What are Allergies?

We often hear people say they’re allergic to one thing or another. Symptoms seem to range from a slight sniffle to potentially lethal anaphylaxis. With such a wide range of culprit triggers – dust animals, pollen, dairy products and wheat to name just a few – how do we know exactly what it is that makes an allergy an allergy?

Allergies and Intolerances

Many people today who claim to have an allergy actually have an intolerance. This is particularly true of lots of individuals who believe they have a food allergy. An intolerance means that the body has trouble digesting a particular substance, such as wheat or dairy products. As the body works hard to digest heavy-going food, the sufferer can experience lots of unpleasant symptoms including bloating, painful trapped wind, diarrhoea and constipation. There’s no denying that intolerances are not much fun, but they’re not the same thing as an allergy – even though some of the symptoms may be the same.

Allergies and the Immune System

A true allergy involves the immune system. The first time you come into contact with your trigger allergen, whether it’s peanuts, pollen or puppies, you won’t experience an allergic reaction. But your immune system will ‘remember’ the trigger substance, because it perceived it to be a dangerous invader. The next time your body encounters the trigger substance, a chain reaction takes place. The immune system releases large amounts of antibodies to deal with the ‘invader.’ In turn, these antibodies set off the release of histamine into the bloodstream. It’s histamine that causes the wide range of physical symptoms, from the irritating, to the life-threatening.

Allergies and their Triggers

Anything is a potential allergy trigger. It’s a safe bet that someone, somewhere will be allergic to pretty much any substance you might come across. In our modern world, the huge number of chemicals and synthetic products we use have given rise to a whole new set of allergies, while other people suffer from allergies that have been bugging human beings for centuries, like hay fever.

From bee stings, to latex, to shellfish and cheese, the list of allergy triggers just goes on and on. While it’s true to say that these days we have many effective remedies for reducing the symptoms of allergy, such as anti-histamines, we still cannot cure the allergy itself. The best method of minimising the number of attacks is still to avoid your trigger substance.

Symptoms of Allergy

Once an allergic response has been triggered, symptoms can appear very suddenly, although it can take several hours. Typical symptoms of allergy might include:

• a runny or blocked nose, watery, red and itchy eyes,
• skin rashes,
• vomiting,
• diarrhea,
• coughing,
• sneezing and wheezing.

Nose Bleeding

My eldest daughter, 5 years old, often get nose bleeding. Well, sometimes it makes panic when saw she was bleeding in the middle of the night. Usually the bleeding comes after she too tired in the noon without some sleep. My wife, often worried about this condition, she took my eldest daughter to our pediatric and made some consultation. The pediatric also took some test upon my child, some blood test to convince us. Fortunately, the result was good, no need to worry.

So, here some guidance for parent who also have the same condition as me.

Why causes nosebleeds?

The nose is a part of the body rich in blood vessels (vascular) and is situated in a vulnerable position as it protrudes on the face. As a result, trauma to the face can cause nasal injury and bleeding. The bleeding may be profuse, or simply a minor complication. Nosebleeds can occur spontaneously when the nasal membranes dry out and crack. This is common in dry climates, or during the winter months when the air is dry and warm from household heaters. People are more susceptible to a bloody nose if they are taking medications which prevent normal blood clotting warfarin (Coumadin), aspirin, or any anti-inflammatory medication]. In this situation, even a minor trauma could result in significant bleeding.

The incidence of nosebleeds is higher during the colder winter months when upper respiratory inspection are more frequent, and the temperature and humidity fluctuate more dramatically. In addition, changes from a bitter cold outside environment to a warm, dry, heated home results in drying and changes in the nose which will make it more susceptible to bleeding. Nosebleeds also occur in hot dry climates with low humidity, or when there is a change in the seasons. The following factors predispose people to nosebleeds:

• Infection
  
• Trauma, including self-induced by nose picking, especially in children
• Allergic and non-allergic rhinitis
• Hypertension (high blood pressure)
  
• Use of blood thinning medications
• Alcohol abuse
• Less common causes include tumors and inherited bleeding problem

What Is the Treatment for A Common Nosebleed?

Most people who develop nose bleeding can handle the problem without the need of a physician if they follow the first aid recommendations below:

1. Pinch all the soft parts of the nose together between your thumb and index finger.
   
2. Press firmly toward the face - compressing the pinched parts of the nose against the bones of the face.
   
3. Lean forward slightly with the head tilted forward. Leaning back or tilting the head back allows the blood to run back into your sinuses and throat and can cause gagging or inhaling the blood.
   
4. Hold the nose for at least five minutes. Repeat as necessary until the nose has stopped bleeding.

When should you call your doctor ?

• If bleeding cannot be stopped or keeps occurring.
  
• If bleeding is rapid, or if blood loss is large.
  
• If you feel weak or faint, presumably from blood loss.
  
• If your nosebleed is associated with a fever or headache.
  
• If your infant or baby has a nosebleed, contact the pediatrician.

source: http://www.medicinenet.com/

New Breastfeeding Recommendations from the AAP

February 7, 2005 - A long-time advocate of breastfeeding, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) is issuing a revised policy statement on "Breastfeeding and the Use of Human Milk" to replace its existing policy developed in 1997. The new recommendations reflect new research on the importance of breastfeeding.

Studies on infants provide evidence that breastfeeding can decrease the incidence or severity of conditions such as diarrhea, ear infections and bacterial meningitis. Some studies also suggest that breastfeeding may offer protection against sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), diabetes, obesity and asthma among others.

Research indicates that breastfeeding can reduce a mother's risk of several medical conditions, including ovarian and breast cancer, and possibly a decreased risk of hip fractures and osteoporosis in the postmenopausal period. Increased breastfeeding also has the potential for decreasing annual health costs in the U.S. by $3.6 billion and decreasing parental employee absenteeism, the environmental burden for disposal of formula cans and bottles, and energy demands for production and transport of formula.

Although breastfeeding initiation rates have increased steadily since 1990, exclusive (no water, juice, nonhuman milk or food) breastfeeding rates have shown little or no increase over the same period of time. Similarly, the proportion of infants who are exclusively breastfed until about six months of age has increased at a much slower rate than that of infants who received mixed feedings (breast milk plus infant formula).

The policy recommendations include:

• Exclusive breastfeeding for approximately the first six months and support for breastfeeding for the first year and beyond as long as mutually desired by mother and child.
• Mother and infant should sleep in proximity to each other to facilitate breastfeeding;
• Self-examination of mother's breasts for lumps is recommended throughout lactation, not just after weaning;
• Support efforts of parents and the courts to ensure continuation of breastfeeding in cases of separation, custody and visitation;
• Pediatricians should counsel adoptive mothers on the benefits of induced lactation through hormonal therapy or mechanical stimulation.
• Recognize and work with cultural diversity in breastfeeding practices
• A pediatrician or other knowledgeable and experienced health care professional should evaluate a newborn breastfed infant at 3 to 5 days of age and again at 2 to 3 weeks of age to be sure the infant is feeding and growing well.

The American Academy of Pediatrics is an organization of 60,000 primary care pediatricians, pediatric medical subspecialists and pediatric surgical specialists dedicated to the health, safety and well-being of infants, children, adolescents and young adults.

source: http://pediatrics.about.com/, reproduced from an AAP news release

Baby's Ages and Stages

Sometimes, we are worry about the development of our babies and kidz, whether they are growth up without any delay in their development milestone.

Here is the age and stage of babies milestone:

Smiling ( age 6 - 8 weeks) :
a developmental milestone that most babies reach by the time that they are six to eight weeks old. There are actually two types of smiles for babies:

1. the spontaneous or almost reflexive smile that can occur early in the newborn period, and
2. the social smile that occurs in response to something, like when you talk or sing to your baby.

The social smile is a developmental milestone that most infants reach when they are one to two months old. Not having a social smile by six months of age is commonly considered to be an early sign of autism.

The spontaneous smile can occur as early as your baby's first few days of life and should be present by the time he is ten weeks old.

Laughing ( age 6 - 12 weeks):
a developmental milestone that many babies reach by the time that they are six to twelve weeks old.

It shouldn't be surprising that babies begin to laugh when they are six to twelve weeks old. After all, six weeks is usually when parents notice that colic which can make babies fussy, is starting to improve.

Rolling Over ( age 2 -6 months):
a developmental milestone that most babies reach by the time that they are two to six months old.

Rolling over is often one of the first major motor milestones that parents look forward to.

Spending less time prone or on their stomach, since the release of the Back to Sleep recommendations to reduce the risk of SIDS, has caused some infants to roll over a little later than they used to though.

It can also cause some delays in picking up other milestones, including sitting up and crawling. Fortunately, by the time they were toddlers, these delays all seem to disappear no matter how your baby sleeps, so it likely more appropriate to describe these kids as having a 'lag' in their development and not a true delay.

Still, most infants roll over when they are between two to six months old, first from their front to their back, and then from their back to their front.

Sitting Up ( age 5 - 7 months ):
a developmental milestone that most babies reach by the time that they are five and a half to seven months old.

Standing with Support ( age 6 - 9 months ):
a developmental milestone that most infants reach by the time that they are six and a half to nine months old.

First Step ( age 11 - 15 months ):
a developmental milestone most babies reach between eleven and fifteen months.

Waving Bye - Bye ( age 7 - 14 months ):
a developmental milestone that most babies can reach once they are seven to 14 months old.

Although waving hello and bye-bye seems like just a fun thing to teach your baby, it is actually an important developmental milestone. Most experts think that it can be an early sign of autism or another developmental disorder if your child isn't making any gestures by the time he is twelve months old. These gestures include waving, pointing, and reaching for things.

Keep in mind that most babies can wave once they are seven to 14 months old.

Pincer Grasp ( age 7 - 11 months ):
a developmental milestone that most babies reach when they are about seven to 11 months old.

Pretend Play ( age 10 - 16 months ):
Pretend play, or imitating activities, is an important developmental milestone that most infants reach when they are about ten to 16 months old.

Pretend play often involves things like using a computer mouse like a phone, imitating an activity a toddler has seen his parents do over and over.

Toddlers will also begin to copy more of their parents daily household tasks, such as dusting and sweeping, at around 18 months.

Pretend play will get more elaborate as your child gets older; for example, your child pretends he is a doctor, fireman, or race car driver.

First Word ( age 6 - 9 months ):
a baby's first words, which are usually mama or dada, and which you may hear for the first time when your baby is six to nine months old

Well before your baby's first words, your baby should be saying single syllables and frequently jabbering or babbling. Not babbling by twelve months is seen by most experts as an early sign of autism or other developmental disorder.

Most infants are babbling well before twelve months though. In fact, you will usually hear your baby's first words, which are usually mama or dada, by the time she is six to nine months old. Your baby won't use those words more specifically or correctly until she is seven to 13 months old though.

Parallel Play ( age around 2 years ):
playing next to each other, which is called parallel play, and is typical of most kids around age two.

source : http://pediatrics.about.com/