A well-planned holiday can be fun and educational for junior.

A FAMILY holiday, even a short one, will do everyone some good. Mundane routine gives way to spontaneity and excitement. For your toddler, holidays can be educational as well. His first encounter with the sea or his maiden ascent to a mountain resort provides many rich experiences for his development.

Nevertheless, to ensure maximum enjoyment and minimum hassle, some preparation and forethought are necessary. Picking the right kind of holiday is important.
Theme parks provide children with endless hours of fun.

Destination of choice

Ocean cruises may become frightening for toddlers when the sea turns rough. A five-city tour is too taxing for someone so young. A holiday that revolves around museums, art galleries and heritage sites will literally bore toddlers to tears. So will one that weaves in and out of shops and more shops.

Ultimately, the best choice may be a one-destination holiday that allows the family to unwind in a family-oriented resort while scheduling some kids’ activities into the itinerary.

Immunisation

If you are planning a trip abroad, find out from your doctor whether immunisation is required. You can find helpful information on potential hazards associated with international travel and ways to minimise health risks from the World Health Organization’s site at www.who.int/ith/en/index.html.

If your child suffers from allergies like eczema or asthma, the local weather should also be taken into consideration as you do not want to trigger a skin flare-up or asthma attack on vacation.

Safety first

Regardless of the mode of transport, safety should be uppermost in your mind. If you are driving, make sure your child uses a safety seat. If you are flying, it would be safer, albeit more expensive, for the child to have his own seat and be buckled up during air turbulence instead of merely being held by mummy.

If your child is prone to motion sickness, avoid giving him fizzy drinks, sour fruits and juices like orange and pineapple prior to and during travel. Discourage him from reading when travelling as this aggravates motion sickness.

If he travels poorly, ask your doctor for advice beforehand. And remember to pack some plastic bags, lots of wipes, a change of clothes, and a bottle of water in a tote bag for cleaning up should your little one vomit.

Food matters

Food can be a major problem for travelling toddlers. They may not be keen to try the local cuisine or the food may be unsuitable for them.

You might want to pack along your child’s favourite cereals so junior can enjoy a familiar and nutritious meal.

During the vacation, make sure junior gets enough water, fruits and vegetables as he may become constipated due to the change in routine and a lack of exercise.

You can stave off traveller’s diarrhoea by eating well-cooked foods, especially meats, washing fruits thoroughly, consuming only pasteurised fruit juices and milk, and observing good hygiene like washing hands properly before eating. Always choose clean eateries.

Boredom busters

Whether your little one is cruising in the air, sight-seeing in a foreign land or chugging along in a train, a tantrum may erupt and cause annoyance to others. Try to avoid tantrums by making sure that your child is not hungry, tired or bored. Have on hand nutritious snacks when meals are not available on demand. Encourage him to nap.

Pack a few of his favourite toys to occupy him. If you are driving to your holiday destination, let the whole family stretch their legs at rest stops along the way. Some rest stops have playgrounds. Allow your toddler to play a while as the exercise and fresh air will improve his mood.

Fun activities

What are some of the activities that toddlers enjoy during vacation? An all-time favourite is the local beach where junior can play with sand and water or blow soap bubbles into the sea breeze.

Remember to use sun protection cream on junior as children’s delicate skin burns easily.

Another must do is a fun-filled day at a theme park, enjoying endless rides and games. If your destination boasts of a zoo, farm or orchard that is open to visitors, do slot in a visit. Most kids love watching animals and these visits are educational, too. Sight-seeing may interest little minds but do not cramp too many attractions in a day as over-stimulation and fatigue may make your toddler crabby.

Every wise decision, from choosing a child-friendly hotel to packing comfortable clothes and down to allowing junior’s teddy bear to tag along, helps to make the holiday an enjoyable one for the whole family.

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Fatty liver disease warning signs

NON-ALCOHOLIC fatty liver disease often has no early symptoms in children or adults, but a fat belly is one signal. And diabetes, high cholesterol, high triglycerides or heart problems often accompany the disease.

As fatty liver disease worsens, these symptoms can appear:

·Chronic fatigue or weakness.

·Abdominal discomfort, such as cramping or nausea.

·Confusion or difficulty thinking.

·Bruising or bleeding easily, including nosebleeds.

·Reduced appetite and weight loss.

Concerned parents can request a blood test for liver enzyme levels. Also, a doctor can check the abdomen to see if the liver is enlarged or order a scan or ultrasound.

Those tests can miss problems, however. The most reliable one is a biopsy, in which a small amount of tissue is removed from the liver and studied under a microscope.

To stop or prevent fatty liver disease, patients should:

·Exercise and eat a balanced diet to lose weight slowly but steadily.

·Control diabetes and cholesterol with medication and diet.

·Get vaccinated against hepatitis to prevent further injury to the liver.

·Avoid alcohol, drugs and supplements that can damage the liver.

·Have a liver specialist oversee your care.

·Avoid raw oysters and shellfish, which can harbour bacteria very dangerous to people with advanced liver disease

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Family dynamics and kids’ diets

PARENTS’ general approach to raising their children is often apparent in how they manage their kids’ diets, suggesting that efforts to control childhood obesity need to consider family dynamics, according to researchers. In a study of 239 parents of first-grade children, researchers found that parents who were strict in general also tended to have an “authoritarian” approach to their children’s eating – banning certain foods, for instance, or using pressure to get them to eat fruits and vegetables.

Similarly, parents who were generally “permissive” in what they let their children eat tended to have similar parenting styles.In between these two groups, the researchers found, were “authoritative” parents. These parents set limits on their children’s diets, but often used more positive approaches – like following a healthy diet themselves – to get their kids to eat well.

The findings show that parents’ general styles are important in their children’s diets, according to Dr Laura Hubbs-Tait and colleagues at Oklahoma State University in Stillwater.

They also suggest that efforts to help obese children lose weight are “not likely to be successful” unless the underlying family dynamics are addressed, the researchers report in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association.

In general, experts recommend that parents use positive approaches to get their children to eat right, by setting a good example with their own diets, for example.

But in this study, both the strict and permissive parents typically failed to serve as good dietary role models for their children.

“Due to the infrequency of healthy eating modelled by both permissive and authoritarian parents,” the researchers write, “food and nutrition professionals might encourage both to begin more healthy eating – for the sake of their own health and that of their children.”

A lack of attention to family dynamics may help explain why child obesity treatment is often less than successful, according to Hubbs-Tait and her colleagues.

”Food and nutrition professionals who are implementing dietary change or obesity treatment programmes need to include more complex approaches to behavioural change that include parenting styles and family dynamics,” they conclude.

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