Preschooler Health & Nutrition
Autism: One family's journey
Amber Robinson April 2 is World Autism Awareness Day. Current statistics indicate that one child in every 160 is diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder in Australia. Here, grandmother Pamela Maie Young shares the story of her grandson Ben, who was recently diagnosed with the disorder.
Sleep skiing the next big thing
Learning to ski is hard work, especially when you're a kid. It was all too much for this little guy who was so exhausted he fell asleep while still standing on the slopes.
Help autistic to stay afloat
Without specialist school staff, these children will go under, writes one Sydney mother.
Carrie's project: get Ollie to sleep in time
As a single, working mother who is often on set until 8pm, TV presenter Carrie Bickmore struggles to get her four-year-old son Ollie to bed early.
Parents in denial about obesity
Cosima Marriner Many parents are ''in complete denial'' about their child's weight, obesity specialists say.
Off to a fat start
We all have to take responsibility for childhood obesity to combat it, writes Michelle Bridges.
Striking a balance
AS A DOCTOR, Andrew Rochford knows the importance of limiting screen time to help prevent childhood obesity. As a parent, he says it is just ''commonsense''.
Don’t hide veggies, enjoy them
Dr Joanna McMillan The battle to get vegies into our kids seems to be universal and fraught parents will try anything to get something naturally green into their offspring.
Healthy eating starts with what goes in the pantry: Rowntree
Danielle Teutsch If Catriona Rowntree's two-year-old son, Andrew, is peckish, he can chew on home-grown apples, mulberries, strawberries and cherry tomatoes.
Disciplining children with ASD
Kimberley O’Brien Many parents experience disbelief, anger and typically a sense of grief and loss following an ASD diagnosis. This process often impacts on your desire to set limits with the child in question and consistency can also become an issue between parents who had previously been rock solid.
Girl with broken leg misdiagnosed as 'drama queen'
Megan Levy The mother of a three-year-old girl who broke her leg in a backyard accident was told by a GP that her daughter was being "overdramatic" while a Melbourne hospital failed to diagnose her for three days, her family claims.
Fussy eaters sorted
QUIRKY KID For most parents, getting their children to eat vegetables can sometimes be a difficult task. Dinner table tantrums and cries of distaste are a familiar scene to many households, leaving parents to come up with clever ways to coax vegetables into fussy tummies.
Why not all white bread is bad
Katie Carlin While most of us grew up with a love for fluffy, white bread it seems that white bread has not loved us back. But are all white breads bad for you?
Plastic leaching and other unnatural hazards
Dr Joanna McMillan To give us the best chance of good health, not to mention the effects on the environment, I advise choosing organic and earth friendly products.
Vaccine gets another clean bill of health
Gardiner Harris Yet another panel of scientists has found no evidence that the combination measles vaccine causes autism, though their report is unlikely to have any impact on the fierce debate about its safety.
Football is simply child's play for the Soccajoeys
Aaron Cook, Ella Rubeli The 2030 FIFA World Cup and 2031 Women's World Cup might be a long way off, but a team of potential competitors has been honing their skills at the Five Dock Leisure Centre for the past few weeks.
Elmo, Big Bird lend a hand
Michelle Griffin Big Bird has lost his nest during ''a big emergency''. Elmo has had a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. Bert and Ernie lend a helping hand.
Sweet poison
Is junk food child abuse?
Absolutely, says Michelle Bridges, parents have a responsibility to feed their children healthy food.
Study
Childhood obesity starting to improve
Julie Robotham Australia's childhood obesity epidemic has finally gone into reverse, according to a study that highlights a small but steady fall in the proportion of preschoolers deemed overweight during the past decade.
Children wait years for allergy treatment
Amy Corderoy HEALTH Justin Hardy has life-threatening allergies, but it took two years before he received specialist care for his condition.
The worst thing to come out of children's mouths
Courtney Trenwith Children as young as four are having all of their baby teeth removed because of poor oral health, dentists say.
Inspiring
The courageous little boy who inspired the mighty Tigers
Glenn Jackson Five-year-old Lleyton Giles's battle is a reminder of what's truly important.
Sick 5-year-old inspires Wests Tigers to victory
Daniel Lewis The Wests Tigers made a stunning 43-18 victory over the Panthers over the weekend, with inspiration from a surprising source - five-year-old Lleyton Giles.
11 kid's party food ideas
Looking for some healthier options to chips and hot dogs for your next children's party? We've found 11 fun food ideas, from classics like frogs in a pond to surprising new favourites like sushi and dumplings. For heartier fare, try lamb pasties.
Children with better educated mothers watch the least TV
Adele Horin Almost 15 per cent of Australian children aged three to four have television in their bedrooms and, by the age of seven to eight, the proportion has risen to one in five, a new study shows, raising concerns about the lack of parental regulation of children's viewing.
Preschoolers not active enough
Julia Medew Most preschoolers spend 85 per cent of their waking hours inactive, research has found.
Snotty kids don't attract sympathy
Kylie Orr Somehow I slipped through the cracks when they were handing out the sympathy gene. I must have been standing in the impatience line, because I sure got an overdose of that.
Depression found in 15% of preschoolers
Louise Hall Almost 15 per cent of preschoolers have abnormally high levels of depression and anxiety, and a difficult temperament at five months of age is the most important early warning sign, a study has found.
The junk food rules
Karen Fischer Just because you want your child to be healthy doesn’t mean you have to put a lifetime ban on all junk food. However, it’s a good idea to control or restrict how often they consume unhealthy treats because they can promote poor concentration, tantrums and fussy eating habits.
Is it a cold or allergies?
The symptoms for a cold and allergies can be similar and can sometimes make diagnosing difficult. Obviously your Doctor is the best person to ask but there are a few differences between a cold and allergies that are worth keeping in mind.
'One-day cure' for peanut allergies
Scientists have the first evidence that life-threatening peanut allergies may be cured one day. A few children now are allergy-free thanks to a scary treatment - tiny amounts of the very food that endangered them.
Children of the rainbow need support
Ebru Yaman It's time to break the silence surrounding the autism spectrum tells Ebru Yaman, a former education journalist and the mother of two children, one of whom has Asperger's syndrome.
Kick the kids outside
Adele Horin Children spend so little time in outdoor activities it is little wonder so many are getting fat at a younger age, a visiting expert said yesterday.
Pups assist children with Autism
Eight labradors have received intensive training over 18 months and are about to each be given a new home, assisting families with their child's autism spectrum disorder.
Australia's treadmill tots
Louise Hall Children as young as three have personal trainers and mini-exercise machines to help fight childhood obesity but health experts say they need to go out and play, not hit the treadmill.
