Back To School Already??

Argh! Where did the summer go? Well, summer is nearing an end, and now we have the back-to-school rush. Our office is filled with last minute sports physicals and the mountain of forms that come attached. Please call your kid's physician now (if it's not already scheduled) and remember to bring in the school's paperwork with you to the visit, to save both you and us time and effort.

Why do we make you come in? First and foremost, because kids grow, bodies change, and we need to SEE them to be able to accurately assess them! Whether they are at risk for being overweight, have developed asthma or allergies, or simply started having periods- we need to know so we can appropriately treat them! Most schools require a doctor's note for even routine, over the counter medicines for headaches and cramps. Before we okay that, it would be nice to know more details- are the headaches turning into migraines? How frequent are they? Does the medicine upset your stomach? Etc. On the business end, yes, we charge for this. Not to be crass, but would you ask your pest control service to fill out forms certifying your house was termite-free without expecting a charge? It does take time and effort to check immunization records and fill out forms, so part of the business of medicine is that our offices expect payment for that time.

If you've got a child entering 7th grade, be aware that this is a mandatory vaccination year- Varicella (chicken pox), the meningitis vaccine, and a tetanus booster (Tetanus, Diptheria and Pertussis, TDaP). Got someone starting kindergarten? The new requirements include a hepatitis A series (2 shots) and Varicella. If you live in Texas, here is the press release that details these changes: http://www.dshs.state.tx.us/immunize/school/schoolchangesmemo.pdf

Every parent knows how hard it is to get back into the school routine, and that includes waking up EARLIER than summer for most. Please do not let your kid have that "last week of summer" excuse to stay up and sleep in even later! A week or two before school begins (which is NOW, in Texas) start cranking back bedtime and rising earlier. Sleep cycles are not happy when they are abruptly disturbed! Do it gradually, and the teachers will thank you, plus your mornings will be far less grumpy once the school bell rings!
Enjoy the last bit of summer and good luck for the upcoming school year!

BOTTOM LINE: Get those ducks in a row, and remember medical forms and sports physical requests can overwhelm doctors offices this time of year, so get yours scheduled now if they are not on the books yet!

The REALITY Behind Sex-ED

Today I am excited to share that my book, Seductive Delusions: how everyday people catch STDs, has been officially adopted by the North East Independent School District (NEISD) in San Antonio, Texas. The NEISD is the 8th largest district in Texas, and home to over 66,000 students. The Superintendent, Dr. Richard Middleton, recognizes that sex education is a challenging and often controversial topic, but with the shocking statistics of sexually transmitted diseases- especially in our teens- is excited to offer a new approach.

The NEISD has a wonderful program called Big Decisions, and they tackle multiple issues facing freshmen and beyond- from nutrition education, to digital citizenship (internet saavy/etiquette), to- yes, STDs and sex education. The teachers are excited to break away from boring statistics and dry textbooks to the reality-based stories in Seductive Delusions. Classroom discussions will not be putting students to sleep this year!

My book shares stories of successful young men and women as they are diagnosed with an STD. There are no steamy sex scenes nor bad language to further embarrass anyone. I should be clear that each story represents hundreds of patients that I have seen (that's the whole problem- this is COMMON!!) and I chose names that were the most popular baby names from 18 years ago, so the names would be super common, as well. What you WILL see is the conversations that take place behind closed exam room doors across America each day, including what to expect during each step through the discussions with the medical staff, the exam, any procedures, possible prescriptions and even emotional reactions as the patient processes the implications of the diagnosis.

This morning on KVUE Daybreak, we discussed this for our local viewers. Check it out on: http://www.kvue.com/home/The-reality-behind-sex-education-99929109.html and take a look at your school's approach. Let me know what's new in your community!

Grow Your Own!

Don't worry, I'm talking about TOMATO plants, here! Why bother growing your own? Wow, I can list a million reasons- starting with it TASTES better, and ending with it costs less AND there are no pesticides, but let me tell you my favorite reason. I love growing tomatoes because our daughters will EAT them. Period. Yep, that's the biggie!

I think I was in college, trying to impress a boyfriend, the first time that I actually choked down a tomato in a salad. Ironically, our kids are growing up hearing me ask at every restaurant "with EXTRA tomatoes on the salad, please". I truly love tomatoes now. How did we end up with home-grown?

Well, it's kind of funny. Our girl scout troop made tiny terrariums to start growing different types of spices and tomatoes. We made them outside on our deck. Our daughter decided to plant only tomatoes- "for Mom". They grew like weeds, and in a couple months, they were over three feet tall, starting to bear fruit, and needed to move outside. We moved them outside, where they promptly died within a week (very sad.) BUT-here's the kicker-apparently, seeds from the scout planting session must have blown off the deck and into our landscaping in our back yard, unbeknownst to us. Lo and behold, mixed in with our planted lantana, was several huge tomato plants, covered with tiny tomatoes! Well, we dug out the lantana, left the tomatoes, and as I type, we have nearly thirty tomatoes on the vine! These hearty plants grew with complete benign neglect, as we had absolutely no idea they were out there! Gotta love Austin weather.

At any rate, since "we" grew these plants, our girls were proud of them and decided to taste them. I'm happy to report that they now enjoy running out back at dinner time to gather up some fresh tomatoes for everyone's salad- not just Mom's!

BOTTOM LINE: Get kids to expand their palates by letting them grow some food or spice plants- even in pots on the windowsill!

PS. Happy August 1st! As with every first of the month, I want to remind you to CHANGE YOUR AIR FILTERS!

"Adult" Onset Diabetes Prevention...in TEENS

A study was published last month called the "HEALTHY Study- Middle school-based intervention to reduce diabetes risk." Basically, the researchers took 42 schools, home to over 4000 students, and divided them into two groups: one group was the control, and the other group received changes in school food services, more intense PE classes, and classroom activities to promote healthy behaviors.

Happily, the treatment group did indeed shrink waistlines, BMIs (Body Mass Index), and insulin levels. Surprisingly, both groups had close to the same amount of weight loss (4% in the intervention group, and 4.5% in the controls.) Actually, I'm not that surprised, because kids are smart. The so-called "control group" knew that they were involved in a study about health, and were in fact, specifically tested with health screening, and if they had abnormal results, they were advised to seek care from their health provider.

Personally, I'm pleased that BOTH groups lost weight (as opposed to the nurses' study I discussed earlier this week, where it was a matter of which group GAINED less weight.)

What should our take home message be from this study? There is no age too early to emphasize healthy behaviors, and at the critical time of puberty, we need to give it a full court press! Kids can and WILL make changes if they are educated and offered opportunity to do so.

BOTTOM LINE: "Adult" onset diabetes is kicking in younger and younger as our population gains weight. Let's reverse this trend!

Best Haircut EVER!

Are you ready for a new "do"? Tired of taking a half hour to dry your locks before work? Please consider DONATING your hair to one of the companies that make wigs for people battling cancer. It typically takes about six hair donations to make one wig, so they are always looking for donations! How much hair do you have to cut off? Each company has different requirements, but the shortest that I am aware of is the Pantene Beautiful Lengths which asks for at least eight inches. Locks of Love and Wigs 4 Kids both ask for ten inches.
Both of our daughters donated their hair two years ago, and our younger one was back in the chair this week. What a wonderful gift!
Please read ALL the directions ahead of time, so your efforts are not wasted! Your hair must be washed and FULLY dried without any product left in (like gel or hairspray), then placed in a braid or ponytail before being cut. You are allowed to straighten it to maximize the length. Most companies do not accept highlighted hair (because part of it is bleached and then when the combined pieces of the wig are put together and dyed, the previously treated hair will not blend well) but many accept simply colored hair.
BOTTOM LINE: If you have long hair and are ready for a shorter style, DONATE your hair!

Swimmer's Ear- Prevention and Treatment

If you've made it this far into the summer without anyone in your family getting swimmer's ear, congratulations! You're probably either not swimming, or you've been consistently putting drops in your ears after swimming. What drops do we use? We make our own home brew of half and half, alcohol and vinegar. (Yes, rubbing alcohol and generic cooking white vinegar.) To be honest, I like the convenience of the over-the-counter little bottle, so I actually buy one and pour out the contents, replacing it with our home remedy. An extra tip is to set it outside (in the shade in Texas) where it will warm up a bit before you put drops in your ears, so it's not cold and irritating.

This mix will actually work both for prevention and for treatment, if you forgot to use it ahead of time. Nine times out of ten, this will be all you will need! The vinegar kills the fungus, and the alcohol dries up any moisture that remains.
If you are an ear-wax-builder-upper, you may need to flush your ears periodically (such as once per month) using an infant bulb syringe and luke warm tap water, to remove packed in ear wax prior to putting in the home brew drops.

BOTTOM LINE: As always, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, but remember vinegar/alcohol ear drops for swimmer's ear and you'll be set!

Shake Up Your Summer Habits!

Okay, we're nearing the end of summer- are your kids bored? Have they (or you) fallen into some poor habits? Time to take stock and be proactive! Let's start with activities.

What are you doing in your spare time? Hanging out and reading blogs? Turn off the computer (after you finish reading this, of course) and head out to your garage. In a minute or two, I'll bet you can find plenty of outdoor "toys" to get you moving. My garage had this: skates, volley balls, soccer balls, basketballs, croquet, bikes, jump rope, hula hoops, a scooter and golf clubs.

Now, what about food? Our kids realized they were falling way behind in the fruit and vegetable department, so we pulled out everything in the fridge (and a bunch from the pantry) to see what our choices were. Happily, we had the five ingredients for hummus, along with a fresh bag of baby carrots, so we whipped up that delicious snack first. The overripe bananas paired up with some frozen berries, peaches, and yogurt to provide smoothies, and we were back on track.

The next step? I asked each kid to be in charge the menu for three days this week. The rules are that we need ten servings of fruits and vegetables per day (a serving is what you hold in your hand) and that only one of the nine meals could be from a restaurant. I'll let you know next week how it went, but today was terrific!

BOTTOM LINE: Take stock of your dietary and exercise habits, and make sure you haven't fallen into the summer doldrums!