We all know that being a devoted and loving parent is a truly rewarding and fulfilling experience, but it does come with an enormous amount of responsibility and worry about the child’s well-being. Health naturally plays a huge role there as it is a well-known fact that kids endure a variety of health issues while developing their immune system, partly due to their immense physical contact with their surroundings. Here are some of the most frequent health issues that trouble kids and their parents.
Pain
Children often complain about experiencing different kinds of pain, like headaches, stomachaches, or toothaches. Sometimes they’re milder and go away relatively quickly, but occasionally they can be more intense as well. Naturally, if it is an issue that seems to be lasting longer than perhaps expected, it is necessary to see a doctor and ask what the exact cause could be. For relieving the pain, parents are usually told to give their children painkillers such as ibuprofen and acetaminophen; however, you need to be well informed first what dosage you can give, and that depends on the child’s weight and age.
Common Cold
Your child’s common cold is the result of a viral infection of the nose and throat, and it isn’t unusual for younger children to suffer from it more than once a year, as children up to the age of six are most susceptible to it. The characteristic symptoms are a low fever, runny nose, congestion, and a sore throat. Make sure your child gets lots of rest and sleep, eats healthy food to get enough vitamins, and drinks plenty of fluids. Pain relievers can be given if necessary, but cough and cold medicines are generally not recommended for various reasons, especially not for younger children.
Short-sightedness
If you start noticing at one point that your child is having difficulty discerning objects, people, or letters in the distance, it may be time to take them to see an eye doctor and check for short-sightedness. The child will perhaps tell you about that problem or you will be able to notice it on your own if they need to squint to be able to see better, for instance when watching TV or reading a sign. Your child may need to start wearing glasses. Another possible solution would be to have the child wear good overnight contact lenses — they’re convenient because they are removed in the morning and the corrective effect lasts through the day, so the person can actually see well even after the lenses are removed.
Pink Eye
Children are tactile beings and touch more or less anything around them. It is not so strange, then, that they frequently get conjunctivitis or pink eye. It is easily recognized by the characteristic redness of the white part of the eye, accompanied by itchiness, tearing, yellow or green discharge that hinders proper vision, etc. You should bear in mind that pink eye is contagious, so try to avoid having your child spend time among other kids until the symptoms starts withdrawing. The causes of conjunctivitis can be allergies, bacteria, or viruses, and depending on the cause, the doctor will prescribe antibiotics (typically in cases of bacterial infections), eye drops, or anything else necessary. Instruct your child to wash their hands regularly and not to touch or rub the affected eye so as not to make it worse.
Lack of Appetite
There is probably no parent out there who hasn’t heard their kid cry and complain about not wanting to eat. It is normal that from time to time children don’t feel like eating because they would simply rather go do something else, like play. But when you notice that your child has lost their appetite and hasn’t been willing to eat for a day or two, then it’s time to intervene. They may not feel like eating because of a different issue, like a sore throat. Longer periods of loss of appetite, weight loss or insufficient weight gain might be pointing to something a bit more serious.
Stay informed, take safety measures, and do what you can to prevent these and similar issues. Whenever you have uncertainties or worry that you child may be experiencing a difficulty, never hesitate to ask for professional help in order to get reliable advice and guidance.
