Kid's Corner

Hydrotherapy-- the application of water for healing benefit-- is a great way to balance your child’s immune system at the start of a cold or flu. One of the best treatments at the very beginning of an infection is the Alternating Foot Bath, which increases levels of white blood cells (the ones that fight infection). Kids love to make a mini-party out of this treatment! It is also effective for adults.

 Allergies and asthma are on the rise in children; in the U.S., approximately 20% of children suffer from either asthma or allergies.  As the incidence of what we call “hot” diseases, or infections, has decreased, the occurrence of “cold” diseases such as allergies, asthma, and autism have increased.  Asthma is often associated with—and sometimes caused by--allergies, so we’ll address both.

1. Use a high quality probiotic (healthy bacteria).  Five billion cells daily for children without allergies is sufficient.  Please buy a product that has been independently tested and verified to contain what the label states.  Additionally, research shows that mothers who take probiotics while pregnant reduce the chance of allergies in their offspring.
2. Avoid food sensitivities: these can easily be detected in an infant when foods are being introduced appropriately, and tested for in older children through a test that just requires a quick prick to the finger.  Irritability, sleeping problems, and/or blood sugar problems are clues that a food sensitivity may be present.
3. Get your children outside and let them play in the dirt.  Hypoallergenic environments are linked to the rise in allergies. 
4. Let your children get fevers when they are sick.  Increased temperature serves the purpose of allowing the body to burn up the pathogen and eliminate it.  Safely allowing and encouraging fevers, with your doctor’s guidance, is a way you can “tune up” the immune system and train it to keep doing its job throughout your child’s life.
5. Decrease stress by getting adequate sleep and encouraging downtime, family dinners, plenty of fun and laughter, and exposure to nature.

We wanted to share an article that further validates the advice we have been giving to parents at Insights to Health for years.  Although the article does not mention this aspect, an child does not produce the enzymes to best digest grains until 22 months of age.  AT ITH, we counsel parents on which foods to introduce at which stages of development in order to create optimal health and well-being and to decrease the risk of allergies and asthma.

Rice Cereal Can Wait, Let Them Eat Meat First: AAP committee has changes in mind

Pediatric News Volume 43, Issue 11 (November 2009)

There is no good reason not to introduce meats, vegetables, and fruits as the first complementary foods, according to Dr. Frank R. Greer, a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics's Committee on Nutrition.

Introducing these foods early and often promotes healthy eating habits and preferences for these naturally nutrient-rich foods, said Dr. Greer, who is a professor of pediatrics at the University of Wisconsin in Madison.

Rice cereal has traditionally been the first complementary food given to American infants, but “Complementary foods introduced to infants should be based on their nutrient requirements and the nutrient density of foods, not on traditional practices that have no scientific basis,” Dr. Greer said in an interview.

In fact, the AAP's Committee on Nutrition is working on a statement that will include these new ideas, Dr. Greer said in an interview. Currently, there are no official AAP recommendations for introduction of complementary foods. “There are suggestions of what complementary foods to introduce in various AAP-sponsored publications, which are based on the traditional introduction of solid foods starting with infant iron-fortified cereals and progressing through vegetables and then fruits.”

Complementary foods are any nutrient-containing solid or liquid foods other than breast milk or formula given to infants, excluding vitamin and mineral supplements. By 6 months of age, human milk becomes insufficient to meet the requirements of an infant for energy, protein, iron, zinc, and some fat-soluble vitamins (J. Pediatr. Gastroenterol. Nutr. 2008;46:99–110).

Rice cereal has been the first complementary food given to infants in the United States for many reasons, including cultural tradition. By the 1960s, most U.S. infants (70%–80%) were fed cereal by 1 month of age. By 1980, rice cereal predominated, as it was considered to be well tolerated and “hypoallergenic”—given growing concerns about food allergies, he said. (See box.)

However, newer thinking is that the emphasis for complementary foods should be on naturally nutrient-rich foods. This includes protein and fiber, along with vitamins A, C, D, and E and the B vitamins. In addition, saturated and trans fats should be limited, as should sugar, said Dr. Greer.

In light of this thinking, rice cereal is a less than perfect choice for the first complementary food given to infants, he said. Rice cereal is low in protein and high in carbohydrates. It is often mixed with varying amounts of breast milk or formula. Although most brands of formula now have added iron, zinc, and vitamins, iron is poorly absorbed—only about 7.8% of intake is incorporated into red blood cells.

In contrast, meat is a rich source of iron, zinc, and arachidonic acid. Consumption of meat, fish, or poultry provides iron in the form of heme and promotes absorption of nonheme iron, noted Dr. Greer. Red meat and dark poultry meat have the greatest concentration of heme iron. Heme iron is absorbed intact into intestinal mucosal cells and is not affected by inhibitors of nonheme iron from the intestinal tract. Iron salts present in infant cereal are generally insoluble and poorly absorbed.

Another issue is when to begin introducing complementary foods, said Dr. Greer. This varies by nationality. In Germany for example, complementary foods are introduced to 16% of infants by 3 months. A third (34%) of infants in Italy and half (51%) of infants in the United Kingdom are introduced to complementary foods by 4 months. In the United States, 18% of infants are introduced to complementary foods—cereal—by 3 months, 40% by 4 months, 71% by 5 months, and 81% by 6 months.

Those complementary food choices for infants aren't always the most nutritious either. By 6 months, roughly a third of U.S. infants have been introduced to fruit (71%) and vegetables (73%), but only 21% have been introduced to meat. In a 2008 study in Pediatrics, researchers reported that 15% of infants have less than one serving of fruit or vegetable per day by 8 months of age (Pediatrics 2008;122[suppl. 2]:S91–7). In contrast, half of 10-month-old infants had eaten at a fast food restaurant, 22% had eaten carryout food, and 28% had eaten restaurant or carryout food at least twice in the previous week.

Early experiences promote healthy eating patterns, said Dr. Greer. It's known that food flavors are transmitted to breast milk; infants whose mothers eat fruits and vegetables during lactation will have greater consumption of fruits and vegetables during childhood (Public Health Nutr. 2004;7:295–302). It's also been shown that infants are more accepting of food after repeated exposure (Am. J. Clin. Nutr. 2001;73:1080–5).

Dr. Greer reported that he has no relevant financial conflicts of interest.