Loraine Centeno

Your child's dust allergy may not seem as debilitating or life-threatening as other forms of allergies but it can still cause major discomfort. It can greatly impact his quality of life and interfere with daily activities. According to the American College of Allergy, Asthma, And Immunology (ACAAI), symptoms of dust allergy include sneezing, runny or stuffy nose, red itchy or teary eyes, wheezing, tightness in the chest, shortness of breath, and itching. If you notice these in your toddler, he m

A few years ago, actress Alicia Silverstone earned flak online after posting a video of her pre-chewing her then 11-month old baby’s food. The video went viral and sparked all sorts of debates online. She also got attacked by a mob of moms online who mostly said they were disgusted by what they saw. But what many don’t realize is that premastication (or the practice of pre-chewing a baby’s food) is often done by mothers and has been around for thousands of years. How else did you think our ances

It’s true what they say, once you get pregnant you will start eating for two. But this doesn’t just mean you need to double your servings, more importantly, this means whatever you consume and put inside your body could end up being passed onto your baby. So you need to be careful with what you eat. Bacteria, viruses, parasites, and other microorganisms in improperly handled or uncooked food may have harmful effects on the baby in your tummy. According to the non-profit organization March of Dimes...

One of the first few issues you’ll face as a new mom is dealing with diaper rash. It might sound simple for everyone else but moms who have been through this know that it can cause hours of non-stop crying as the baby wails in pain, and lots of sleepless nights. Dealing with it can be stressful for both mom and the baby. This is why it is important to understand what it is, why babies develop it, and how to treat it.

As if all the physical and hormonal changes aren’t enough, pregnant women also have to deal with heartburn or acid reflux. That feeling of constantly having acid in your stomach climb up to your esophagus giving you that urge to vomit, and that constant burning sensation in the center of the chest— it’s an uneasy feeling that many pregnant women experience. But why is it so common among expectant mothers?

One of the many challenging tasks that come with caring for a baby or a little tot is helping them take medicine. Unlike most other tasks that you can push to a later time, taking medicine often follows a strict schedule—they have to take it at specific times of the day otherwise the medication won’t work. Remember that you are not supposed to force a struggling child to take any medicine according to information from the Seattle Children’s Hospital-Children’s Foundation. Doing this can lead to

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), every year, 2% to 10% of pregnancies in the United States are affected by gestational diabetes. This happens when pregnancy hormones and other changes in the woman’s body cause insulin resistance. “All pregnant women have some insulin resistance during late pregnancy,” says the CDC.

If you are wondering about your chances of passing a genetic disorder, intellectual disability, or birth defect to your baby, maybe it’s time for you to go through genetic counselling. According to the National Society of Genetic Counselors (NSGC), genetic counselling is done to evaluate and understand a family's risk of having a baby with an inherited medical condition.

Children’s eating behaviours develop and evolve during the first few years of life. According to a study done by researchers from the Center for Childhood Obesity Research at the Pennsylvania State University and Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, the first five years of life are when eating behaviour most matter, as it serves as a foundation for future eating patterns. “During these early years, children are learning what, when, and how much to eat based on the transmission of cultural and familial beliefs, attitudes, and practices surrounding food and eating," the study explains.

Childhood obesity is slowly becoming an epidemic. Young children are falling victim to the condition which the World Health Organization (WHO) considers one of the most serious public health challenges of the 21st century. “The problem is global and is steadily affecting many low-income and middle-income countries, particularly in urban settings. The prevalence has increased at an alarming rate,” the WHO reports. The number of overweight children under the age of five around the world is estima

Perinatal HIV transmission means HIV transmission from mother to child. According to Avert, a UK-based charity, HIV in the mother’s blood can pass into the baby’s body most likely during the last few weeks of pregnancy, during labor or delivery, and even while breastfeeding. HIV is present in the breastmilk of an HIV infected mother and this can be passed down to the baby while feeding.

A stretch mark is a type of scar that appears on the skin when it stretches or shrinks quickly. They first appear red or purple, but some people can have pink or brown marks. These colored bands disappear over time and are replaced by narrow depressions on the skin. They commonly appear around the thighs, abdomen, female breasts, and upper arms in males. It happens during rapid weight gain, muscle hypertrophy in bodybuilders, after breast augmentation, and most notably after pregnancy. In pregnant women, maternal and family history of stretch marks increases pre-pregnancy and predelivery weight. An increase in birth weight can put a woman at an increased risk of having stretch marks, according to a study by researchers from the Department of Dermatology and Allergology at the Academic Teaching Hospital.

As the virus continues to wreak havoc on people's bodies and the economy, the social distancing and self-isolation measures are having a severe impact on mental health as well. People’s lives have been upended so completely that many experts believe once lockdowns are over, the world will have to battle another crisis, one that is also invisible to the naked eye and is just as alarming as coronavirus.

The decision to have another baby or add more children to a family should ideally involve a lot of planning and careful consideration. Aside from making sure a family is ready financially, a couple must also make sure they are emotionally prepared to raise another child. An unplanned pregnancy may not always mean unwanted, but most unintentional pregnancies can sometimes cause stress on a couple who isn’t ready for another addition to their family. According to a research paper by Dr. Deborah Bartz of the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Biology of the Harvard Medical School, unintended pregnancies are expensive for parents and for society in terms of medical costs, the cost of caring for more children, and the cost of personal and professional goals.

The coronavirus situation is changing so fast that it’s so hard for families to keep up. Families have been driven indoors, employees are asked to leave the office and work remotely. Many of us are stuck at home waiting for news about developments. But amidst the confusion and anxiety what most of us forget is that children are also left to adjust to this drastic change in their routine. Schools and daycare centres are closed, activities canceled. No more birthday parties, playdates, and trips

According to the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control coronavirus is more transmissible than seasonal influenza and since it is a new virus, nobody has prior immunity, which means the entire human population is potentially susceptible to COVID-19 or SARS-CoV-2 infection. So even with precautions, some people, including those in your family, may fall victim to this virus. The good news is, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), most people who get sick wi

You may have heard it in the news a few times. In recent years, there’s been talk about this condition in mainstream media thanks to celebrities and A-listers who experienced it and continue to talk about it in interviews. RELATED: 10 Tips To Parent A Toddler While Expectant And Tired It’s that hard-to-pronounce condition that’s even harder to spell. Hyperemesis Gravidarum (HG) is an extreme form of morning sickness that’s afflicting pregnant women across the globe. Here are a few things about

This year, the Department of Health (DOH) recorded a total of nine deaths from 133 reported cases of JE from January to August 2017. And while the department assures the public that there is no JE outbreak in the country and that there has been a 44 percent decrease in the number of...

Many women who had gestational diabetes (GD) during pregnancy go on to have healthy pregnancies and give birth to healthy babies without complications. This is done through proper management and control of the condition and close coordination with their doctors. RELATED: 10 Things You’ll Miss About Pregnancy When You’re Not Pregnant Anymore If you are one of those who have been diagnosed with this condition there are so many things you can do to manage it and to make sure you and your baby sta

Gestational Diabetes or GD is diabetes that happens to women who are pregnant and who did not have diabetes before conceiving according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention(CDC). It’s a condition that can affect both the mother and her baby so it needs medical attention. RELATED: 10 Things Nobody Tells You About Morning Sickness The good news about it though, is that this condition can be controlled and many women who develop GD while pregnant go on to deliver healthy babies witho