Strollerderby : sick kids

Is Candy Medicine the New Candy Cigarette?

JeanneSager — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 15:06:00 GMT

Remember candy cigarettes? So much fun pretending to be so bad? I haven't seen them on store shelves for years, so I've got to assume marketers saw the danger of hooking kids with candy. But I wonder: is the new trend toward diguising kids medicines as gummy candies really any better?

The gelatinous blobs have sold like hotcakes to parents who have struggled to make their children swallow the traditional pediatrician-prescribed multi-vitamin. The fight to take your fiber pill becomes a non-entity when you're promising them, "you can have a gummy this morning!"

And here's where I'm going to play the grinch. I'm not going to argue they're easier to serve up, but should we really teach our kids that medicines are like candy?

Like those sweet slim ciggies before them, the gummy meds are parading something potentially dangerous in a candy form. Even "good for you" medicines like vitamins, which can reach toxic levels when overconsumed. Even those fiber treats, meant to keep your kids from getting blocked up, can cause the exact opposite when they get hold of the bottle of sweets and go to town.

So let's weigh this out - toxic possible overdose versus a morning fight. Which are you going to pick?

Image: MyCalorieCounter

Got a Sick Child? Go Online

JeanneSager — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 19:31:00 GMT

When I first read that more parents are going online after their kids get sick, I had thoughts of hundreds of graduates of Google University picking fights with the med. school grads trying to take care of their kids.

Good news: that's not what this story is about.

Not that parents can't find some good quality health information online. But there's enough fearmongering and misinformation online to make you never trust an MD again.

But a recent post over at the U.S. News and World Report parenting blog by Nancy Shute pointed to a phenomena that's been widely used, and yet widely overlooked: the online patient support group. Especially important for parents who don't want to leave their kids' hospital bedsides or have little time for nighttime support group meetings (and no money for a sitter when it's all going to the medical bills), online support groups offer not only a (virtual) shoulder to cry on but a go-to source for navigating the net full of all that fearmongering and misinformation.

They've read most of it and dissected it already. Plus, they've been where you are right now, and they can help you get to where they are. As Shute points out, they've also got a stake in finding the answers you want. Your doctors may be fantastic and incredibly intelligent, but they simply don't have the same kind of time to devote to your incessant quest for knowledge.

And online, we very often can find it - and in ways that we couldn't in our hometowns. Where there might be 100 kids with food allergies at your kid's elementary school, there are hundreds of thousands of parents dealing with them over at Kids With Food Allergies. Where only one in four thousand kids is born with cystic fibrosis across the entire U.S., hundreds of their moms and dads are blogging at CysticFibrosis.com.

Of course, you can't trust it all - read any blog (even Strollerderby), and there's a tendency for parents to post medical advice (here they leave it in comments), and for other parents to say, "oh, that's interesting, I didn't know that, I'll have to do that." Where people are quicker to discount the spoken word, a possible loon in an in-the-flesh support group, something about seeing the words written on a computer screen makes parents (people in general really) more trusting.

Would you prefer an in-the-flesh support group or are you all about online?

Image: OETSG

How You Can Keep Kids Breathing

JeanneSager — Fri, 29 May 2009 20:01:00 GMT

It's a disease that takes their breath away, but you can give it back.

Kids born with cystic fibrosis fight daily against the excessive mucus production that makes breathing a struggle. Their projected life expectancy is around thirty-seven years old.

But the Breathe 4 Tomorrow Foundation doesn't hit you over the head with their simple video that's starting to generate funds for the small Washington-based non-profit. All they ask for is $1.

In this economy, it's the kind of message that works. Pictures of brave kids undergoing treatments, a (relatively corny, but oh well) song about hope for tomorrow, and a simple request. Give them $1, and they'll help pay for the medicines for kids with cystic fibrosis.

Fundraising videos - especially featuring kids - can be cloying. But this one hit me just right (in the tear ducts). They're not presumptuous - just like the kids aren't presuming they'll live much past high school graduation or college. But you can change that.

Check out the video below. Did it move you? Then donate over at Breathe 4 Tomorrow.

Make an on-line slideshow at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Kid's Hair Chewing Almost Kills Her

JeanneSager — Tue, 26 May 2009 16:01:00 GMT

That's it. I'm scheduling a haircut for my daughter.

After years of pulling it out of her mouth and saying "don't chew on your hair," I read this: a five-year-old in England swallowed so much of her own hair that it formed a rope that was constricting her organs.

Yes, her hair almost killed her.

Yum. Is it bad to say I chuckled a little at the fact that they called this Rapunzel syndrome (Rapunzel, Rapunzel, poop out your hair)? Come on, she survived! The tot, Millie Wallis, was suffereing from stomach aches for months, and visits to the doctor and hospital turned up nothing for half a year. Finally an "internal scan" revealed a large foreign object in her stomach. They thought it was a tumor until they went in and found the rope of hair, stretching from the stomach down farther in the digestive tract, cutting through her bowel.

It's a worst case scenario, I know. But it's none too pleasant pulling hairs out of your kid's butt because they've swallowed them and they're just sort of hanging out there (sorry for the TMI), so my warning still stands - let them eat cake . . . not hair.

Image: Daily Mail

via Jezebel

Ten of the Best Lines from Kiddie Lit

Girl has Five Spleens, Two Left Lungs and Huge Grin

JeanneSager — Fri, 22 May 2009 15:27:00 GMT

I can only handle so many tragic medical stories involving kids in one week.

After the eight-year-old with ovarian cancer and the ten-year-old with breast cancer, I'd say Strollerderby has given you your quota this week. But this is a story you might want to read anyway.

Because six-year-old Bethany Jordan has the biggest grin I've seen on any kid.

They call her the Jigsaw Kid because she's "been pieced together" differently than anyone else, the markers of the rare Ivemark Syndrome which she was born with. She has five spleens and two left lungs. You can see her heart beat through the skin of her back, and her stomach is on the wrong side. Her heart had a hole in it when she was born, and her liver was backward.

OK, enough with the bad stuff.

Doctors thought she'd have Down Syndrome. She doesn't. They thought she'd be brain damaged. She isn't. They thought she'd never survive the birth. She's now six.

And just look at that cheese.

What's that they say about lemons and lemonade? I'll be sipping on this one all Memorial Day weekend.

Image: Daily Mail

8-Year-Old Has Ovarian Cancer

JeanneSager — Thu, 21 May 2009 14:33:00 GMT

As if we weren't worried enough about childhood leukemias and pediatric neuroblastomas.

A rash of recent news of young kids with traditionally adult cancers makes it that much scarier to be a parent these days. And here's another one!

An eight-year-old girl in England has been diagnosed with ovarian cancer after complaining of abdominal pain to her parents that they thought might be appendicitis. She was soon diagnosed as one of the youngest children in Britain to have the disease (there were a few under the age of four in 2005). The little girl's left ovary had to be removed in full, and she's in the midst of chemotherapy.

Ovarian cancer in kids isn't unheard of. It's considered "one of the most frustrating of all gynecologic diseases," according to experts, but the good news is more than half of ovarian tumors in kids turn out to be benign (so even if this crops up, you don't have to panic . . . at least not until the doctors tell you to start panicking). Still, doctors say pediatricians need to be aware this COULD be the cause of adominal pain or endocrine symptoms in kids - so don't feel ashamed of suggesting it.

Beond the threat of death (the biggest concern with any cancer), pediatric ovarian cancer can affect a child's development as she hits to teenage years when her body would normally begin menstruating. In Sophie fry's case, there's good news - with one ovary left, doctors expect she'll not only make a full recovery but menstruate normally and even have the potential of having kids.

Image: Telegraph

Is Your Kid a Victim of Mr. Bubble Down Under?

It's Not Swine Flu - Your Kid Has Whine Flu

JeanneSager — Tue, 05 May 2009 14:31:00 GMT

Replace coughing with sputtering. Upset stomach with lying on stomach and pounding fists. It sounds like your kid has a serious case of the pandemic whine flu.

Don't worry, we're here to help. With the help of the AP, we've put together an in-depth look at what you need to know about the whine flu:

Q: How easy is it to catch this virus?

A: It spreads easily among preschoolers, elementary age and teenage kids. Marked by the elongation of vowels and a particularly grating addition to their voice, you'll know it when you hear it.

Q: How dangerous is it?

A: To parents at the end of their rope, it is like nails on a chalkboard. Don't walk, parents. Run.

Q: Could I have some immunity?

A: Perhaps. Are you equipped with noise-cancelling headphones and a fully packed playlist for your iPod?

Q: Is it treatable?

A: Yes. Time out helps. Or if that's not your bag, the old "ignore them" trick works quite nicely. When in doubt, pack on those headphones.

Q: Is there a vaccine?

A: Not yet. But if there was, we promise it wouldn't cause autism. Pinky swear.

Q: Why does CDC stress hand-washing?

A: Because kids put their hands in their butts and in their mouths. Nuff said.

Q: Do hand gels work better?

A: I suppose - if you want them all over your walls. But getting back to the real disease at hand:

Q: How long do I have to worry if I just got back from Mexico?

A: That all depends. Did you leave the kids there?

Q: How long should I stay home if I get the flu?

A: Leave. Immediately, if not sooner. Separation from the whine will only strengthen your resolve.

Q: Why are so many schools closing?

A: Teachers can't handle it either. Something about iPods banned by administration.

Q: Can pets get sick?

A: Absolutely. Pushed outdoors to pay for turning your daughter's favorite doll into a chew toy, the dog will begin to show symptoms rapidly.

Q: Can flu spread on imported fruits and vegetables from Mexico?

A: If yours are the type to put up a fight over fruits and veggies, I'm afraid so. Tell them they're magic trees and coat them in cheese, and symptoms will dissipate.

Q: Is it safe to fly? How about the subway?

A: Are you bringing the kids? What about Joe Biden?

Q: Do I need a mask in crowded areas?

A: If you'd rather folks don't know you're the parent of that wheedling, cajoling voice, then you might want to make the investment.

Q: Why hasn't the U.S. closed the border with Mexico?

A: I don't know. I couldn't hear the TV over the demands for strawberry-flavored yogurt in a drinkable cup.

Q: I have a summer trip planned to a state with lots of cases. Should I cancel?

A: Funny thing, vacation seems to bring out the worst of this particular disease. Case in point: "are we theeeeeere yeeeeeeet?"

Any of these symptoms sounding awfully familiar?

Image: Parents

Source (of the questions): AP

Swine Flu Claims First US Victim

JeanneSager — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 20:23:00 GMT

The swine flu pandemic has claimed its first victim here in America, according to U.S. officials, and he was just shy of his second birthday.

Although the toddler was in Texas, he was actually a Mexican native visiting the states with his family.

The little boy (listed as twenty-three months by Houston, Texas health officials and twenty-two months by U.S. officials) entered the country in early April with "underlying health issues" according to representatives of the CDC. He developed flu symptoms on April 8 and died on April 13. Considering Mexico is still being considered Point O for the swine flu infection, the chances that he brought the disease with him to the states are almost one hundred percent, although health officials say there's little chance he infected his fellow travelers as he wasn't contagious at that point. His family has so far tested clean for the swine flu and remains healthy.

This is a sad and tragic occurrence, but I think we all knew it was coming. The American healthcare system is not infallible, and the deaths in Mexico cannot all be blaimed on the sub-standard care available to poorer residents of that country. The very young and the very old are more highly susceptible to disease (fifty-three children have died this year already from seasonal flu in the states), and that includes swine flu.

But does the fact that a life has actually be claimed inside the borders of our country change your opinion of the pandemic? Chatting up other local parents, we all agreed that we were a little nervous, but rather more confidant by living in our relatively isolated area and access to better healthcare. But that was when we only had sick kids in America. Now we have a tragic death of a little boy (not much younger than my child). Are you more afraid?

Image: Business Week

Giant Green Robot Comforting Sick Kids

JeanneSager — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 20:57:00 GMT

When you think of a creature sent to comfort kids, the first thing that comes to mind is a giant green robot with a nose like Horton, right? No? Me neither.

But Belgian scientists apparently think that's the way to go.

In order to help comfort sick children in Belgian hospitals, scientists have created a prototype robot with a long green nose that purrs when petted or hugged and says "ouch" when punched or hit. Dubbed Probo (as in proboscis), the robot has a touchscreen on his belly to explain to children the details of their impending medical procedures. His facial expressions are designed to change to intimate how the procedures will make the kids feel.

It sounds like an interesting idea, although Probo can't hug the kids back - which is why clowns (excuse me, I know some of you are freaked by them) and other visiting dressed up characters generally do a much better job of comforting kids. They're comfy!

The one advantage I do see in a robot is his lack of emotion when it comes to dealing with sick kids. Where adults explaining a medical procedure to a child - even trained medical procedures - can't help but react to the child's emotion, a robot is going to keep it nice and steady and just keep talking the kids through everything.

Still not sure I want a guy who looks like a cross between Horton the elephant and the incredible Hulk wandering around the pediatric ward (no, not scary at all, uh uh), but hey, they say they're still working on him. Maybe they can change out that nose. Get a look at pictures of him over at Reuters.

Image: Reuters

Asthma Coaches Keep Kids Breathing

JeanneSager — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 14:33:00 GMT

It might be time to welcome a new member to the team of healthcare professionals helping keep your kid healthy - their asthma coach.

In a study at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, community health workers randomly assigned to make home visits and phone calls to low-income parents to teach them about asthma and encourage positive management behaviors decreased the need for hospitalization for kids.

Just over thirty-six percent of the kids, ages two through eight, who were assigned an asthma coach were hospitalized during the two-year study. By comparison, just over fifty-nine percent of the kids assigned to "usual care" (ie. a pediatrician only) were hospitalized during that same time period. There was no reduction in the number of emergency room visits.

It's important to note that asthma is not being cured by the coaches - they're simply providing parents with the skills to better manage their children's care. And although this study was based on low-income families, it's fair to say that EVERY family could use an education that doesn't come straight from Google.

A lot of parents are wary of allowing a professional to come into their homes to make suggestions on how to care for their kids, and I can't blame them. I don't want someone walking into my house to tell me why I'm a bad parent. But even the most caring pediatrician doesn't have adequate time to explain every detail and answer every question. With a disease like asthma - which can often be exacerbated by environment - these home visits seem that much more crucial to getting a handle on a child's disease management. A trained professional can make a real difference in a child's life - and as much as we hate to admit it, sometimes we parents need their help.

Would you call on an asthma coach?

Image: TopNews

Shave Your Head, Fight Children's Cancer

JeanneSager — Wed, 11 Feb 2009 21:33:00 GMT

How much is your hair worth to you? Enough to save a kid's life?

I've got to confess, I've never been one of those women who connected her femininity with the length of her hair. I first shaved my head in high school. When my daughter came along, I realized the shock value of walking around as a woman with short hair was worth something more. I could go down to the scalp for more than just my need to shave minutes off of the morning routine. These days, I shave my head for the St. Baldrick's Foundation.

Founded in 1999 by a bunch of re-insurance agents looking to kick in for a good cause, St. Baldrick's "shaving events" happen every March (and some throughout the year). The premise is simple - people put up pledges that go to the foundation. In return, you shave your head. They laugh. Everyone wins.

So why bother with this one?

I almost look at my yearly head shavings now as good karma. I grow my hair out (the real sacrifice for me) for a few months, then I walk into a room filled with the kind of positive energy you don't encounter much anymore. It's a day when people are thinking about kids. Family members of kids lost to cancer and kids who've survived cancer sit down in chairs beside high school kids who have spent the last few weeks banging down doors for money even knowing the funds raised won't help pay for their trip to Disney World or football uniforms.

And the kids come too. The kids who have survived a fight with cancer. No one wants to see their child fall sick, and staring in the eyes of one of these kids always sends parents of the healthy kids home to wrap them in their arms.

But what does that do? It makes us feel better, but not much else.

So how much is your hair worth? Willing to put it on the line?

If you're not, how about finding a donor event near you and dropping by to meet the kids who make it happen, maybe stashing a little cash in their pot? It's just hair, but this is one of those times bald is absolutely beautiful.

Image: St. Baldrick's Foundation (visit to find a shavee event or search to see if anyone you know is shaving this year)

Salmonella Might Be In Second Peanut Plant

Brett Singer — Wed, 11 Feb 2009 04:26:00 GMT

The AP is reporting that samples from a second Texas plant owned by The Peanut Corp. of America have a "presumptive positive" result. What'd they find? Salmonella.

This just keeps getting worse.

The news is currently being reported as a "maybe," and the AP story says that no products from the plant were shipped to consumers. Personally I have a hard time believing that. Not that I have any knowledge of the situation beyond what I've read. I'm just suspicious.

This line made me furious: the plant in Plainview, Texas "had operated unlicensed and uninspected for nearly four years." How exactly does something like that happen?

Are you still giving your kids peanut butter and jelly? Or have you switched to cream cheese or some other sandwich spread?

Source: AP via Yahoo! News

What Will Tainted Peanut Butter Really Do To Our Kids?

Morning News - Obama, Limbaugh, Cheese

Whew! Girl Scout Cookies Safe From Peanut Butter Scare

Web Index of Recalled Peanut Butter Products Available

Recall after Five People Die; Tainted Peanut Butter Blamed

Kid Dies After Parents Said No to Hib Vaccine

JeanneSager — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 13:31:00 GMT

It's a disease entirely preventable, but a sudden burst in diagnoses of Hib (Haemophilus influenzae type B) in Minnesota kids has led to the death of one seven-month-old. His parents, along with those of two other infected children were in the growing group who have opted out on vaccinating their kids.

The fourth child infected was in the middle of the three-part vaccination process, while the fifth had an immune deficiency.

Despite the low number of infections, the CDC has gotten involved, concerned that parents choosing not to vaccinate their kids are putting other children at risk. Five kids, they say, is the highest number of cases in one area since 1992, when vaccinating against Hib became common practice in pediatricians' offices.

"The situation is of concern," Dr. Anne Schuchat, director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Disease at the CDC, told CNN. "It could be happening elsewhere, and of course it's tragic that one of the children actually died from a preventable disease."

Since vaccinating against Hib became the norm for American children in the early 1990s, the CDC has seen a ninety nine percent drop in reported cases (from as much as twenty thousand before vaccinations).The disease primarily strikes kids under five, and it kills one in twenty. Of those who survive, ten to twenty percent end up with brain damage, many more go deaf.

What's troubling to me are the children infected despite their parents proper attempts to vaccinate - because other parents refusal to do so has allowed the disease to once again flourish. It's something very few people in the anti-vaccine community focus on - what happens to everyone else's kids. They argue that they are protecting their children from supposed toxins in the immunizations. But as a recent study proving the efficacy of the meningitis vaccine points out, the "herd immunity" provided by immunizing children protects the community as a whole.

By refusing to immunize their kids, these parents are putting society as a whole at risk - including the fourth and fifth kid in Minnesota, who were at special risks.

Image: CNN

AAP: Delayed Vaccines Too Risky for Kids

What Will Tainted Peanut Butter Really Do To Our Kids?

Organic Dreams or Toxic Nightmares? You Pick

FDA Asked to Approve Gardasil for Boys

What Will Tainted Peanut Butter Really Do To Our Kids?

JeanneSager — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 13:29:00 GMT

The first - and I doubt the last - lawsuit has been filed in the tainted peanut butter scandal.

A mother from Vermont says her seven-year-old son had to be hospitalized from salmonella poisoning after eating Keebler's sandwich crackers, which were filled with a peanut butter spread. Seven weeks later, she says the boy is still recovering.

The makers of the Keelber crackers, Kellogg's, have voluntarily recalled products containing peanut butter that may or may not be tainted, but based on the dates in Gabrielle Meunier's affidavit, young Christopher ate his snacks several weeks before news broke on the possible outbreak and recall.

Like the spinach and tomato scare of 2008, this one has hit home - these are foods my family eats on a relatively regular basis (more so the veggies than the crackers, but peanut butter is a staple in our house). I went rifling through our cabinets when I heard the news and came up with nothing, but who knows what she already powered through (like Amy's kids and those Clif bars).

So what should parents be watching out for? According to the CDC, "most persons infected with Salmonella develop diarrhea, fever, and abdominal cramps 12 to 72 hours after infection. The illness usually lasts 4 to 7 days, and most persons recover without treatment."

Lest you think this is a simple few days of noxious diarrhea, Christopher Meunier is recovering, but not every kid is so lucky.

Kids are actually the most likely candidates for salmonellosis (salmonella poisoning). The rate of infections in kids under five is five times higher than the rate of infection in any other age group, and children, the elderly and immunocompromised are the most likely to have severe reactions. The CDC estimates that approximately 400 persons die each year with acute salmonellosis.

So, now that I gave you your mega scare for the day, how about a jelly and cream cheese sandwich?

Image: Costco

Mom Says Hospital Fouled Childbirth - Twice

JeanneSager — Sat, 17 Jan 2009 19:15:00 GMT

What would you do if you thought your OB/GYN caused your baby irreperable harm during delivery? Would you go back?

A mom from Queens returned to the hospital where she'd delivered her first son to deliver her second - and once again, she says the doctors "yanked" on her child, causing a debilitating nerve injury that may lead to permanent paralysis.

The boys, a year apart, are both suffering from ERB's palsy. It's a condition Annemarie Dhana's lawsuit claims is caused by malpractice at childbirth.

"In both cases their shoulders became stuck after the head was delivered. In both cases excessive force was used to deliver the babies, resulting in ERB's palsy," according to a sworn affidavit, signed by Dhana.

The trouble is, during childbirth, how do you know if the doctor is using excessive force or doing what is necessary to get that baby out? Every delivery is different, and so is every doctor or midwife - and their preferred methods for delivery.

Despite repeated (Ok, obsessive) viewings of The Baby Story before delivering my daughter, I had never seen a mom being handed a towel by her doctor so she could pull and he could pull - offering her leverage. It's a practice my OB/GYN apparently uses (successfully, I might add) with a lot of moms - as other women whose children were delivered by him shared the same story. But none of us had ever heard of it before.

What jumps out at me about this case was Dhana's decision to go back to the same hospital where her lawsuit says prenatal care from her first pregnancy was lacking. Throw in the botched delivery, and I would have been running from in the other direction - especially considering she is in Queens, where it has to be easier to find another healthcare facility than it would be in rural upstate New York (where I live, and frankly got lucky considering my lack of options for obstetrical care).

Most of the commenters said as much over at the New York Daily News, where this story first appeared. But let's consider this mom's options:

If this were a case of a health insurance company forcing her to return to the same medical facility where she'd received substandard care, it's could be another example of the failings of our healthcare system in this country. In-network versus out-of-network should be set aside in favor of "good for patient" vs. "bad for patient."

If this were Dhana's own choice, however, I wonder, could she have known that the first case, the ERB's palsy in her elder son, wasn't just a fluke? Was this a case of a mom who didn't bother to do her homework on her medical choices, or more a case of a mom who simply didn't know? Her children are just a year apart, so she was struggling with a child who had a severe medical condition and a pregnancy at the same time.

Would you call this fishy or do you think this mom has a case?

Image: The Daily Mail

Mother Sues OB Who Said She Deserved Pain—And Gave It to Her

Cops End Search for Baby Thrown in Hospital Trash

They Say: Vicks VapoRub Bad for Baby

Duggar's Eldest Married: Babies on the Way?

Adoption Application Turned Down Due to Prospective Father's BMI

They Say: Meningitis Vaccine Actually Works

JeanneSager — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 13:24:00 GMT

We hear a lot of bad news these days about vaccines. Aack, autism. Aaack, superbugs.

Finally, some good news: the meningitis vaccine is working.

Since pushing the Prevnar plunger into the thighs of babies two months to two years began in 2000, rates of pneumococcal meningits have dropped sixty-four percent in kids under age two.

That’s based on studies in kids in 1998-99 to 2004-05 published this week in the New England Journal of Medicine. The numbers are dipping for bigger kids (and the biggest kids of all - us) too, dropping thirty percent in the same time frame. In people over sixty-five, the rates dropped by more than fifty percent.

The study notes that vaccinating children is as important if not more than getting to the rest of the population, because fewer sick kids means fewer germs spread around.

When kids are sick, they not only fail to cover their mouths and practice the type of hygiene adults (should) practice, but they’re also a sector of the population that can’t be isolated when sick. We as adults can stay home from work and hide on the couch, kick everyone out of the room (well, unless we’re parents, in which case we just try to hide from our kids and spray a lot of Lysol).

Kids, on the other hand, need to have someone in close proximity caring for them - and that someone can easily pick up their germs. The disease cycle doesn’t stop when you’re dealing with kids – it just gets passed over to Mom and Dad. But with immunized kids, researchers say they're able to create a "herd immunity."

It doesn’t solve the autism debate or the superbug debate, but this is the kind of news that puts a little wind back into the sails of Moms like me who have vaccinated their kids. At least some of them are working.

Image/Source: USA Today

Related Posts:

FDA Asked to Approve Gardasil for Boys

AAP: Delayed Vaccines Too Risky for Kids

Cops End Search for Baby Thrown in Hospital Trash

New to Birth Certificate: Does Mom Have Chlamydia?

New Pro Vaccine Book Author Getting Death Threats

Teen Has Cancer and Lives in a Car

JeanneSager — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 17:29:00 GMT

Doctors have told Destiny Himmel's mom the teen needs a safe, clean, germ-free environment as her body rebuilds in its battle with leukemia. Easier said than done when you live in your car.

Kerry and Destiny Himmel live in their Ford Explorer, alternating between a parking spot at a California McDonald's and another at a nearby grocery store. Kerry used to work as a truck driver, but when she went looking for another job, her daughter got sick.

In April, Destiny was diagnosed with high-risk acute leukemia. She has gotten through what is considered the hardest part of her treatments, but she still has at least two years of care before doctors think the cancer can be eradicated. Now Kerry spends her days home-schooling her daughter in the back of their car and shuttling the teen between medical appointments (Destiny's care is covered by Medi-Cal, the California state insurance system). On cold nights, Destiny stretches out in the back of the car, riddled by the pain that follows chemotherapy, with the family's two dogs to keep her warm. They get by on $500 in government assistance each month, cutting coupons to stretch their dollars and using the bathroom of the fast food restaurant.

But her mom won't accept putting her in foster care - to get her out of the car. Nor will the teenager. When a reporter for the Los Angeles Times suggested it, Destiny broke into sobs. When another member of the Times' staff uncovered proof that the Himmel's were offered housing earlier this spring and turned it down, Kerry said her daughter couldn't handle the stairs at the building in her condition. She said she couldn't meet with case managers and keep up with her daughter's medical appointments at the same time. She worried that the transitional residents at the proposed shelter would subject Destiny to unsafe germs.

If this were merely the story of a child suffering through cancer, it would be bad enough. But reading further and further into the Times' story, I found myself wondering not where the system has failed the Himmels, but how Kerry Himmel thinks she is helping her daughter. To not want her put in foster care because she thought she'd lose her is understandable. To not take an apartment because it has steps? That's a mix of denial and martyrdom - with a dose of short-sightedness thrown in.

Kerry Himmel is trying to be a good parent, that's clear, but sometimes that means admitting we can't do it all for our kids.

Image: The Los Angeles Times

Mom Sells Newborn Twins to Fund Liposuction

Sperm Donor's Teen Daughter Finds Him on Myspace

Blogging Moms Find a Kidney For Teen on Dialysis

Teen Girl's Mom Throws Prostitution Party

HIV Positive Teen Sues School for Harassment

JeanneSager — Fri, 28 Nov 2008 21:57:00 GMT

When news started spreading around Westlane Middle School that a fourteen-year-old student had HIV, the harassment began. There were notes slapped on her locker warning her "No AIDS at Westlane." The coach of her soccer team joked that they could use her disease to their advantage - because the other team would be scared. The girl suffered daily name calling, teasing and constant bullying.

Now the girl's been pulled out of school by her parents, who are suing the Indiana institution for doing nothing to save their daughter from her tormentors. More than two decades after Ryan White, do kids still have to hide their HIV status?

There's a marked difference in the knowledge out there about HIV from the instant fear and massive homophobia of my eighties childhood. Ours was perhaps the first generation to be raised to have safe sex not to ward off unwanted pregnancy but to protect you from disease. We grew up in the time of Ryan White . . . and of Magic Johnson and Arthur Ashe. We were taught to be cautious - perhaps taught too much. I remember the health teachers giving us a blow by blow on what HIV and then AIDS could to do the body. Then they gave us the rundown of every single way we could possibly contract the virus. They terrified us - to the point where a bunch of overactive teenage imaginations were envisioning catching HIV by brushing up against someone walking down the street.

Too much of the information thrown at us to keep us safe was off base and overblown. Now the generation raised to shake in their boots at the thought of AIDS is charged with raising their own kids. What are they telling them? Because it sounds like the kids in Westlane Middle School are scared. It sounds like they don't understand that a teenage classmate with AIDS does not mean a death sentence for them. In this day and age it doesn't even mean a death sentence for her (thankfully).

Source: Salon

Are Elementary School Thanksgivings Racist Or Just Outdated?

BREAKING NEWS: Judge Overrules Ban on Gays Adopting in Florida

Juno Goes to Washington? Congress' First Unwed Mom

Kindergartners Vote An Autistic Classmate Out of the Class

Blogging Moms Find a Kidney For Teen on Dialysis

JeanneSager — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 17:02:00 GMT

If you've ever doubted the power of the Internet, just imagine the motivation of helping a kid in need thrown in. This is one of those happy holiday stories to make up for all the bad stuff we ended up writing about here on the 'Derby, but I warn you. Get out the tissues.

"Domestic Diva" mom blogger Lisa posted in early November that she could barely keep posting as she watched her teen daughter, Marielle, suffer through her kidneys shutting down. The family was making a drastic move. They were pulling Marielle out of a Philadelphia hospital and heading to New York's Columbia Presbyterian in hopes that the living kidney donor program there could save her life.

Two weeks to the day later, yesterday, Lisa was back online. Blogging mothers across the country had picked up her story and blogged about it, tweeted it on Twitter and shared it on Facebook. Calls poured into Columbia Presbyterian from every state in the U.S., from Africa, from Saudi Arabia. Marielle now has a donor. A friend her mom met through Ebay called the hospital, went through the process and has come up as a match. The teenager is home, still on dialysis, but home for the holiday as doctors work to bring her body to a state of health that will enable them to proceed with surgery.

Yesterday, the day before Thanksgiving, the family released this announcement to the world:

"Thank you to EVERYONE who sent in donor forms, called, blogged, twittered and help spread the word…BUT WE DO NOT NEED ANY ADDITIONAL DONORS AT THIS TIME. I am amazed by the power of the web and the hearts of those who helped make a difference."

Now wipe your tears and get back to that turkey.

Image: Domestic Diva

Girl Diagnoses Herself With Autism

The Shape of a Mother: The Real Us In All Our Unglorious Glory

Grandma Serves as Surrogate, Gives Birth to Triplet Granddaughters

5 Things Most Parents Hate to Hear First Thing in the Morning

Rachael Brownell (Redsy) — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 19:01:00 GMT

Mornings with children are always an adventure, especially once they begin to talk and you are required to operate complex machinery like microwaves and toasters before ingesting adequate caffeine. Here are a few choice statements from your kids that can catapult even the groggiest among us into code-red parenting alert:

1. My tummy feels funny

2. I just stepped in something yucky

3. There is a funny man in the living room

4. Grandma called and she's on her way over

5. Don't worry, I already fed the baby

Any to add?

When To Call The Doctor

Hannah Tennant-Moore — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 21:30:00 GMT

When is a cough the sign of a medical emergency and when should it be treated with a tablespoon of Robitussin? When is it not a big deal that your child is in so much pain that “she acts like she’s possessed”? And should you ever give your toddler Gatorade?

Thanks to Cookie for answering all of these questions in a concise article that details what to keep in your medicine cabinet and how to respond to any two a.m. attack of fever, nausea, earache, cough, or diarrhea. As the article makes clear, remaining calm when your child is sick increases the chance that you’ll get the illness under control without resorting to antibiotics--or a fun family outing to the ER.

I did notice there was no mention of what Mommy Pills to keep in the medicine cabinet, but perhaps that’s self-explanatory.

Photo: chpc.info

Mom Likes Sick Kids and Lice

Madeline Holler — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 22:29:00 GMT

An AlphaMummy at the Times lists all the stuff she thought she would hate about parenting but turns out to have enjoyed. I'm so not relating.

I mean, she lists "taking care of sick kids" at No. 1. I would say that's one of the things I wasn't looking forward too, and for good reason: it's far worse than I ever imagined (Mommy's a little sleep-sensitive.)

What else has unexpectedly brought her joy: the smell of her kids dirty pants and picking through their hair for lice. Seriously? I think I might be jealous. As for dirty pants, I'm neutral, but wouldn't it be great if I loved them? The lice, though, forget it. Granted, I have no experience there yet, but I can't imagine it being the least bit, as she describes it, "satisfying" (Mommy's also got bug issues.)

This AlphaMummy also likes helping with homework (makes her feel smart), coloring, instructing her kids in "hard-core feminism" and co-sleeping (mostly the comments on her post turn into a debate on co-sleeping. We're so over that though, aren't we?).

So what about you? If you didn't raise your hand -- what anticipated drudgery has turned out to be fun? Anything you thought you'd love that you are more than eager to turn over to your partner?

I thought I was going to hate children's TV, and sure, it can be crappy. But I have "my shows" (Arthur being one, Clifford being NOT one.) I expected the worst of car trips with young kids but I actually look forward to them -- the crappy food, the whining, the same CD 2,000 times. Fun.

On the flip side, I thought I'd love giving baths, pre-kids, but it's not my favorite (too much prep-work and clean up) and I found myself surprisingly bored with so much of the reading material meant for 4- to 6-year-old's.

Your turn!

Mom Gets Ticket While Sick Kid Barfs In Car

Kelly Mills — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 13:29:00 GMT

I feel for moms and dads when I find things like this in newspapers, because what parent hasn't had a day like this? Gina Boyd's three-year-old daughter was running a fever and had an earache, so they climbed into the family van and headed for a clinic. As they were driving, the girl started making choking noises and throwing up, so Gina made an illegal U-turn to pull over and care for her kid. Aaaand that's when she heard sirens behind her.

Now, you might assume the officer would show some mercy considering the circumstances, but instead he wrote Gina a $123 citation. Deputy Jon Tillis also told Gina she was responsible for making a driver behind her execute the same illegal U-turn, and that she could have called an ambulance for her kid. Now, Gina doesn't dispute that she did something illegal--as she says, ""If I had thought about it, I could've put my hazards on, but it's hard to think in a situation like that"-- but she does wish the deputy could have exercised some discretion, given the circumstances. She can't afford the court or childcare costs to fight the ticket either. I bet lots of us have been there. Where's the karma police when you need them?

Oh, Those Whining Sick Kids!

Karen Murphy — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 20:02:00 GMT

Sorry, can't get the sick-kid thing out of my mind lately. Maybe it's from the nose-wipage snail-tracks decorating my couch? Or the hacking phlegm-sounds invading my dreams at night, followed by the [intentionally weak-sounding] call of "Mamaaaaa!" Or the doe eyes that stare up at me, pleadingly, beseechingly, as if somehow that intense eye contact would be enough not only to convey what feeling like crap feels like but also to magically transfer it to someone—anyone—else.

I know you know what I'm talking about.

And it seems to be on everyone else's mind too. Take Rita Arena at BlogHer, for example. She's talking about flu shots and immune-boosting activities. Avoiding the one makes the other more important. I think that flu shots are useless/more dangerous than helpful in most cases, with some notable exceptions, so I was surprised/appalled to learn that The Ex had a flu shot administered to our four-year-old over the weekend. At second thought, however, it seems that he fits more in the category of notable exceptions, so I'll let sleeping immunosuppressants lie in this case.

Other notable exceptions include those who are health care workers or are frequently around those germy little kids (oops, that would be us, wouldn't it?), or the elderly or people whose immune systems need some boosting, or people like my son who have tiny respiratory passages and are prone to respiratory issues.

(By the way, Rita also presents a wonderful rundown on what to look for when your kid has the flu, as in when to go to a doctor. People have died from the flu and will continue to do so whether we have shots for it or not, so it's good to know when it gets to that serious stage)

But there's lots of people who get the shot every year, betting that the healthcare industry gurus chose the "right" strains to focus on this year.

Just not me, thank you. I will continue to take my chances. Just don't cough on me; I get enough of that at home. Now if only I could do something about the whining.

Photo: bbc.co.uk

Judgment Day: Sending Sick Kids to School

Karen Murphy — Fri, 11 Jan 2008 14:03:00 GMT

My younger son has been sick all week. Croup. The middle-of-the-night sound of him hoarsely fighting for breath wakes one instantly to a state of full alert. We've been down this road seven times now (Down syndrome awarded him tiny respiratory passages that are overly susceptible to infection), so it, like everything else, was weathered with only a modicum of whining.

On my part, the whining. But my point: he brought this home from school (no one else in the house is sick), and therein lies my quandary. When do you keep a sick kid home and when do you send him off to school?

I can count on several fingers, toes, and other appendages how many things I culd have/would have accomplished this week had Eric been well enough to attend school. Lost work, lost sleep, lost sanity. Not that I haven't cherished every second with a boy who yells "No!" to every suggestion, but hello, I could have done a whole lot of things that I didn't. It goes without saying, and when a single-parent-who-worked-outside-of-the-home it was even worse. At least I can sit here and chat with you on my laptop, which is more than a lot of parents are abe to do when wth a sick child.

But when do you keep your kids home? And do some of us fudge a bit and send our kids to school when maybe we shouldn't?

I know as a kid I had to be at death's door to stay home, so that happened very seldom. I tend to err on the other side as a parent, though, since I'm home anyway. Not every parent has that luxury (??), but when my kids seem too uncomforable to sit at a desk all day or seem contagious, they stay home. No matter what. So I was surprised to read this list of keeping-sick-kids-home criteria that says it's okay to send kids with colds to school.

Ummm..hello? It is? I'm pretty sure it's an upper respiratory infection that's kept my kid home all week. I know kids have perpetual runny noses all wnter long, but...where do you draw the line? When is it a cold that will infect the class and when is it just...a cold?

I was hoping for something more definitive here, but it seems that except for the obvious (fevers, typhoid, TB, Hep B, etc) and the other obvious (vomiting, diarrhea, blah blah blah), there's a huge gray area between please-let-my-kid-be-well-enough-to-go-to-school and oh-fuck-another-personal-day-at-work-gone.

So where do you draw the line? When and for what do you say, "Should they stay or should they go?"

Photo: www.bbc.co.uk