache: The child typically needs to see a doctor.
• Pink Eye (Conjunctivitis): Keep the child home until a doctor has given the OK to return to school. Pink eye is highly contagious and most cases are caused by a virus, which will not respond to an antibiotic. Bacterial conjunctivitis will require an antibiotic; your doctor will be able to determine if this is the case.
• Rash: Children with a skin rash should see a doctor, as this could be one of several infectious diseases. One possibility is impetigo, a bacterial skin infection that is very contagious and requires antibiotic treatment.

Check back again soon for Part II where we’ll pick up our “Best” Back-to-School Health and Safety Tips 2011 with suggestions for what to do once they head out the door. Until next time keep them healthy…keep them safe…

*****************************************************************************************************************

Sending out thanks and recognition to some very smart folks for some really great advice:

1. Prep for back-to-school physicals: (Texas Children’s Pediatric Associates prepare patients to go back to school by Texas Children’s Hospital, Aug 2, 2011)
2. Review your back-to-school health check list: (Back to school health checklist by Alberta Health Services)
3. Conduct a back-to-school backpack check: (Backpack strategies for parents and students by the American Occupational Therapy Association, Inc.)
4. Deciding when they’re too sick for school: (Your Child: Too Sick for School? by Jeanie Lerche Davis for WebMD September 2010)

Is Your Family Overeating?

It’s no secret that obesity has become a major health problem in the U.S. — for both adults and kids. Roughly one in five children between the ages of 6 and 11 is obese, according to the Centers for Disease Control, and many more are overweight. So what’s to blame? Lack of exercise and poor food choices are prime suspects. But so is portion control — which for many families has spiraled out of control.

In the last 20 years, people’s idea of a serving size has ballooned, according to the National Institutes of Health. Two decades ago, the average bagel was 3 inches wide and 140 calories; today, it’s 6 inches wide and 350 calories. Back then, cheeseburgers had 330 calories; now they’ve nearly doubled. And the average serving of soda has more than tripled — from 6.5 ounces and 85 calories to 20 ounces and 250 calories.

“The media keeps telling us we need to eat more; everything is just bigger when you see it,” says Dr. Virginia Keane, associate professor of pediatrics at the University of Maryland Medical School. “And we have all-you-can-eat restaurants. We’ve lost control and community knowledge of what’s a normal portion.”

A portion is a fistful — the eater’s fistful, according to Keane. (If you or your child is very active, you may need more. If you’re inactive, you may need less.) Just by reducing your food intake to that amount, you’ll help your family lose weight or at least maintain it. And it’s easier than you think. Here are some suggestions for keeping portions in check:

Cook and eat at home.

The simplest way to avoid supersized portions is to prepare and serve your own meals. The key, according to Keane, is to cook only the amount you’ll need for that meal (no leftovers!) and serve everything on individual plates, not family style. The only exceptions: vegetables and salad. There’s no limit on veggies (as long as they’re not drenched in butter or doused with full-fat dressing), so everyone can take what they want.

Go halvsies.

If you’re at a restaurant, split dishes between two adults. If the kids’ meals are twice the appropriate portion size, do the same with them. If your family tends to eat whatever’s in front of them, ask to have half the portion put in a to-go container before it even hits the table.

Snack smaller.

When you sit down in front of the TV or computer, don’t bring that bag of pretzels or cookies with you. Instead, scoop out a small amount and put it in an individual bowl — and don’t let yourself go back for more. Put the rest of the bag on a top shelf or at least out of sight. Better yet, cut up some fruit and put it in individual bowls. Or pass out fruit roll-ups or cheese sticks — one per person.

Downsize, don’t supersize.

Instead of getting the double-patty cheeseburger with bacon, order the plain junior cheeseburger instead. If your value meal comes with medium fries and drink, opt to go a la carte and order smalls. Ask for a kid-size portion of ice cream instead of one, two or three regular scoops. If it doesn’t feel like enough, remind yourself that that’s what size a serving of ice cream used to be anyhow.

How to use antibiotics safely and wisely

Since the first discovery of penicillin, antibiotics have been a useful and beneficial tool in fighting a wide variety of bacterial infections. But antibiotics must be used wisely and safely and only used when medically necessary in order to get the most benefit from them. For the last decade or more, health care professionals have been concerned because antibiotics have been over-prescribed, overused and misused for so long that many of them are losing their ability to fight illnesses. Many types of bacteria have already become resistant to some of the older “first-generation” antibiotics making them almost useless against some illnesses. New antibiotics are being developed but bacteria can adapt and become resistant to them to them too, if they are not used carefully. Doctors are trying to their part to stop antibiotics from being overused by not prescribing them unnecessarily. We can help, too, by learning more about these “miracle drugs” and how to use them properly and safely.

What Do Antibiotics Do?

Antibiotics fight bacteria. (Think of them as “bacteria-busters”!) There are many different kinds of bacteria that cause many different illnesses. Because of the wide variety of bacteria, there is also a wide variety of antibiotics that have been developed to treat them. When your doctor diagnoses a bacterial infection she will determine which antibiotic is appropriate for that particular infection.

If your doctor diagnoses a bacterial infection, ask her if it is absolutely necessary to use an antibiotic. Some bacterial infections can be cleared up without antibiotics when under a doctor’s supervision. For example, antibiotics used to be routinely and automatically prescribed for ear infections in young children. However, research has shown that many of these infections can heal on their own without antibiotics as long as a doctor is monitoring the infection. Talk with your doctor about the necessity of using an antibiotic, the pro’s and con’s of using one versus not using it, then follow her advice and directions.

Not all infections are bacterial. Most common, minor illnesses are caused by viruses. Viral and bacterial infections may share some of the same symptoms but they are very different infections and must be treated differently. If your doctor diagnoses a viral infection, it is unwise to pressure her into giving you a prescription for an antibiotic because antibiotics are useless against viruses. It would be a waste of money and would contribute to the problem of resistant bacteria due to antibiotic misuse.

When You or Your child is Prescribed an Antibiotic

The questions that you need to ask your doctor include:

• The name of the medicine (both brand name and generic name)
• The amount to be given (dosage)
• The times to be given (schedule)
• Possible side effects
• Potential drug interactions with any other medicine you are taking
• When to call or come back in if symptoms have not improved

Be sure that the doctor is aware of any other medications (including over-the-counter medications and herbal supplements) that are being used. If the antibiotic is for your child, ask about the taste and if it can be mixed with juice or food to disguise a bad taste. (We have been blessed with a pediatrician who tastes tests medicines so he can be honest with his patients about whether they are yucky or not. And if he has a choice of what to prescribe, he gives them the best tasting one.)

When You Go to the Pharmacy

Ask the pharmacist to give you written instructions on:

• When to take the medicine (schedule)
• How long you need to take it for (most of the time you will continue until all of the antibiotic is gone)
• How much to take (dosage)
• Side effects

Also ask whether or not the medicine:

• Can be taken with or without food
• Needs to be refrigerated
• Needs to be shaken well (if a liquid)
• Can be mixed with food or liquid to disguise a bad taste

Make sure the name of the medicine and the amount and times to be given on the label match what your doctor told you. Liquid medications need to be measured precisely, ask for a measuring device if you don’t have one. If other medications/supplements are being used, tell the pharmacist and ask about drug interactions. Some medications can be dangerous when mixed.

Taking or Giving the Antibiotic at Home

When giving or taking the antibiotic at home, make sure to stick as closely as possible to the scheduled times. If a dose is missed, do not double dose. If it is almost time for the next dose, then do not take the skipped dose, just take the next one on time. If it is still a few hours until the next dose, take the skipped one and then adjust the time to take the next one accordingly. If two or more doses have been skipped, call your doctor for instructions. Always call the doctor or pharmacist if you have questions.

Be sure to use a medication measuring cup, dropper, or oral syringe for liquid medications. Kitchen teaspoons and tablespoons can vary widely so don’t use them to measure medicine. (I wonder how many times we got the wrong dose when our moms gave us medicine using kitchen spoons?) Do not cut pills in half or crush them unless you have been told to or have checked with the pharmacist first because it could alter the effectiveness. Do not mix the antibiotic with juice, milk, or anything else to make it taste better unless the pharmacist says that it is okay to do so because certain antibiotics have to be taken on an empty stomach. Also, calcium and vitamin C can lessen the effectiveness of some antibiotics.

Always finish all of the prescribed antibiotic unless the doctor has instructed otherwise. Just because the symptoms may be alleviated after a few doses and you feel better, it does not mean that the infection is completely gone. Not finishing an antibiotic allows the remaining bacteria to learn how to adapt to the antibiotic and become resistant against it.

Side Effects

Common side effects of most antibiotics include: mild diarrhea, nausea, abdominal discomfort, and headaches. All antibiotics have the potential for side effects but that does not mean that every person will have the same ones. Most of the time, side effects are mild. If you have side effects that are moderate to severe, contact your doctor or pharmacist. Don’t stop using the medication without checking first. If your doctor instructs you to stop taking the medicine before it is finished, throw out the remaining amount. Do not save it for another illness.

Storing Antibiotics

Keep antibiotics (and, of course, all other medications) out of the reach of children. Put them in a cool, dry, dark, safe place or if it needs refrigeration, put it on the highest refrigerator shelf. Bathroom medicine cabinets are exposed to too much humidity which can lessen the effectiveness of some antibiotics.

If you have leftover antibiotics in your medicine cabinet, do not use them. Using or giving an antibiotic to one person that has been prescribed for another person can be very dangerous, even life-threatening. You would not have a full course of treatment and the antibiotic may not even be effective against the specific bacteria causing your illness. Instead, ask your pharmacist how to properly dispose of any leftover antibiotic. Do not throw any medicine in the trash because small children and pets could have access to them there.

When All the Medicine is Gone

Hopefully you will be feeling much better by the time you have finished all of your antibiotic. If, however, your symptoms haven’t cleared up and you are still feeling sick, call your doctor. She may want you to come back in for a re-check visit or she may call in a different, stronger antibiotic for you.

These guidelines are of a general nature and not intended to replace the advice and supervision of your physician or pharmacist.

Top 10 Things A New Mother Must Know

Here are the top things every new mother should know:

1. Don’t let the baby eat dirt
   (If the baby poops green…don’t worry)
2. Don’t let the baby eat grass
3. If the baby screams when you take away the bottle, chances are you didn’t put enough rum in it
4. Should a rash develop, have yourself checked out immediately
5. Mother in laws who think you are incompetent give helpful advice can become clumsy around this oughta take care of the old bat accidental kitchen spills
6. Teething is normal. Stay away from baby if urge continues
7. Don’t try to pawn the gas smell on the baby. We all know it was you
8. Mothers and fathers do things differently and that’s o.k. The baby will grow up to know the truth love you both and realize that you are always there for them I do way more
9. Sucking snot out of baby’s noise is to be expected. Using a straw is not.
10. If screaming and crying persist, go into another room or you will wake the baby

« Previous Page — Next Page »