Strollerderby : healtth

Eczema-Asthma Link Theory in Kids Debunked

Karen Murphy — Mon, 15 Oct 2007 11:28:00 GMT

There's been a common belief that kids with eczema mostly go on to develop asthma. But you can forget about all that, according to a new report in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, which is in contrast with earlier research. But data from 14 previous studies was reviewed and it was found that the association between eczema and asthma was in actuality quite weak.

The new findings reveal that "on average, only 1 in 3 young children with...eczema develops asthma at the age of 6 years or older." Which is a far cry from the "invariably" association that's been commonly assumed. In fact, it was found that no more than 46% of children with eczema go on to develop asthma.

I don't know, 46% still sounds like a lot, though, doesn't it? And 46% suggests that the association between the two is weak? Hmm. I'm not ready to completely throw out the notion that there's a correlation between the two, but at the same time I'm glad to see that people are questioning long-held presumptions. If any of my kids had eczema (and about 1 in 10 kids do) I'd likely try to avoid environmental or dietary triggers for asthma as well as treat the immune system as a whole, and hope for the best in avoiding asthma or forms of allergies, whch also seem to be related to eczema.

One of these days we'll get all this health stuff figured out, maybe, but until then it's pretty much a guessing game.

Strollerderby Playdate: Daddy Needs a Six Pack

Mike Adamick (Cry It Out!) — Wed, 25 Apr 2007 11:06:00 GMT

After a long day made longer by numerous tantrums, a leaky shopping bag and the fact that Emmeline would not go down for a nap, I needed to unwind. So I changed into my workout clothes, turned on my favorite "exercise" show and ... opened the freezer and ate an entire pint of Ben and Jerry's Americone Dream. While continuing to watch the show. From the kitchen. Floor.

Daddy needs a new workout. Although hot lesbian TV trainers would seem like adequate exercise partners, they are not helping at all. Thankfully, I found motivation elsewhere.

Montana Mama is feeling the burn. A new workout is kicking her butt, and I promised to give it a try. The workout, I mean.

Going Bananas missed her workout, too! I feel a little better.

I Got Blisters on my Blisters has an oldie but a goodie: "The No-Daddy Workout."

Bringing Home Malia has an awesome daily schedule -- including workouts! I totally need a basement.

Scott Hutcheson has my new favorite workout. Take a long walk. In search of restaurants.

There may not be smoking hot personal trainers -- but I bet there's ice cream.

Junk Food Ads Contribute to Childhood Obesity. In Other News, Pope is Catholic.

JasonAvant — Thu, 25 Jan 2007 19:00:00 GMT

The third California Childhood Obesity Conference kicked off on Tuesday, the 23rd, and experts agree that marketing plays a big (and insidious) role in shaping kids' dietary habits. I was going to hold off on writing about this particular article until after the PR guys from McDonald's, Kellogg's, et al. put out statements questioning the validity of statements made by those speakers while defending their products ("But we also sell yogurt!"). There's just something exhilarating about people who are so nefariously intent on denying reality; putting a delusionary spin on matters of life and death is so vile and sad you just have to laugh.

And yes, childhood obesity is a matter of life and death. The study highlighted in the O.C. Register article indicates that 1 in 4 Orange County children are overweight; we all know that young children who are obese have a much higher chance of developing serious and potentially life-shortening health problems.

What's worth repeating is that like Joe Camel before him, Ronald McDonald wants your kids to become addicts; put on the Disney Channel, Cartoon Network, or any Saturday morning cartoon show and you'll be inundated with fast food and sugar-laden cereal ads. None of which talk about the downside of eating that shit (Mayor McGreasetrap or Tony the Triple-bypass Tiger, anyone?).

Look, I enjoy the occasional big-ass bowl of Cap'n Crunch as much as the next guy. But I'm a grownup. The article raises an excellent point - young children can't differentiate between the program and the commercial. One expert recommends sitting down with your kids and talking about the differences between the two (good luck with that if your kid likes to watch old Transformers cartoons). In my house, we've devised another solution. The DVR. We don't let the kid watch "live" TV; we record the shows, then when he watches them, we fast forward through the commercials (bonus: we get to control what shows he watches, and how long he gets to spend watching them. Plus with the DVR, I can now record 24 while watching Heroes. Thus my life is fulfilled.) Our cable company charges an additional $10 a month; chump change compared to what we'd end up spending on insulin.

Sure, But Can You Change a Diaper with Your Feet?

Sarah, Goon Squad Sarah — Thu, 18 Jan 2007 17:11:00 GMT

I have a lot of skills that I have acquired since becoming a parent. As a parent of twins I have become a master of doing two things at once. I have become ambidextrous. I can multi-task like nobody's business. In fact, right now I am blogging, feeding kids breakfast and watching "Blue's Clues". (Okay, maybe it doesn't take much skill to eat and watch "Blue's Clues" at the same time, but you get my point.)

When I was pregnant with the Goon Squad I was huge. Once I hit about 20 weeks I was unable to bend over at all. This made simple tasks like doing laundry very difficult. I learned how to pick things up with my bare feet. This aptitude came in very handy when the kids were little. You never know when you might be holding two kids at once and somebody might drop a teddy bear.

I am proud of my foot savvy. Or, I was proud of it. I can't do this:

We found this over at Alpha Mummy. The mother in this video blows my mind. I think this is a fantastic illustration of how much parents have to adapt when our children are born.