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Health, Growth and Development

  1. Growing up

    “My parents were great about talking things through - whatever we asked. It made a big difference to the way we felt about ourselves and others.”

    Children and young people are learning about sex and relationships, not only from you, their parents, but from soaps, magazines, adverts, and their friends. They need and want their family to help them to sort out fact from fiction, to understand what is happening to their bodies as they grow older and to talk about their feelings and their relationships. Remember that the earlier you start talking, the easier it will be to tackle some of the more difficult subjects as they grow up.

    What to say when...

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  2. Meningitis: Keep Watching

     

    It’s every parent’s nightmare – trying to work out if your little one is a bit off colour, over tired or desperately ill. Meningitis is a devastating disease which typically causes confusion because it’s hard to identify – especially in the early stages. 

    Meningitis is the biggest killer of children aged under-five in the UK and the Republic of Ireland, with babies especially vulnerable because of their weak immune systems. But many people mistakenly think their children are protected against all types of the disease and this can lead to parents missing the symptoms or delay seeking medical help.

    That’s why the three UK meningitis charities; Meningitis Research Foundation, Meningitis Trust and Meningitis UK have come together to launch ‘...

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  3. Pain and Fever education for families

     

    Nurofen for Children launches a new campaign to help parents use pain relief medicines more effectively to treat their child’s pain and fever symptoms.

    A new campaign has been sponsored by Nurofen for Children, to help dispel common myths and better educate mums on two of the most common pain relieving medicines after new figures released today (06th August 2012) reveal the majority of mums need to stop and consider if the type of medicine they give their child is truly the most suitable treatment. 

    The survey showed half (50 per cent) of mums mistakenly believe paracetamol gives their child all night fever relief1, when ibuprofen is clinically proven to provide relief for up to 8 hours - 2 hours longer than paracetamol2. In addition, 59 per cent of...

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  4. Continence problems in children

    Child in a school playground

    There are around 750,000 children and young people in the UK who regularly experience problems with continence - that’s 1 in 12 children. Wet beds or wet or soiled pants during the day are a daily occurrence for some families to cope with. The frustration and extra work involved in managing this can put a strain on family life.

    ERIC (Education and Resources for Improving Childhood Continence) is the only charity in the UK dedicated to helping families deal with bedwetting, daytime wetting, soiling and constipation and potty training. With a mixture of information about the conditions, practical tips and products to help families manage, ERIC’s friendly and understanding helpline team take time to listen and offer support to enable families...

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  5. Bonding with an older child

    Article by Olivia Holcombe

    Finding the bond, the emotional connection that ties a parent and a child, can be a struggle for some parents. While many will experience ‘love at first sight’ with their child at birth, others just don’t – and still have difficulties years down the line. It can also be an issue in families that come together when the child is older, like stepfamilies or after adoption.

    “The media doesn’t help, as it pushes the message that parents should instantly bond with their children, whereas actually often they struggle to,” says Sandra Hiller, Family Live's Hertfordshire area manager. “We hear from mums and dads who express different issues around how they’re struggling to bond. Because people think it’s a taboo, they often hide their...

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  6. Pre-school learning

    The young infant is learning and developing quickly. They are playing, learning and experimenting. They are also beginning to get a sense of their own identity and how they may be different from others, such as noticing boys and girls. Some children benefit from being at a nursery or playgroup at this age. Organised activities help develop their learning in an informal setting. In turn, this is preparing them for more formal school life. Cultural identity is important. Children need to have people around them that they can identify with and who have an understanding of their cultural and ethnic background.

    How do young children learn?

    Children learn through all their senses by:

    • tasting, touching, seeing, hearing and smelling
    • watching and copying...
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  7. Toddlers: Early Developments

    By the time toddlers reaches their ‘terrible twos’, they will have developed their walking and climbing skills, and will have started to kick and throw balls. It is also around this time that you should consider some form of toddler discipline as your child will start to become more curious about their surroundings and will want to become more independent. It’s natural for toddlers to put up a fight when you’re trying to dress or feed them – they want to do these things when they feel like it and to try doing it themselves. Toddler discipline can be frustrating and leave you feeling out of control and annoyed, but it’s all part of your child's development and is the way that toddlers learn to become more independent.

    Your child's early developments

    Different children...

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  8. Grown Up and Living at Home

    Increasingly, more grown-up kids are living at home in their twenties and thirties. Many leave college or university heavily in debt and that, taken with the high cost of borrowing, means many are taking far longer to be in a position to buy their own home. So where else can they live but with mum and dad? It might sound like a great idea at first, particularly for parents who are still trying to adjust to the ‘empty nest’. But this situation can put severe financial and emotional pressure on families. It also delays children becoming independent and taking real responsibility for their adult lives.

    Tensions often start when ‘Boomerang Kids’, who return to live at home after university, expect things to be the same as they were before they went away. Parents tell Family...

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  9. When baby wakes

    There are various techniques for helping you to settle your baby back to sleep. The main rule seems to be that whatever you choose, be consistent.

    Some general tips:

    • Don't rush in too quickly. Give her some time to settle herself back to sleep. Often babies cry out in the night but then go back to sleep.
    • If you do need to go in and settle them, try to be calm. Give him as little attention as possible. Too many cuddles could be a good reason to stay awake!
    • Be Boring. Avoid eye contact. Just check if she is ok. If you need to change her nappy don't interact and play. Make it straightforward and then put her back in her cot.
    • Try to soothe with words and by being there rather than picking her up and rocking her to sleep.
    • Use the...
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  10. The benefits of play for pre-school children

    What is the importance of play for pre-school children?

    Anyone who spends any amount of time with pre-school children understands that providing them with opportunities for play provides so much more than a few minutes or hours of ‘fun’. Play also allows children to relax, let off steam, develop social skills such as concentration and co-operation, encourages the development of the imagination, develops motor skills and teaches self expression.

    Sarah Owen, founder of ‘Pyjama Drama’* – drama, music, movement and play for pre-school children says, ‘Many children seem to be born with a natural ability to play, but some children find it more difficult and need to ‘learn’ how to play well and this is where parents can make a big difference. Whilst it is very important that...

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