Children Care

What is Delayed Growth in children or Growth disorder or Growth Failure:

The normal growth of child: When the child remains in mother womb, the growth starts from there and the most rapid phase of growth occurs in the mother’s uterus only. After birth, the growth rate gradually declines over the first several years of life. At birth, the average length of a newborn is 20 inches; at 1 year, the average height is about 30 inches; at 2 years, the average height is about 35 inches; and at 3 years, the average height is about 38 inches. After 3 years and until puberty, linear growth continues at a relatively constant rate of 2 inches per year.

The term growth failure means the child’s growth rate is slower than the appropriate growth velocity for age.

Some child who is having genetic predisposition might develop slow growth rate.

 

Causes of Delayed Growth in children or Growth disorder or Growth Failure:

Familial short stature: Children with this condition have parents with short stature. They have a normal growth velocity, and bone age is not delayed. They enter puberty at a normal time and often complete growth with a short adult height.

Due to delayed puberty:    Children with constitutional growth delay do not show growth failure but a period of slow growth velocity occurs during the first year of life and just before puberty.

Malnutrition/Nutritional deficiency in children: Worldwide, malnutrition is probably the most common cause of growth reduction. Nutritional deficiencies in developed countries are more often the result of self-restricted diets. Sometimes the mother is not aware of the proper dietary pattern for their children. Malnutrition can also be seen in children with emotional deprivation or in child abuse or neglect.

Growth Failure due to some diseases: In some disease conditions, like in Turner Syndrome, Down syndrome, Noonan Syndrome, Russell-Silver Syndrome, and Prader-Willi Syndrome.
Hormonal causes of delayed growth are Thyroid Hormone Deficiency.
Intra-uterine growth retardation and pre-term delivery.

 

Symptoms of Delayed Growth in children or Growth disorder or Growth Failure:

1. Lack of tonicity or floppy trunk and limbs.
2. Limited movements in arms and legs.
3. Cannot stand up by about 1 year old.
4. Delayed milestones- normally child can lift their head by 3 months, sit up by 6 months, and walk well before 2 yrs and by the age of 5 years most children can throw a ball overhand and ride a tricycle.
5. Even after the age of 2 yrs the child is not able to respond to their names.
6. Resistance to cuddling or playing with others.

 

Complications of for Delayed Growth in children or Growth disorder :

Diagnosis of Growth retardation is very important. Earlier the diagnosis of the problem the proper medical treatment can be done at the initial level of the disease. In the conventional system of medicine, somatotropin or growth hormone is used to replace the body’s lack of growth hormone. As this is a purely hormonal replacement therapy, it has its potent side-effects.

What is child Bed wetting?

Bedwetting or nocturnal enuresis is the involuntary passage of urine while in sleep.

 

Types/Symptoms of Bed wetting:

1. Primary bedwetting or enuresis: bedwetting since infancy. It is because delay in maturation of the nervous system. The children who suffer from bedwetting, their brains are un-able to recognize messages of nervous system sent by the full bladder.
2. Secondary bedwetting or enuresis: Developed after being continually dry for a minimum of six months. The common factors or the causes for secondary bedwetting are urinary tract infections, Diabetes mellitus, and spinal cord disorders.

 

Causes of Bed wetting:

Usually for the primary bed wetting there is no particular cause is involved into it.

 

Causes of secondary bed wetting:

Urinary tract infections causing irritation of bladder causing urgency for urination and frequent urination. Anatomical anomaly like phimosis in children might cause frequency in urination and eventually bed wetting.

Diabetes mellitus in children might cause frequent urination and eventually causing bed wetting.

Neurological condition might cause the incontinency in urination and following bed wetting.

Emotional problem like stressful household conditions, where the parents are in continuous conflicts, change of life or situations might cause a problem of bed wetting.

 

Complications of Bed wetting:

Usually primary bed-wetting does not have any serious health-related implications, but as it is having some interference with the self-esteem or social events of the particular child, it might cause some behavioral problem for the child. The parents are also frustrated with their kids for the problem. For secondary bed-wetting (where there is some definite cause involved) prompt treatment should be started to avoid the un-necessary complications of the particular disease that the child is suffering from.

What is tonsillitis?

Tonsils are the two lymph nodes located on each side of the back of your throat. They function as a defense mechanism. They help prevent your body from infection.
When the tonsils become infected, the condition is called tonsillitis. Overwhelmed by bacteria or viruses, they swell and become inflamed, a condition known as tonsillitis.
Tonsillitis most commonly affects children between the ages of 3 and 15, when tonsils may play their most active infection-fighting role. As the child grows and the tonsils shrink, infections become less common.

Causes

Most episodes of acute Tonsillitis are caused by viruses such as

•   Herpes Simplex virus
•   Epstein-Barr virus
•   Cytomegalovirus
•   Adenovirus

The second most common cause is bacterial infection of which the predominant is Group A β-hemolytic streptococcus (GABHS), which causes strep throat.

Symptoms:

•   sore throat
•   red, swollen tonsils
•   pain when swallowing
•   high temperature (fever)
•   headache
•   tiredness
•   chills
•   a general sense of feeling unwell (malaise)
•   white pus-filled spots on the tonsils
•   swollen lymph nodes (glands) in the neck
•   pain in the ears or neck

Treatment
In homeopathy there are extremely good and fast acting medicines which can give miraculous results in tonsillitis .
Right medicine is selected as per the sign and symptoms of the respective patient and this constitunal medicine not only reduces the intensity of the symptoms but also cut short the frequency of the tonsillitis.
There are lots of acute and short acting medicines which provide immediate relief in extreme pain, swelling ,fever.

What are adenoids ?

The adenoids are a mass of lymph tissue behind the nasal cavity. Like lymph nodes, adenoids are part of the immune system .

you can see tonsils with open mouth. But you cannot see adenoids.as they hang at the back of the nasal cavity.

Adenoids form an important part of the defense mechanism in children. They perform a key role in fighting infections. But they become less important once a child gets older and the body develops other ways to fight germs. Adenoids shrink naturally once a child reaches 5 years of age and tend to disappear altogether by the time the child becomes a teenager.

Symptoms:

Since adenoids are constantly in the path of germs (micro-organisms), infections are common. Infected adenoids swell, which can reduce the airflow through the nose.

Symptoms of infected adenoids include:

• Mouth breathing
• snoring
• talking with a ‘blocked nose’ sound
• stuffy nose
• sleep apnea
• the inability to pronounce certain consonants, including ‘m’ and ‘n’
• elongated face
• elevated nostrils

Treatment:

Homeopathy has got wonderful medicines for enlarged adenoids.

These medicines are based on patients current symptoms which not only helps in prevention of relapse of the disease condition but also helps in preventing the surgery [adenoidectomy].

Homeopathy Treatment and Homeopathic Medicine for low or poor immune system in children:

What is Poor or low immune system in children:

Immunity is an inbuilt system in human body comprising of different cells and organs, which is specially developed for fighting off the infections. We often see that the mothers are concerned about their children’s repeated cough and cold, fever and other infections. Most importantly these children are more susceptible than the other children. They are more prone to catch cold than the others. They often develop repeated tonsillitis, laryngitis, bad throat, flu-like symptoms, fever, headache, body pain or oral ulcers. Due to these often the parents have to keep their children under the anti-biotic, which in longer run, destroys the natural immunity of the child, – thus there is a vicious-cycle of diseases starts. Apart from that the anti-biotic is having its side effects. In some cases, due to continuous intake of strong medications, children develop lack of appetite, constipation alternating with diarrhea, stomach ache , oral ulcers and the mothers are complaining that their children is not eating at all.

Causes of Poor or low immune system in children:-

Congenital Poor immunity: It has been seen that most of the children suffer from poor immune system have it from the birth itself. The children who are having low birth weight usually have this kind of poor immunity problem since the childhood.

Poor immunity due to malnutrition: Deficiency in certain vitamins and minerals can lead to decreased immune system function. Vitamins A, E and C, along with zinc, copper, iron and selenium are the few essential micro-nutrients required for the proper immune system.

Poor immunity due to repeated diseases: The children who basically suffer from repeated cough and cold or flu-like disorders, develop the poor immunity because of long exposure to the antibiotics and the other medication.

Other factors causing low immunity: Psychological stress, separation of the parents, sibling rivalry, and exposure to extreme environmental condition are the few cases where we find the development of low immunity.

Symptoms of Poor or low immune system in children:
The children who are having poor immune system or functions may develop the following sign and symptoms-

1. Catch cough and cold more frequently than the others, at least 2 times in a year.
2. Get affected by the common flu more often than the children of the same age group.
3. They might suffer from chronic infections, – like,- otorrhea (chronic ear infection), atopic dermatitis (eczema), chronic bronchitis etc.
4. Their lymph glands (especially under the arm pit and neck) are swollen all the time.
5. The child with poor immunity may have some issues with the proper body growth.

Complications of Poor or low immune system in children:

The most important complication could be found out in the children with poor immunity is repeated bouts of disorders.

How to improve your child’s immune system?

Immunity or immune system is an inbuilt system in human body comprising of different cells and organs, which is specially developed for fighting off the infections. Basically in children the immune system is the protecting mechanism for the kids towards viruses, bacteria, fungus, and parasites. After birth, the every child is totally exposed towards all these pathogens. A strong immune system provides a child with powerful protection against different diseases and a child with a weakened immune system is vulnerable to colds, flu, and more serious illnesses.

Breastfeeding, nutrition & nutritional supplements, non-toxic environments, avoidance of unnecessary anti-biotic and medicines, full care, attention, love are very much required for proper development of the child and improving the immunity.