Happy Foods for your kids

As parents we all want our kids to be happy or to be in happy mood always. Being happy also means having good disposition and just know how to react positively in any unpleasant situation and environment. To make our kids have a happy mood, we must give them happy foods! Yes,happy foods as these foods are called because they contain and rich in Omega 3 fats ,folic acids , selanium and vitamin B12 .  These groups of foods uplift one's mood and keep away stress and depresions. Feed your kids with these "happy "foods and enjoy the benefits. But always apply the rule of moderation!

Here are 5 "happy" foods for your kids as well as for you,dear parents

1.NUTS- nust are power packed with omega 3, selanium and protein. Nuts are also rich in vitamin E, an antioxidant that helps fight off stress. Give your kids a cup of nuts such as cashew nuts, chestnuts or the simple peanuts for snacks and you'll keep him in a happy mood all day.
2.Chocolate- every kid loves chocolates and you can excuse your kids from having a bar or a slice of choco cake or pudding because  it has anadamine, a brain chemical that sets up happy moods and fights off stress.
3.Rice, noodles, pasta and breads- don't believe those lies that carbohydrates promotes gloomy fellings. It is the reverse as carbohydrates can increase our serotonin levels which is responsible for making us active and energetic.
4.Beans and Soybeans- the complete food beside eggs and milk. It is a rich source of omega 3 fats, calcuim ,folic acids and protein. It a soluble fibers and can prevent  prostate and breast cancer.
5.Broccoli- let you kids eat his green foods such as broccoli which is rich in calcium and folate or folic acids and vitamin B that help in uplifting mood and spirit. It also good in eleminating stress and a good source of antioxidant which is a good cancer fighter.

Make these "happy " foods be part of your kids daily diet. Prepare meals with these "Happy" foods and  improve your kid's temperaments.

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Dengue Cure-Tawa-Tawa plants

Dengue is caused by a viral infection transmitted by a mosquito bite. Aedes mpsquitoes are found to be carrier of this deadly virus that cause blood platelets to fall , caused shock and death if not treated immediately. Since there's no direct medications for this deadly disease, there are two critical factors that could save patient from having a down blood platelets. Following these simple tips may help save a life.

Proper re-hydration management- since dengue is caused by a virus, it caused acute condition of incresed vascular permeability and plasma leakage, re-hydration  in the form of intravenous fluid is applied to replace excess fluid loss. Oral re-hydration  is also recommended as to replenish body with carbohydrates and electrolytes. Commercial non -carbonated drink Gatorade can also  be taken to replace lost carbohydrates and electrolytes in the body.

Tawa-Tawa plants easily found in local places and garden

Herbal Medicines Management- A special  Philippines plant species called Tawa-Tawa is now gathering good reviews as potent cure for Dengue. Tonic drink from the boiled leaves and twigs  found to make blood platelets go up and based on a clinical studies conducted by St. Luke's Hospital research , there's a high results of virus flushed out  with the use of Tawa-Tawa tonic drink. It's a subtantial finding but still non-conclusives as futher studies are being conducted by the DOH research laboratoy,

Tawa-Tawa can be used as tonic drink or as capsule. It also comes in tea formed sold by a Herbal Company called CARICA. As parents, we still have to consider the best remedy for Dengue. It is still recommended to bring your child to a hospital or clinic. Herbal medicines can be of help but always ask your doctor about it.  Give these herbal remedy under your doctor's advice and guidance. Remember, it is our child's life that is at stake. Always put caution in everything that concerns health and life.

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Fight Dengue-Do the 4 o'clock Habit

With Dengue fast spreading all over the country, it's time for us parents to protect our family by simply doing our little share of eradicating  this dreadful DENGUE. Yes, by doing our daily tasks of keeping our surrounding clean and free of mosquitos breeding places we can kick out this deadly mosquitoes.
DO THE 4 O'CLOCK HABIT
A special species of mosquitoes is said to be the carrier of this Dengue Virus. One deadly bite from a female Aedes mosquito can transmit 3 or 4 Dengue Virus. Symptoms include onset of high fever, extreme headache, joints pain and stomach. Days after patient may have red patches in skin and when already in danger stage, may have bleeding gums and nose. When not ACTED IMMEDIATELY, it may cause blood platelets to fall and cause shock and then death. It is deadly but when detected early can be prevented and treated.
Since it is caused by virus, there's no specific drug treatment and only fluid flushing is the immediately treatment plus symptomatic drugs like paracetamol for fever and pain.

Health authorities say that the only way to eradicate this Dengue Virus is to keep out Aedes mosquitoes in the environment and destroy its breeding places.
 This Aedes mosquitoes bite only during daytime and found to be active  between 6 am to 10 am and 2 pm to 4 pm or until the last daylight which is before 6 pm.
To destroy its breeding places, everybody must practice the 4 o'clock habit.

• Throw away all possible breeding places like empty bottle (without caps), old tires, plastic containers


• Replace water in flower vases daily and drain water from dishwashers,refrigerators, air conditioners


• Drain all stagnant rain water around and near your houses


• Cover all drums of water and treat them with disinfectants


• Keep your surrounding clean and dry as possible.

It is with joint efforts of parents and the community that this deadly Dengue can be eradicated Join the efforts and let's have a Dengue- free community!

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Otto Waterless Urinals- Help Reduce Water Usage

Waterless urinals are coming to town. Arrow home improvements, a leading company for home improvements with its Otto waterless urinals is introducing to the Filipinos a new concept in home bathrooms and toilets.

Waterless urinals concept is something that is new to most parents and homeowners. It   had some bad feedback several years ago when it was introduced in other countries. But the good thing is; the Philippines is being introduced to the WATERLESS concept with a product that has a lot of innovative designs said to have eliminated the past problems of waterless urinals. The stinking smell, the clogging and the hazardous materials are now thing of the past with Otto waterless urinals. But are we ready for this big shift in our toilet and bathroom supplies?

Otto waterless urinals claim to have designs that can match any bathroom interiors. This means the design will not ruin your stylish bathroom accessories and in fact can complement bathroom accessories and bathroom supplies without compromising toilet purpose.  An Otto waterless urinal is also Eco-friendly because it’s   made from non-toxic and non-hazardous materials. It also uses re-usable cartridges thus saving money on its simple maintenance.But this money-saving feature is not enough to convince a homeowner to shift to this waterless urinals. Now, take a look on this. It is also said that a single Otto male urinal when install in your bathroom will reduce water usage from 20% to 30% of total site water consumption. That's what we need; reduced water usage.

According to the Handbook of Water and Conservation, if all Filipinos will install water conservation features in their toilet, water usage would decrease by 30%, saving an estimated 5.4 billion per day.  This will result in dollar volume savings of 11.3 million per day or 4 billion per year. This will not only save our water resources but give new lease of life to our dying water sources. A Filipino household which has  a water usage of 350 gallon per day and  if it uses an Otto waterless urinal, its daily usage will reduced to estimated 240 gallon. If every household will have reduced daily water usage, in a month, an estimated of 450 million gallons of water will be saved.  It is no doubt that Otto waterless urinals can help save our water resources.It is more than money-saving. It is saving our future generation.

Now, if waterless urinals can make water savings of 30%, it is time for us to rethink and reconsider changing our views about these waterless toilets. If water free urinals will be used in many homes and establishments, water conservation will be collective actions among its users. We can all participate in our little own ways in this noble cause of saving our water resources thus letting our children enjoy the benefits of its abundance in the near future.. WE as parents, have this primary role to lead our children in accepting new challenges and innovations for the betterment of our life and community. With waterless urinals, getting ready for them is just a matter of decision. Think. Decide. Help reduce water usage. Have waterless urinals in your homes.

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Generic drugs

Generic bill of the Philippines hopes to cut down cost on medicines and primarily help Filipino family to save on drugs costs. The Generic Bill imposes medical practitioners to give prescription writing down generic substitution for branded drugs. This has been the most debated issues until now, with different contrasting opinion from different parties involved.

But the decision to switch from branded one to generic is not merely because a law imposes it but because one decides to allow doctors and medical practitioners to use generic drugs unless the doctor says there’s no substitution.

There are some general information about generic drugs that parents like us should know to get the essence of this bill. Read on to get fully informed about this Generic Drugs.

1. Not every medication is available in Generic Form.

 While it is true that doctors should write down generic prescription, not all drugs have generic substitute. When a new drug comes out, the manufacturer hold a patent for five to ten years thus preventing competitors in marketing generic form. Some newer drugs do not have generic form available at this time. Antibiotic like amoxicillin is a generic form and has no more brand names produced.

2. All generic forms are cheaper

   In general, a generic is cheaper than a brand –name medication but how much cheaper depends on the great extend of how many companies are making it. If the original manufacturing is the only one making a generic form, the cost may only be minimal. But if many companies are making the generic versions, then there’s a big difference in price range.

3. All generic are money-savers

    Paying less for a foul-tasting generic drug is more likely to spending more because your child won’t take it. In the end, you may end up buying better-tasting brand-name that your child will easily take. Some generic drugs have awful taste while brand-name has better taste which is more likely for a child to take than of the generic form.

In overview, generic can cut down cost on medicine expenses but it is still a matter of making the right decision. As parents, we don’t rely on the price alone but more on the welfare and wellness of our children. Our first priority is our family’s health, whatever the cost may be.

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Genetic Counseling- A new trend in becoming a Parent

If a couple wants to have children,  before the pregnancy , it is best for them to have genetic counseling. What is Genetic Counseling and why it is needed to have a normal and healthy children?

Genetic counseling is done by genetic counselors who take the genetic history of the family. Questions are ask for history of retardation, history of miscarriages, a child with birth defects, other diseases or problems or anyone with severe learning problems. A family tree will be drawn ,starting with the couples, their parents,brothers. sisters,nieces,nephews,aunts,uncles, first cousins and if possible, the grandparents. This is to draw out possibiities of any suspected genetic problem. When the woman is suspected pregnant, a prenatal test of the fetus is recommended. If all test results are nergative,it can alliviates anxiety and when  a serious defect is found, arrangement for delivery and treatment by appropriate trained specialist can benifits the child.

Hundreds of genetic diseases can now be detected prenatally but in some cases,genetic counseling can have limitations as some genetic diseases can not be diagnosed prenatally unless there is a reason to look for them. Genetic counseling mainly lies on the premise of knowing what to look for.

 Who can benefit from genetic counseling?

• Parents who can have a child with a defect
• Couples who have three or more miscarriages
• Parents with a genetic disease or a history of a genetic disease
• Parents from an ethnic group with high risk for certain genetic disease
• a pregnant woman whose sonogram shows a possibility of fetal abnormality

Genetic counseling is better done before pregnancy and the earlier the couple decides about this is best.  DNA test for genetic diseases requires blood sampling taken from parents and siblings. It is best to be cleared and throw anxiety out.

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Are your kids safe in bed?

When our kids turn two or old enough to wear t-shirt, we tend to let them sleep wearing this kind of clothing. With the kind of climate we have, t-shirt can be well –appreciated because they are cooler. But in resent studies in child care program, parents who allow their children to sleep wearing t-shirt are putting their kids in a greater risk. These t-shirts are not fire-resistant and can easily catch-up fire when place near stove or a match.

Children sleepwear is flame resistant up to size 14 and has lesser risks. Make sure your kids wear sleepwear or pajamas and be sure to read the tag/label and see to it that they are flame –resistant. A peaceful sleep can only be peaceful when you know that your children are in real safe condition.

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Reproductive Health Bill And You as A Parent

Philippine Reproductive Health Bill or RH Bill is a Philippine bill aiming to guarantee universal access to methods and information on birth control and maternal care. Its key proposal is that the Filipino taxpayer and the private sector will fund and undertake widespread distribution of family devices such as birth control pills and IUD’s as the government continues to disseminate information on their use through all health care centers. It is also mandated in the bill that private companies and the public and private elementary and secondary school system will be required to participate in this information and product dissimination as a way of controlling the population of the Philippines.

women's group are protesting in favor of RH Bill

Pro life with Catholic Church opposes RH Bill

Many things have been said about this controversial Reproductive Health Bill. The Catholic Church has spoken about their stand regarding this bill. For them, this is an evil act. It is something that is against life. They contend that men have no right to take away life even before it is conceived. The church believes that it is the duty of the government to protect its people, to give services that promote health and wellness. With this, the government has no right to kill its people much more the innocent unborn children. But the government has different outlook and opinion. Lawmakers who make laws on the land condemn poverty as a result of over population and to address this, population must be controlled. Reproductive Health Bill is the proposed government’s solution to this escalating problem that causes dissolution of people’s social, psychological and spiritual well-being. The growing number of poor population has given rise to many social problems such as illiteracy, prostitution, crimes and social unrest. Because of this, abortions and unwanted pregnancies hound the tormented minds of those who do not know what to do and where to go during times of disillusionment. Lawmakers believe that this is what reproductive health bill is all about, to address and eradicate poverty by controlling population and teaching the people the things that they should know and do.  

IUD or  intrauterine device- an artificial means of birth control

In contrast too many misconceptions have been brought out by the opposing Church. They have labeled RH Bill as a demon’s instrument to destroy mankind. They will not in all senses let RH Bill to be passed and made into a law withstanding the needs of the people to be liberated from poverty and misfortunes. On the other hand, the government is also firm in upholding their stand that it is its duty to do what is best for its people, and RH Bill is the key to achieve solutions to the deteriorating standard of living.

 As a parent, you teach your children to have a faith. You teach your children to know and believe in God.  You teach them to be obedient of His commandments and laws. As a believer, you teach them how to obey laws governing the religious community you are with. We are parents; we take care of our children long before they are born. We take care of them long after we ceased to be the only person they have to depend on. We do things for them. We ask them to do things for their own good.  But as parent, it is not right to impose things to our children as much as to impose things on our selves just to give them good life. 

  

We become parents by choice. We chose to become one and this is enough reason for us to celebrate this with freedom. What ever our choice is, it is dictated by the essence of our being a parent. We will choose by the dictate of our love for our children. Not by what society and religious doctrines imposed upon us. The dignity of our choice is on our being a parent, as part of the creation that has made this earth God’s chosen Kingdom.

  

As a parent, it is time for you to make your stand. What ever your choice may be…let it be your choice because you are a parent that cares for your children!

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Newborn Screening for Your Baby

If you are pregnant, the first thing that concerns you is your baby’s well-being. To save your baby from mental retardation or death, you must submit your baby to Newborn screening or NBS. This is a must for babies after they were born. Here are some important details about newborn screening (NBS) and how it can save your baby’s life.

What is NEWBORN SCREENING?

Newborn Screening is a simple procedure done to check if your baby has congenital metabolic disorder that may lead to retardation or death if left untreated. It is important because some babies may look normal at birth although they may have metabolic disorders. These disorders are unnoticed until the onset of signs and symptoms and more often ill effects are already hard to treat. Newborn screening will determine whether your baby may have these congenital disorders thus avoiding retardation or death. As early as 24 hrs or 48 hrs after birth is the best time for your baby to have NBS. A physician, a nurse, a midwife or a medical technologist can do the simple NBS procedure to your baby. It is simply done  by using the heel prick method; a few drops of blood are taken from baby’s heel and blotted on a special absorbent filter card. The blood taken is dried for 4 hrs and will be sent to NBS lab.

  The Newborn screening is now available in any D.O.H accredited hospitals and maternity and pediatrics   clinics. The fee is P550. It is also available in lying-ins, rural Health units and health centers and D.O.H. however had approved a maximum of P50 charge for blood samples for these accredited health institutions.

  Saving your baby’s life, assuring a normal life for them is our role as parents. Submitting your baby to newborn screening is one way of showing your love and concern even before your baby is born.

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