Health & Safety

As a parent, it’s important to encourage healthy brain development in your child from infancy onward, and to take steps to keep your own brain and body sharp. Part of the benefit is that doing so can help guard against Alzheimer’s Disease and other dementia.

November is National Alzheimer’s Disease Awareness Month. More than five million people in the United States have Alzheimer’s or another of the great many kinds of dementia, and two-thirds of them are women.

According to the Alzheimer’s Association, a woman’s “estimated lifetime risk of developing Alzheimer’s at age 65 is 1 in 6, compared with nearly 1 in 11 for a man. It’s as real a concern as breast cancer is to women’s health, the association notes, point out that women in their 60s are about twice as likely to develop Alzheimer’s during the rest of their lives as they are to develop breast cancer.”

Although we often associate the risk of getting Alzheimer’s with getting older, maintaining a healthy brain should be a lifelong pursuit. By instilling the need for and making good choices, we not only support our own brain growth but also instill in our children some habits that can last a lifetime.

Here are some brain-boosting activities for you and your child that you can start doing today:

When a woman discovers she is going to be a mother, excitement, joy and curiosity are just a few of the many emotions she might feel. Among the many questions she will wonder about, a few of her primary concerns are proper nutrition, how to prepare for a newborn, and medical next steps.

Below you will find a few tips to help answer some of these important questions so that she might feel peaceful and prepared during her 40-week journey to motherhood.

Halloween can mean costumes, candy, parties and scary movies, but it also can be a tricky time to be a parent. Nightmares sparked by scary movies and costumes can leave your child with dreams that are less than sweet.

Football games, colder temperatures and the start of the holiday season are all exciting parts of Fall. In addition, Fall also marks the start of the flu season. Are you prepared?

Historically, outbreaks of influenza can begin as early as October and peak flu activity occurs during February according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). To help safeguard your family against this viral disease, and so that they can fully enjoy the activities that these fun months have to offer, take the following preventive measures to reduce your chances of catching the flu:

Toddlers can be so much fun. Spontaneous hugs, easy laughter and endless energy are some of the best parts of this stage in your child’s development. In addition to all of the sweet ways that your toddler already connects with you, he or she may exhibit common baby behavior, such as biting. If this occurs, do not worry; simply use these moments as opportunities to teach boundaries and effective communication to your little one. Explain to your child how to share his or her feelings, and to leave the biting for food.