Realities of Water Safety

Water is fun! There’s a whole lot of developmental exploration and play that takes place in a bathtub or swimming pool. As we all know, however, water and safety are two words that go back to back.
As we’d expect, babies who are under 12 months of age are most likely to drown in a bathtub, toilet or a bucket. Babies can drown in just a teeny bit of water and can happen in seconds.

Drowning is the second cause of unintentional injury-related death among children between the ages of 1 and 14 (2005-U.S. Centers for Disease Control). In 2005, drowning accounted for 30% of unintentional deaths in children ages 1 to 4 years old. In University of Chicago economist Dr. Steven Levitt’s book “Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything”, the professor says that children are 100 times more likely to die in a given year from swimming pool accidents than gun accidents.

How to Protect Babies from Overheating

Over-bundled babies concern me more than babies who may be a little bit “chilly”—overheating can lead to unnecessary fever evaluations (checking blood, urine and spinal fluid) because of elevated body temperature as well as serious medical issues. In fact, over bundling and excessive overheating is a risk factor for unexpected infant death. Summer is a time to think about the appropriate amount of clothing for babies and toddlers.

Signs of Overheating in Babies & Toddlers

Summer is a time to learn the signs of overheating (also known as heat stroke). It doesn't take much to offset overheating, and it’s an important issue for parents to be aware of. Heat-related illness results in many children being admitted to emergency departments each year and also is a cause of infant and child mortality. This can happen in babies, toddlers and parents—and the symptoms are actually quite similar. In our next post we will explore some easy ways to avoid overheating—today we will share some tips on recognizing overheating or heat stroke:

How to Choose and Use Sunscreen

When my now 5 and 9 year old twins were young, sun screen before 6 months was a huge no-no —now the American Academy of Pediatrics is recommending sunscreen for infants under 6 months because the risk of skin cancer outweighs the concern over possible irritation of the skin. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics:

“For babies younger than 6 months, use sunscreen on small areas of the body, such as the face and the backs of the hands, if protective clothing and shade are not available”

Sun Protection in Infants & Toddlers—Practical Aspects

Here are eight Sassy suggestions for keeping infants and toddlers protected from the sun. If you do them all, your baby will be protected, and may also look like James Bond (think sunglasses, hat, and covered clothes…you get the picture):

1. Be shady! Summer time is all about the pool, the beach, and outings at the park—always be conscious of sun exposure and seek out shady areas when possible. If at the beach, assure there is an umbrella or other safe cover to shade baby. As we talked about in our last posting, baby skin needs protection from the sun's harmful ultraviolet (UV) rays whenever outside.

Sun Protection in Infants & Toddlers—The Evidence: Part Two

In our last posting, we began to explore the landmark 2011 article by Dr. Amy Paller published in the journal Pediatrics: "New Insights About Infant and Toddler Skin: Implications for Sun Protection". Today, we’ll explore the three common negative effects of sun exposure.

We all know sunburns hurt, but what really happens to the skin itself and why is sun exposure harmful. Is skin cancer the only negative consequence of sun exposure? Before we go back to Dr. Paller’s article, let’s explore what Ultra Violet Radiation is all about:

Sun Protection in Infants & Toddlers—The Evidence: Part One

It is widely known that sun exposure is closely linked to skin cancer in adults. What about babies and toddlers? With information being relayed to parents about the importance of sun exposure for small babies with elevated bilirubin, and for the Vitamin D required for healthy growing bones, it can be confusing. How much sun is healthy and okay? What are the true risks of sun exposure in young children?

In the next two postings on One Sassy Doctor, we’ll review the fantastic research article from the 2011 Dr. Amy Paller published in the journal Pediatrics: "New Insights About Infant and Toddler Skin: Implications for Sun Protection." There is tremendous evidence support from research linking excessive sun exposure in the baby and toddler years to skin cancer later in life. Some interesting facts:

Healthy Bodies—On the Go!

Positive Modeling & Promotion of Healthy Bodies – A Four Part Series with Pediatric Obesity Specialist Dr. Dyan Hes

Part Four—On the Go!

We’ve so enjoyed our series with Dr. Dyan Hes; we learned about activity, portion control and the basics of preventive approaches to keep kids and families healthy. For our final installment (unless Dr. Hes agrees to come back again!), we’ll cover the challenge of how to maintain modeling and provide healthy options while on the go. We know Sassy families are hopping and bopping a lot!

Where Did The Concept of Transitional Objects Originate?

Here at Sassy Baby we’re developing toys for babies and toddlers and continually learning about the amazing growth and developmental aspects of play and attachment. One Sassy Doctor has received various questions regarding blankets (think “Linus” from the Peanuts cartoon!), pacifiers and soft toys—these are commonly referred to as transitional or comfort objects.

Our product development team and I learned quite a bit about the developmental and psychological foundations of transitional/comfort objects in writing these posts, and we hope you find them as interesting as we did here at Sassy Baby! In today’s post, we’ll explore the developmental and psychological foundations of this concept and explore some super cool historical information.

Baby Burp Care: Support for Your Baby

Burp! Well excuse me—I just burped! Ha ha. In our last love and care post this month, in honor of our favorite valentines, we’re going to close with a nice big … BURP!

Why Do Babies Burp? 
Air gets into the tummy & the gastrointestinal tract each time a baby swallows. With the frequency of feeds a baby has during the first few months of life comes the accumulation of quite a bit of air in the tummy (stomach). It’s important to have a good seal on the breast or bottle nipple to minimize air swallowed during feeding—a small amount is normal but if there is a poor seal, extra gas can slip through and increase air in the tummy. If you think of a soda bottle, what rises to the top? You guessed it: bubbles or air. It works the same inside baby’s tummy: air rises to the top and out the mouth making that familiar (and very cute when it’s from a baby) sound.

Baby Hair Care—Washing, Combing and Caring for Baby’s Scalp

Have you seen (or do you have) a baby with a full on head of hair? A baby without any hair at all? Both extremes are completely normal. In fact, some babies with a whole lot of hair can lose it completely, and some babies lose half of a head of hair, often due to pressure from sleep positions. I’m going to spare my son from future embarrassment and not post a picture of the half head of hair he had and the comb-over his mom (aka – One Sassy Doctor) gave him. Seriously, talk about a parenting moment when mom and dad did not agree: “A hat, Jen, please, or shave it off! He looks like an old man!” vs. “Awww, comb-overs are cute. Look, Donald Trump has one!”

Do I Wash Baby Hair? 
Baby hair requires very little care and can be gently cleaned during a sponge bath using mild soap, making sure not to get the soap in baby’s eyes. Be very gentle around the soft spot, a particularly sensitive area where the four main skull bones meet.

Sassy Silly Ways to Have Fun: Touch—Part Two!

Last week we focused more on the younger babies and soft tender touches between parents and newborns. This week we’ll focus more on the 6 month and up crew—with some activities that can be expanded to toddlers, too!

Sassy Silly Ways to Have Fun: Touch—Part One!

Touch is simply the most wonderful part of bonding we’re blessed to enjoy with our children. In fact, I’m at a loss for the perfect words to stress just how important for both mom, dad and baby the sensation of touch is in fostering security & developing attachment with baby is. Perhaps the word is love? Yep—that’s it. We show our love to babies through touch, and they show it right back to us the same way.

Through touch, babies also become more aware of their surroundings. They were in a warm and cozy tummy with fluid surrounding them for an entire pregnancy. Then they pop out into a room with bright lights and a bunch of doctors and nurses with masks on their faces. Give them a hug and cuddle with them after an experience like that!

Sassy Silly Ways to Have Fun: Hearing—Part Two!

Earlier this week we talked about why engaging in hearing silly activities is a good thing for baby. We went over some ways babies automatically engage in fun with mom while still in the womb such as the heart beat and digestive system sounds.

Sassy Silly Ways to Have Fun: Hearing—Part One!

Hear me now! Do I have your attention? Playing with a new baby is super duper important, and although you’re certainly not going to get into a full-on conversation about the latest Hollywood gossip, communication is a fundamental part of bonding.

Sassy Silly Ways to Have Fun: Vision—Part Two!

Earlier this week, we gave you some cute ideas how to be sassy and silly with baby vision and now we’re really ready to jiggle it out. Whoops! I slipped! This One Sassy Doctor gave away the number one silliest way to have fun with baby vision!

Sassy Silly Ways to Have Fun: Vision—Part One!

We’ve written about baby vision on previous One Sassy Doctor posts. Initially, a newborn can see only about 8 to 12 inches from his face and tries to focus when close up to something fun, like mommy’s face. Initially, babies are not able to focus on objects that are far away, so if you’re waving a red flag across the bedroom as you do a silly dance, don’t be offended if only your partner is laughing at you. One note: young babies do respond to bright light and actually prefer (as noted by eye opening) lower light. Babies love faces, bright colors and high-contrast patterns with movement. So, how can we have some Sassy silly vision fun?

Why Does My Baby Have Pimples?

A reader asked Dr. Jen about her one month old’s facial rash. We thought we’d share the answer Dr. Jen gave on her website!

One thing babies and teenagers have in common: Pimples! Why? Hormones! It sounds like your baby has one of the multitudes of rashes that have many things in common:

Importance of Talking to Babies—Part Two: Ways to Expose Babies to Language

Last week, we discussed why exposure to language is so critical to a baby’s language development. Now we’re going to explore the ways to do it!

There are so many wonderful ways to expose your baby to language during the early stages of development! Here are some ideas:

Importance of Talking to Babies —Part One: Why It Is Important

Language development in babies is one of the most magical parts of parenting. Many parents remember the first word and first sentence. Honestly, with two sets of twins, I can barely remember my keys in the morning! But, the first words are impressed in my mind forever—cookie, dada, paci, ball, my four pookies’ first words.

Talking to children (or singing if you have a stellar voice like I do) is one of the most important parts of language progression. In this post, we are going to explore WHY talking to babies is so important.