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Benefits of Engaging Children in Active Play

Benefits of Engaging Children in Active Play Amma Kosam || Pillalu Aatalu (Children's Active Play) :Watch  Dr Chitti VishnuPriya (Parent Educationist) talk about how a mother can engage her children in active play .She speaks about the benefits of Active Play , how regular active play helps Babies and Children to develop a lifelong habit of daily exercise and life skills. Children are born to play and through active play they can grow to be ahealthy and happy children. She gives tips about how a mother should engage the child from the  toddler stage to 10 years and explains how this helps in their physically, mentally and emotional growth.

Newborn Baby Care Tips

Newborn Baby Care Tips Newborn Baby Care Tips :Watch Dr Srinivas share tips as to how a mother should take care of a new born child. Taking care of a newborn child can be quite overwhelming for any new mom and this video will dispel your fears and doubts as to what you should do.From how to cover the baby, to how to bathe a baby, diaper wear and how to feed the baby, he explains everything related to baby care. A must watch for Newbie moms and dads.    

Practice Aadi Mudra during Pregnancy

  Practice Aadi Mudra during Pregnancy         Joy Of Pregnancy || Aadi Mudra || By Jessy Naidu: Watch Parenting Trainer Jessy Naidu Speak about the benefits of Aadi  Mudra when practiced during Pregnancy.Do this slowly whenever you feel heavy in the head or stressed out during pregnancy period. This Pranayama technique improves the Pranic energy around your head, nose, and ears and leaves you feeling de-stressed and relaxed.  

Practicing Poorna Mudra in Pregnancy

Practicing Poorna Mudra in Pregnancy     Joy Of Pregnancy || Poorna Mudra || Watch Jessy Naidu,Parenting Trainer explain the benefits of doing the Poorna Mudra.She gives tips as to how a pregnant lady should do Pranayama and balance herself by eating the right portions and practice Pranayama.  

Walking and Yoga during Pregnancy

Walking and Yoga during Pregnancy   Joy Of Pregnancy || Walking and Yoga During Pregnancy Watch Jessy Naidu , Parenting Trainer talk about the benefits of walking and yoga during pregnancy. She gives tips as to what to do when you get tired during walking and for how long you can walk and practice yoga. She emphasizes the need for a pre-natal coach to train you when you are pregnant and not to exercise on your own.

Discussion about Positive Parenting

Discussion about Positive Parenting   Discussion about Positive Parenting: Watch our Parenting expert Dr Chitti Vishnupriya talk about how each child is individual and has his/her own potential. She gives useful tips as to how parents should handle siblings with distinct abilities and how to handle the rivalry that happens between them. She delves on the importance of joint activities for both of them which nurtures their talent and also fosters a healthy bonding between them.

Diet Plan during Pregnancy

Diet Plan during Pregnancy     Watch Dr Brindavani- Nutritionist talk about the right food and nutrition for Young women who have conceived. She explains in detail about the Diet plan  & what is the right amount of carbs, proteins, calcium  should one eat & in what combination should they be taken by  a pregnant lady for  a healthy pregnancy. She also emphasizes the need for losing weight after child birth where the weight should be in accordance with one’s height.  

Effective Parenting tips

Effective Parenting tips Watch our Child and Parent  Expert Dr Chitti Vishnu Priya talk about how a mother should take care of her baby. She talks how to help hyperactive kids stay grounded and  also gives tips to engage them in constructive activities.

Sukha Pranayama during Pregnancy

Sukha Pranayama during Pregnancy   Watch our Parenting Trainer Jessie Naidu talk about the benefits of Sukha Pranayama a breathing exercises in Yoga which is very powerful and beneficial for a person, especially pregnant women. This can be done every day after the regular breathing exercise. During the last trimester of pregnancy, when the Blood Pressure levels are slightly high this breathing exercise will help lower the levels and benefit the mother and child.  

How to Handle Sibling Rivalry

How to Handle Sibling Rivalry   Watch our expert Dr Chitti Vishnu Priya talk about Positive Approach to Parenting. In this video she speaks about how to handle issues and difficulties when it comes to handling two siblings at home. A must watch, especially if you have two girls at home where she gives wonderful tips to take care of sibling rivalry, at the same time pacify both of them  and develop a healthy bond between them.

Tips for a healthy Pregnancy & Baby

Tips for a healthy Pregnancy & Baby    Jessy Naidu talks about Physical and mental health while pregnant. She speaks about the importance of being positive and maintaining a healthy and happy life during pregnancy. Check out this informative video which gives wonderful tips to handle yourself when pregnant which is a divine feeling.

Enzymes and Digestion in Children

Enzymes and Digestion in Children   Eating right and healthy is definitely important but its not a independent activity...only if that healthy food is digested right, will that food be utilized better by the body and help in a healthy life. Poor digestion is another reason people often need nutritional supplements as the body is not extracting all nutrients from the food one eats. Poor Digestion in children is one main and frequent topic discussed between Parents and Doctors.  One reason for poor digestion is a lack of enzymes in the diet. Enzymes are essential to the digestion, assimilation, and absorption of food, and there are several steps parents can take to help ensure your child has enough enzymes for normal digestion:   Avoid highly processed foods that are void of enzymes, deep fried foods are among them.  Consume more fruits and raw or slightly steamed vegetables that are loaded with enzymes.  Make sure the child chews the food properly, allowing salivary enzymes to help break down the food.  Don't encourage the habit of watching TV while eating any meal, the mind doesnot register that activity as healthy eating.  Don't cook food at high temperatures, like deep frying, it destroys the enzymes in the food. Don't allow the child to consume excessive amounts of fluids like water, juice, milk with meals, which washes out the enzymes

Child's weight worries

Child's weight worries   Days of strange food habits have already arrived, Most parents are worried about their Child's weight. Most of the Children are following the wrong eating habits, either they are eating too much junk food or eating very less.  Here are few questions every worried parent should ask the Pediatrician: What is the healthy weight as per my child's height? The Doctor will measure and compare the height and weight and also be able to tell you the child's BMI (Body mass index).  Is the child's current weight putting him or her at risk of any illnesses? Does my child need to go on diet, atall?Some children who are obese need to start the diet program at a young age.  How much exercise does my child need per day?  How should i talk about this problem to my child without hurting his or her feelings?  This is a very sensitive matter to discuss with a child, especially. Instead of saying "you are over-weight", "The Doctor said you need to eat less" and embarrasing the child, you can say "As a family, we need to make better eating choices for our health" and even the parents should start a healthy diet program so that the child doesnot feel strange or wrongly treated by offering not-so-tasty food. If the child has siblings, let them not make fun of this child.   

Whats in the Baby Bag

Whats in the Baby Bag?   People in the Western countries use Diapers mostly, so this Baby bag is famously called Diaper Bag. But Diapers are not so well-known in India even now, there is lot of opposition to using Diapers in this era too. Thats actually a good habit but Moms have to worry alot if the baby is not wearing a diaper. She is already tired with not much sleep and too much multitasking. Using good quality diapers for the baby once in a while, when going out, during sleep is not a problem maker.  New Moms are tensed when it comes to going out with the baby. There could be an urgent situation any moment, the baby might be hungry, he or she might cry alot, wet the dress badly, drool too much or spit on Mommy's dress. Here are some tips to help Mom pack her baby bag well.    Buy a bag thats water proof, with ample space and sufficient inner pockets to store lots of stuff.  Let there be pockets in the front and rear to store the urgent things like a pacifier if you use one for the baby, currency coins, cell phone, a handkerchief, a lipbalm etc.   Let the bag always carry 3-4 diapers, diaper rash cream pouch, 3-4 undergarments of the baby, and small pouch full of wet wipes, a small water bottle, an empty sterile milk bottle, an insulation bag for the bottle, a jar of formulae or packets of it, dry nibbles like rusks or biscuits for the baby if he or  she started to eat food, 2 pairs of dresses, 2 bibs, a few ear buds, one baby fever medication bottle, one medicine dispenser/syringe, one thermometer, one vaccuum nostril clearing pump, 2 cotton napkins, 2 pairs of  baby socks, a small hair comb and if its a girl, hair clips if your baby has good hair. One small cotton blanket will be so much useful, you will thank yourself for carrying it in the bag.    Now, instead of carrying 2 separate bags, Mom can buy a good looking bag as 2-in-1 purpose, Stash all your stuff too  in the bag but in separate compartments to remember easily. When the baby cries, your brain will not function smartly..so organize all the items well to sort easily. If you are nursing, always keep 2 breast pads handy, you never know if there are any leakages suddenly. Carry along a feeding cover it will be useful sometimes.    With this kind of preparation, you will survive the initial 6-7 months of babies birth and later you will be a pro and will need no help or suggestions.               

Children and Exercise

Children and Exercise Obesity or Malnutrition have become two common types of problems even with Children these days. Healthy eating is not enough to conquer obesity. Kids can get exercise from playing outdoors and being physically active (riding cycles and playing about). They get added exercise when they take Physical Education classes at school or join a basketball or football team or a dance class. Parents should not cultivate this thought in children that attending extra curricular activities spoils grades in studies.   TV, Videogames, Computers, Laptops and Tablets are encouraging the couch-potato syndrome in children. They stick to these gadgets and get entertained but infact, they are loosing their health at a very early stage in life. Even the little ones, aged 9 months-1 year+ are watching video games and cartoons on these gadgets. This clearly shows that parents are simply giving in, and are encouraging these activities. The American Academy of Pediatrics suggests that infants or young children should not be inactive for prolonged periods of time (no more than 1 hour during their awake-time), and school-age children should not be inactive for more than 2 hours at a time.  Again, parents lead the way with own examples. The children see their parents stick to these gadgets and tend to follow the same. If the same parent follows some good health activities, the child learns the same. Problem is, peer pressure has increased alot, every family is comparing their child's ability to use these gadgets as smartness and techno-pro IQ with another child. Even if not  necessary at a young age, parents are introducing tablets to infants too just to cope with this competition, which is healthy according to them. However, there are some new video games like Wii that are family friendly and bring in the physical activity games indoors for the whole family. some activities develop self-defense mechanisms in a child like Karate, Kung-fu...enrolling a child there is also a better option which serves as 2-in-1.  Below is the age-appropriate minimum daily requirement of physical activity to stay fit.  Infant: No specific minimum requirement as their body is not fully ready even for any movement, and at later months, they are busy enough and at a maximum limit.  Toddler: One and half hours daily-- 30 minutes planned physical activity and 60 minutes unstructured physical activity (free play). Preschooler: 2 hours daily--60 minutes planned activity and 60 minutes free play. Prefer to enroll child in schools that offer planned physical activity (PE) training or free play sessions.  School age: 1 hour or more daily-- break up into bouts of 15 minutes or more of any physical activity. Prefer to enroll child in schools that offer planned physical activity (PE) training or free play sessions.   

Children and Vegetables

Children and Vegetables   Getting young Children to eat vegetables is a challenge to parents. Its easy to grow a vegetable than to convince a child to eat one.  Try growing vegetables in your backyard, or atleast a herb garden in your apartment. Make this part of the time you spend with your kids. Ask your child to help watering the plants, change the soil, watching the growth of the fruits and vegetables.  Make it a habit to take your children to Grocery stores, markets, take their help in selecting the best products. Take your children on outings to farms, farmers markets that bring in Cows, Goats, Chickens, the petting zoo, Poultry farms if any still close by. Show them where their food comes from. Children who see food as a link with nature are more likely to eat natural foods without a fuss.  Turn off the Television, Ipads, and computers when sitting to have your lunches/ dinners. Let it be a family time, when kids will have a delightful time with the whole family. Mom and Dad can tell the kids their favourite vegetables stories and make meal time a cherishing time rather than a disturbance while  watching TV. If they don't like vegetables that you feed the first time, don't quit, try again and again, but don't force. Parents should eat those veggies, inorder to show the child that they taste good and its nothing wrong in trying new foods.       

HOMEMADE FOODS AT 12 MONTHS+

HOMEMADE FOODS AT 12 MONTHS+   At 12 Months age: Grains like wheat, nuts, seeds, egg whites and fish should not be introduced until the infant is older than twelve months of age, especially if either parent has food sensitivities or allergies. This food category has the most potential for causing digestive disturbances or allergies. There has been a rise in peanut (groundnut) and nut allergies due to the trend of giving them to very young babies.  Babies donot produce the needed enzymes to handle cereal grains, especially gluten-containing grains like wheat, before the age of one year. Even then, it is common traditional practice to soak grains in water and a little yoghurt or buttermilk for twenty-four hours. This process jump-starts the enzymatic activity in the food and begins breaking down some of the harder-to-digest components. The easiest grains to digest are those without gluten, like brown rice that has been soaked for atleast twenty-four hours and cooked with plenty of water for a long time.  Foods to introduce at 18 Months age: Beans, Beetroots, buckwheat, chard, chicken, brinjal, egg whites, fish, garbanzo beans ( chole beans) goat milk yoghurt, kelp, other greens like lettuce, mustard etc, rye and tahini.  At 21 Months age: Almond butter, cashew butter, oranges, pineapple, wild salmon fish, turkey, wheat. At 24 to 36 Months age: Corn if no reaction, cottage cheese, hard cheese, lentils, peanut butter, sunflower seeds. Grandmom might say 'its OK to feed everything after you see 10 teeth in the babies mouth'....It is not, think twice on why the Pediatricians had to design this food introduction schedule with reasons, if it was only for fun!

Homemade Baby Food-2nd Stage

Homemade Baby Food-2nd Stage   Now, by 6 months age, breastfed babies can start eating too. At 6-8 months of age, the food texture changes in your preparation.The complexity and texture can be improved. New Vegetables can be introduced one at a time so that any adverse reactions may be observed and further avoided. Carrots, sweet potatoes and beetroots are excellent choices. All veggies can be cooked (steamed preferably), mashed, and mixed with a liberal amount of fat, such as butter or coconut oil, to provide nutrients to aid in digestion.  Early introduction to different tastes ones household prefers and follows in order to avoid finickiness. Feed a touch of buttermilk, yoghurt, kefir from time to time to introduce the sour taste.  At 8 months age, a baby can consume a variety of foods and can handle little thick and chunky textures. They can be vegetable soups, homemade stews, dairy foods such as cottage cheese and tofu. Except for thoroughly cooked brown rice, other grains like wheat can wait until one year age, as wheat-nuts-seeds-egg whites have the  potential for causing digestive disturbances or allergies.   Babies from birth up to 2 years of  age need high levels of fat, to support growth and development. After birth, mother's milk or formulae provide the necessary nutrition. But once the baby starts eating food, parents should make sure to add milk and animal fats to help the child build muscle and bone. In addition, the animal fats provide vitamins A and D necessary for protein and mineral assimilation, normal growth and hormone production. Choose a variety of foods so the child gets a range of fats, but emphasize stable saturated fats, found in butter, meat, and coconut oils, and mono-unsaturated fats, found in avocados and olive oil.   

Homemade 1st Foods

Homemade 1st Foods   Food introduction differs from Breastfed babies to Formulae fed babies...while Mom can start introducing veggies and fruits after 4 months of age for a Formula fed baby, the Breast fed babies can taste food after 6 months, however, most Pediatricians still recommend continuing to only breastfeed until 12 months. This has its own side-efffects, the baby rejects other foods as he or she is too much used to liking only the taste of milk and its texture.  Homemade First-year foods for Formula Fed Babies (beginning from four-months age):  some raw fruits that contain digestive enzymes, such as Bananas, or other ripe fruits, thoroughly mashed. As a supplement to formula, a four-month-old baby can have freshly squeezed juice from organic fruits and veggies to augment his/her consumption of living enzymes, which are naturally abundant in breast milk. Avoid citrus fruits until 9 months of age. Try pureeing fresh, raw apple and a lightly cooked carrot. Mashed avocados, melon, mangoes, papaya, applesause (boiled apple mash), cooked peas, and cooked winter squash are all good first foods. High-pectin fruits such as peaches, apricots, apples, pears, cherries and berries should be cooked to break down the pectin, which can be very irritating to the digestive tract.  Organic or Pasture-fed or DHA Egg yolks, rich in choline, cholesterol, and other brain-nourishing substances, can be added to your baby's diet as early as four-months, as long as the baby takes it easily. If baby reacts to egg yolk badly, discontinue and try again after a month. Cholesterol is vital for the insulation of nerves in the brain and the entire central nervous system. It helps with fat digestion by increasing the formation of bile acids and is necessary for the production of many hormones. Since the brain is so dependent on cholesterol, it is especially vital during this time when brain growth is extremely rapid. Only yolk at this age, as the white is the portion that most often causes allergies, so wait to give egg whites until after the child turns one. Don't neglect to put a pinch of salt in the yolk, it helps critically in digestion as well as for brain development. Use unrefined salt to supply a variety of trace minerals. 

Sugar Overload at the 1st!

Avoid Sugar for Babies   As your child approaches the first birthday, he or she is speeding up, reaching out to anything and everything on the way. By twelve months, toddlers will be able and be interested to eat everything the parents eat. The weight gain process will slow down drastically. Since, they don't want bulky food, give them nibbles, let them graze, its their psychology, they prefer to eat less but eat often. Hence, giving them nutritious food is very important. Don't introduce junk yet, it doesn't fetch them any health.  Hopefully, at the time of his or her first birthday, your toddler will not feed on junk. The association of junk food at this event is obvious, but you make sure, even though every guest is having cakes and sweets, you Child only cuts the cake but doesn't ask for it.  Delay the introduction of refined sugars and other sweets as long as you can. Although it's tempting to put a gigantic cake in front of the baby on her first birthday or feed her ice cream when she won't eat anything else, the longer you can put off introducing these foods, the less hooked on them she's likely to become. Prepare the baby food at home and feed it to the child in a separate room at the party, you can give the child a favourite fruit, or a home made, no-sugar fruit juice.