Welcome to wait list country. That sounds like some bad pick-up truck ad. But it’s true; Seattle is known for mountains, water, coffee, grunge, rain, evergreens, and the Space Needle. And then as it turns out, wait lists. I know what it feels like being stuck on a list. Hip deep stuck. Somewhere between the Andersons and the Steins just above the Grahams on page 6. Buried with no chance for arrival or survival. The wait list: are you on […]

I had a great weekend. Nothing truly spectacular happened. I, for the most part, tucked the blog away in my top drawer. I wasn’t on call and didn’t connect into my clinic computer. I tried to be really present with all 3 boys in my house. I played with my kids. We did the typical things that dress up weekends for normal people: errands, a grocery store trip, naps, dinner, test drove a car, met friends and their kids for […]

F woke up with a wet bed. First time since the amazing transformation this past month where he decided to wear underwear. It felt like a miracle. New Year’s hopes and dreams come true. Wait until you hear how it happened. I just couldn’t bring myself to write about toilet training until now. Didn’t want to jinx it. Now with the wet bed this morning, I’m safe. Can’t blame the blog for any future wetting-messiness. You’re off the hook, SeattleMamaDoc. […]

Tell me, shall I re-use this little valentine? Part of my efforts to reduce, re-use, & recycle? See, I’ve got these little boys now… I make the husband a valentine each year. The valentines of the past few years have been less beautiful and less wondrous than the first few, some decade ago. The distractions of the-making-of-a-pediatrician (residency) and the-making-of-a-family (two boys) have influenced this.The valentine here was painted on a park bench halfway between the hospital and my afternoon […]

We were in to see the pediatrician last month for F’s 3 year check up and back again last week for some booster shots for O. During both visits, the medical assistant asked me when the boys had received their H1N1 shots. She wanted to update the clinic’s record. I told her the 31st of October. She came back into the room puzzled,“The State of WA has them recorded on 10/24/10.” Well, yes, she and the State of Washington were […]

Flashback: fall of 2006 standing with my partner, Dr Jeff Bissey at The Everett Clinic. In some strange third trimester hormone cloud (or pregnancy delusion), I consented to a photo shoot when our new clinic was just opening. Rotund & posing at the new computer in exam room 12. After the Cindy Brady photo amalgam, I feel I’ve got little to hide. This photo is a fine example of all the things you can hide under a white coat. Even little boys! For […]

I was never a very good reader when I was little. I really didn’t enjoy it like everyone else. As a child, I simply preferred to talk. My brother would sit for hours quietly reading while I’d work on making a lot of noise. Apparently, I have always felt I had a lot to say. Many people have noticed this; my 7th grade pre-algebra teacher nicknamed me, “Mouth.” And in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area in Northern Minnesota circa 1979, […]

So you know that thing you do when you’re desperate for your kid to sleep? That thing where you take your child to the park, run them into the ground, and force them to stay up a bit later than usual? Then when nearing complete destruction or implosion, you keep the windows down in the car and the music blaring so they won’t fall asleep on the way home? All this in the hopes that when you are home, they […]

When I was in high school and dreamed about my future children, I think I thought I wanted them to be popular and athletic, strong-willed and friendly. Maybe live in a big house. When in college, I wanted them just to be smart and go to a great school. In medical school, simply healthy. Now that I’m a parent, I maintain only one consistent and overriding dream (besides the healthy part, that remains): I want my boys to grow up […]

On the way to work this morning I turned the stereo up. Way up past the kid level and into decibel stratosphere. I was stressed; I’d been up past midnight working, up early with the boys this morning, and digesting some bad news in my extended family while worrying about the results of my friend’s CT. I worked a few hours at home before I got out the door to clinic. When I left home, F and O were waving […]

I’m gonna be honest, making a disaster kit completely stressed me out. I hope my experience will make it better for you. I’m no expert at this but have learned a lot along the way. And there is no question, I feel so much better with my family prepared and my preparedness tidied. As The Economist said last week when discussing Iceland’s volcano, “Disasters are about people and planning, not nature’s pomp.” Prepare. I believe in the 3 tiered approach […]

I’m going to share little morsels I read. This is morsel #1. I read this article while on vacation a week ago. I loved it. Only the abstract is available online today but if you feel you can pick up a New Yorker, do. If the full article becomes available online, I’ll redirect the link. Although it doesn’t relate to pediatric health, it relates to telling stories. Which is what I do here. Read Peter Hessler’s “Go West,” if you […]

Here’s The Husband. There is no ghost-writing, I promise. I’ve kept my hands tied behind my back for the past few days. The Husband is a pediatric radiologist. He works at Children’s. He’s passionate about reducing the amount of radiation a child receives when they have any imaging. In the medical world, “imaging” includes x-rays, CT scans (“cat” scans), bone scans, MRI studies, ultrasound, and procedures like “swallow studies” and VCUGs. He’s real smart and has taught me why to […]

I already got my Mother’s Day gift. It came in two parts this week. And it only cost $25. It started on Wednesday. I had an over-scheduled day of meetings, my mom’s chemotherapy, a luncheon (that I ended up not making it to), blog stuff, patient calls, an interview for local PBS. I moved at a high rate of speed. All the things I did were utterly disparate. There were real highs and some real lows. Roller coaster stomach drops […]

Reciprocity. It happens in clinic sometimes, genuinely and lovingly. Someone says something in a way that gives me far more than I can dish out in a 20 minute clinic visit. It’s things like this, on top of genuinely getting to know my patients and their families, that keep me going back in each week. To steal a phrase from a friend, I’m really “happy to help & thrilled to be here.” Really and truly. I’m not a PollyAnna; there […]

I know all you gunner-brown-nosers out there are looking for the extra credit question. I never believed in those. Although I will tell you that on my final exam while teaching 9th grade math and science in 1997, I asked this one extra credit question–the only question guaranteed to raise their grade: “What was the huge message that was spelled out on the bulletin board in the back of the classroom?” Mind you, the sentence had been hanging up the […]

Pop Quiz time up. If you haven’t taken the quiz, scroll back two blog posts. If you have, check your work below. To be clear, dosing for children isn’t about memorizing conversions. Don’t feel bad if you didn’t know these. Rather, getting your kids the proper meds requires being given or searching out, the proper tools for the prescription that is written. When you lose the cap to the bottle, or the syringe, or the dropper that comes with the […]

A study published in Pediatrics today confirms a slightly elevated risk in febrile seizures in children who receive the combo MMRV (Measles-Mumps-Rubella-Varicella) shot between 1 and 2 years of age. If it were my child, I would NOT get the combo MMRV shot, even if the elevated risk of seizure is extremely low. The American Academy of Pediatrics will likely recommend the same. None of us ever want our child to be put at increased risk. Or to be part […]

When I first watched this video, the computer volume was off (I didn’t know it) and I thought this was a silent video. I loved the stillness of the quiet mixed with the emotion of the ad. I cried (yes, I’m the kind of person who always does) one of those quiet cries, the kind where you’d never know I was crying unless you were looking straight into my eyes. Tears just dripped silently. Instead of being impregnated with fear, […]

I keep saying less is more. So often, with children, the less we do, the better. Pediatricians often pride themselves on being smart enough to know when to do…..nothing. Take pink eye, for example. You know, the gnarly ooey-gooey, eyes-sealed-shut-yellow-crusty-“sleep”- in-the-eye that never goes away? The highly contagious infection where your child looks uber-crummy and straight-up, infectious? When it happens, you create a self-imposed lock-down-blinds-drawn-cancel-all-plans-covert-stay-home and watch a movie to hole-up the contagion. You or your child may want to […]

Two teenagers died in New York yesterday. Not from a gun shot, a car crash, or suicides. Rather, they drowned in a popular swimming hole in the Bronx river on a hot summer day. I hate stories like that. Hate hearing it, hate seeing the headline. A total failure for prevention efforts. I talk about drowning in clinic every day I see patients. I should probably talk about it more often. As I said in my earlier post outlining the […]

Every single day in clinic a parent asks me, “Do I need to give my child a multivitamin? The short answer: No. The long answer is, of course, more complicated and evolving. There is no research that finds young children, even the “pickiest” eaters out there, need a daily supplemental multivitamin. But there’s one sneaky little exception: Vitamin D. Over the past 5-10 years there is mounting evidence demonstrating that the majority of children in the US have low vitamin […]

I’ve been caught in a recurring cloud this week even though the sky has been essentially spotless. It’s been one of those weeks where I find myself spinning around to grab the cup of milk or the steering wheel, muttering, “What am I doing?” I am back perseverating on how to do this right. Life, I mean. The issue of balance between work and parenting while trying to contribute to the world and use my skills (read: loaded issue) bubbles […]

When becoming a parent, we make a big choice. One enormous decision. Hello, understatement of the century. I remember my father-in-law saying, “There’s a freight train coming,” just before F was born. Yes, thunderous and steamy, I was ushered into a new world December of 2006, when my first freight train hit. And although I now may be billowing steam and coal, motherhood is the most astounding segment of my life thus far. This weekend I read a blog post […]

A friend called yesterday and asked if I thought her daughter had bed bugs. Her toddler had woken up with welts over her face, chest, back and trunk. She was itchy. Her mom was worried about bed bugs. I tried to reassure her, telling her what I knew about bed bugs &  how young children react to insect bites (not just bed bugs), I asked: Does the bed have copper colored stains on it? Is the mattress new or borrowed? […]

Life is a blur this week. But something stopped me in my tracks. A study published in Pediatrics on Monday found that 65% of parents to 3 year-olds said they had spanked their child within the last month. Sixty five percent? The number surprised me. If you’d asked me to guess, I would have said 20-25%. Talk about way off. Another reminder of how much I have to learn. The study evaluated risk factors, including domestic violence and intimate partner […]

Research in The American Journal of Public Health last month found that children who had a dog at home were more active compared with dogless ones (my word, not the researchers). Although dogless kids may ultimately be safer (no bites, no Salmonella-tainted food, no getting pulled across the street) they may also be more likely to be overweight. Having a dogless home is not a new risk factor for obesity, but this study may offer some insight into childrens’ lives. […]

This year, The AAP issued a statement urging pediatric hospitals and clinics to require mandatory immunization against influenza for all health care workers. They stated it’s “ethically justified, necessary, and long overdue.” The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) began recommending influenza immunization (flu shots/mist) for health care workers back in the early 1980s. Even after 3 decades of the recommendation, overall immunization rates for health workers remain around only 40%. Evidence suggests a clinic or hospital unit needs an […]

I’m smoooooshed today. Underwater. Submerged. Trapped under my orange scarf (see image). Just back from two consecutive conferences and readying to speak at another. And, drumroll……the in-laws show up in 2 days. I’m in that state of near-paralysis-parenting where there is so much to do I feel incapable of completing any of it. Every parent, working or not, has been here. Right? Here’s to hoping I’m not alone… I nodded my head about 12 million times over the last week […]

I hate infant sleep positioners. They are not safe or helpful. If you have one or know a family/friend who uses one for their infant, throw it out. Trash compact it. Stomp on it. Cut it up in bits. This is one rare thing you should feel good about putting in landfill. When I was first started in practice, I didn’t even know sleep positioners existed; I was shocked at how many parents told me they were using them. We […]

This month, the AAP published a clinical report representing the committee on nutrition, urging pediatricians and parents to work together to improve rates of iron deficiency in this country. The reason: iron deficiency is one of the more common problems among children but it frequently goes undetected. We can’t see it, smell it, or detect it easily on exam or with one simple blood study. Oddly enough, it’s complicated to determine an infant/child’s iron status. New research finds that deficiency […]

O lost his front tooth this weekend. This was not one of those tooth fairy glory moments. No wiggling the tooth in the bathroom. No anticipation. No stuffing of dollar bills under the pillow. O is 23 months old, so losing a tooth right now is not only precocious, it’s 5 years premature. Every time I think of it, I get a pit in my stomach. Maybe it’s my memory of the scream (mid-tooth-flying) or the fact that I was […]

So we don’t have our nanny today. This was intentional, a way to carve out some time with my boys. Our nanny hasn’t had a week day off in months and months. All well and good except I needed to finish a blog post and a letter I’m writing for an advocacy effort. F is at school. O went to music this morning with Grandma. And nap time (now) was supposed to be used for writing. Oh how I expect […]

Getting shots, or the pain and fear associated with them, is one frustrating association children have with seeing their doctor. There are some ways to make this better. Diminishing shot anxiety is a huge goal for parents and pediatricians. If expectations are clear, everyone can leave a visit after shots feeling more successful. Prepare: Do your best to prepare yourself for a visit where there will be shots. Bring your husband/wife/partner, friend, or relative with you for support. If you […]

Loved a study published today in Pediatrics. Researchers sought to determine if mothers who breastfed slept less than those who formula fed their babies. I hear lots of talk (at birthday parties to office visits) about how formula or rice cereal creates better infant sleepers. So far, science doesn’t back up these claims. But as every new mom (and dad) knows, sleep is the major commodity during your infant’s first 6-12 months. We really want our babies to sleep through […]

It’s crazy when people talk about themselves in the third person. Also crazy, when virtual projects take on lives of their own. Personification- isn’t that the term? You and me blog, we’ve been inseparable this past year. A proud mama, I am. Drained and exhausted, yup, that too. But to you, today, I say the most sincere, Happy Birthday. Today marks 1 year for Seattle Mama Doc. It’s been wild– something akin to piloting a plane, taming a wild dog, […]

Last Friday I was in line for a coffee and met a newborn baby. Her father asked me if “I believed in vaccines.” I answered him (hint: I do). But then I got to thinking…how could I have done it better? I wrote some friends…

Over the counter (OTC) cough and cold medications do very little for cough in infants and young children. There is a pile of research that supports this. Parents often agree after they try these tinctures. Because of the lack of effectiveness and concern for side effects (or worse: over-dose), makers of OTC cough and cold medications voluntarily took them off the market in 2007. This was an incredible step in protecting children. In getting rid of unnecessary (and ineffective) medication […]

Be safe today. With travel defining many of our days, this is a day I think about safety every year. Now more than ever because of my kids. Motor vehicle injuries are the leading cause of death for children in the United States. The CDC statistics on child passenger safety state that child safety seats reduce the risk of death in passenger cars by 71% for infants and 54% of toddlers age 1 to  4 year of age. Car and […]

I wrote 33 pediatricians an e-mail asking what they would say, while in line for coffee, to the parent of a newborn when asked if they “believed in vaccines.”  I wrote the e-mail not as a gimmick or a way to frame the issue of vaccine hesitancy, but because this happened to me. Rather, this happens to me. Often. When a new father asked me this question while carrying his newborn baby 2 weeks ago, I told him what I […]

I’m not trying to ruin your holidays (or your appetite). I really couldn’t and wouldn’t make this stuff up. But yes, we have had a lice infestation for the holidays. Last Thursday we flew to California to be with family for Christmas. Before that, I was in the midst of typical holiday madness, but I also felt this year, in particular, I’d managed not to get stressed. While in clinic on Wednesday, I made a conscious decision that I wasn’t […]

We arrived home late in the day Monday from Central America (hence the near silence around here). My family traveled to Costa Rica where we visited my father, old friends, my family’s ecolodge, and had some real honest-to-goodness time together. I remained essentially unplugged for the 10 days (except for a few brief moments online). Wondrous. Life really feels different without an iPhone in my pocket and a diaper in my purse while on the way to preschool. I didn’t […]

Obama said, “Our hearts have reason for fullness,” this week in Tucson. Yes, they do. Hope and love are always here. And although this sense of fullness can be buried or obscured by our sadness, each day offers a new chance at finding lightness. Understanding, insight, forgiveness, and love, too. Recently I returned to an incredible article I read during the summer of 2009, What Makes Us Happy, in the Atlantic Monthly. The article highlights the work of Dr. George […]

Yesterday, results of a survey on beliefs about vaccines circulated on the internet. The survey conducted last week, asked over 2000 adults if they believed vaccines, or the MMR shot, caused autism. I’m not an expert on surveys and I don’t know how reproducible these results are to all parents in the US. But the news caught my eye (along with many others) when they reported: “Just a slim majority of Americans — 52 percent — think vaccines don’t cause […]

Bill Gates recently said, “Not everyone can go into the field or donate. But every one of us can be an advocate for people whose voices are not heard.” Ditto to what he said. Watch Gates’s annual letter (below). This modality for telling stories is delicious and the message here is simple yet full of heart. However, like most things in life, it is not without controversy or a difference of opinion. As reported today in The New York Times, […]

This week, Pediatrics published their yearly update to the recommended immunization schedule. Each year, the immunization schedule is reviewed, and when necessary, guidelines are changed to improve protection for children. Changes stem from new studies that provide insight into immunization spacing, infectious disease experts’ analysis of data from new trends in infection, or epidemics, like that from H1N1 or Whooping Cough. All of this data changes our understanding of how and who we need to protect as time unfolds. Some […]

Dr Ari Brown, a pediatrician and author (books in photo), was on Dr Oz yesterday. She was asked to join a discussion about autism. Dr Brown is a board-certified developmental pediatrician, a mom to two, and an advocate for science. She is passionate and clear about what she believes. She is speaking all over the country about how to protect children from illness, particularly when making decisions about vaccines. She contributed ideas in my series in late 2010 entitled, “Do […]

Last week news of a study evaluating the timing of solid food introduction for infants emerged. It got a ton of press because the study evaluated the timing of solids on the likelihood of obesity at 3 years of age. Researchers divided babies into 2 groups, those that received partial or full breast milk until 4 months, and those that were weaned from breast milk and received formula exclusively before 4 months of age. Researchers then determined when babies were […]

This post is an amalgam. Not the kind that fits in your back molar, but the kind that exists in my head. I’m trusting you have this type of overlapping-quilt-like-consuming-idea-thread that resides in your head at times and ultimately becomes thematic. How one event in life opens a new window into others and then suddenly there is sense and commonality in different spaces and experiences. You know what I mean? Evolving wisdom or simply experience, I don’t know. But I […]

I was up until nearly 1:30am today watching the Tsunami in Japan live online. Terrible for the psyche and hard on the heart, I simply couldn’t stop watching it unfold. It’s utterly terrifying to imagine the devastation and separation that catastrophic events like this cause for people. In the face of this terrible news, there is much we can do as parents. In addition to donating to relief organizations, we can prepare our families. We have incredible strength and insight […]

**The American Academy of Pediatrics has updated their recommendations since this blog published in 2011. Children should ride in rear-facing car seats until they reach the height or weight limit provided by the car seat manufacturer. This is likely well past age 2. To view the new guidelines and data, click here.** Did you hear the news? The AAP has made it official. 2 is now officially the new 1. Last year I wrote a blog post entitled “2 is […]

Is it on that ever-present, ever-too-long to-do list of life? Can you bring it up in the queue? This week I did a segment (above) where I showed my actual emergency kit and talked about ways to start making your plan. But really, this isn’t just about the kit. It’s about preparing your family for unexpected events. Fortunately, terrible-nesses like Katrina, the Japan Tsunami, large earthquakes, volcanoes erupting, and tornadoes are rare. But prepping your family for unexpected large events […]

Tomorrow I have the privilege to give opening remarks and introduce Alison Singer. Ms Singer is the founder and president of the Autism Science Foundation. She’ll speak about advances in autism research in honor of National Infant Immunization Week. Ms Singer has a daughter with autism as well as a brother with autism and has worked for both Austism Speaks and with the Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee to provide leadership on strategic goals for autism research at the national level. […]

My take on Pull Ups: get out of them as soon as possible! Easier said than done, of course. Bed wetting is a common challenge for children (and their families). If your child is wetting the bed you certainly know that may be the understatement of the week. You’re not alone in your struggle to help your child stay dry at night, even if it feels that way at times. Know this, I talk about bed wetting every single week […]

                Happy Mother’s Day. If anything, holidays like today place a stamp on this day amidst the irrevocable march of time. Photos, cards, gifts, mentions, and memories..a moment or day where we reflect, compare, and remember with those from the past. Last year on Mother’s Day it was sunny, my family had a picnic on a hill with fried chicken, and neither of my children were old enough/able to make a homemade card. […]

A recently published study proposed and evaluated a new autism screening checklist for the 1-year well baby check-up. I had a hard time getting my hands on the study (crazy but true–even pediatricians sometimes are boxed out of research studies), but read lots about it first in the press. I was excited about the potential for early screening. The checklist, designed to be administered by a pediatrician, intends to improve early detection and diagnosis of autism. The goal: to enable […]

My phone wasn’t working well today so I stood in line at the “genius” bar this afternoon to resolve the problem. To be clear, that was 2 1/2 hours ago and I’m home with the promise from a very nice genius that it would be activated by the time I reached my home. It didn’t happen and I’m phoneless (a new thing for me) so it’s quiet around here. In lieu of being able to communicate by phone, I’ll share […]

While I was at my 15-year college reunion this weekend, I found myself repeatedly describing my boys to old friends and peers who had never met them. I told variant stories, but ultimately spent time on their differences. The contrast helps illuminate their truths. Eventually, it became clear that the easiest way was this: The boys are entirely different but made of the same things. Yet, F is really going to need O to drag him into the ocean to […]

Being a primary care doctor is an utter privilege. Think of this post as part proclamation and part journal entry. Yesterday afternoon I sent out this tweet: It was a spontaneous tweet in the middle of my 15 minute “lunch break” when I realized I still had hours to go in my clinical day. The motive was incredulity, not remorse or a need for pity. I was in a good spot–my frame of mind and perspective sharpened twice this week. […]

Consider this an intermission. A moment where I have no wisdom to share, no knowledge or research I’m compelled to report, and no breaking news I feel I have to detail. This is a day where those words don’t come easily for me and thus I’ll give you a brief intermission. The reason? I’ve heard terrible news today about children going missing, children who have been hurt and children who have been killed. It’s left me a bit breathless. I’ve […]

Here’s why to avoid sunscreen for babies under 6 months (when you can) and ways to protect babies from the sun. For more on protecting your baby and children from the sun read: New Insights on Infant and Toddler Skin (A 2011 Pediatrics article) AAP’s Sun Safety page Protecting Children in the Sun: Sunscreen basics (ingredient information, tips on getting sunscreen on, and an explanation about UVA/UVB)

Here’s a window into the time I had while away from the blog this past month. I’m so thankful I took this break and spent so much time with my boys when outside of clinic. Unplugging has turned into the ultimate luxury…

Back to school is an exciting, albeit stressful time. If your kids are school age, have your kids take the Stress-o-Meter quiz. I’d even suggest you have them take it today and then take it again in a few weeks to compare. The beauty of the test is that not only does the stress-o-meter measure stress symptoms, it incorporates and gives credit for stress-relieving activities. Like I said in the video, the most important thing you may do around the start of school […]

I wonder, can we prioritize sleep? I mean this sincerely. Can we really value it? Sleep is one of the essential parts of being human yet unlike some of the other essential things (think food, exercise, oxygen, or shelter) no one seems to give us credit when we sleep. Come about age 11, kids start to be praised for their achievements more than their skills in self-preservation. Like most busy moms, I speak from an experienced place–I’m up early today after going […]

I found my sons’ first birthdays very emotional. Magical, even. Looking back provided great perspective on how much can happen in 1 year of time. What our children accomplish in the first 12 months is simply astonishing. Expected milestones at 1 year of age: AAP’s comprehensive summary of 12 Month Milestones CDC’s Important Milestones By The End of 1 Year (English & Spanish)

After a great day in clinic yesterday, I was up until nearly 2am this morning tidying my email inbox, meeting some deadlines, and readying for a talk tonight on work and life and finding balance. The timing of this talk bleeds irony, I know. I also acknowledge I’ve already used up my one night allowance of sleeplessness this week– if you’re keeping score (see my most recent blog post). Tonight, I’m presenting on behalf of PEPS about finding balance in our […]

Our kids teach us a lot about life. Doesn’t matter if they’re in-utero, a newborn, a toddler, or a teen. An obvious statement of course, but not only do our children teach us about their journey, they teach us about our own. Today it happened again, O taught me something. He reminded me about self. He reminded me about our need to be who we say we are and our need to perform at our best. When we don’t, it […]

Why To Get A Flu Shot (Cliff Notes): Influenza causes more hospitalizations than any other vaccine-preventable illness. It’s not just kids at risk for complications (asthmatics, diabetics, children with complex heart disease or immune problems) that die from the flu. Nearly 1/2 the children who died in this last year in the US were well, healthy children. PREVENT influenza, get a flu shot for all the members of your family. Although the flu vaccine dose is the same as last year, it’s […]

I see this as a glass half-full, glass half-empty issue. Yesterday, a study was published in Pediatrics detailing research conducted in May of 2010 about parents’ preferences to use alternative vaccination schedules versus following the recommended CDC vaccination schedule. The majority of the media coverage focused on the finding that over 10% of parents followed a schedule other than the one recommended by the CDC. Not perfect and not ideal from a public health stand point. Yet, of course, the other […]

Nosebleeds are a common frustration during childhood. Although finger-nose-picking is a common cause, other climate changes (dry), medication use (nasal sprays), and other medical problems (rarely) can be the cause. The best advice? Don’t panic. And do your best to help prevent nosebleeds: stop the picking (GOOD LUCK), use humidifiers in children’s rooms, nasal saline spray, or Vaseline. And, keep a towel handy. One of the best ways to calm down when the blood is gushing is to sop it […]

Tdap is a shot necessary for all adults and children starting at age 11 that protects against infections caused by Tetanus, Diptheria, and Pertussis (Whooping Cough). Because of increasing reports of Whooping Cough and increased infant deaths in the last 2 years, we are working hard to protect infants, children, adolescents and adults from Whooping Cough (caused by Pertussis). Most importantly we want to protect our newborn babies from being exposed or contracting whooping cough. Whooping cough is most dangerous […]

I was in a cab yesterday afternoon. I’m at another conference this week and as I made my way to San Diego, I had to count on many people to keep me safe. From the pilot to the air traffic controller to the cab driver. We do this all of the time, of course–step into a moving vehicle, sit down, inform another person where we’d like to go and then just trust. Trust that they know how to drive, that […]

Earlier this year, the FDA recommended the discontinuation of infant acetaminophen drops. The goal was to minimize confusion by only making acetaminophen (aka Tylenol) in one universal liquid strength for both babies and older children. However, because the FDA provided a recommendation and not a mandate, there are currently two different liquid acetaminophen preparations on the shelves marketed for babies. And another liquid marketed for older children. Ultimately, it may be more confusing than ever. Thank goodness I just got […]

Late last week, The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) published a 43 page expert panel report addressing ways to reduce risk from cardiovascular (heart) disease beginning with interventions in childhood. The panel report is based on a huge review of current medical evidence, yet the press focused mostly on 1 sentence from the thick report: All children should be screened for high cholesterol (via a blood test) at age 9-11 years and then again between 17 -21 years of age. […]

Earlier this week I wrote a post about raising heart healthy children. The data summarized in that post may be the most important data I discuss all year when you consider that heart disease kills more of us than anything else. Thing is, I’m not surprised many of you haven’t read it. I expected it. It’s just so flipping hard to read, or have any interest, or take advice about health when the advice or data requires us to make […]

Establishing traditions can be an incredible way to connect, mark time, and affirm a sense of well being in your family. You can establish any tradition you want–one of the rare perks of being a grown-up. Even if family circumstances change (a divorce or separation, a death in the family, a move to a new city) you can adapt, addend, and alter your traditions. Your kids can help you sort out new rules as necessary. Those traditions really may establish a […]

Happy and thankful. The holiday served up a great reminder. Time offline, outside, and away from work is absolutely priceless. We should use all of our vacation time. We should fight fiercely to protect it. Thanksgiving reminded me that I am just so happy and thankful. For the holiday, we traveled to see F & O’s grandparents and the boys had some real deal time with their cousins. We played with a lot of balls (tennis, basket, bocce, foot). Little did I know that having […]

With the Penn State tragedy and recent news out of Syracuse this past week, most parents have thought of, and/or worried about sexual abuse more than once this month. The wretched reality is, we will keep getting reminded about sexual abuse in children because it is so common. Thankfully, we can help our children define, get words for, protect against, and support them in their understanding about how to prevent sexual abuse. You can start this today. If you’re worried or […]

Caring for your son’s foreskin is pretty much a hands-off job. But knowing what is normal and how your son’s foreskin develops and changes over time is essential for every parent to a boy with an uncircumcised penis. In the beginning, during infancy, your son’s uncircumcised penis needs no special care. The foreskin is a piece of skin overlying the outside of your son’s penis. You never need to pull the foreskin back or detach it in any way. You […]

I continue to feel privileged to share my thoughts here. Blogging has become a huge and stable part of my life. When I celebrated my 2-year blogging birthday back in November, I realized sharing insight online is a pillar in my job as a physician. I suspect providing insight and expertise will be more and more a part of the job of my peers as time unfolds. And I remain convinced that as long as patients are online, I must be, […]

Scald burns are common injuries for young children that arise when our skin or our mouths and mucus membranes have contact with burning hot liquids or steam. Children under age 5 account for nearly 1 in every 5 burn victims each year in the United States. The bathroom and kitchen are the typical danger zones. Many burns come from liquids heated in the microwave but children are also commonly burned from scalding liquids or water heated on the stove or […]

We spent a fair bit of our time on vacation last week playing two games with the boys: UNO and Spot It. Our son F is wholly competitive; he likes to know all the answers and he likes to win. He really likes to play and giggles when things go his way or when throwing a SKIP or DRAW 4. But he is also beginning to show how much he hates to lose. It turns out he’s rarely wrong about […]

It would be nice–every once and a while–to make time stand still. To catch the blades of a propeller mid flight and have the ability to hover effortlessly. Just for a moment so that we could look over, savor our children…their beauty and all that they are all in one precious moment…all to ourselves. The march of childhood moves quickly. And what a thing to be weightless and into the air without the distraction of aging and the ticking clock […]

If you want to understand more about the effects of television on the brain, you need to watch this TEDx talk by Dr Dimitri Christakis…the science around television and its effect on children and concentration astound me. Not because any of it is counter-intuitive, but because television is as powerful as it is. Television is a [large] part of most children’s lives here in the US and this presentation of fact and observations may change what you do at home. Although […]

Survey results published this week found that the majority of parents report carpooling with their 4 to 8 year-old children. About three-quarters (76%) of those carpooling parents reported that their child used a booster seat when riding in the family car. But when carpooling–the seats were used far less often. For example, the survey found 1 out of 5 parents do not always ask other drivers to use a booster seat for their child. And only half of parents always […]

Stop what you’re doing to read this The New England Journal of Medicine perspective by Dr Doug Diekema. It’s about vaccines, opportunities for health, and physician obligation. Written for physicians, it also speaks loudly to parents and includes a few very essential points. The whole time I read the article, my thoughts kept leaping to our imminent opportunities. Today, in 2012, we can harness the tools of social media and technology to solve many of these problems. It’s time. HPV […]

Pacifiers, a love affair worth having? It’s up to you, of course. Pacifiers are hotly debated among some parents, some pediatricians, some lactation consultants, and some dentists. I say some, as I believe not all clinicians have strong impressions/judgments. That’s because pacifiers don’t cause excessive harm. Yet most parents agree on one thing: they all have an opinion about what to do with one. Some hate them, others adore them. Just like babies. Silicon pacifiers can be all the rage, […]

Every week in clinic families ask me about strategies to help with children who awake before the sun is up. We all thrive with improved, uninterupted, prolonged periods of sleep at night. Particularly on those Saturdays where an extra hour or two of sleep can be life-sustaining for exhausted parents to toddlers and preschoolers. Because of our boys’ early schedules, late last year Santa conveniently dropped off an incredible tool: a toddler teaching clock. The clock has helped our 3 year old […]

As a parent and pediatrician, any mention of sudden cardiac death leaves me feeling uneasy. The stories of young athletes dying or falling on the field are agonizing. All of us here on earth would like to do something to prevent these deaths. Researchers and cardiologists are working tirelessly to understand predictors for sudden cardiac death in children alongside techniques to improve screening and prevention for young athletes. Dr Nicolas Madsen talked with me about recent work here in Washington […]

When I was a medical student and resident physician, those around me taught me how to distrust the pharmaceutical industry and how to distrust the insurance companies. The drug companies just wanted the public to buy their medications (to get rich) and the insurance companies just wanted to block services for my patients (to get rich). The more I learn as a physician, the more I realize how little I know. The great thing about the extensive travel I’ve been […]

  I’ve been mentioning the cinnamon challenge in clinic with my teen patients after I learned about it earlier this month. Read this nice summary. The challenge is to swallow a teaspoon of cinnamon in less time than it takes me to explain what it is (60 seconds). Reality is, my patients tend to know about the challenge, but their parents don’t. I usually talk about it along with a whole list of other topics while their parents are out […]

I think it’s okay to fly with your newborn baby straight away. After 1 week of age the Federal Aviation Association (FAA) says it’s okay, as does the AAP, but always recommends a separate seat for your infant whenever possible. The biggest risk flying with a healthy newborn is exposure to infection. So, like any decision in life, you have to weigh the risks and benefits of a decision. Because we take fever very seriously in babies under 3 months […]

This week, Washington State declared that whooping cough (pertussis) has reached epidemic levels. Since the beginning of the year, we’ve had more than 600 documented cases in the state, a dramatic increase since last year. The increase puts our new babies at risk. In clinic I’ve been urging new parents to cocoon their babies. That is, provide a family of protection by having every single child & adult immunized against whooping cough, influenza, and other vaccine preventable illnesses. By surrounding a […]

Flying with toddlers is far more difficult than flying with an infant in my opinion. It’s the need to get up, run the aisles, move around, have another snack, read a different book, take an abbreviated nap, go pee, and that minute-attention span that makes it not only exhausting but nerve-racking for most of us. Although the challenge is real, success comes with having a good plan, allowing extra time, and packing the right snacks, toys, and books to keep […]

When it comes to autism, we’ve all been rocked by the recent CDC data that found ongoing increases in the number of children diagnosed with autism annually; it’s estimated that 1 in 88 children has autism in the US. The rates are unfortunately higher for boys. The number is unsettling to say the least, particularly as the cause of autism is multifactorial and not entirely understood. Although we know genetics and family history plays a role, we don’t know what […]

I bought some laundry detergent PODS this past month–little pre-measured capsules of laundry detergent you can just throw in the wash. They were on sale and seemingly convenient, an easy alternative to measuring out drippy detergent. It didn’t even cross my mind they could be risky. That kind of (typical) oversight is what leads to potential injuries in our homes. Trouble with these delightfully-colored PODS is that they look like toys and they will dissolve rapidly in liquid or saliva. […]

New research helps clarify ways we can reduce risks for Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) or Sudden Unexplained Death in infancy. A recent Pediatrics study found that the convergence of risks (see diagram below & listen to video) for infants is meaningful–reducing number of risks may reduce SIDS deaths. Avoiding multiple and simultaneous SIDS risks may help– especially for babies who are vulnerable due to family history, genetics, prematurity or prenatal exposures. Further, research published the same month in The American Journal of Public […]

We had a marvelous Father’s Day weekend. On Saturday we started a Dad-coached soccer team with some friends which was surprisingly successful. And then on Sunday, we completed our first-ever family bike ride on the Burke-Gillman trail. Everyone had two wheels of their own, including Grandma. Although O ended up in the ditch at one point after steering off-course, it was an injury-free ride and we proclaimed it a success. I think we all felt really grown up. We gave my […]

New research shows that there is a 6-fold increased risk for drowning when at the pool of a friend or relative.* Something about being at the home of a friend or relative may change the way we supervise our children. In the Florida study, 79% of patients that were seen in an ER for drowning accidents were at a home pool. We also know that young children under age 5 drown more in home swimming pools than anywhere else. Anyone […]

Food allergies have more than doubled in the developed, Western World over the last 50 years and the reasons remain unclear. Yet recent data finds 8% of children in the US with a food allergy with 1/3 of those children at risk for severe or life threatening reactions. A Pediatrics study published today has some sobering news about our ability to protect children from allergic ingestions. When it comes to allergies and deadly reactions 2 things are necessary: Avoidance of known […]

New data around the world has found that early swim lessons (between age 1 and 4) may confer added protection against drowning. Maybe a new rule should be swim lessons before the start of school? Many parents tell me in clinic that they are terrified about their children drowning. If you’re one of those, arm yourself with information: read some of the links (below) and consider signing up for lessons. However, don’t use swim lessons as an excuse to decrease vigilance around […]

I read The Atlantic piece written by Anne-Marie Slaughter entitled Why Women Still Can’t Have It All this past week. Make sure you block off a 1/2 day from work if you want to read it. It takes a good number of minutes to get through and I found myself kind of staring at the wall after I’d finished. Slaughter does a beautiful job spelling out the glaring issues of our time for working women using her intense personal experience […]

It’s almost a relief that it’s summer vacation. For the sake of our children, I mean. The buzz about the horrific, deadening, jaw-dropping news regarding the massacre in Colorado may be slightly less focused at the center of their lives–they’re not congregating in the hall or at recess. Well, maybe. That’s the difference between 1999 and 2012–back when Columbine happened we all watched as television detailed the horrific events of a school shooting and the radio reported on the lockdown […]

We know children are sleeping less now than they did 30 years ago. Research studies are piling up that assimilate the ill effects of our lack of shut-eye. When children don’t get the sleep they need they suffer. And not only in the ways we may expect. Sure, they are grumpy and irritable but research also shows children who create a sleep debt also have a more difficult time completing school work, they don’t score as well on tests, they […]

Sometimes it feels like we’ve got it all in control, a new school, a new schedule, a return back to work obligations. We can set the alarm early, burn the midnight oil, pack the school lunch ahead of time, rise up and meet the challenge. Sometimes it all works and everyone thrives. Sometimes, no. Sometimes it is simply miserable to leave our children behind and trudge off to work. Miserable. It doesn’t mean we don’t care about our jobs or […]

Salt is back in the news. Not surprisingly, salt continues to get a bad name because eating too much salt can put us at risk. This is a bummer for those of us who prefer a salt lick to a popsicle. And it’s especially bad if we developed a salt-eating habit in childhood. An article published today found that increases in salt intake are correlated with the finding of high blood pressure. Not news, exactly. But the article asserted that […]

More than anything else, we want our children protected from harm. Particularly when we hear about sudden cardiac collapse and death in young athletes. The far majority of children who suffer from sudden cardiac events and sudden cardiac death have no symptoms prior so comprehensive cardiac screening can improve protection for all children. 5 Things To Do Before The Sports Physical: Print out the pre-participation sports physical form and medical history form. Bring it to the appointment for your child’s doctor or […]

One of the most important forms I fill out in the office is the allergy action plan. The action plan is a spelled-out, step-by-step instruction form on how to care for a child who has a food allergy in the event of an accidental ingestion. Food allergies can be serious, even life threatening, yet adults are often unprepared to respond with speed and confidence. We know that 16-18% of children with food allergies have an accidental ingestion at school. This past […]

A recent piece in the New York Times highlighted the reality that some cities are ditching required bike helmets to encourage bike riding, even here in the US.  Too much of an inconvenience, I guess. Too much of a hassle and impediment. Public planners all over the world don’t want helmets to get in the way of, ummm, health. And it got me thinking, in places like Europe where cycling is far more mainstream, and where helmet-wearing isn’t, are they […]

When we have children, many of us slip in the self-care department. We may not eat as well, not exercise like we did “pre-baby,” and don’t have time to go and see our own doctors. Simply put, our own care doesn’t come first. Parenthood immediately demotes our status… All fine in some ways. It’s astonishingly wonderful to care so deeply about our children. That devotion still catches me off guard. But we have to keep on top of our preventative […]

Four years ago I took an early discharge from the hospital to go home and vote on election day. My son O had just been born. We were both stable (me after a c-section and he after a brief stay in the NICU).  Things were going well enough that although the medical team suggested I consider staying another night at the hospital, I was determined to get out of there and cast my vote. Fortunately the medical team agreed. I […]

The Switch-Witch is coming to our house tonight. A friend mentioned the concept of Switch Witch to my husband and I was immediately thrilled. A shared solution to the Halloween hangovers. Some genius parent came up with the idea of having a witch arrive at your home during the night to swap out any remaining halloween candy with a small prize. The plan is that we’ll leave the candy by the door tonight and she’s due anytime after bedtime. When […]

Often new parents are nervous about mixing and matching infant formula they offer their babies. They worry if they switch from one formula brand to another, they may cause their baby fussiness, stool changes, upset or worse–that they could put their baby at risk. It’s safe to mix and match infant formulas if you are following standard mixing instructions. Really. Although spitting up or gassiness is usually not due to the protein in formula (cow’s milk versus soy versus hypoallergenic), […]

Stating that unintended pregnancy is a major public health problem, The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) recommended that birth control pills be available over the counter this month. And this past week the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) outlined use for emergency contraception use in teens girls while urging pediatricians to provide information and access to emergency contraception for sexually active teens. All this may seem exceedingly “progressive” until you examine some of the realities. As many as 80% of pregnancies in […]

As Monday approaches and we ready our children for school, I would suspect most of us have a little bit of dread in our hearts. I do. There is unease as we return our children to school. This post covers information for supporting your children but also information on supporting yourself during these upcoming days, too. The past few days have been bewildering. Making sense of the tragedy in Connecticut is a huge challenge, particularly as the details of the shooting simultaneously unfold […]

 It’s been a heart-wrenching 3 days since the news of the shootings unfolded Friday morning. Best antidote to my sorrow was a run in the rain this afternoon. I turned up the music far too loud and headed out for a quick run. I stopped thinking and spinning about the grieving families in Connecticut. I heard the music and felt the cold on my hands. It was a powerful switch. Even though I’ve only seen 15 minutes of news coverage […]

News of a whooping cough death in the Seattle area rang out yesterday. By afternoon, many of my patients in clinic had heard the news. Although the epidemic levels of whooping cough have gradually faded since a peak of cases here in May, the risk is still very real. A newborn baby died from whooping cough on December 13th here in Washington State. Newborn babies are at particularly elevated risk for serious complications from pertussis (whooping cough) infections. Unlike older children and […]

I’ve self-prescribed a year of renewal, intent, intimacy, and reflection for 2013. Although I’m unable to etch those 4 words onto my forearm, I’d really like to keep them at the helm. Resolutions are exceedingly difficult to maintain. The bar is often too high, there’s little trigger to make a desired behavior happen every day, and the resolutions we choose typically demand profound change. I learned much of that from BJ Fogg and because I believe in his model, my 2013 resolution will have […]

This is a guest post from Lara Okoloko, LICSW, a clinical social worker who lives in Seattle area with her husband and two young children. She is co-founder and clinical director of Center for Advanced Recovery Solutions (CARES). CARES provides respectful, solution focused counseling to the parents of addicted young people. More about their services can be found at www.caresnw.com _____________________________________________ Well, it’s been about a month since marijuana became legal in Washington State and we haven’t gone to pot […]

“We don’t benefit from ignorance. We don’t benefit from not knowing the science of this epidemic of violence.” Obama said. “Congress should fund research into the effects violent video games have on young minds.” Only a month after the Newtown, CT tragedy I was pleased to hear the President’s plan today to decrease gun violence and his steadfast effort to improve the safety of our communities by decreasing violence, death, and suffering from firearms.  Delighted to hear that the government […]

This is really beautiful. There’s little to say other than we can do a better job supporting parents in their loss and in the celebration of their children’s life and legacy. Watch this and enjoy the amazing amount of love you will feel… “I want the baby I didn’t have.”  “I feel like a bad luck charm around other moms.” “I couldn’t understand why that happened to me…” “His life was a good thing.”   “People say really sad, crazy […]

I had an unusually good time watching my boys play soccer this past weekend. It’s not always been easy to get our youngest on the field and I’m not the mom who’s really loved being there. There’s been years of standing on the cold sideline where I didn’t think the boys were getting much out of it. And there have been countless minutes on that sideline where I’ve been consumed, weighing the costs and benefits of the soccer class, while […]

I think of energy drinks as the new liquid accessory for many teens. Something to hold onto with nervous hands and something to spend money on when they’re really tired or need a “boost.” Teens report drinking them because of inadequate sleep, a need for energy, and wanting to mix them with alcohol. It’s big business to market energy drinks to those in high school or college and that big business is remarkably successful. More than a 1/3 of teens […]

This is post from my friend, Anne Gantt. I love this concept and am inspired by the idea of parents pumping iron at the park. I’m hoping we can move this conversation forward. Please share ideas from your own neighborhoods in comments. As a stay-at-home mom, I spend a ton of time at our neighborhood park while my 2 ½ and 4 year-old children zip down slides, scramble over the jungle gym, or chase each other in the woodchips. While they’re running […]

First off, I have connected with a few engineers and pilots — I may be wrong on one point here: Commercial airplanes typically ascend/climb faster than they descend for a landing. My apologies. I’m clearly no pilot… That being said, you can help support your baby or child’s potential ear discomfort during flying by having them suck on something like a pacifier, having them breast feed, or offer a bottle during take-off and landing. The motion of their jaw and mouth during sucking […]

Ear infections cause significant and sometimes serious ear pain, overnight awakening, missed school, missed work, and lots of parental heartache. For some children, infections in the ear can be a chronic problem and lead to repeated clinic visits, multiple courses of antibiotics, and rarely a need for tube placement by surgery. For most children, ear infections occur more sporadically,  just bad luck after a cold. Fortunately the majority of children recover from ear infections without any intervention. But about 20-30% […]

Since 2005, teen immunizations have been recommended at the 11 year-old well child check-up but rates of teens who keep up to date on their shots lag. In an ideal community, 90% of us would be up to date on shots to prevent disease spread most effectively.  Back in 2007, teen recommendations were expanded to include HPV vaccine for girls. In 2011, both boys and girls were recommended to get HPV shots. Although the majority of teens get the Tdap […]

Most babies wake up at night. And although some superhero babies sleep 10-12 hours straight starting around 3-4 months of age, most infants wake up during the night and cry out for their parents. There are scientific reasons and some developmental and behavioral explanations for these awakenings. I spoke with my friend Dr Maida Chen, a pediatric pulmonologist, mother to three, and director of the Pediatric Sleep Disorders Center to put a list together regarding why babies do this. Leave questions and […]

Today a Seattle mom advertised on an online parenting community that both of her children had chickenpox and then invited (non-vaccinated) children over for exposure. That’s the invite from 1:19pm today. It turns out people are still having chickenpox parties. Part of this makes my head spin. I just don’t get it, despite having had many families in my practice decline or hesitate or delay the chickenpox shot. I don’t think parents know what virus they are dealing with. After […]

Another tragedy in our country today has us all bracing ourselves. I’m so sorry to hear about this horrific tragedy at the Boston Marathon and so hopeful that the chaos quickly comes to a close and injuries are rapidly treated with compassion. I’m not sharing the news about the bombing with my boys. I’ve been following live coverage quietly on Twitter but we won’t be turning on the television tonight.  My boys are very young and so it’s easier to […]

I met Lowie backstage, about an hour before my own talk earlier this month. I had butterflies in my stomach for all sorts of reasons. I’d read about him prior to arriving and perused the blog he’s written about his daughter’s cancer and his family’s journey during her life and death (you can have Google translate it into English). It was so nice to meet him. I was really looking forward to his talk although a part of me knew […]

Some new advice allows us to do less, not more. Turns out, new research finds that controlling parenting styles may hinder children’s healthy eating habits. New data published in April 2013, finds that not only are controlling, food-related, parenting practices common, they aren’t helping teens maintain a healthy weight. In the Pediatrics study, researchers found that parents often encourage teens of healthy weight to finish all their food, providing pressure to eat. While parents to overweight teens ban some foods […]

There happens to be whole, large parts of adult American life that no one talks about in commencement speeches. It’s the season for commencement speeches. A season I love, I keep a post-it note on my own computer from Steve Jobs’ 2005 Stanford commencement address. The post-it note is faded and bent, worn and tired. But there’s rarely a day I don’t see it. I see it right now… Advice at the moment of transitions in our lives is helpful, […]

The news from Oklahoma today is heart wrenching and terrifying. Often we feel helpless when we’re far away from a disaster. A donation to The Red Cross is a good use of your time. Today, in addition to providing donations and support for those suffering the loss and tragedy in Oklahoma, do something really productive to counter the sense of unease and alarm we all get. Prepare your own family. Buddy up with a friend and get part of this […]

Sun protection is essential in childhood. Here’s 3 golden rules, backed by science, for you to use when purchasing, applying/re-applying sunscreen, and protecting children from the sun. Remember, more important than any ingredient or any particular SPF number or brand is the way you use a sunscreen: the best sunscreen is one used early and often. Sun-protective clothing (those UV shirts, shorts, and hats) is an awesome, affordable, and easy way to protect children from sun without the hassle of […]

The CDC declared an outbreak of Hepatitis A over the weekend that has affected over 30 people in 5 states. Preliminary information confirms the source of the outbreak stems from organic frozen berries that were sold at Costco stores (including stores in Washington) yet sickened people thus far are in Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada, and California. No cases have been reported in Washington to date. The berries: Townsend Farms Organic Anti-Oxidant Blend, a frozen berry and pomegranate seed mix, […]

” Yesterday’s news,” my husband said when I shared a study published, well, yesterday. Yet what we do with yesterday’s information is of course the news today. A JAMA Pediatrics article found that the use of pediatric CT scans rose in the late 1990’s and early 2000’s. Further, research shows that these CT scans can increase risk for future cancer diagnoses. Authors calculated the risk: they estimate that for every 4 million pediatric CT scans preformed annually, some 4800 children […]

Buying the bike helmet isn’t enough, of course. We have to make sure our children actually wear them. We’ve gone through phases at our house (loathing to loving the helmet). The challenge isn’t often buying the helmet, it’s getting that helmet on every time and fitting it properly. I’ve learned the hard way– -after I pinched the skin on O’s chin a few times, I wasn’t even allowed to be the one helping him get it on! Despite my lack […]

Lots of people ask me how my boys get along. I never know quite how to answer. They are pals most of the time, they play and invent and create games and fun together. But they also fight. I suppose I expect it as a mother but I admit that even as a pediatrician, ex school teacher, and younger sister in life, I sometimes don’t know exactly when to intervene and when to leave them alone to resolve disputes unassisted. […]

First day back to work after vacation is brutal. I do my part to weigh costs and benefits with my personal work-life-balance all the time, I chew on my decisions daily. The focus on balance may be a true occupational hazard of being a mommy blogger. When one part of your career centers on writing  parenting and pediatric content while thinking about balance for parents who work outside their home, the task of finding balance and meaning– true contentment of […]

Just a photo. Couldn’t resist sharing this tonight as the moment washed over me and I realized that there’s something about children running in sprinklers that really makes it summertime. Every once and a while we get ridiculously indulgent moments hand-delivered by our children. I was lucky enough tonight…

We live in a profoundly different time today when it comes to caregiving, parenting, and gaining health care/advice than we did even 5 or 10 years ago. The internet has changed things dramatically. During an interview recently a reporter asked, “You were raised on digital media, yes?”  Well, no. I didn’t started using email until late 1995 just prior to leaving college, didn’t get a cell phone until I was teaching, didn’t have a working computer in my apartment until I […]

There is a report of more measles here in Seattle. Measles is a highly contagious and potentially severe infection that causes fever, rash, cough, and red, watery eyes. It is mainly spread through the air after a person with measles coughs or sneezes. King County Public Health released information today detailing new cases and potential places for public exposure to measles infections between July 9th & July 15th. These two new cases are unrelated to the measles case earlier this month in […]

If the world were merely seductive, that would be easy. If it were merely challenging, that would be no problem. But I arise in the morning, torn between a desire to save the world and a desire to savor the world. That makes it hard to plan the day. E.B. White It’s an entirely challenging task getting to live this     just     one     life. E.B. White summarizes the dilemma as well as I can imagine when he describes […]

Grim news out today. E-cigarette use in teens has doubled in a year. The CDC reports that 1 in 10 high school students admitted to ever using an e-cigarette in 2012. The rate of use doubled for middle school students as well. Although I’m not surprised, I remember just weeks ago tweeting about my dismay with Jenny McCarthy’s new job– advertising e-cigarettes. I took flak. Some advocates for e-cigs felt I was shortsighted and not valuing the potential benefits of these […]

Yesterday our 6 year-old asked if I’d snap a photo of this leaf. He suggested that it may in fact be the first orange leaf of fall. His need for the photo alerted me that autumn truly is upon us. Last year I started a few traditions when my oldest started Kindergarten. One was asking the 20 questions below. Although last year we asked these just prior to school start, we finally got around to asking them yesterday. The four […]

The research published about texting and driving never seem to add up to my in-real-life experience. In a typical day driving in Seattle I see countless people with their phones out, many with it wedged at the steering wheel, stuck between their right hand and the right turn signal post. Like all of us have come to observe, it’s the unusual or unexpected driving patterns that alert me to look into their car window and confirm my suspicion. I hate […]

Consistency may be the “secret sauce” in parenthood. Anything from helping children survive temper tantrums to helping your children eat more diverse foods, providing consistency with expectations and daily routines may be the very special thing we do that allows our children to thrive. Like most challenges in life, talking about and identifying the need for consistency is easy, implementing it throughout our daily lives is much more of a challenge. Finding and securing a consistent bedtime is one place where […]

This is a guest blog from Dr. Mary Alison Higi. Dr. Higi is a naturopathic physician in her final year of residency at Cascade Natural Medicine specializing in pediatrics under Dr. Candace Aasan. She studied at Bastyr University where she earned her Doctor of Naturopathic Medicine. She emphasizes the importance of the physician’s role in preventative medicine and public health. Dr. Higi has a special interest in implementing Naturopathic Medicine programs for under-served communities.  I’m publishing this post because I think […]

New research out today confirms that buying breast milk on the Internet via milk-sharing sites may not be safe. Although breast milk purchased from online sites may be free or as cheap as $1-$2 an ounce, it may carry significant risk for babies. Clearly the benefits of breast milk are vast; pediatricians and health experts recommend exclusive breast feeding until 6 months of age. However, simply put, breast milk obtained from unknown (or known) individuals online may carry contamination from […]

I worry most about pedestrian injuries on Halloween. In fact data from Safe Kids Worldwide finds that children are 2 times as likely to be hit by a car on Halloween than on any other day of the year. Eeeps! The news isn’t all bad though — a 2010 report found that in the emergency room doctors see more sports injuries on Halloween than they see Halloween ones. We just have to be smart about how our children enjoy the exciting […]

I think about the essay Welcome to Holland by Emily Perl Kingsley a lot. Her explanation of what it’s like to raise a child with a disability helps approximate (for me) the unexpected realities that ensue for families who encounter significant pediatric health challenges. Although her essay is not about prematurity and it’s not new, when I sat down to write about World Prematurity Day I couldn’t help but think back to her words and her metaphor. What’s marvelous, of course, is […]

Today is the Great American Smokeout. A national day for quitting for all ages. Of course quitting smoking, even for a day, is an awesome step forward for health. Clearly finger-wagging and guilt-tripping really don’t help smokers quit. I remember as a child lying on the floor when around a family member who was smoking saying, “Smoke rises….I’ll stay down here.”  Fairly ineffective, I’m certain. Anecdotally, the family member is still a smoker. Nicotine is really addictive. Cigarette smoking remains […]

We all want simple solutions to living a healthy life. It feels like I was born at just the right time for my work in health care. I completed my medical training just as social tools were percolating out to the masses. Motherhood and my practice of pediatrics auspiciously coincided with the bounty of information that technology has distributed, offered up, and shared unlike ever before. I can search and learn about health wherever I am –  at the park […]

It’s a commercial time of year, of course. It’s a challenge to help our children enjoy the holidays mindfully amidst all the products, gift-giving, and hopes for things. The rip-open-all-gifts urgency is seemingly innate to most young children. Amazing how our kids can stay on task when it involves opening awesome toys and gifts! It’s really hard to celebrate the real bounty in life, that of friendship and generosity, in a world that really does focus so much attention marketing […]

Our children are growing up with mixed messages about alcohol and drugs, at least that’s how it feels to me here in Washington. It seems to me we’re grappling with using pot and what to do with alcohol as a community. As our state legalized marijuana use this past year, we sent a big flare into the sky. It’s possible we really do one thing and then say another in front of our children and teens, particularly at times of […]

I’m so thankful and humbled by all of the comments and dialogue here on Seattle Mama Doc. Since the inception of the blog in 2009, we’ve had more than 1 million different readers. For that I remain somewhat amazed and also astonishingly grateful. I really love detailing what I learn about caring for children and hold dear the opportunity to share what science holds. Writing about health care while wedding evidence with anecdotes remains a huge focus for me. I […]

Self-tracking, life-logging, activity-tracking, “the quantified-self (QS) movement” as the smarty-pants say, or as some have asked, “What’s with the weird watch?” Well, I’m hooked. I don’t go anywhere these days without my device. My activity tracker had me at hello. Over the summer I started wearing the Shine. I’d been waiting for it–it had a significantly delayed shipping date–which only heightened my desire. I’ve worn it every day (except one) since. The world really is different to me now. Before […]

This is a guest blog from Lisa M. Peters, MN, RN-BC (in the video above). Lisa is mom of two children and a clinical nurse specialist for the Pain Medicine Program at Seattle Children’s Hospital. She holds a clinical faculty appointment in the Department of Family and Child Nursing at the University of Washington School Of Nursing. She is board certified in pain management from the American Nurses Credentialing Center and is a Mayday Pain & Society Fellow. Lisa has […]

Wait, did he just say what I think he did? (minute mark 1:18) I want you to put it in his helmet…I don’t care if you don’t get up. Let’s go! Or is it: I want you to put it in his helmet…I don’t care if he don’t get up. Let’s go! Either is grim. The new show, Esquire’s Friday Night Tykes, is getting quite a bit of attention. I suppose this was exactly the network’s intent but there are very […]

Tanning beds are a known carcinogen. Word on the street (or in the hallway) may not reflect true knowledge of the dangers. I know plenty of cancer survivors who use tanning beds. Therefore it’s obvious to me that there is a clear disconnect between the science of tanning risks and our insight. Although you may think tanning beds are a thing of the 1990s, widespread use continues. In fact, new research published today in JAMA Dermatology finds that 35% of adults […]

As a pediatrician, I encourage families to search online for health advice. Yet how you search and where you click matters. Tips for you and your time with “Dr Google” or “Surgeon Bing.” The Pew Internet Project’s research finds that over 70% of Internet users in the United States say they have looked online for health information in the last year. Furthermore, most health information seekers (ie freaked out parents searching in the middle of the night) don’t start their […]

OMG, it’s a good day for Washington. Yesterday Governor Jay Inslee signed Bill 6065 into law. Bill 6065 bans the use of tanning beds for minors in Washington State. The bill will prohibit those under age 18 the right to use an indoor tanning device. Those facilities that break the law — they’ll be fined up to $250 per violation starting in mid-June. Children and teens with a doctor’s prescription can use the tanning bed (this will happen VERY rarely). If I […]

Thanks for these clips (see above)! Practicing gratitude remains a highlight around here. Although ritualizing the sharing of the great parts of our family’s day bring us together at meals, helps us connect, and assists us in talking about our time apart at school or work, it also may be boosting our health. Practicing gratitude has been found to improve overall wellbeing, assist in sleep, and help decrease anxiety and depression. People who practice gratitude also report better long-term satisfaction with […]

Raise your hand if you have a cupboard full of partially used medications, expired acetaminophen, and old anti-histamines. We do! Conveniently, there is a way to safely get rid of the unused medications in your life. Don’t leave them around the house and don’t put them back into the water supply (via flushing them or putting them improperly in the garbage)….both carry risk. April 26 is the DEA’s National Drug Take Back Day. Conveniently, this is the perfect time to […]

“What’s Your Strategy?” she asked. And although she wasn’t asking me directly, I must admit I was a bit startled by the question. What really is my strategy for keeping my kids alive in the car? Although I’m strict about boosters, about buckling, about ensuring the booster seats travel with my kids, and I repel when I hear parents joke about not using car seats perfectly, I’m unsure I’ve ironed out the strategy to ensure my kids never die at the […]

Our house is teeming with excitement about the impending reality: it’s almost summer break. As the hard-core school, sports and carpool coordination chaos eases up, you wanna know one thing I’m really hoping for this summer break? A bit more sleep. I do a great job protecting my children’s sleep and a mediocre job protecting my own. I work on sleeping with my cell phone off and away from while getting 7 to 8 hours of sleep but reality is my […]

There have been 4 teen drownings around here just in the last week. I’m left with a pit in my stomach that as the sun shines and our region heats up we lose children to preventable injuries at rapid-fire pace. This happens every year; drowning is the 2nd leading cause of injury-related death in childhood (and the #1 cause of injury death in toddlers between age 1 to 4). In general there are two groups of people who drown the most: toddlers […]

Sometimes it can feel that a career of crafting prevention messages can be snuffed out in a moment. Every once and a while this work in media/messaging can take my breath away, for all the wrong reasons. Today, I realize my work educating parents and children about sunscreen use, UV radiation, aging, and skin cancer risks may pale in comparison to the potential power of a single quote on the side of a shopping bag. I mean, how can I […]

Florida politicians will not change pediatrician resolve to advocate for and protect children. There’s no question that a gag order cannot halt a passionate child advocate. I’d call the recent Florida ruling a dull tool taken to a very sharp crowd. Consider this post an open letter to Florida politicians… I live as far away from Florida as any continental American (you do the math) yet Florida politics this past week affect pediatricians and families everywhere. In my opinion, every […]

I really love this TEDEd video explaining motion sickness. What I find most helpful is the admission that we humans still know very little about motion sickness, why gender differences exist (women get motion disturbance more often than men), and how to put a stop to it. No question children get motion sickness well before they’re old enough to tell us exactly how they feel. Often it’s screaming or fussing only in the car or a series of vomiting episodes that […]

We know children are sleeping less now than they did 30 years ago. Our children are unfortunately more tired and can suffer side effects in life because of it. Studies show that school-age children who create a sleep debt (chronic sleep deprivation) and are chronically tired have a more difficult time completing school work, they don’t score as well on tests, they may be more distractible, they can have difficulty maintaining attention, and they may be at higher risk for having […]

I take solace sometimes knowing I can’t stop time. When I look to the clock and trade panic for solace it’s a way to distance myself from the reality that as time marches on in its infinite human construction, I don’t have to think about moments with the boys lost. Every parent hears over and over again that, “it just goes so fast.” I find that advice never helps. Just makes us feel like time with our beloved little humans is slipping through […]

Tonight, after President Obama speaks, PBS airs a NOVA documentary about vaccine science and safety. Vaccines: Calling The Shots. It’s told through the parent, pediatrician, and community lens. If you’ve ever wondered about vaccines in America, it’s time to tune in. I’ve been in touch with the team producing this documentary. Seriously excited to hear this story unfold tonight. (update Sept 11: watch Calling The Shots online) I think this is a big deal. This is an investigation on the […]

In my mind it’s no wonder the American Academy of Pediatrics has a statement against spanking. Spanking, in the simplest form, is the act of hitting a child, using physical force to try to get a different outcome. Thing is, spanking is an ineffective discipline tool in the long-run and research shows it’s damaging to a child’s mental health. Most parents don’t want to spank their children and may spank or strike a child while frustrated, making spanking more than just a […]

New data presented at the recent American Academy of Pediatrics meeting found 93% of parents to newborns incorrectly positioned and buckled their infants into their car seat on their first trip home. A little more proof that perfectly buckling a car seat isn’t an innate early-parenting skill! Even Prince George’s royal family didn’t get it right. I’m certain I didn’t do this perfectly either on our maiden voyage home (I remember using a zip-in blanket in the seat) nearly 8 years ago. […]

If you see a house with a teal pumpkin in front of it when you’re out with your kids this Halloween, give that homeowner a high-five. They’re making it a point to include kids with food allergies in on the trick-or-treating fun during this candy-filled holiday. The Seriousness Of Food Allergies Food allergies are a serious subject. It’s estimated more than 15 million Americans (6 million of them children) are affected by them. Dealing with food allergies can mean disruption to […]

My coffee arrived in a red cup today so I know the holidays are officially upon us; Thanksgiving will be here before you know it.  If you’re ordering a turkey (and/or you’re incredibly organized) you’ll likely be picking out your bird in the next few days. Who are you people? For you prepared and pre-paid types and even those of us who wait until the Thanksgiving week, we have some decisions to make and a great opportunity. What turkey we […]

Laundry detergent pods continue to cause trouble — increasing convenience yet posing risks to young children. New data out today confirms what we’ve seen since their introduction. These cute, colorful and entirely convenient laundry packets (typically called “pods”) were introduced in the U.S. in 2012 and quickly made measuring out laundry detergent a thing of the past. Unfortunately we’ve also seen that these pods grab the attention of young children. Beautiful design gone wrong. As you’ve likely heard, or witnessed yourself, young […]

A Seattle high school recently announced a minor outbreak of whooping cough: 13 students were diagnosed with laboratory-confirmed pertussis. None of the teens are contagious as of today, but it poses an interesting question about protecting our children and communities. A health advocate and friend on twitter suggested a savvy reminder: we can help teenage babysitters get up to date to protect young babies and children. Yes! Is it our parental responsibility to make sure babysitters, nannies or even sweet grandmas are […]

This is a post authored by J. Forrest Bennett, ARNP who works in the rehabilitation department and on the concussion team led by Dr Samuel Browd (@DrBrowd), medical director of Seattle Children’s Sports Concussion Program. Forrest has had the unique experience to care for children after concussions in the immediate time after injury and in weeks to months thereafter when symptoms are prolonged. His wisdom can help us all understand the opportunity we have to improve children’s recovery after a […]

Oral health doesn’t start and end with the dentist. Times are changing as the Washington Dental Service Foundation has trained 1,600 pediatricians and family physicians throughout the state on the importance of oral hygiene in young children. Pediatricians are now applying fluoride during well-child check-ups and counseling families more comprehensively on how to prevent dental decay while also referring to dentists for prevention and acute dental problems. Just last month I attended the 1-1/2 hour oral health training with a pediatric dentist. […]

We’ve known for several years that a crowded bed and a decorated crib (pillows, quilts, stuffed animals, bumpers) can put babies at risk for sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) and unintentional sleep-related suffocation. Boring, bare and basic beds are still best for babies. Tell every mother, father and grandparent to an infant you know. A Pediatrics study out today shows hazardous, soft bedding is still being used by as many as 50% of US parents despite years of public health messages urging the opposite. I […]

Turns out small screens in the bedroom may be worse for sleep than a TV. Little screens enter the room without much effort, stealing away in a pocket or backpack without notice; smartphones also grab our attention in novel ways. The light emanating from small screens is really close to our face (potentially interfering with that lovely melatonin spike before bed in ways a TV across the room cannot) and small screens are often interactive, requiring us respond or type back, provoking […]

I wept at the end of the movie I watched last night, The Imitation Game. The reason really was this: it reminded me how we’re just so terrible to each other at times. How much suffering occurs when we don’t think things through. The movie wasn’t about measles or vaccination, but injustices in it pushed me to leave my Sunday morning with my children to share this: My patience with vaccine hesitancy has pivoted. I’m embarrassed to say it took an […]

The measles outbreak continues to spread, with 121 cases now reported in 17 states (CDC data as of February 6th). Many states are getting serious about detailing why exemptions for vaccines exist and looking at ways to better protect the population. This week in the Seattle Times three local pediatricians speak out for removing both personal choice and religious exemptions to protect the public and vulnerable children. And here, Dr Paul Offit writes about religious exemptions asking, “What Would Jesus Do About Measles.” […]

Teens in the U.S. aren’t getting enough sleep and it’s not getting better as time unfolds. After days of too little sleep we accrue a “debt” of sleep. An article out earlier this month details the long-term effects of chronically tired teens, “The Great Sleep Recession” the reality that as teens progress from middle school and into high school, the majority don’t get the sleep they need. National Sleep Foundation has found that over 85% of teens lack adequate sleep. […]

There’s new data out to support stronger recommendations for introducing peanuts during infancy. Like hemlines, it may seem like this data keeps changing. As time, the science and our understanding of risk unfolds we’ve seen shifts in advice about starting solids that have left many parents wondering what really is best when starting foods and wanting to decrease risk for food allergy. Briefly, and in general, it’s best to start a variety of foods for your child during infancy, starting around 4 […]

Last week a proposal was introduced that would give Washington State the toughest e-cigarette laws in the country. If passed, House Bill 1645 would significantly raise the taxes on e-cigarettes, ban the sale of flavored vaping liquids, ban online sales to Washington residents and require producers to list ingredients on labels. And while opponents of the bill argue that e-cigarettes are “healthier” than tobacco, there’s no denying the dangers of having such a highly addictive substance in arm’s reach to children and […]

Getting rid of unused medications is something all of us do at some point or another. How to do it safely, though, is another story. Typical parenting moment: you reach into the medicine cabinet for vitamins or you’re hunting for ibuprofen or acetaminophen for a child’s fever and you grab a bottle of medication that, on closer examination, has an expiration date from several years ago. You realize you won’t use it. Before you toss that bottle in the trash, […]

It’s prom season and we all know it’s the season where teens feel pressure (and sometimes giddy delight) to prepare to look entirely fabulous for the night. Full of pressure or full of glee, this is without a doubt the time of year when teens I see in clinic talk most about tanning. A 2014 JAMA study found 19% of teens (under the age of 19) have used a tanning bed, with 18% of them stating that they’ve used one […]

There’s a beautiful story of success tucked away in the recent measles outbreak in the United States. Sometimes we forget to talk about it. When measles popped up at Disneyland in December 2014, it made headlines as the public remained thirsty for the media’s support in understanding who was at risk and why. I spoke to dozens of media outlets about the outbreak, under-vaccinated populations, the MMR vaccine, and how to protect those most vulnerable during an outbreak. We all emphasized those […]

Most parents cringe in the office or at the park when their child reports to me that recess is their favorite subject. Thing is, I think they may want to celebrate. Some of our best thinking, our most inventive or creative solution generation, happens when moving around outside. Research has validated the merits of play and movement for learning during the past decade and educators and pediatricians have risen up to exalt the time our children spend twirling around between […]

We’re just back this week from a vacation with our children. The 6 days we had together, the variant pace at which we were able to live for the week, and the challenges that bubbled up offered some reminders but also some fears for me. We’re always on quicksand while raising children. Parenting demands exceptional grace but also exquisite flexibility and immediate rapid-fire insight. Our job descriptions, as parents, are ever-evolving; we’re asked to shift what we know as we […]

I’ve watched the viral #Iwishmyteacherknew campaign with earnest intrigue. If you haven’t read about it or followed along this past week, know that the campaign started when Denver 3rd-grade teacher, Kyle Schwartz, honed listening and asked students directly what they wished she knew about them. They wrote out responses and she started to post them on social media with the above hashtag when she realized the goldmine she’d discovered. In my mind this has captured the nation’s attention because of the […]

Two new Pediatrics studies are out this week teaching us more about the effectiveness of the whooping cough vaccine. Lots to learn about how we protect babies and reminders here why we’re immunizing moms during EVERY pregnancy: First, the good news: traditionally we have been trained to tell parents that the first shots we give during infancy aren’t fully protective for infants but rather the beginning of creating immunity against the diseases they prevent. However, a study conducted by researchers at the […]

It’s a gorgeous time of year when things are abloom. Many of us suffer from irritation and allergies to these months as pollens and particles float around and trigger allergic response.  Not so beautiful when our families (over)react to pollen. Thing is, there’s also the fact that cold season isn’t quite over and the exact cause of that runny nose your child is dealing with may be hard to decipher. One hint that it’s allergies and not a cold: do you, […]

This is part two of the “What To Do If Your Child Is Drowning” series. Read about infants/toddlers here. The purpose of these posts is to find out what you should do if you realize your child is actually drowning or struggling in the water rather than repeat the warnings of how to prevent it. I want to put a couple thoughts and tools in your hands to know WHAT to do if faced with an emergency. Dr. Linda Quan, an emergency […]

My goal here is to educate people about the risks and realities of e-cigarettes amid an environment full of popular misconceptions and half-truths. Talking about e-cigarette use in adults will NEVER be the same as talking about e-cigarette use and dangers for children and teens. Different groups, different realities, different risks, different use, and different vulnerabilities. Period. E-cigarette use tripled among high school students last year alone. This is happening RIGHT NOW.

If you have a daughter getting ready to head to college this fall, holy moly I’m excited for you. In clinic it’s clear to me that the huge transition from high school to college-age brings great joy but also a remarkable sense of unrest for everyone, too. Vaccines, birth control, and suicide prevention may not top your to-do list while packing the car but there’s no question these are 3 things you can check in on to ensure it’s a better and safer year […]

This morning I got up early to work so I could carve out an hour for something special before I took the boys to camp for the day. You know the drill if you work outside your home: I powered through emails as the sun came up, responded to some other requests in the inboxes, packed bags for camp with lunches, reminded kids to wear shoes (!), applied sunscreen and we hauled out the door. By 8:00am we’d arrived at […]

My boys always want it to be screen time. I don’t think that is changing anytime soon. These apps, shows, games, and devices are only getting smarter at capturing their attention. It feels like there isn’t a giant list of new advice to share regarding “screen time.” But because of the recent media focus and deluge of content on “screen addiction,” coupled with recommendations for dealing with screens while parenting this summer, I’m here with a few responses and observations. It seems to […]

Reading and familiarizing yourself with the drug facts label is perhaps more important than it seems before you administer an over-the-counter (OTC) medicine to your children. I think we may get more hands-off at times than is ideal. And I think caregivers who casually help us with our children (grandparents, babysitters, nannies, neighbors) can too. Although it’s inconvenient to fill out forms for medicine administration in daycare, preschool and school, these locations seem to be the environments with the most safety […]

Window falls are a gut-wrenching topic because they cause devastating and preventable injuries in children. This hits home for me; in just 9 years of pediatric practice I’ve had a handful of patients fall through open windows and screens. Every single fall has occurred because of innocence and curiosity — a child just wanting to see, or be involved in, something outside. So many of us don’t get our 2nd or 3rd story windows secured for children and we often just don’t expect a child […]

The vaccine schedule is the same schedule for boys and for girls. The path to today’s human papilloma virus (HPV) vaccine has not been entirely straightforward for parents as recommendations have changed over time. Know this: the clear and simple message is that HPV vaccine is safe and effective for boys and girls. We know it works best when given earlier in the tween/teen years and we know the immunity it produces in our bodies is durable and lasting. HPV vaccines is […]

New acronym for me this week: RWDD. It’s “Riding With a Drinking Driver.” Not a drunk one, but someone who has been drinking. Risky at any age, but particularly when it’s high school. But before I get to that lemme acknowledge that texting has changed the lexicon, upped the capacity for quick communication in our lives, and earnestly transformed some of our relationships. Clearly we’re all learning a ton about shortcuts in communication. I think about this in my personal […]

In any youth game or match there are typically four roles: player, coach, referee, and parent. You only get to choose one. We’re headed off to the first of 3 soccer games today. A joy, really, to watch these little boys enjoy their team, struggle to do their best, wrangle their wits and learn to play on a team. My boys aren’t the star players (that’s for sure) but they love it when something goes well. They work hard for […]

If our entire community got the flu vaccine we’d be MUCH less likely to share it. We’d also be much less likely to get influenza. Studies find that about 10-40% of children get influenza each season. Because their immune systems are a bit “naive” to influenza, they are at risk for more serious illness, especially if under age 5 years. What if parents were the ones to endorse protection from influenza? What if we drove our schools and playgroups and […]

Our kids don’t have to play like the pros, even if we they think they’re ready. I mean really, what’s the rush?? I report this as a pediatrician & as a bona fide soccer mom to 2 boys under age 10: The U.S. Soccer Federation yesterday announced a ban on “headers” for children under 10 years. There has been no new expert consensus (the new rule rose out of a lawsuit, not new pediatric expert opinion) that heading the ball causes […]

Using antibiotics on the farm to raise animals contributes to the production of antibiotic–resistant germs or “superbugs.” All animals carry bacteria in their intestines and on their bodies. Giving antibiotics to animals will kill large amounts of bacteria, changing their microbiome (<–good explanation here) and regular “good” bacteria too. Because 60% of the antibiotics used in animals are also used to treat human diseases, with time when antibiotics are used routinely, the bacteria become resistant, survive and multiply. If those resistant bacteria […]

Today’s main takeaway: if you or a loved one are at an inpatient setting, ask every day what antibiotics you’re on, why you’re on them, and when you can stop taking them. Every day. Your care team is likely doing the same thing but you bringing it up helps ensure it remains a priority. How To Be Smart Using Antibiotics: Take the antibiotic exactly as the doctor prescribes them and take them for the shortest duration. Try not to skip doses or stop taking […]

Friday afternoon the terrorist attacks around the world certainly took our collective breath away. The stunning, horrific realities and the wild insecurity we can feel when somewhere familiar becomes unsafe is a potent storyteller. There is something in this though, that we can really listen to. Things tend to happen in slow motion after this kind of news, almost like they do in our memories during scary recollections of a car accident or a big fall, because when some beloved familiar place is deemed unsafe […]

Over the counter (OTC) liquid medications for children are packaged with a diverse set of various measuring tools sometimes making it confusing for parents to ensure we are giving our children the proper dose. To add to the confusion, sometimes the recommended dose is written with different units (mLs, mg, or teaspoons) than the dosing device. For example, the box might have dosing in “teaspoons” and the measuring device be divided up into milliliters. This issue is not new but guidelines and […]

Prevention is genius medicine. By making smarter choices, detecting risk early, not only do we improve our quality of life, but we can prolong people’s lives. Pediatrics is the perfect place to master this. Because of the incredible opportunity we have to prevent injury and illness during a person’s childhood, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) updates and refreshes their schedule of recommended screenings and guidelines for wellness visits every year. It’s put into a huge “periodicity table,” basically a chart […]

Winter tests our skin differently than summer. This is because of cold temperatures, recirculated air (without outside humidity) and lots of exposure to the elements. If you think your skin looks older in winter, you might be right. Winter skin is likely really dry and probably chapped, making us perhaps look a bit like we’ve been at this a while…same can be true of your child’s skin. Giving your skin the TLC it needs during these dark months will keep it […]

One of the most horrific memories of my residency training was caring for a little girl after she sustained a life-threatening injury from a TV and dresser tip-over. When I met her she was unconscious, non-responsive, and simply gorgeous. She was just so little and there was so much suffering around her. These real stories harbor horror but also hope. Injuries from tip-overs are worth talking about. Securing furniture or new TV’s (especially after the holidays) are those things that end […]

The flu season is in full swing across America although thankfully, influenza activity is mild in most states. If you click on this interactive US map you can see where your state fairs with ongoing influenza (hit “play” and you’ll see all weeks reported this season). It’s certainly NOT too late for your family to get a flu shot  (or nasal spray) since that’s the best way to protect against severe complications from influenza. There is no cure for influenza […]

Hear me straight: we don’t want anyone addicted to tobacco products. No question it’s an ugly habit and a terribly complex addiction. Expensive, detrimental to health, so very ugly… So I’m all for WA State House Bill 2313 (SB 6157) supporting moving the purchase age of tobacco from 18 to 21. Yes I know you can vote and enlist in the military at 18, but inconvenient or not, teen brains are not fully developed by the time they enter college-age […]

A couple of weeks back my mom spent a bit of time with my little love on the sideline of his brother’s soccer game. She’d brought in an unusual pine cone to show him that she had picked up on her way in. It showcased the delicate symmetry and stun of nature — twelve seeds spiraling around a centered seed perfectly nestled in a whirly cone. It’s a marvel to hear her explain how the pine cone works to potentiate future life and […]

The role parents play in poison prevention is paramount. The above image shows just how easy it is to confuse medicine with candy. Especially if we message this improperly. When my boys were young I started calling liquid medicines “yum-yums” in an effort to get them to take acetaminophen or other medicine easily only to realize as I was doing it I was advertising the wrong thing…totally novice move as a mom and pediatrician. Clearly as parents we’re always a […]

We don’t know what causes all autism but we do know vaccines don’t. Continuing to elevate myth does NO ONE any good. That’s why the Tribeca Film Festival got it right when pulling a documentary written and co-directed by vaccine science villain, Dr. Andrew Wakefield. Giving him another platform and more voice just isn’t insightful. To me it’s more noise and less what we need. There isn’t controversy here and there isn’t anything new to uncover. Allowing Wakefield more air time […]

Spring has sprung and many of us are feeling that familiar itch to tidy and purge our homes & closets. One more chore to add to the spring cleaning list: clean out your household supply of over-the-counter (OTC) medicines. Just like the dosing instructions and additional information on the label, the expiration date on the packaging is there for reason. Once a medicine has reached its expiration date, it may not provide the treatment that you need. Smart to refresh […]

The digital health world recently took a step in the right direction when it comes to supporting access to your health care information. You can now be in charge of both your own and your family’s immunizations records in several states through a tool and online resource called MyIR (think “my immunization registry”). You can register yourself and your dependents and access to your official, consolidated immunization records on any device, any time. How great is that? No more calling your doctor’s office and asking […]

Having food allergies (specifically to peanuts) might prevent you and your family from attending certain events, but baseball in Seattle hopefully won’t be one of them. The Seattle Mariners are offering 5 “peanut-controlled” games this season at Safeco Field. No peanuts will be allowed in sections 313, 314 and 315 in the view box level during these games. And although fans should note that peanut-controlled does not mean the game will be entirely peanut-free, this does offer a new way to […]

What we feed our babies matters. No question one delightful and soulful part of raising our babies is introducing the world of solid food. I mean really, it’s hard to describe a competing parenting moment with feeding our children healthy food, at any age. For decades, rice cereal as a first food seemed to make sense but major groups reporting out on only feeding rice with caution. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently proposed new limits for inorganic arsenic in rice […]

Always a work in progress here — trying to think on ways to share new data, expert advice & enjoy the journey of parenthood. I’m excited to announce we’re going to pilot a Seattle Mama Doc Podcast early next month. Since this blog’s inception in 2009 we’ve covered nearly 650 standard blog posts, vlogs, guest contributors, interviews and now I’m going to test out a podcast. I am a huge fan of crowd sourcing and co-design, so will you help create the look, feel […]

Big recall, worth a glance from a frozen food company out of my home state of Washington. The Food & Drug Administration (FDA) issued a recall of 42 brands that sell frozen fruits and vegetables. It’s a BIG list of products that could be in your freezer if you shop at places like Costco, Trader Joe’s or Walmart. This is especially true if you’re pregnant, are immunocompromised or have young children. The possible contamination in these frozen foods is a bacteria […]

Both of my babies loved to be swaddled. It helped them calm down and I always experienced them happier and easier to console while snuggled & bundled. My experience isn’t unusual. Research in the past has found that swaddling rates are increasing and it can help newborns with sleep awakenings while also creating a slight reduction in crying in babies under 2 months, and may help babies have more quiet sleep. So the new study out today in Pediatrics evaluating the […]

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has issued a Statement of Endorsement supporting the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) guidelines outlining recommended sleep duration for children from infants to teens. Not exactly “news” but great reminders because of their import. The statement is pretty clear about it’s importance and perhaps this is why it will make headlines: Sleeping the number of recommended hours on a regular basis is associated with better health outcomes including: improved attention, behavior, learning, memory, emotional regulation, […]

This is a podcast episode about one thing…the penis. Guest on the podcast Dr. Rob Lehman, the co-founder of Great Conversations and leader of the For Boys Only classes at Seattle Children’s hospital joins me to discuss what’s “normal”  and all the examples of “normal but different.” We dive into what parents need to know about care of uncircumcised/circumcised penis, thoughts on erections (they begin in utero!), boys with their hands down their pants, appropriate touching and ways to help […]

No question, hands down, I get more requests from friends, family, and acquaintances for help finding support and and advice parenting anxious children than any other pediatric issue in the school years. So it’s my sincere DELIGHT to introduce and partner with Dr. Kathy Melman on my podcast. Dr Melman runs the outpatient psychiatry and behavioral health clinic and has decades of experience advising families and supporting anxious children. She helps translate the facts around what causes anxiety, how to discern anxious behavior from […]

It’s a clear no-go on those “antibacterial” soaps you see on people’s counters and sometimes in our schools. They are soon to vanish from stores. No good evidence the (typically liquid) soaps actually protect our family from bacterial infections better than washing with regular soap and water and there are some concerns the ingredients used to make the soap may pose risk. Because of this, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently announced a ban on chemicals/pesticides used in antibacterial […]

This year, for the first time, I did the annual 20 questions (see below) with the boys at the start of school and realized that I couldn’t share all of the responses here. Just too personal, just too vulnerable, just too real. Sharing all of the answers they entrusted with me would somehow expose them. At some point, every “mommy blogger” censors and protects her children and I, of course, have been doing that since day one. But with these, even […]

I talked with Erin Schoenfelder, PhD,a specialist in ADHD and Director of Behavioral Treatment at the PEARL Clinic (Program to Enhance Attention, Regulation & Learning) here at Seattle Children’s Hospital, about ways to recognize ADHD in children and teens. The previous post we shared included the acknowledgment that it may be harder to parent a child with ADHD and provided reasons for it along with 5 tips to help parents and families. In the podcast above, Dr. Schoenfelder helps parents, teachers, and pediatricians […]

Probiotics are a little bit the rage these days. The more we learn about the microbiome (all the bacteria that happily live in and on us to support digestion and immune function), the more we learn we want to preserve them. Probiotics are supplements (not medicines) so the data on their use is in the early stages but taking probiotics while taking antibiotics really does make medical sense. New data out in JAMA Pediatrics makes this more compelling. Taken orally, probiotics […]

Depression is far more common in teens than in young children, but I often hear families wondering how to know if they should worry about their child’s mood. As many as 1 in 5 teens can have a depressed episode so concerns about depression are a common challenge. Many of us wonder if young kids get depressed (yes, but not too often), what are the signs (detailed below), and what to do about it (6 tips below). It’s scary for […]

Thanks to Serese Marotta, Chief Operating Officer, Families Fighting Flu for sharing this vulnerable and truthful story about losing her son to influenza. Talk about gorgeous peer-to-peer health care. I hate that this story exists and yet I’m so thankful for Serese’s bravery in sharing it. May we all benefit from her experience and her wisdom ~ Dr. WSS So often we hear “it’s just the flu”, but we need to take the flu seriously. How do I know this? […]

From the moment we become parents, we work to keep our children’s environment safe. We child-proof our homes and make sure poisons and dangerous objects are secured wherever our kids spend time. But we aren’t always as diligent about making sure the community spaces where our children learn and play are protected from threats we can’t see, like infectious diseases. Just this fall there was a vaccine-preventable disease reported in my son’s 2nd grade cohort. When he started kindergarten a […]

In clinic the last couple of weeks I’ve been reviewing medicine doses with families for common over-the-counter (OTC) medicines repeatedly. It’s the time of year when goopy illness comes into our homes and is chased by fevers and aches and discomfort, screams and coughs, and overall gloom. Sometimes the goop turns to things that cause bigger pains (ear infections, strep throat & influenza) that have bigger solutions. But most of the time these gnarly colds just disrupt our lives and our […]

After I published my book Mama Doc Medicine, I toyed around with the idea of writing tiny little books inspired by a favorite short story publication, One Story. Literally I was thinking that the way to consume ideas about parenthood was not in book form but in pamphlet-sized publications on parenthood, vaccines, & general tips for feeling awesome while raising children. I haven’t entirely tanked the idea (please weigh in if you think you’d read them!) but it’s not at the […]

Tongue-tie is a condition in which an unusually short, thick or tight band of tissue (frenulum) tethers the bottom of the tongue’s tip to the floor of the mouth. Often it goes unnoticed and causes no problems in life but rarely it can affect how a child eats and how they sound when they speak, and can sometimes interfere with breastfeeding because baby’s tongue may not have enough range of motion to attach to the breast, suck and swallow effectively. […]

Seattle’s Pride Parade is tomorrow, Sunday, June 25, and it has a great theme — Indivisible. Take the meaning of the theme as you like, but if there’s one thing that is true for Pride in Washington, it’s that there is an abundance of support. The majority of our people here, it seems to me, are building a community and will not be divided more. I feel so thankful to live in a community that is on its way to […]

Happy International Women’s Day! I’m squarely in mid-life, 42 years old, a mom to two, no longer a “young” doctor or young entrepreneur or young voice. Perhaps because of that, I’m starting to see things differently when it comes to raising boys and girls to support equality. I’m a feminist. I think that means I don’t want gender/sex to get in the way of any individual. I was raised with a mom and dad who didn’t present a world of […]

Spring has sprung (hurrah!) and summertime is oddly just a couple of months off. A co-worker reminded me this week that school is out in 2 months. What? As the rituals of summer near I’m reminded of the power and value in creating memories that break the mold of routine. Trips, time away, adventure, and creating a sense that the world is truly as big as it is. This starts and gains value right from home at the kitchen counter… […]

Many of us struggle knowing which pitch or tenor to take in balancing the responsibilities, rigors and rule-following of regular school and work-life with the need to extend boundaries to live with our children in poetic, artful ways. How and when to comply, and how and when and why we sometimes don’t want to. It’s ultimately tricky and nuanced, yet the opportunity to live in color is just so profound. Life is precious and unpredictable. Thing is, sometimes we just miss the moment with […]

BBC invited me to discuss vaccinations and help answer some popular questions parents have about them. View this short Q&A video on BBC where I share the following answers to these common questions: Can vaccines cause autism? We don’t know what causes all of autism spectrum disorders but we do know that vaccinations do not lead to the development of autism. More info worth reading here on Autism and Vaccinations from Autism Science Foundation — a non-profit working to support families with autism spectrum […]

Today marks day one of our 5 Days of Mindfulness with Dr. Hilary Mead, a child clinical psychologist at Seattle Children’s. Throughout the week we will be sharing seven guided meditations and imagery via the Seattle Mama Doc podcast. We invite you to include your children and your entire family for each of these episodes as they’re great for all ages! In the first of seven podcasts, Dr. Mead leads a meditation via guided imagery that helps create a greater […]

It is day five of our 5 Days of Mindfulness series with Dr. Hilary Mead, but remember, you can re-listen to any of these guided practices as many times as you need. Mindfulness is a great technique that can enhance how you, your children and teens cope with pain-related conditions or emotional, behavioral or mental conditions. By teaching them to observe their feelings and thoughts, mindfulness practices can help them slow down their feelings by observing their urges and thinking about them instead of immediately […]

Chemicals are a part of our environment in the modern world, of course, thanks to the conveniences afforded to us by farming, manufacturing, and industry. Every parent wants to reduce exposures for their children as they grow. No question that developing babies and children may be more vulnerable to the effects of toxins as their bodies and organs and minds form. There are 80,000 chemicals in commerce (yikes!) with 3,000 being high volume meaning they can be found ubiquitously in […]

It’s July so we’re officially in summertime, thank goodness. My prescription: warm and outdoor adventures for us all! Obviously if we take the Rx seriously, we’ll all be more likely to get bit. When it comes to bug bites, the most important thing to know for your child (and yourself) is how they will react. Some children get bit all over and hardly react while others will have enormous, and tremendously ITCHY welts all over their body. There truly are […]

If you’re a parent whose child loves macaroni and cheese (and truly, it’s the rare child who doesn’t), you’ve most likely seen the NYT media blitz on chemicals found in popular, boxed mac-n-cheese brands sold in grocery stores. I’m going to break it down quick and simple. Here we go…. ​ The chemical detected in the mac and cheese are called phthalates. Phthalates aren’t an added ingredient that companies are purposely using in their products. This isn’t an artificial ingredient, […]

It’s the last official week of summertime around here. My babies love school and are eager about the beginning; it’s me nursing an increasingly bigger pit in my stomach as summer wanes and September nears. While my boys grow up I feel like I see more clearly the ways summertime affords juicy glimpses into the innocence of childhood. This summer I watched these little boys stay in their jammies past noon and watched as they dabbled in stories and books, […]

In the wake of the recent Las Vegas shooting, I went on the Seattle NBC affiliate, KING5 News, to discuss how to talk to your children about guns and violence. Frankly, it’s not the first time I’ve covered this topic and as horrifying as it is, it probably won’t be last. I’m upset and sad that these shootings are becoming a part of American culture and I’m committed to doing my best to learn and translate what the experts advise […]

The flu season is upon us and I hate to be so prescriptive, but when it comes to avoiding influenza, I feel like I have to be. I get the flu vaccine each year as does my entire family — I think you should, too. I’m passionate about vaccines and have had the luxury of blogging and deploying vaccine science education to the world since I began the Seattle Mama Doc blog in 2009. I’ve been particularly vocal about the […]

A lot of people don’t eat meat for all sorts of reasons. You know why: their health, the environment, they don’t want to eat animals, just doin’ the right thing for the planet. I’ve gone through times in my life where I didn’t eat meat. Now I do again. The more I learn about health care, the more certain I am that as I go forward eating meat and preparing it for my family, I can use science to guide […]

I’m quieted today by the profound example of Martin Luther King Jr. and one of his many enduring proclamations, “Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for others?” The answer I often feel is “not enough.” While most of us spend portions of our everyday caring for or enriching the lives of others, the enough-ness and potency of feeling we’re doing enough, or giving back in satisfactory ways, can yo-yo. There’s not a better moment than […]

It’s flu season, no doubt about it, with widespread influenza infections all over the United States (see the CDC updated maps with high-levels of ILI [Influenza-like illness]). Influenza is a virus (there are many types or “strains”) that cause terrible fever, cough, respiratory distress, pneumonia, ear infections, and sometimes hospitalization and death. As you’ve likely heard from the media blitz the last week or so, it’s shaping up to be a pretty nasty year – and some public health workers […]

It’s still (barely) January of 2018 and I’m doing my best to try to new things, take breaks from old things, be more strategic, practice tiny habits, and spend time with my sweet boys and family. I’ve even committed to a weekly early morning swim with a dear friend to just ritualize something beautiful for the year. (added 2/1/18: Check out this palliative care physician’s twitter status update [read the whole thread — amazing] for any reminder for why we should just […]

Two new studies out today on e-cigarettes showed e-cigs remain a significant concern for teen users. E-cigs were found to pass along carcinogens (cancer-causing chemicals) to those who used them and are associated with future tobacco cigarette smoking in teens. Data out today in Pediatrics finds that teens who used e-cigarettes had up to three times greater amounts of five volatile organic compounds (carcinogens) in their urine compared to teens who did not use e-cigarettes at all. Teens using fruit flavored e-cigarette […]

[socialpoll id=”2504050″] The short answer to the title is —- not really, and the risk varies. But I sure get why so many parents want to co-sleep despite most pediatricians urging against it. I was up early yesterday morning listening to NPR when a story about parents’ love and desire to sleep with their babies grabbed my attention. The headline reads: “Is sleeping with your baby as dangerous as doctors say?” I mean, parents (like me) want(ed) to co-sleep and […]

I recently changed up the format of reporting I do with my local NBC affiliate station KING5 News. I’m doing more of a weekly roundup of pediatric studies, current events and newsworthy topics that I think are important for parents to know about. For those of you who aren’t able to tune in, I wanted to share a brief synopsis of what I’m covering. Let me know what you think! What topics would you want me to talk about? 1. […]

Hallelujah, I’ve been saying I don’t like teething gels since 2010. This is a PSA for all parents out there trying to help soothe their teething baby. Today, the FDA came out and said avoid using over-the-counter teething products containing benzocaine. That means no teething gels like Anbesol, Baby Orajel, Cepacol, Chloraseptic, Hurricaine, Orabase, Orajel, Topex or other generic brands. The agency said “products containing the pain reliever benzocaine for the temporary relief of sore gums due to teething in […]

Bravery — this is gonna take ongoing bravery! Today is National Gun Violence Prevention Day and many around our country are rallying by wearing orange. Wear orange, please, but let’s remember that this is a long-term effort — to protect our children this is an everyday thing to help shape and change our culture. We must be persistent and carry today’s inspiration for orange through every day and tackle every opportunity we are presented with to reduce gun violence and […]

My story of 9 stitches, 2 parents who feel as deflated, flat and small as the bottom of your worn shoe, a near 3-year-old boy, and 1 orange Popsicle.  This is about our mistakes and the dangers of the events that followed moving day in my world, October 31, 2009. But let’s go back in time; history is supposed to be one of our most sage instructors. Circa 2003.  I took care of a 3-year-old girl in the ER at […]

The holidays are here.  Someone just plopped thanksgiving in my to-do list. I like it. Celebrating with family and friends is one yummy thing in life even in the face of family dynamics-drama.  I know it doesn’t feel yummy for everyone.  I’m not trying to sound Pollyanna-ey.  I’ve had the dark years of holidays, too.  When the being together made me feel lonelier than truly connected.  But, that’s not where I find myself now, fortunately.  The people in my life who are […]

Today is being offered up as a day to set aside for listening.  Just after a day of thankfulness.  This is kind of a nice one-two punch. Especially when we’re often around extended family on this particular Friday on the calendar.  I’d not heard of this until 10am today when NPR posted this on Facebook. Thanksgiving Day then Listening Day. I like it.

Before O (my second baby boy) was born I couldn’t really fathom loving him like I did, F (my first born).  I’m not alone in this, I know.  One of my friends recently told me she was so bewildered by the idea of number two that when she, her husband, her first son and her brand new baby were on the way home from the hospital, she leaned over from the passenger seat and whispered, “I’ll always love you best,” […]

3 year-old boy, overheard when talking to his dad: “My penis! When I pull on it, I can make it longer and longer.” Yes, this is real. Today, Dec 7, 2009. You heard it here first. This is my glamorous life. Instant proof that curiosity about the body and sex is a normal part of your child’s development. Truth is, by 3 most children are showing keen interest in their own and others’ bodies, according to Seattle Children’s Hospital health educator, […]

Ouch. Another recall. But this time for the ouchless shot, the nasal mist H1N1 vaccine. The CDC announced last night that there is recall of about 4.7 million doses of nasal spray H1N1 immunizations. These are nasal spray vaccines used in children (and adults) over the age of 2 years. This is just a set-back in protecting our country (and the globe) from the harms of H1N1. No, not a safety concern. Not conspiracy. Rather, a concern that doses are […]

Sometimes good health feels like magic.  Lately more than ever.  I’ve had a number of friends and family diagnosed with serious medical problems and medical set-backs in the last few weeks.  Like patients that I have been fortunate enough to care for with serious illness, it scares me, makes me sad, sometimes wakes me up at night. These episodes in illness are disorienting to the order of things. These diagnoses, uncertainties and realities are especially weighty this month amidst bags […]

Injected flu shots or nasal flu spray?  The short answer, like so many things in life: it depends. Data out this week summarizing the effectiveness of influenza vaccination for children over the past few seasons. The study published online was a meta-analysis –meaning it was a study of previously published studies — looking for the aggregate effect. Researchers wanted to evaluate the effectiveness of the flu shot compared to the nasal flu mist in protecting children. This year, the American […]

There is a measles outbreak unfolding in Washington. Unfortunately, there have been multiple outbreaks across the US in the past few months. Here’s info about outbreaks in 2018, as well. The MMR vaccine is safe and effective. If you’ve hesitated or declined the vaccine in the past, please reconsider the science and risk to your child and their community now. I haven’t written much about measles since 2015, but an outbreak in Washington State has prompted me to send out […]

One little thing that really gets under my skin if you must know is the title, “The Wife.” When I hear it, it rings through me, moving and shifting my electrons in just the wrong way. I’m sure most of you wives or mothers out there on planet earth don’t really mind it. But I do. Here is how I often hear it. Let me set the scene: Exam room, child center stage, father stage left.  Meaning no harm (or […]

The soft spot feels like an epicenter in O’s landscape. As every new parent gets to know their baby, the soft spot is just one of those places and spaces we come to know that makes our baby unique. I know O’s little spot is about to go away. Just another thing for me to cry about at the two-year birthday party. I took a phone call from the husband recently who is a pediatric radiologist and who was reading […]

Meet Luna, our dog. She looks overwhelmed this morning, doesn’t she? I think she is thinking about our short night of sleep sandwiched between a fine nighttime whine and an early morning whine. The whining in our house is overtaking me. Imagine me in a pile of virtual sound, covered up to my nose in noise. Underneath layers of scratchy screech and howl, whine and cry, loudness and complaining, my hands reaching for the sky. It’s loud here. Wanna come […]

I was interviewed this week on TV about food allergies. I’ve pushed all my inner-Cindy Brady moments aside. Watch the video below… When F was about 13 months old his face turned bright red after he ate breakfast one morning. I eliminated all the foods he had eaten that morning– milk, oatmeal, banana and berries. He’d had all those foods many times but I was concerned he’d developed an allergy. Gradually, I introduced them back, one food at a time. […]

Seeking perspective and cure. If it’s true that life is all about your perspective, I know this Friday sunshine will help. This past week has been a total mind melting experience. Cloudy and cold, too. With my mom’s chemotherapy and subsequent complications, my perspective of medicine has changed again. Forever. Being the patient, or in this case the patient’s daughter and advocate, reminds me how hard it is to sit on the other side of the white coat. Power differentials, […]

F calls it our, “Seattle Vitamin.” In the upper left hand corner of the US (read: Seattle) we’re a little lacking in sunshine. It’s a product of not only our rainy weather, but our latitude on the globe. New data finds that taking supplemental vitamin D may be more important for we mamas, we city dwellers, and we little ones (infants) than we thought. Especially up here where the sunshine comes around about every fifth day. Vitamins are so well […]

Vitamin D is clearly important. And like I said earlier this week, it is getting all sorts of attention. Two studies from this week have captured my attention. I don’t think this vitamin D thing is a fad. The new (2008) recommendations for 400 International Units (IU) of daily Vitamin D in infants and children represent evolution in our understanding how we can protect and prevent illness in infants and children. It’s not that Vitamin D is more important than […]

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) issued a safety warning about the use of infant slings, particularly in babies under 4 months of age. Watch this video for more information. Not all slings are born the same, so inform yourself about great sling options and the bag-type slings to avoid. And look at the infant position recommendations from the CPSC below to ensure you’re using the sling properly. See the video at the bottom of the post.

Measles, measles, and more measles. I know, it seems like all I’m writing about.  I’ve been doing media interviews for weeks now on measles infections and there doesn’t seem to be a slowdown yet. As it stands, there are currently 839 measles cases in the U.S. and children under age 5 years old account for about half of the cases. The vast majority of cases are in those who are unvaccinated. I’ve been asked: “Is the situation improving?” The answer […]

Although women now represent more than 50% of medical students in training, they lag greatly behind men in leadership roles, academic titles, wage earnings and ultimately, influence. Of anything I’ve learned through my career it’s that sexism is wide at work. Took me years to feel the glass over my head but I sure have hit my head against it. This is of course far-reaching outside of medicine, especially digital health. Only 25% of computing jobs are held by women, while […]

Kids already have a lot of AI friends to chat with, whether they’re asking Siri to play their favorite song or quizzing Alexa on trivia about blue whales. But one new Alexa skill is hoping to do more than just entertain the next generation.

Kids already have a lot of AI friends to chat with, whether they’re asking Siri to play their favorite song or quizzing Alexa on trivia about blue whales. But one new Alexa skill is hoping to do more than just entertain the next generation.

Wendy Sue Swanson, a pediatrician with Seattle Children’s Hospital, wants parents to know immunizations are safe, necessary and effective. As a mother of two boys (ages 10 and 12), she understands why parents get nervous.

The statistics surrounding the Coronavirus outbreak continue to evolve as do guidelines for social distancing, traveling, and sheltering in place. I have been writing and re-writing this post over a couple days. Things change fast enough that the tone I strike feels relevant only fleetingly. At the beginning of this (early February) I recorded a podcast with The American Academy of Pediatrics comparing risks of flu vs RSV vs COVID19 that underestimated the risks. It was accurate at the time, […]

Ohhh, 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic has affected so many aspects of life, and Halloween will be no exception. I want all of our children to have something to look forward to this Halloween, and I think they can. Of course most pediatricians and public health experts advise children and adults avoid large gatherings, maintain a distance of six feet from others, wear cloth face coverings (think Superhero!) and wash hands frequently. So the school activities have to be different, the […]

Let’s make things easier for children with life-threatening allergies. How we communicate what a child needs matters and can be essential to protect their safety but also reduce stress and anxiety for parents who worry. This week, experts in allergy and immunology at The American Academy of Pediatrics did us a favor and sorted through various allergy emergency plans living online and in doctors’ offices. Through experience with years of research on asthma action plans, the team created a Clinical Report […]

Norovirus is a nasty one. It’s the leading cause of epidemics of vomiting/diarrhea and causes over 20 million cases of gastrointestinal disease (“stomach flu” with vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, fever and achiness) in the US each year. Our experience with Norovirus historically is worse in years with “novel” or new strains of infection. Unfortunately there’s an new strain circulating around the globe. “Sydney 2012” was discovered in Australia last March and just last month the CDC officially announced it’s causing the majority […]

Gun violence is a tricky topic to write about. It’s emotionally laden, there are political overtones that bring out passion and I find quicksand when I never expect it. No matter where you fall on issues related to firearm safety, there is no doubt that we all want the same thing: healthy communities, healthy families, and safe environments to raise our children. Unfortunately, we continue to have countless reminders about the curiosity of children in the presence of a loaded […]

I believe all media is instructive. I know we (adults and children) learn about health care when watching (reruns) of ER, Scrubs, or Grey’s Anatomy nearly as much as we do from the nightly news, Dr Oz, or our newspapers. And although entertainment may not feel instructive, I know it is. Media, from what’s online, to what’s on the television, to what’s on your phone, to what’s in your Xbox, informs and instructs. I don’t care how you cut it, […]

It was sunny when I landed in Toronto on Tuesday evening so I felt a bit lifted as I sat down into one of the most pleasant cab rides I can remember. The driver was 69 he said, and his claim to good health was avoiding alcohol, shunning cigarettes, and waking up each and every morning to exercise. “Just 30 minutes a day,” he said, “Changed everything in my life.” I held my tongue as he kept talking. The coincidence […]

Dental caries (cavities) are preventable for most children. To keep those pearly whites pearly it takes being thoughtful about eating habits, brushing habits, drinking habits, and being knowledgeable about your child’s water supply. Although physicians are making robots to perform surgery and putting tiny cameras in our bodies to explore the inside, we may sometimes lose sight of easy, affordable ways to improve the lives of millions. Maybe we simply retreat from those prevention efforts…or maybe it’s something else. The CDC […]

Doctors are tough critics — as well they should be. Today the news that CVS Caremark pharmacies will no longer sell tobacco brought about quite a bit of rapid online dialogue. Even President Obama chimed-in with praise, a response that some in the business world say is worth billions for CVS. Having a good reputation, particularly when you’re in the business of delivering health care and lending health advice, seems essential. In my mind we should praise and celebrate what […]

I’m big on creating traditions. Wish I had more of them, actually. If Halloween was a day to make resolutions, I would pledge to increase my family traditions. But I’m mixing holidays like metaphors… Children thrive when expectations are fulfilled (think routine, routine, routine); and traditions can be cement in the routine mold. There is something lovely about repeating an activity to mark the importance of a particular day or particular time of year. I mean, this is what birthday […]

Over the weekend we saw the movie, Inside Out, with our boys. After reading previews of the film, I expected to be moved and somewhat thrilled by the look at mental health and emotions. But I walked away with a somewhat unexpected emotion: motivation. Motivation for presence and for patience with my little boys. To me, the movie felt like a whisper, a gentle reminder in my ears to the power of each and every early experience our children take in. […]

This is my Father-in-Law. He’s turning 75 this year. He’s a smart, earnest man. I learn from him every time I have the luxury to see him. It’s not just the little things he says, the wisdom he imparts, the places and spaces we disagree, or  the way he parents the husband. More, it’s the way he lives his life. I was in the back of the boat last week while he skied around a deep lake in Wisconsin. Picture […]

Big news published today in Pediatrics; a new study reports that adolescents who vape are 6 TIMES more likely to smoke cigarettes in early adulthood. Researchers studied 11th and 12th graders during the transition from being US minors to legal adults when they have the right to buy traditional cigarettes (age 18 years) to see the effect using e-cigs had on smoking traditional, combustible tobacco cigarettes. It’s known that if you’re friends use e-cigs you’re more likely to use and it’s known that […]

There are ways to support picky eaters and children who refuse new foods. I’m back with Dr. Dolezal further discussing feeding challenges for children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). The first post explored why children with Autism have challenges with eating (almost 90% do). I often say that a typically developing child will not starve with a full refrigerator, but this advice just doesn’t hold up with ASD children. I love Ellyn Satter’s advice and mission in helping adults and children […]

I had an unexpected gift this week: a not-so-sick sick day with my 5 year-old. And it really couldn’t have come at a better time. We’ve never had a sick day like this before and he’s off to Kindergarten in September so the days were running out for preschool stolen-away sick leave. In the past when he’s been ill he’s been well enough for me to head off to clinic or work and he’s been home with my mom or […]

Rounding off the summer with a somewhat obvious reminder to let our children play. This, as we bolster ourselves for the onslaught of the school year. Play remains an essential element of childhood and is good for children (of any age). Eating-vegetables-good-for-them but a lot more fun. Summer has been a gorgeous reminder for me in how much joy I feel when my children roam and play and react and delight. I mean clutch-my-chest moments in just watching them tool […]

Influenza virus causes “the flu.” It’s a crummy cold that spreads easily causing high fever, body aches, runny nose, terrible cough, and rarely it can cause vomiting and diarrhea, too. The flu isn’t the “stomach flu.” It’s deadlier than that. It’s more dangerous for babies and young children, and for the elderly. It’s also particularly dangerous for those with asthma, diabetes, and people with neurologic or immune problems. This post is a bit of a plea: people are dying from […]

It’s the time of year for seasonal allergies. It’s also still, unfortunately, the time of year for “colds.” Although it may be intuitive for many parents to decipher the causes of symptoms in their child during the month of May, some of us have a hard time determining what’s causing our children to wipe their nose! In general, it’s time unfolding that helps us know if our children are beginning to suffer from allergies as opposed to another cold. If […]

It’s a snow day. Snow day is a word combination in the English language that has two meanings, divergent and separately defined only by age. To a 5 year old–“snow day” sounds a little bit like “Nir-va-na”–a day that is one of life’s greatest gifts. To a 37 year-old with a few jobs, it sounds a little bit more like “stresssssss.” Snow days, of course, often leave us without child care, without a school system, and without a back-up plan. And […]

It’s been a relief to realize that there is great online content for my 6 year-old. He still doesn’t use the computer (outside of school). The main reason, I’ve not been in a rush to enmesh him in technology. It’s clear he’ll catch on fast when it becomes important to him. Previously when reading up about apps and games, I always felt like nothing suited his timid-conflict-averse mentality. So when we found a couple beautiful apps last night, I was […]

Happy July. In Seattle that usually means that summer is soon to arrive. For the rest of the US, I know, it has already begun. Ever since last week though, I have thought about July differently. I was midway through this post last Friday when I was forced to abandon it. Overwhelmed by the article I read, I wrote about sighing. I’ve now taken a big sigh… But this information has not left me. Today, we enter July, the month […]

On Sunday night I left the house for a quick run. It was 9:20pm. It’s been years since I ran in the dark and likely a decade or more since running at night made any sense in my life. As every parent knows, we’re jailed in our houses around 8pm when the kids go to bed — if exercise hadn’t yet happened it gets pushed off until “tomorrow.” Sunday night the Fitbit was 100% of the driving force behind me […]

Justin Bieber was arrested early this morning in Florida for a DUI. The smirk on his face is a bit misplaced. While it’s no longer a surprise when we hear about a celebrity’s challenge with drugs and alcohol, Bieber serves up a perfect moment for education. I mean this kid (he’s 19 years old) really could have killed himself last night. Thank goodness he’s only in jail. You got Bieber Fever in your house? Now’s the moment to step in. […]

My take on teething & fever in the above video. What is your baby’s favorite thing to chew on? Do you have any advice for parents with teething babies? And, do you disagree with the data–do you think your baby has/had fever from teething? More information on FDA recalls: Why I say No Teething Tablets & Some Truths about Teething FDA’s Teething Tablet Recall  FDA Drug Safety Communication: Adverse Effects Associated with OTC Numbing Gels and Liquids

Gratitude — appreciating the positive aspects of life — may not be an innate, spontaneous daily emotion to you or your children.  Rather, appreciating what we have is a skill we cultivate, practice, and maintain. There is research that shows gratitude is far more than just a touchy-feely pop-psych term. In fact, people who practice gratitude have less anxiety and depression, better sleep, decreased levels of stress, better outlooks on life and kinder behavior.  Sign me up! Gratitude is the emotion […]

I began the Seattle Mama Doc blog in 2009 as the first-ever, solely pediatrician authored blog on behalf of a children’s hospital. After nearly a decade of blogging, some 800 posts and hundreds of hundreds of videos and podcasts, it is bittersweet for me to announce that this is the end for the Seattle Mama Doc podcast and blog.

Yesterday morning there was a public Freudian slip. It was perfect. During an interview on the Today Show about “hot button” health issues the team addressed concerns about myths related to the causes of autism. Autism spectrum disorder, now estimated in 1 of 68 children, is a brain condition causing challenges with how children communicate, behave and relate with others. Autism spectrum disorder is thought to be caused by a mix of genetic risk, potentially starting inutero, and potentially influenced by […]

A new observational study illuminates some ugly truths about parental/caregiver use of cell phones and smartphones at the dinner table. More than anything else, the observations serve up a hearty reminder that cell phones are embedded into our lives (see my son’s “Lego iPhone” as case in point) and that we have to be diligent in making digital breaks a habit. As phones and devices get more useful, they become harder and harder from which to separate. Reading the new study […]

So what about kids and chores? My take is that it’s personal. But also I’ll hint that I think chores are a great opportunity to build community and citizenship. Research has found great lifelong reward from doing childhood chores (think: less drug use, higher self-esteem, more sound relationships, beginning a career path, less anxiety, etc). I mean with those findings, sign me up! But it’s possible not everyone agrees and research may not be what sways you. It may be […]

It’s that time of year again. The season of snot and mucus and colds….if you’re a parent you may even call this “sick season.” Typical cold viruses are getting readily exchanged as recirculated air in crowded malls, classrooms and daycares facilitate exchange of the germs. It’s more than inevitable that one of your kids will come down with something. Those 6-10 colds that children get on average, every year, have arrived which means there’s a good chance you’ll be up late one […]

My husband is often in earshot when people probe, “I don’t know how you do it all with your family and your career.” In asking the question there is doubt, of course, that it’s possible. My husband is never the recipient of the same question regardless of the facts: we both have intense, high-demanding careers in medicine as physician leaders. Reality is, there may be little different in our level of responsibility, time commitments, and our opportunity to improve pediatric health care […]

You don’t need much to play a duet if you know a piano player. Although my boys don’t play piano, I was reminded this weekend how children really sponge-up opportunity. They’ll try most anything and catch on faster than we do. After we finished a delivery to my mom, our 6 year-old sat down at her piano. A few minutes later he was playing a Chopsticks duet, my mom providing the accompaniment. Count to 6 and have 2 fingers– it’s possible. Perhaps he […]

One Google search can sometimes change everything. After learning something new about our child’s health or condition, especially for worried parents and caregivers, leveraging online search as a resource in diagnosis, clarification and education is typical behavior. Searching out support, camaraderie and tips online just makes sense. In fact, 2013 data from the Pew Research Center finds that 1 in 3 Americans goes online to search for information and support in finding a diagnosis. If you’re a woman, college-educated, or younger (under […]

Wendy Sue Swanson, a pediatrician with Seattle Children’s Hospital, wants parents to know immunizations are safe, necessary and effective. As a mother of two boys (ages 10 and 12), she understands why parents get nervous.

We had one of each in our house: one baby that we let cry for periods of time to self-soothe and one where I simply couldn’t bear to hear the crying in quite the same way. You’d think it would have been just the same for both of our boys, but it wasn’t. Clearly I wasn’t the same parent each time around. There are many things that go into the equation of how we get our babies to sleep thought […]

Warm weather is here and summer is approaching and if mother nature is kind, we’ll have plenty of sun-filled days over the next few months to spend by the pool or at the beach. Unfortunately, this is also the time of year when drownings increase. Young children are especially high-risk because of their profound curiosity around water and lack of awareness of danger. Drownings are preventable deaths but even the thought of them spooks most of us. Often, a drowning event looks, […]

Over the past 20 years, the amount of calories consumed by children from snacks has increased by 30%. Kids eat a third more calories everyday from snacks! What kids snack on certainly can reflect how their diet is shaped and how they grow. Plain and simple: snacks make us fatter by packing in lots of calories in relatively small bits of food, the definition of “calorie dense” foods. They also discourage our eating of things like fruit and veggies because […]

I left the country, and went to a tanning bed, both for the first time while in 5th grade. I was 10 years old. Circa 1984, my parents had planned a trip to Mexico and my mom had been poorly-advised that it was a good idea to have my brother and me ready with a “base tan” prior to travel to prevent sunburn. This was unlikely to have come from a doctor, but who knows. It was the 80′s after […]

Many parents worry about their child’s development at one point in time. With each of my boys, I had worries about their communication and thought their language delays or behaviors signaled something serious. That might just be the “worrier” in me, but it might just be the “mom” in me, too. Competitive parenting makes us all a little nuts… Here’s a few signs that your child is developing great communication skills on time. However, if at any time you worry […]

Exam room 3. Me at the computer, a 16 year old patient sitting on the exam table. We’re discussing her starting oral contraceptive pills for birth control. After her exam and a lengthy discussion, we talk about the pink ones, the white ones, the row of green ones, the ring, the depo shot, and the patch. I’m reminded of my mentors in pediatric gynecology who taught me that if you choose birth control that a girl is interested in trying […]

The 2nd recreational pot store opened in Washington State recently while store #3 opens later this week. Pace will quicken with several more stores expected to open by year-end. This puts parents and pediatricians in our state in a unique situation (shared only with Colorado) as we’re tasked to explain to children and teens the dangers of legalized drugs used by adults. However, the complexity extends even to those of us with young children. Growing concern (and evidence) finds accidental ingestion of […]

More than a million people go indoor tanning every day and research says the average city has more tanning salons than they do Starbucks or McDonalds (I’m wondering about Seattle though since coffee shops truly dot every block). I’m also guessing the tanning industry is somewhat seasonal; if we did the research on which week people go tanning, we’d find a bump during winter break, yes? The pre-vacation tan is often used as a handy excuse for hitting the indoor tanning salon this […]

Evan is 4 ½.  His mom is a pediatrician.  So is his dad.  His mom and I were sharing stories of feeling like inept parents in the face of trying to help families with behavioral problems.  It’s hard to do what we say, and frankly, hard to master this whole parenting thing.  Does anyone? We were having coffee, trying to get some work done when we downshift to talk about pee.

Is it partly our responsibility, as parents, to ensure our kids are in an immunized, safe environment? Maybe so. Unsurprisingly, most parents want to make sure their children attend a school or daycare with children up-to-date on immunizations. This week is National Influenza Vaccination Week and provides a hearty reminder. Established by the CDC in 2005, it began as a way to raise vaccination rates during the month of December. Vaccinations historically tend to drop at the end of November (we get busy, […]

This week, Paramount released a new animated film entitled Rango. A film full of reptiles with cowboy-type roles, strong voices and adult choices. It’s an animated film marketed to and geared for kids and families. It’s rated PG. In the television trailer I saw last night, they specifically dubbed it a “family movie.” The movie had a great opening weekend, it turns out, but not without some controversy. The film is full of tobacco imagery, where many characters use and […]

No photo for this post. You can imagine why. I’m a little stunned by the news that a politician in Florida is trying to stifle pediatricians from asking questions about guns in the home. My reaction is utterly predictable. Should I YELL IT or write it down or leave it up to your genius (and imagination)? (silence) The Skinny on the Florida Proposal: Florida Rep. Jason Brodeur said “he has heard about a number of cases in which doctors asked […]

After I saw reports of the 5-fold increase in CT scans in children, I asked for “The Husband’s” take. I worry about a rise in the use of pediatric CT scans in the US because when a child gets scanned, they are being exposed to radiation. A CT scan is a series of x-rays taken in quick succession that form a more composite view of the body. Although x-rays and CT scans save lives and improve diagnosis, the radiation given […]

Like the makings of a Hollywood movie, I learned this week that there were an estimated 200,000 people in Super Bowl Village this past weekend in Indiana. Amongst them on February 4th, was one (or maybe two) child with infectious measles. Fortunately, the child didn’t attend the game. Yet, measles is highly contagious. The period of infectivity starts before symptoms in some cases and usually 4-5 days before the typical rash, when many think they have just a bad cold. Measles is […]

Summer vacation has just started and it feels like the mild 2015-2016 flu season just ended. Here we are already hearing about new recommendations for the 2016-2017 season. Big news in the media today about flu vaccine: recommendations to only offer the shot (and no nasal flu spray) to improve children’s and public protection from the vaccine. Hundreds of children in the US die each year from influenza. We know the best way to protect against complications from influenza is […]

While I’m talking about the red/orange/yellow rainbow spectrum used on food packaging to lure you into eating more, let me mention one great new study published today that may change your world. Especially if you have a child living in your house. If you acknowledge the finding that about 1 out of every 4 children between the age of 4- 8 years old eats fast-food on a typical day, this has relevance to at least about 1/4 of us. Today! […]

I’ve been struck by the death of Elizabeth Edwards. I keep coming back to thoughts about her. Like most Americans, on Monday I learned she was advancing to hospice care. After a long day in clinic on Tuesday, spent, I listened to NPR in the car on my commute home. It was dumping rain in Seattle, it was dark, the cars were moving slowly. NPR announced she’d passed away. What? Pause. Swallow. Take a right turn at the light… I […]

Every once and a while I make the right choice. I mean when it comes to work and life and striving for balance. Sometimes I say “No” just when I should. Those “No’s” gain access to the best “Yes’s” in life. Last week at the end of a series of 3 weekends of work, I was finishing up a conference and decided at the last minute to decline the dinner with peers. I felt pressure to go but just couldn’t […]

I’ve had some recent indiscretions; I’ve been watching multiple episodes (near seasons) of Weeds and Mad Men on my computer. All in one sitting. It’s been a a perfect retreat. While others are off camping in the mountains, I’ve been holed up, late at night staring at a screen. I’m not a big TV person, but watching the torrid lives of fictional families is good for some little piece of me. Because of my recent over-consumption, I’ve been a little […]

Strong evidence continues for babies getting peanuts before a year of age. Now, more than ever, I believe parents to babies at risk for allergies need to pay close attention during the first 6 months. Although the pendulum has swung about how, when and why to introduce peanuts to babies over the past years, more and more experts agree. There are 3 categories and 3 specific recommendations for babies. Babies at risk for allergies should get peanuts by 4 to 6 […]

And now for something a little different….We want to animate your child’s BPOD (Best Part of Day). Send us a short recording of your child talking about their BPOD and we’ll bring their experience to life in an animated video (see video above)! We’ll never disclose their name or age, just share their journey and insight through their words. Email your recording to my Seattle Mama Doc email (seattlemamadoc@seattlechildrens.org) by Feb 26, and we’ll select 5-10 recordings to animate and share the first […]

The husband just took the training wheels off of F’s bike this morning. Mind you, F never really needed the training wheels as he’d already learned how to balance on two wheels with his “balance bike” as a toddler. But this morning, as sun cast gorgeous light over Seattle, we realized there were 2 days left of summer here in the Pacific Northwest. So, my dear husband proclaimed it was time. Thing is, the training wheels have been on for […]

Asking friends about guns is like asking about their underwear. Not in the pediatric office, but at home, on the street, and in the neighborhood. Hear me out… My next-door-neighbor (NDN) is a stay at home dad (SAHD). On most days, he runs his household and wrangles 8 and 6-year-old boys until his wife joins him after work. The three (or four) of them seem to weave and pedal through life, on and off their bikes. I can see them […]

When it comes to food allergies, expert parents are uniquely-positioned educators. They know the tricks of the trade and the ways to the oasis of safety in a culture that has yet to fully embrace supporting children with unique medical needs. Over the years in practice, it’s parent-food-allergy-experts that have taught me the greatest new lessons I now pass on routinely to patients. Marrying the life-threatening nature of food allergy to the concepts of strict avoidance to the use of medication to treat anaphylaxis will […]

Exercise got thrown out the window for me in a routine way after my boys were born. It wasn’t a lack of interest, just a lack of organization of our time. Just now, as my boys get older and more independent, I’m integrating regular exercise back into my life. My experience with malignant melanoma this past year also was a big nudge. Seeing a glimpse of mortality does implore you to stay alive. That’s why the 7-minute workout saves me. It’s the first no-excuse-not-to […]

Antibiotic resistance is like global warming; it feels like it’s someone else’s problem to solve and much bigger than all of us. Yet the simple choices we make – whether or not to use antibiotics and which ones we pick – do affect us and our community. ~Dr Matthew Kronman This week is Get SMART About Antibiotics Week, aimed at raising awareness of antibiotic resistance and the importance of appropriate use. Dr Kronman’s “inconvenient truth” reminder serves up the importance of […]

1 “Daddy!” This from O when I say (and coach him), “Say, Mommy, O. Say, Mommeeeee.” Every time I walk in the door, same thing, “Daddddddeeeeeee!” He likes getting a rise out of me. Lovely little rug rat. Then F starts the day today clearing up what we call each other, “O calls you Daddy, I call you Mommy.”  True. 2 “Toddler Doula, where do I find one?” The husband said this to me after his cup of coffee on […]

Nothing better than watching our children sleep peacefully. Independent of our circumstance there is nothing more settling, or prettier, than a child at peace. A day of happiness and good health or one where a child has battled pain or a fever, one filled with challenges at school or one where we’ve simply had a bad day at work. Doesn’t really matter what’s stirring or what’s not, there is something precious we all discover once we become parents–we can stare […]

You want navel gazing? Read a Blog-ter-view of my experience working in social media and medicine.

This is a little trick I use to help coach anxious children whose minds just seems to “spin.” Patients have given me great feedback over the years that “blowing colors” really helps. Sometimes it’s for children and teens who can’t drift off to sleep, sometimes for those who are worriers, and sometimes for those who get anxious or overwhelmed at school. Blowing colors is a great exercise to return to regular belly breathing patterns, buy time and space for mindfulness, […]

We were on the waitlist for swim lessons for over a year. Once off the list, F went in for the first lesson (pictured here) jumped in, did a great job, and then refused to ever go back in again. We went every week, twice a week, sat on the pool deck, and watched his peers swim. We waited. We watched. He often tantrumed. Parents stared. Friends commiserated. My mom tried to tell me what to do. But then for […]

This past weekend I had 48 hours alone. I mean really, f-o-r-t-y-e-i-g-h-t hours with no commitments. No one expecting me home, zero rushing, zero obligations, and no racing home. I did things I haven’t done, well, ever. I went to a movie alone, woke up and read a magazine cover-to-cover, went for a couple runs, sat on a hill at the sculpture museum for just shy of 2 hours without my phone in my hand. I spent time just letting my […]

This is a guest blog from Emily Kramer-Golinkoff. I was lucky enough to meet her about a year ago & even luckier that she asked me to help her make a big impact with her final thesis for her Masters in Bioethics. Her story, insight, and strength are worth your time. She’s hoping to leave a big mark in understanding how to leverage the asset of empowered patients to advance science and healing. She’s working to integrate patient communities more intimately in […]

Research shows that about 1 in every 5 pediatric visits for “sick visits” results in an antibiotic prescription. Now not all of those antibiotics are taken; many pediatricians now use the Rx pad for “wait and see” or “delayed prescribing” antibiotics. They give a prescription and allow the family to watch and wait — if a child is not getting better, they advise parents to start taking them. However, in total there are nearly 50 million antibiotic prescriptions written annually […]

Parents debating sleep training can rest (literally and figuratively) easy. New data out today in Pediatrics found that letting babies cry-it-out (CIO) or self-soothe does not increase signs of stress compared with babies who don’t. The study out of Australia tested two sleep training methods: “graduated extinction” (parents leave and return at increasing intervals of time, AKA one version of CIO) and “bedtime fading” where parents shifted bedtimes based on how long it took babies and young toddlers to fall asleep. […]

Getting your baby to sleep through the night is a major milestone for baby and for you. If I had to distill down the best sleep advice I’ve ever heard it would be these 4 things: Your consistency with the sleep routine is far more important than what method you choose to help get your baby to sleep. The ritual at bedtime (reading, bath, rocking, etc) is one of the most important daily activities you establish for your child from day […]

We do have to pick our battles at home. As a pediatrician I’ve never gotten too excited about advising parents to spend a lot of energy trying to rid your child of the thumb-sucking or nail biting habit. In general parents aren’t successful — peers are. Often it’s when friends or peers bring the habits up that children are motivated to stop. We can help support them by reminding them when hands are in their mouth or even having them place […]

I can’t stop thinking about this tweet thread. I think it may be one of the most precious threads on Twitter. Hopefully that’s saying something since I’ve been plugging along, almost daily, on Twitter since 2009. Here’s my experience with it…I’m sure you have your own and I’d love to hear about it in the comments if you’d be willing to share: Yesterday, I woke early with insomnia around 4am-something in the morning. Instead of doing what I should have, […]

A Pediatrics study this past week starts out stating that, “Upper respiratory infections (URIs) are the most common acute illness in the world.” Wowza, that seems like a show stopper right there. But it’s true, anyone who works with kids or has kids or knows kids (let’s be honest) also knows that winter brings snot to little noses. And lots of it. I really believe that snot and mucus are a part of being a kid in the wintertime. Kids […]

As we transition to summertime we get to focus even more intently on play. Not as easy as it sounds. There’s a balance with having a routine and structure for your child while also facilitating some time for creative play. Unstructured play doesn’t get the voice it deserves in my opinion. Parents ask me about the camps I’ve signed up for far more than they ask what downtime my children will get this summer. In my mind, the perfect summer […]

I’ve been quiet. Two reasons: we’ve been sick in our house and I didn’t like the posts I’d written. It’s sunny in Seattle today.  This changes everything for those of us who inhabit this part of the globe.  It is goodness.  I’m finally feeling more than just battery powered.  So I’ll be speaking up again. I also got some sleep last night.  All parents know how good this is after days of not having it.  It’s a zebra in the […]

I love it when I forget my phone. Especially if I’m with the boys. But I admit it’s gotten more complicated for most of us to leave the phone at home. It’s harder and harder to function without our online resources and phone connection to those we love. Watch the 2-minute video and read the 3 tips for making unplugging a weekly habit (below). The Pew Research Center confirms that more than 9 out of 10 adults in the US […]

We learn so much from our children. How to slow down, how to speed up, how not to behave. How to be present, mindful, and attentive to immediate needs. I’m not always entirely mindful and I certainly find myself easily distracted–it’s not just the phone I need to put down. Yet one low moment of distraction came to light late last summer when my 4 year-old literally put his body between my phone and my face to get my attention. […]

It’s Flu “shot” season but thankfully not every vaccine hurts going in. This year your child may be offered either the “flu shot” or the flu nasal spray vaccine (ouchless!). This year most nurses and docs will encourage young children to get a nasal flu spray over the shot as recent data has found the nasal flu vaccine protects younger children better. Every year the flu vaccine is created to protect against influenza viruses predicted to spread and circulate in North America. […]

On Saturday, the FDA released a recall of Hyland’s teething tablets. The recall stems from concerns for increased and varying amounts of belladonna, a toxic substance that could cause serious systemic effects to babies. It’s unclear how much belladonna is found in these tablets normally although it is well known it’s in them. Recently, infants have developed symptoms consistent with belladonna toxicity after using the tablets (change in consciousness, constipation, skin flushing, dry mouth). Homeopathic supplements and medications are unregulated […]

Twenty Ten, Two Thousand Ten. However you say it, we have arrived. Welcome back to school days. The rigor of productivity. We had the tantrum of the century this AM at our house which we’ve decided to include in our new in-home, Swanson special list of “mega-tantrums.” In medicine, mega is inserted into terminology as if to clarify like in, “mega meatus.” Translation: a big meatus. Re-entry to real life is mega-tough stuff. In the hope that we can continue […]

Typically, teen girls do not need a pelvic exam until they are 21. Most parents are surprised to hear this, especially if they know their teen is sexually active. About 1/2 of teen girls are sexually active during high school which puts them at risk for sexually transmitted infections (STI) and unwanted pregnancy. However, for routine prevention and care, girls rarely need an internal pelvic or speculum exam during high school. The American College of of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) published a […]

I’m happy about a new pile of paperwork coming my way. To be clear, I’ve never said this before. But I’m serious. Instead of stewing controversy, I suspect a new bill around here could open up lines of communication. I’m not living under a rock; I understand that some feel this new bill requiring signatures for vaccine exemption is heavy handed. I wholeheartedly disagree. Yesterday Governor Gregoire signed a new bill into law that will demand families talk with a […]

My mom starts chemotherapy tomorrow. It feels like my two feet are reaching to stand in four separate corners. Doctor, Daughter, Mom and Wife. Four corners. Except nothing about the sky looks like Utah right now. I’m caught in the middle of a generational sandwich. I’ve started to understand that taking care of those older than me and those younger than me (while, at the same time, attempting to tend to myself) may define adulthood. This week I awoke to […]

I’ve been traveling for a week. Please forgive the silences here. As you can imagine, I’ve been making lots of noise elsewhere. Since I left my little boys and husband early morning last Friday, I’ve been at the AAP national meeting in Boston where I met with many friends and peers, gave a talk at a big conference at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN, had the honor to participate in the Mayo Clinic Center For Social Media board meeting, and […]

That’s no typo. I meant Stammina. Dr Stanley Stamm is retiring this month after a 57 year clinical practice at Seattle Children’s. F-i-f-t-y-s-e-v-e-n year career. His wonderful nurse, Marlene, is retiring, as well. They have been caring for children together for decades. Yesterday I had the privilege to attend one of their retirement parties. Lovely, inspiring, humbling. I was silenced by it all; I was among giants. Working in medicine has granted me a unique window to witness exceptionally compassionate […]

Over the past few weeks I’ve had ample opportunity to be on the other side. Not like some parents with chronically ill children or those with children who have suffered tragic illness. No, not like that; I am fortunate that hospitals aren’t a part of my family’s everyday (except for work). My children have had amazing fortune and I remain in awe of good health. Lately though, we’ve had some stumbles. Literally. O broke his leg a week ago after […]

Today while I was waiting for an elevator in downtown Seattle, a man whisked in front of me and another women to get in the elevator.  The woman had on a fancy coat and red, powdery lipstick. She stopped me as I was getting in and said, “Oh, it’s going down.” I stopped and waited and thanked her for alerting me to getting on the wrong elevator. I liked her. It didn’t really faze me that the man had pushed […]

I’ve got 2 boys under the age of 5. While reading a Pediatrics article just now my stomach flipped. It’s because I read: Children younger than 5 years, especially boys, are at greatest risk from drowning in swimming pools. The words startled me as pediatrician but as Mama, too. Three thousand children under the age of 5 were treated in the ER each year between 2006-2008 for injuries associated with submersions. Private pools were the riskiest pools of all. Over […]

If you’re a parent to a child on the autism spectrum, take some comfort in knowing that up to about 90% of children with autism struggle with significant eating challenges. You are NOT alone in this. The challenges can range from picky eating to dependence upon PediaSure or g-tube for caloric intake. We know that children thrive in an expected world. But children with autism can take that to the margin where a preoccupation with sameness can drive them to […]

We surfaced the other day, my husband and me. Bobbed up after having been submerged in the challenges and complexities of stress, tantrums, hectic schedules, holiday crunch time, and career responsibilities. When we surfaced we found ourselves in one of the most luxurious moments of life. It was one of those spells I want to compound. More than just burning it on my brain, I want to relive that memory again and again. I want to hit play and repeat…I […]

There is a lot of writing online about how to get your baby to sleep through the night during infancy but not as much expertise to help those of us with toddlers and preschoolers who wake a number of times. Between age 2 and 3 when O was released from crib jail and moved to a big bed, he’d come to find me a couple of times a night. I’d often awake (and startle) to find him standing next to […]

Separation anxiety varies WIDELY between children. Some babies become hysterical when Mom is out of sight for a very short time, while other children seem to demonstrate ongoing anxiety at separations during infancy, toddlerhood, and preschool. I’ve got one of each in my home. The trick for surviving separation anxiety demands preparation, brisk transitions, and the evolution of time. I would suggest we parents suffer as much as our children do when we leave. Even though we are often reminded […]

This is a follow up post to my recent post on treating head lice. It’s all just a major inconvenience. And worse than having lice is having lice again and again. And even worse than your child getting re-infested may be treating lice with an ineffective therapy. Enter…..”super lice.” Ewwwww. Although please know that their name exceeds their actual scariness. These lice are only different (aka “super”) in that some lice may have developed gene mutations that indicate they are developing […]

A study published today in The New England Journal of Medicine evaluated the duration of protection against whooping cough after children get the DTaP shot.  Researchers wanted to find out how long the shot lasts. DTaP shots are given to infants, toddlers, and kindergarteners (schedule below) to protect them from three infections (Diptheria, Tetanus, and Pertussis –whooping cough). After these childhood vaccines, we give a “booster” shot at age 11. Because we know that many babies who get whooping cough are […]

You’ve likely seen the Jimmy Kimmel “public service announcement” on vaccines. Over 3 1/2 million people have viewed it on Youtube so if you’re not yet one of them you’ll likely add to the tally now. The first 3 minutes of the monologue are spot-on and they’re also very funny. Jimmy takes a stand against the “anti-vaxxers.” He mentions that some parents are more scared of “gluten than small pox” and references the reality that some schools in this country have […]

Recently, I started asking a standard question, exactly the same way, to children during their 3 to 10 year old check-ups. This wasn’t premeditated. Like all physicians, I go through phases of what I ask kids to elicit their experiences and beliefs, listen to their language and observe their development. I learn a lot about my patients from what they choose to answer. Both in their receptive language skills (how they understand me) and their expressive skills (how they speak–fluidly, […]

These earthquakes (Haiti, Chile, California, China) are freaking me out. So did reading this article. Later this month, you get to see my complete video blog of my effort to make a 3-day disaster kit, a disaster packet for my F’s preschool, my interpretation of what you need particularly for kids, and watch me ready my family for the worst of the worst. I partnered up with my friend, Dr Suzan Mazor because she’s scared, too. Meet Suzan. She’s smart […]

I was surprised by a recent clinical report on organic foods. I summarized the findings in the video. Sure, I thought organic foods didn’t offer any more nutrition (vitamins, minerals, fatty acids) than foods grown conventionally. I’d seen a large study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine evaluating research spanning 1966 to 2011 that didn’t cite evidence that foods were more nutritious or better for us, per se. But I did recognize that data was on the side of organics when it came to […]

As we approach the 4th of July, a quick reminder about injuries and ways to protect your children. Each year, preventable injuries occur in young children and teens from fireworks. Children between the age of 5 and 14 are the highest risk for firework injuries—over double the risk of the rest of us. Serious injuries occur including devastating injuries to the eyes and face. Not surprisingly, the most common injuries are burns. Even sparklers can cause serious burns; sparklers burn at […]

Podcast also available in: iTunes Google Play SoundCloud Stitcher Sleep is tied to our outlook, our mood, our performance, our safety, and our sense of stress/anxiety. We’re nicer people after we sleep and I often say that after a good night of sleep I get to be more of the mom & parent I earnestly want to be. Sleep is magical that way. Thing is, sleep has a profound effect on our perspectives and attitudes about life. In fact research […]

Widespread news coverage over the last 24 hours has heightened concerns by many parents about a severe-symptom viral infection causing respiratory illness in children, predominately in the Midwest. Over the last month there has been a dramatic up-spike in children hospitalized with severe cold symptoms and wheezing. The virus isn’t new, but its effect on children seems to be. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has confirmed tests on children both in Kansas City and Chicago pinpointing the triggering virus as […]

I was forwarded a case series that captured a bit of data about injuries in bouncy houses and inflatables. It’s not a large study (only 21 families injured in a bouncy house were interviewed) but it sheds light on 2 things. One, orthopedists worried enough about bouncy houses that they set out to determine the risk, and two, bouncy houses do pose a real risk for fractures. Their suspicion alone doesn’t confer a problem, of course. But, validate my worry? […]

Maaaaaaajor milestone in our house today. O filled up his first reward chart for potting training. Even bigger, last night just before he went to bed, O and I discussed that he only had two spaces left on the chart. Once filled, he gets a special trip to the toy store. Although seemingly unclear about the rules and benefits of the chart last night, he told me he would wait until morning to pee. Thing is, he did. He awoke […]

Helping families make decisions about their child’s health takes training, expertise, and experience. The training is standardized (medical school, residency, fellowship), and the expertise confirmed by passing board examinations and maintaining yearly CME (continuing med education). But the experience piece is ultimately unique for each physician. With each day in clinical care, patients teach, instruct, and shape how we understand wellness and illness. Through individual experiences with patients, physicians ultimately become who they are in the exam room. In medicine, […]

We’re surrounded by bacteria– literally. They live on the surface our skin and set up camp in our intestines immediately after birth. The complexity of the colonies that live there diversifies throughout our lives–many sticking around for the duration. And we’re dependent on the ka-billions of bacteria that co-exist with us to maintain our health. Without them, things can go off-kilter as bacteria really are a part of our wellness–supporting digestion and maintaining harmony on our skin. Of course, some […]

This post is written in partnership with a Seattle Children’s parent, Beverly Emerson, who wanted to give back to our efforts. She’s a mom, food marketing, and R& D executive who has been thinking about how to get healthy food choices out to children for over 2 decades. My two boys eat veggies pretty well. But that’s like saying Tuesdays are always good days. Sometimes it’s easy, sometimes it isn’t, of course because I’m raising humans on the planet and […]

Vaccine hesitancy comes in all flavors. It’s not always concerns about safety that causes children, teens, and parents to hesitate or even refuse vaccines. Sometimes it’s about pain. Or simply discomfort. Or anxiety. It’s perfectly natural, of course, to have a fear of needles. It’s rare that a child enjoys the pain of an injection (although those kids, even at young ages, are out there). Sometimes the fear and anxiety of needles really can manifest itself as a sincere phobia. […]

I just responded to a New York Times “Armchair Ethicist” chat about pediatricians who refuse patients who don’t fully immunize. I realized my comment on their site belongs here on the blog. (my comment is number 79 but also copied below). What do you think about pediatricians who refuse patients who don’t follow the AAP schedule? Do you disagree with me? Would you be more comfortable seeing a pediatrician who refused those families who chose not to immunize to protect […]

Kids already have a lot of AI friends to chat with, whether they’re asking Siri to play their favorite song or quizzing Alexa on trivia about blue whales. But one new Alexa skill is hoping to do more than just entertain the next generation.

New data published in JAMA today finds that there has been no significant change in rates of overweight/obesity overall for children between age 2 to 19 years of age since 2003. This is unfortunate news in the big fight against overweight and obesity. Conclusions from the study, “Obesity prevalence remains high and thus it is important to continue surveillance.” Obesity rates remain high at with 17% of children and more than 1/3 of adults. The good news is that there was […]

I took 24 hours offline from Friday at sundown through Saturday at sunset. I didn’t use my phone, I didn’t text, I didn’t log onto a computer, and all the while I didn’t enter a single network. I didn’t blog, tweet, Facebook, or LinkIn. I was genuinely unplugged without entering the wilderness. I was at home in Seattle devoid of my devices on my second annual digital sabbath. I went shopping for a friend’s birthday gift by myself, the quiet […]

June is a lot of things to me this year: the month I turned 40 (yipeee!), the earnest start of summer, the beginnings of an awesome USA performance in the 2014 World Cup and also National Home Safety Month. Of course it may be easy to make time to celebrate turning 40 or to watch the taped game where USA beats Ghana (go team!) but there really is one thing we should move into position numero uno. Can you make your house more museum-like, at […]

I’ve had an enormously stressful week or so. Seriously maxed out in a way I haven’t been in some time — smooooshed if you will. The reason I mention my stress is that I’ve found in the past, like this week, these stressful episodes are often peppered with moments of mindfulness that penetrate into my life and stick. Little reminders of what matters most — they seem to bubble up inconveniently, often during these times, and then form exceptional meaning […]

School violence and threats of violence are scary and seem to be happening more and more frequently, but the fortunate reality is that they remain rare.  I’m almost telling myself this like a chant — trying to keep myself centered. Because like many other parents I’ve talked to, instead of worrying about my son getting lice at school I kiss him good-bye and say a blessing for safety. Happened today again. 2015 has been hard for all of us in […]

A couple of weeks ago I read a piece entitled, “The Right Way to Bribe Your Kids to Read.” I was raised by two parents that scoffed at the idea of paying for grades and certainly never used money as incentive for habits and behaviors that were “good” for me. So I suppose like all of us, I am a product of parental molding, and therefore lean into that belief. So when I opened up the article in my hands […]

Our 5 year-old keeps forgetting to draw arms on his people at school. The lack of arms has evolved since school started in September and even came up in his parent-teacher conference recently. I found it odd– he always seems to remember that humans have arms when he draws at home. We didn’t mention it to him. And when his brother got an easel for his birthday recently, F painted this picture. Something jumped out at me. I loved it. […]

I’m becoming more of a believer in giving children probiotics. Not for everything and not for everyone; I really don’t think we should put them in the water. Probiotics, essentially live “good” bacteria we use to supplement our diet (usually Lactobacillus Acidophilus in the US), are becoming more and more available and recommended by more and more physicians. The role microbes play in our health is a hot topic. Probiotics are thought to improve intestinal health by restoring/elevating levels of  […]

On July 4th my 8 year-old little eagle walked up a tall ladder, waltzed across a platform full of teenage girls waiting to leap, and like a veteran champion approached the edge of the platform and jumped off. Arms in the air, feet forward and hardly a beat of hesitation, he took flight. What a gamer move. Next came twenty feet of free fall and a dock full of screaming enthusiasts. It all happened really fast and I think I may not […]

I spent the weekend lying around feeling like death on a cracker. And most of my mental thought other than, “Please, please go away, bug” was consumed by the question, “Which is it?” Food poisoning and a bad weekend for me or Gastroenteritis and a bad week for me, my O, my F, the husband, and my friend visiting from San Francisco Let me explain. Food poisoning is not likely to be contagious, gastroenteritis (or stomach flu) is. This phenomenon […]

A new study out today in Pediatrics reminds us that parents want information about the direct benefits shots have on their baby’s health and wellbeing. Not surprising, of course, but a good reminder for pediatricians, parents, and those who speak out on the value of vaccines to remember that primary motivation for parents in getting immunizations is to protect their child, not just protect the community. As a mom I feel the same way. As vaccination rates have decreased in […]

As Memorial Day weekend slips into the rear-view mirror, we set our sights on summertime. Often that includes a camping trip or vacation away from home. When it comes to travel, there’s a bit of data supporting how to do summertime right. The short version: plan a vacation today. Stop whatever you’re doing, take a Magic marker to the calendar and block off some time for your family. Trust me, it may make you happy. Right now. Being happy, chasing […]

I really want you to trust your child’s doctor. I really want them to trust you, too. Partnership is key to any relationship. Recently an article was published in the Archives of Internal Medicine entitled The “Top 5” Lists in Primary Care. It sounded more like a blog post than an article. In media summaries, reporters wrote about less being more. Not surprisingly, it was right up my alley. Like I’ve said many times before, in medicine, less is often more. Partnering […]

There are 5 things I took with me from my online sabbatical in August. Know, however, I didn’t do as stellar of a job staying offline as I’d hoped and the 5 things are harder to hold onto than those numbers you see me grasping right there. I’d envisioned an entire month like the family photos: unplugged, disconnected, liberated, and focused. It wasn’t entirely like that. Clinic got nuts a few times, there were minutes I was still staring at […]

Every runner who’s ever had a runner’s high knows it is one of the best sports in the world. It can be grueling and painful, yes, but the rewards we reap from running– especially once we’re in shape — pay big dividends. For those of us aging, ahem 40’s coming quick, and those of us trying to find ways to live longer, exercise is still likely the most influential thing we can do to promote the quality of our life and […]

I’m a salt-fiend. I really really love it. I’d choose a pickle over a piece of cake any day. Problem is, I’m realizing my palate for the salt lick out ba

We went out for sushi on Friday at one of those mall-type restaurants that has little pieces of sushi spinning around the perimeter of the kitchen on a conveyer belt. The gimmick is genius for families with young children. The boys were starving and urged that the sushi spot was their choice for our night out. The conveyer belt provides instantaneous food and also fulfills the need for entertainment. As any normal parent knows, that’s a recipe for perfection. More […]

There are moments that take our breath away. I’ve said before that it tends to be the things we don’t think of that takes our breath away while parenting. Warning: this post will sound as if it’s written by somebody’s mom. With the two boys I have so many of those moments, the ones so luscious that when they happen I can hardly breathe and certainly don’t see straight. When these wondrous, unexpected child utterances occur, it can feel a […]

A study about working mothers is getting a lot of buzz. The official title of the paper: Maternal Employment, Work Schedules, and Childen’s Body Mass Index. Most media summaries however are entitled something like, “Mothers Who Work Have Fat Kids.” I’m not kidding. I hate seeing studies (and media reports) like this. Not because they’re not helpful or worthy of our time, but because they examine the effect of mothers working, not mothers and fathers working, on our childrens’ health. […]

I find the back-to-school time period to be a little bit stressful (hellowwww, understatement) and perhaps even anxiety inducing. Even good transitions rack up stress. As we brace for the holiday weekend and expect the onslaught of school in earnest while September unfolds, I suggest we can decrease the stress with a bit of info. Here’s my 12-minute podcast to support you as you send your kids back to school and set them up for an awesome start. We’re all hoping […]

When you or your child has a sore throat, it can be hard to tell if it might be something that needs medical intervention, like Strep throat. Strep throat is an infection caused by group A Streptococcus (GAS). When you confirm (by throat swab in the lab) that GAS is present, your child needs 10 days of antibiotics. If the test is negative, it’s unlikely you need any Rx medical treatment! More below: Sore Throat Tonsillitis refers to tonsils that are […]

Juice is never necessary is a child’s diet. Unpopular as this is to say, juice is always an extra, add-on, treat-type part of what children should eat. High in sugar and low in nutrition, excess juice in a child’s diet is linked to poor nutrition, obesity, and dental cavities.  Although 100% juice comes from fruit, after it’s smooshed and pushed through machines to produce clear juice it’s separated from much of the health benefits (fiber) from whole fruit. Late last […]

One year ago, I published a post about hopes, dreams, and predictions for 2010. Click on that link, there’s a 7 second video worth watching. While we determined our hopes and predictions, a friend helped me determine the mathematical equation for ranking the likelihood of each coming true. We figured it went something like this: Predictions>hopes>dreams. That is, predictions are most likely to come true, dreams the least. Here’s the 2010 list of predictions from a night one year ago […]

Yesterday I started to see a number of tweets from parents and fellow pediatricians on Twitter criticizing Marissa Mayer for announcing that she’d return to work within 1-2 weeks of the delivery of her first child. First off, I’ll start with my assumptions: I’m authoring this post in the belief that Ms Mayer has access to quality health care–that is, she has the ear of a board-certified obstetrician, a board-certified pediatrician, and access to a lactation consultant as needed. My hunch is that […]

The current conversation about HPV vaccine is a perfect example that anecdotes about health are powerful. My belief: anecdotes with evidence can be more powerful. I am going to write a series of blog posts about HPV virus and HPV vaccine. Please tell me what you want to know. What questions do you have about HPV vaccine safety? What concerns do you have about HPV virus in girls and boys, women and men? What can I clarify? I plan to […]

There was a moment, just after President Obama was sworn into the office earlier this week, that I’ve been returning to in my thoughts relentlessly. He turned amidst the regal archway of The Capital and stopped. His accompanying family and tribe of lawmakers waited. He said something like, “I want to take a look one more time.” And then he looked back upon The Mall and seemed to take it all in. A few seconds, maybe 1/2 a minute or […]

Constipation is really no fun for anyone. No fun for baby or child, no fun for the parent who cleans the clogged toilet, no fun for the sister or brother who waits while someone works on solving the problem in the room next door. In general, constipation is a frustrating, sometimes embarrassing, and often chronic problem for young children. Here are a few ideas to get rid of the no-fun part and ways to protect your children, support them positively, and avoid […]

Audio is having a moment and I’m hooked. I am so thrilled to announce the launch of my Seattle Mama Doc podcast! It’s a weekly, quick, 5-15 minute show to help guide you through the joys and the complications of parenting. I’ll share what I’ve learned throughout my career in pediatrics and years of parenting my own 2 children, but also really hope to get super smart people to share what they know out to the world! The podcasts will air […]

During carpool recently I witnessed an 8-year-old realize her relevance and her sense of belonging even more than before. What a total profundity. It happened by accident and this involves J.K. Rowling… It’s my belief that getting a child to understand their import is a hope housed in almost every parent, teacher, auntie, or grandfather. When those of us, even peripherally involved in a child’s life, witness a child discovering their capacity, import, potential, and connectedness the moment can be immense. […]

Our children will never be the sole judge of our job as parents of course. We are likely our own closest and most fastidious critic. And really it’s just us (and our partners) that can truthfully reflect and evaluate how it goes as we raise our children — what our hopes were when we started on the journey of raising another and where we find ourselves. And so, however radiant the peaks and successes seem, the anxiety of our choices […]

Home is difficult to describe. At any point in our lives, home is something that has a feeling, a near tactile truth, a definitive smell. A smell that becomes so familiar, so woven into who we are, we’re unable to recognize it. Only those who enter infrequently can–they’re simply far enough away. This week I was reminded again that home has very little to do with the structures built by hand. More with the hands that hold it together. I […]

My parents were never hippies but when I detail what they’ve done with their lives most people eventually inquire if they were. This isn’t a post about how my family’s deep respect for the planet made me an awesome environmental steward. It’s Earth Day and I’m here to say I haven’t done enough. I feel I fail nearly every day in regards to my role in conserving renewable resources but I certainly didn’t lack great modeling. In fact, I’d suggest […]

So much in the news lately about measles. A bit disappointing considering we sincerely thought it was “eliminated” in 2000. As you’ve heard, in the New York City area, there have been 285 confirmed cases since their outbreak began in the fall. Mayor Bill de Blasio declared a public health emergency that would require unvaccinated individuals living in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, to receive the measles vaccine. The mayor said the city would issue violations and possibly fines of $1,000 for those […]

This is a position post where I take a stand that represents no one other than myself as a mom and a pediatrician. The reason I clarify this, is that my position is a strong one. No one wants to go up against someone like the NFL, it seems. But let me say this very clearly: It if it were my child, I’d never let them play football. No way. For my boys, the risks are too large, the sentiments […]

Laundry and dishwashing capsules & “PODS” are all the rage. Frankly, I love them. They’re less messy, take up far less space in the cabinet, and enticing to use. Throw them in the washer without a single errant drop. They’re pretty to look at, too. That’s the trouble though. These PODS and capsules look more like Halloween candy than laundry detergent. But this soap [eye candy] poses a unique and dangerous risk. The film that forms the capsule is designed […]

Distracted driving = drunk driving. All doctors in and out of primary care should be telling patients this. Oprah talks about it nearly every day. We should, too. We have the rare privilege of an often captive audience. Our patients come to us for advice. Framing distracted driving with drunk driving conveys the “Inherent Risk and implied immorality” of the situation, wrote Dr Amy Ship in today’s New England Journal of Medicine. She says, “more than 275 millionAmericans own cell […]

Last day of school this week. The backpack is nearly as big as his body; that’s no optical illusion and the body-to-backpack proportionality serves up a dutiful reminder for me that my little boy is still small. To me it feels like he’s perfectly diminutive amidst the big surroundings of his school– it’s boards and doors towering high enough to accommodate the 8th graders yet inclusive enough to welcome him gently into grade school. It’s clear that as Kindergarten lands […]

I heard about the recall of about 800,000 doses of H1N1 shots intended for children 6-35 months today. The news doesn’t scare me at all. Zilch-o. Zippo. Zero. And I scare easily. I jump in the seat in the movie theater when it’s loud or dark or someone does something scary.  Really. This recall does not affect how I will continue to encourage families to get their children immunized. This is not a recall due to safety concerns.  I strongly […]

I don’t diagnose Chickenpox often. I’ve seen patients with Chickenpox only a handful of times since I started medical school in 1998. Auspiciously, there simply haven’t been many children to serve as my teachers. Varicella virus causes Chickenpox and there’s a vaccine for that. So, like Smallpox or Polio, I’ve been forced to learn a lot about Chickenpox in textbooks. My strongest professor in the Chickenpox department is my own memory; I had Varicella between the age of 5 and 6 years. […]

You saw the TIME magazine cover in the last 24 hours, right? Me, too. In the midst of 25 patients yesterday, moms and dads weren’t really talking about it in the office. It was in my inbox. But I hear and feel and witness the anxiety/angst we all swim around in every day as we compare parenting styles and essentially swap (pacifier) spit about how best to do this. The monogram of this parenting era is the quest for perfection. […]

Getting a DUI just got easier. Driving Under The Influence of Electronics (E-DUI) is real and will cost you as Washington State gets serious about reducing deaths from car accidents caused by distraction. The reason is clear: we know distraction from cell phone use increases risks of accidents over 20-fold and we know the habit of using a device has quickly become the norm. Here’s to hoping the new law helps us think of our cars as the sanctuaries they […]

A good friend wrote a “secret, imaginary blog post” and sent it my way. I realized instantly it was a real blog post. But to protect her son and allow the imaginary (blog) to become real, she called upon her childhood and the beloved author Judy Blume, for help. She chose the pen name Veronica: Then Nancy decided we should all have secret sensational names such as Alexandra, Veronica, Kimberly, and Mavis. Nancy got to be Alexandra. I was Mavis. […]

  Last week I served lunch at my son’s school. It was a hoot, really, serving an entire K-8 school lunch. Dishing out lasagna, broccoli, pizza, and grilled cheese provided all sorts of insight into what lunch is like in 2013. My son didn’t choose exactly as I’d predict (see below). When a 33-year prospective study published today which connects childhood ADHD with adult obesity, it got me thinking we need to be more involved in how (not just what) our children […]

I returned home from the mountains yesterday. We spent the majority of the weekend in a cabin with my brother’s family, my mom, and our dog Luna. There was sunshine. A bike. Lots of little boys. And loud wind in the trees. The best kind of noise… The owners of the cabin had advertised WiFi in the cabin, so I made no preparations for my time away. I was gone Saturday noon until mid-day Monday. Not a long trip by […]

As adults, many of us take or swallow pills out of necessity to manage or prevent a chronic health condition. From a vitamin to even a life-sustaining medicine, you probably don’t hesitate or panic when swallowing the pill, even the biggies. But knowing how to swallow medicine isn’t something that just happens, often it’s a learned skill that may vary widely in regards to timing. During my education I was trained to think that once children hit double digits (age 10 years) […]

In the past I’ve hated preparing for emergencies. It made me nervous and like most people I procrastinated because I hated playing out a potential tragedy in my head. However it’s easy to say: I am really happy I made an emergency kit about 3 years ago. I really don’t regret the time or money I spent getting it done. I do think I’m less anxious now. September is Emergency Preparedness Month so hopefully in the nick of time we […]

Many parents around the U.S. are asking what to do about a possible measles exposure with a baby at home who is too young to be immunized. Should they stay home? Can they travel? Should they cancel that trip to Utah or to Vermont or even to Disney next month? Can they head out to the store without worry? Are they “safe?” I hate that I can’t completely say they are safe. Measles is wildly contagious and during an outbreak […]

It’s January, 2016. News stories have inspired significant anxiety about Zika virus. It’s a scary topic because news about the outbreaks are just unfolding and this affects an already anxious group, PREGNANT mamas and expecting families. I want to share with you real time information and data to try to alleviate anxiety and educate the best I can. I suspect with time some of this will change. I’ve curated the most common questions and answers directly from the Centers for Disease Control […]

Earlier this year there was a massive Tylenol recall. The recall included Infant Tylenol drops, Children’s Tylenol, as well as many other children’s medications. I’m not exaggerating when I say massive, but generic medications (liquid acetaminophen made by Walgreens or CVS, for example) were not included. The recall was a great reminder that generics are just as good as brand-name medications. The recall also serves as a great reminder that giving medications to children is never risk-free. Recalls like this […]

Community can mean different things to each of us. Yesterday, a 3 year old came to see me in clinic. She must have been a little nervous about the visit. When I got into the exam room, I found her accompanied by her dad, 3 baby dolls in a stroller, and 2 on her back. You see, I think she felt quite a bit safer surrounded by her community. I was charmed. But then reminded. Community is a combination of […]

Recently while on the plane, O wet his pants. Lovely really. He’d refused to pee prior to getting on the plane. Refused to pee at home. Essentially, O refused to pee “on command.” No surprise for a strong-willed-spirited just turned 3 year-old. And after he wet his pants, he then proceeded to have about 14 accidents (yes, I’m exaggerating) later that same day as we traveled to his grandparents’ home. Instead of being patient, supportive, and perfect, the husband and […]

Mama Doc Medicine shipped from online retailers over the weekend. It’s been such an exciting time to hear from colleagues and friends all over the US reading the book. Much of the book content stems from writing I’ve shared here and I remain so thankful for all those who continue to help me learn how to translate science and health information. Like every blogger on planet earth, I’m so thankful for comments on the blog. I learn a ton from […]

Today’s post is written by Dr. Alok Patel, a third-year resident at Seattle Children’s. I met him last year as he immersed himself in training. Since then we’ve been syncing up, learning together about ways he can use his voice, his teeming passion, and his media channels to improve the health of populations everywhere. He’s peppered with ideas, brimming with enthusiasm (it’s possible he speaks faster than I do) and diligently working to carve out his path as a public […]

**The American Academy of Pediatrics has updated their recommendations since this blog published in 2010. Children should ride in rear-facing car seats until they reach the height or weight limit provided by the car seat manufacturer. This is likely well past age 2. To view the new guidelines and data, click here.** 2 is the new1. This is kind of like, “brown is the new black.” But different and more important. Two is the new one. When you’re a toddler. […]

Salmonella infections affect children more frequently and more severely than adults. Although most salmonella infections arise from contaminated or undercooked food (chicken, eggs, beef, and dairy typically), reptiles, pet foods and now amphibians are an important source of infection to keep in mind for our children. Today, a new study published in Pediatrics links Salmonella infections to pet frogs here in the US. This is the first study to detail amphibians as an important source of Salmonella infections. 8 tips […]

This is a wonderful time of year. It’s also a really stressful one for many of us. Some quick reminders about ways to stay safe while bringing holiday decor into your home, traveling, while arguing with your brother about gifts, and when potentially having more alcohol around than is typical… FIRE: Be careful of lit candles and check the safety of lights you place on trees or around the outside of your home. Christmas trees are like kindling for house fires. […]

I loved a recent NYT article where Dr Eric Topol described Americans as surgically connected to their phones.  He also described the great opportunity that resides within the phones for getting and providing better health care. These phones are a part of our future and can be exceptional partners in measuring and preserving our wellness. These mobile devices and apps will increasingly put the patient at the center of their own care. Dr Bryan Vartabedian summarized Dr Topol’s book and […]

If you haven’t been able to follow us this week, you’re coming in at a great time as we’re in the middle of a 5 Days of Mindfulness series with Dr. Hilary Mead. The guided meditation below is a paired guide for your mind and your body with movement, meaning you’ll not only be moving your body but you’ll be more conscious about how you’re doing that. This practice was originally developed by John Kabat-Zinn, but Dr. Mead added a twist […]

On Saturday evening, the newest member of the royal family was introduced to the world. Princess Charlotte Elizabeth Diana made her public debut at 6:12 PM Saturday evening, a mere 10 hours old. But what caught the attention of royal-enthusiasts and moms everywhere was new mother-of-two Kate Middleton’s appearance. That blown-out hair! That perfectly made-up face! The heels! She gave birth to a healthy, term baby girl that same day and looked as if she stepped from the cover of […]

Out for a Sunday drive. Just two little boys and the open road…

Truly, I’m distracted this Halloween. I think more than anything else, we should take the time (and money) today to donate to the Red Cross. Then put the costumes together. The destruction and suffering from hurricane-storm Sandy are at the forefront of our thoughts as families. For some communities, Halloween is postponed or delayed. It’s just a holiday, of course, but a big one for our children. It’s one holiday where children take center stage and create lasting memories. So I […]

Dr Stephen Ludwig, one of my most treasured mentors from medical school gave a speech last year that he entitled, “Striving For Polygamy.”  I didn’t get to hear it live but I’ve read the speech many times since then. He wasn’t talking about polygamy like you’d expect. Rather, he spoke to the goal of balancing a set of  marriages described by the poet David Whyte in his book, The Three Marriages. The goal for all of us might be balancing 3 essential marriages […]

Recent heartbreaking news reported about a baby who died due to a medication overdose by his babysitter/nanny has me reeling. And although this is a tragic, outlier type event, it can awaken us to everyday ways to improve our children’s safety with over-the-counter medicines. The tragic story: a fussy baby was mistakenly given allergy medicine to calm him down and get him to sleep after a day of crankiness. Allegedly, the babysitter unfortunately gave an adult dose of an allergy medication. […]

Facebook changed its privacy policy for teens this week, despite work from advocacy groups and media experts against the change. On Wednesday October 16th teen privacy settings were adjusted to allow teens to share status updates and photos publicly. The change literally allows the public a window into a teen’s thoughts and photos on Facebook for the first time. Fortunately, teens can control this by opting out of public sharing. The default setting at this point for teens when joining Facebook will […]

In 2006, I entered pediatric practice. It was the same year that the Advisory Commission on Immunization Practice (ACIP) recommended to start giving 11 year-old girls the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) vaccine. Therefore, I’ve really never practiced pediatrics (outside of my training) without the ability to offer up immunization and protection against HPV virus; I’ve been discussing this for about 6 years. We now give HPV shots to both boys and girls because it’s so common–about 50% of all adults […]

Valentine’s Day this weekend….Even if you think it’s a card-store holiday chances are your children LOVE it. So power on Super Mama & Super Papa and learn something that makes it worth it. The American Dental Association declared February National Children’s Dental Health Month (I’m thinking because of the holiday and all those sugar hearts). This may have to do with candy…..but please read on even if you DON’T have a sweet tooth. Setting a good example and teaching children from an […]

Quick reminders as we tidy our lives at the beginning of the school year. With little ones and children all heading back to school, we know it’s time to buckle down and get ready for the shift in schedules and in illness that comes with onslaught of viruses that come with preschoolers and elementary-aged kids back in the classroom. Before the fall is upon us, it’s a great time to really learn how to read the drug label and learn […]

There is a lot of information (and opinion) about how to get your infant to sleep through the night. Cry it out/don’t cry it out, rocking/no rocking, co-sleeping/crib sleeping, white noise/no noise, breastfeeding or bottle-feeding. Everyone has an idea about what works. Like I said earlier, there is very little data to support one technique over another. Auspiciously, there is new data that may help us know what NOT to do. Researchers found 3 things to avoid while helping your […]

Not news that pediatricians recommend against juice. But the news this week is clearer: no juice for babies, only tiny bits for toddlers, and less than a cup a day for the rest of us. Fruit juice is widely thought of as a healthy and natural source of vitamins and hydration. And although I won’t vilify having juice in the diet of an older child, I can’t endorse it’s ever good for a child. Pediatric recommendations for juice got stricter this […]

Maybe forty is middle-age, for me it’s certainly been in the-middle-of-something. I turn 41 later this week and I must admit, my year being 40 felt slightly more rigorous than the ones that came before it. Perhaps just circumstance, but my year was peppered with rare opportunity, great loss, brilliant connection, and perspective-building change. The change and loss has been arduous in ways, each lesson feeling like just another onion layer of innocence peeled away. Hard work to love and to lose. […]

O has added some syllables to his vocabulary over the last 10 days. And they are simply delightful. Precious, really. Warning: this post sounds like it’s written by his mom. O has been embellishing his sentences with a little “eeeee” at the end of words. The Popsicle is now “cold-eeee” when he grabs it. The stove is “hot-eeee.” And when “Momm-eee” and “Dad-eee” walk in the door, it’s, “Hi-eeee!” I love it. The error, the innocence, and the experimenting. It’s […]

Things have changed over the past couple of years regarding how to care for baby teeth. Official recommendations for fluoridated toothpaste begin with the very first sighting of the very first tooth. This is news to many. What we do early in our child’s life can have lasting consequences. Some quick reminders for new parents, grandparents and anyone out there lucky enough to be hanging out with an infant. Keep their mouth delicious! 5 Things Every Parent Needs To Know […]

We’re asking so much of ourselves as parents right now, and honestly, we’re all overwhelmed. Parents are delaying all sorts of things out of necessity and care. Thing is, there are some things that shouldn’t be delayed. I wanted to provide a little information and data to back-up points on places parents shouldn’t pull back during the pandemic. Some of this is a little anti-intuitive, which I’ll explain. A quick run-down to bring this to light. 5 Things NOT To […]

The death of an Illinois patient with a vaping-related lung disease brings a new urgency to identifying those at risk of developing the dangerous illness before severe symptoms appear.

From the archives (deep in the Word files of my computer).  Take a look at this. Seems like a century ago: August 7, 2009 It happened today. Picture this: F in his airplane jammies at the breakfast table, it’s just after 8:00am, the morning race is well under way. And then, a spontaneous, not requested, perfectly placed “Please” occurs. F proclaims, “More milk in my cup, please, Mommeee.” I nearly fell over.  How wondrous a non-requested please can be…and from […]

I’ve written about sunscreen before (Protecting Children From The Sun, 10 Tips on Tanning, & the video on Protecting Infants included below). More important and than any granular, scientific detail about a sunscreen ingredient, UVA/UVB radiation, or it’s vehicle– a spray or a lotion or an ointment–is how you use it. The best sunscreen is the one that is used early and often on children. No sunscreen is waterproof and no sunscreen is play proof. For infants and toddlers, I’ve found the […]

Lemme start with the obvious chorus: COVID-19 is a mild illness in most people (about 8 out of 10) who get it. Most people who get infected will experience it like a common cold that doesn’t require medical intervention or hospitalization, their immune system will deal with it and they’ll recover. I’m not saying this for propaganda or to “stabilize” the economy. It’s just true from global surveillance thus far. In particular, our children are the least likely to suffer […]

Influenza currently has widespread activity here in Washington and fortunately the news media has really picked up the story the last couple of days. I say fortunately, because as we know more about flu in our community, the better we can work to protect our families. There’s no question clinic was full of coughs and colds yesterday! At of the end of last week, the CDC reported that 25 states in the US have widespread influenza (see above map). In addition, […]

I’ve got a new rule. And this is coming from a woman who grew up in Minnesota and who lives in Seattle. I’m stating clearly first: weather is no excuse. I’ve talked in many places on this blog about the reality that there are only a few “rights” to parenting. In my opinion, as a mom and pediatrician, the “rights” include things like getting your children immunized and properly using car/booster seats. Beyond that, the rest of the parenting is […]

Over the counter (OTC) liquid medications for children are packaged with a diverse set of various measuring tools. The dropper that comes with liquid acetaminophen (Tylenol) will look very different than the dropper that comes with liquid Vitamin D or infant multivitamins. Even more discrepant are all the various caps for medications used in older children like liquid Motrin or Benadryl. If your cabinet looks anything like mine, caps and syringes are scattered about and distant from the bottle with […]

It’s the first day of school for us today. This time of year is momentous. The photostream on Facebook this morning is striking: children in pressed shirts with clean backpacks. It’s obvious the cameraman for each photo is smiling, just so much pride… There is something clearly resonant with we adults about a clean slate, a new day, a first moment of each new grade level. We have our memories tucked neatly into our pockets (yes, I know my 1st […]

Malala, Malala, Malala – this is a historic day! A child has just won the Nobel Peace Prize! Our heroine, Malala Yousafzai, has been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. She shares the prize with Kailash Satyarthi. Children and parents everywhere on planet earth have a perfect bedtime story. The youngest ever recipient of the prize goes to a girl born and raised in Pakistan who was denied equal access to her education. I mean, really, whenever you think your child’s […]

Over the weekend I took a trapeze lesson. Like a real one — one where in a matter of minutes an instructor quickly details how to get the safety harness on, how to jump up to the bar, throw your legs over, arch your back and fly through the air. The goal is to learn (rapidly) how to accustom yourself not only to the environment and to the sport but to let go of the bar, fly through the air, and […]

Today was the Great Shake Out. My boys let me know what happened at 10:15 today at school: “the ‘ole drop, cover, and hold” said my 6 year-old. The technical instructions are “drop, cover, and hold on” but we get his drift. The numbers couldn’t have been better today 10-15-2015 for a 10:15am reminder of how important it is and how good it can feel to know what to do when an earthquake strikes. Another thing: when you’re having a […]

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Sometimes TV is really good. We pediatricians forget that every time we advise against television-viewing using restrictive language. Yup, there’s a lot of bad television. And yup, there is good evidence that TV doesn’t do your baby’s brain any good before age 2. And yes, there is also evidence that what your child watches on TV matters. Yet every once and a while, we can be reminded of the magic in beautiful cinematography. And we can feel the bonding that […]

Yesterday marked the 50th anniversary of Lyndon B Johnson’s 1964 State of the Union address where he made a proclamation to commit to end poverty in our rich nation. Nationally, there has been a huge and beautiful focus on the anniversary. Despite the political divisions and tense partisan discussions on how to proceed in poverty reduction, I heard many reports on the radio, read newspaper coverage, and saw chatter all day on social channels about where we stand. I was floored […]

Flu shots have arrived to nearly every neighborhood in the US. Frustratingly, clinics often get the doses after the retail stores (seems silly) and doses for children under age 3 may not arrive at the same time. So if you’re reading all over the planet that shots are available and your pediatrician’s office can’t offer it to you today, have patience. Children under age 3 receive immunization doses without preservative, so if a store or pharmacy advertises that they have […]

When the exam room door closes, most parents have some questions about how their child is developing or behaving. Competitive parenting abounds; everyone wants to prove or believe his or her child is above average. The he-did-what?-she’s-so-smart stories can strike fear in your heart when your child is nowhere near the same accomplishment and of similar age. These comparisons can sometimes lead to worry. A lightning bolt drove through my chest when my mom started to compare F to other […]

About 4 million sweet babies are born in the U.S. every year. And since September & October are two of the most popular months in the year for the birth of babies I’m taking a moment to share a couple of reminders for new families and those of you who support them. 1. Nursing Moms & Over The Counter (OTC) Medications: Every new parent feels a sense of overwhelm and exhaustion after welcoming a new baby. It can be especially exhausting […]

Last week, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) issued an update to their circumcision policy statement that attracted significant attention. In it, the task force clarified the previous neutral policy for boys’ circumcision. The AAP stated that research has advanced since it’s most recent report in 2005 to conclude the health benefits of circumcision outweigh the procedure risks. Like any medical test or procedure, circumcision carries both benefit and risk. With global data expanding about benefits of circumcision and protection against sexually […]

Wonder all mixed up with dread, F got a new bike over the holiday weekend. Great trepidation spun into sincere pride, it’s been a big step. For me. For F, it’s just another joy, another leap into the chapters of requisite or quintessential childhood. To F, I think this feels fresh and cool like dipping his toes into a new stream. Although I’ve seen fear in his eyes for small moments while on the bike, most of the time his […]

Constipation is really, very truly, no fun for anyone. No fun for baby or child, no fun for the parent who worries and watches and cleans the clogged toilet, and clearly nothing wonderful for the sister or brother who waits while a family supports a child in the room next door. In general, constipation is a frustrating, sometimes hugely embarrassing, and often a chronic problem for young children. In my experience, parents worry a lot about hard infant or toddler poop in […]

As you construct a schema for your summer, plot vacation time, and plan for summer camps, more than anything I think you should build in some unstructured time. Carve out hours, half, or even full days each and every week with an absent itinerary. Wide-open days inspire creativity (in us all) and allow children to stumble upon a little boredom. I would suggest boredom is a helpful tool for everyone here and there, especially our children. Just think of the […]

Here’s a response to some of the comments about the post I wrote earlier this week. As I’ve said before, I support parents feeding with breast milk and with formula. Studies like this aren’t designed to alienate parents who feed with formula. Take a listen. Here’s a post I wrote about the juggle/struggle to breastfeed while working. Ultimately, the goal of the Pediatrics study on timing of solids was to illuminate ways to improve obesity prevention. Not divide us or […]

New research on ear infections confronts a challenging conundrum: What should pediatricians do for a toddler with a real-deal ear infection? Treat with antibiotics or “watch and wait?” New research and a nice editorial published in The New England Journal of Medicine this week add to the stew of information about how to manage ear infections in young children. The new research confers benefit to using antibiotics at initial diagnosis of a true ear infection in children under age 2 […]

Media deprivation: do you think it exists? Although laughable at first glance I know I’m not the only parent who wonders if limiting screen time could change my child’s opportunity. Those of us who fiercely control screen/device time may have momentary lapses where we wonder if we’re doing things right. Even though I’m convinced there isn’t a study telling us that typically-developing children need media/apps/screen time to learn how to think and evolve into compassionate, successful, and happy adults, part […]

I really didn’t want to write a post about Tiger Mom. I didn’t want to lend credit to her media bonanza. And truthfully, I’ve been intimidated by the exceptional writing in response to her words. At first, I didn’t think I had anything unique to add. I don’t like her message (tough/conditional love, tyranny and insults, achievement=happiness) but she probably doesn’t like mine, either. I have high expectations for myself, my friends, my family, and my co-workers. I expect my […]

When Dr Wakefield interviewed on Good Morning America today, an injustice occurred. For children, I mean. And it occurred inadvertently I suspect. But I believe this injustice happens all the time when it comes to childrens’ health and wellness. What the media covers really changes how we think and feel about protecting and parenting our children. The media’s effort to inform and educate, just like that of physicians and nurses, social workers and ancillary staff, researchers and students, can get […]

It’s been a whirlwind this past week. Last week I flew to Washington D.C. as an invited speaker at the NFID Influenza News Conference at the National Press Club in Washington D.C. I joined thoughtful experts: Drs. Tom Frieden, Kathy Neuzil and Bill Schaffner to present the 2015/16 flu season recommendations and explain rationale for every-year flu vaccine. It’s an essential vaccine for children, especially as young children are at elevated risk for more serious or even deadly influenza infections. Timing auspiciously peaked interest […]

It’s 2014 and it’s a reality that you can protect a child, teen or young adult from a cancer-causing virus with a series of just three shots. About 79 million Americans are currently infected with Human Papillomavirus (HPV), a virus that can cause warts but also lead to cancer (anogenital and/or throat cancers). Most data find 14 million new people are infected with the virus every year. Most of the time, HPV enters our body and our immune system gets […]

I haven’t felt like a pro in knowing how to talk about sex with my boys. No matter that I was a middle school science teacher, I’m now a pediatrician and an ever-evolving mom of two. It’s a tough topic even for me as a “talker.” So it was a TRUE JOY and huge relief (let’s be honest) to podcast with two international pros in talking-to-girls-and-boys-in-building-up-esteem-and-confidence-and-knowledge around puberty and sex… This past month I spoke with Great Conversations co-founders, Julie Metzger and Dr. […]

Yesterday, the FDA put out a warning for parents regarding the risk of over-dose in infants receiving Vitamin D supplements. Seemingly scary, especially since nearly every infant is recommended vitamin D supplementation. But hold on a minute. As you likely know, I recommend giving 400IU (1 cc) of Vitamin D to all breast-fed and/or partially breast-fed infants every day. My blog posts about why and the research. The FDA warning really gets to the heart of a bigger issue: how […]

One thing you can do for Earth Day; a gift for your kids…

I’m thinking about the high stakes of parenting. Thing is, the more I learn about early child brain development, the more I’m astounded by the opportunity and simultaneous great responsibility it is to care for and nurture young children during their first few years. The reality is: the brain is rapidly evolving as children grow– the connections between brain cells shift and change based on experiences children have. I mean, the brain really just learns how to think as our […]

Lessening a fever in your baby or child, with multiple medicines, can be tricky. And it may not always be necessary. Many pediatricians urge avoiding “fever phobia” and allowing a fever to stick around, especially if your child is acting well. See this recent piece, “The Case For Letting Fevers Run Their Course,” by Dr. Paul Offit, an infectious disease expert on this take, the data behind it, and why fevers can sometimes help children fight infection. Lots of families […]

Thank you reader Max for your question on facebook: “Environmental and food toxins. What should we be most vigilant about? Where can we be most effective in protecting our kids?” Here is one thing you can start immediately to reduce environmental toxin exposure in your home. Many more tips to come. Environmental Working Group’s “Healthy Home Tips for Parents”‘ EPA’s Ten Tips to Protect Children from Chemical and Lead Poisoning” Please leave additional topic ideas and suggestions for the Seattle Mama Doc […]

Social media is a part of the majority of our lives. A recent poll found that nearly 80% of mothers (with children under 18) were using social media. And it turns out if you’re over the age of 11 or so and live in the United States, you may be more likely to be involved in social media than an organized sport. As adolescents work to define their identities, they are doing more and more of this “work” online. Adding […]

As 2015 gets earnestly underway, many of us are working to keep resolutions we made to better ourselves and our family as the new year continues to unfold. In case health is a part of your resolution or focus, here are a couple very quick reminders for check-ups and interactions at the doctor’s or practitioner’s office (3 tips below). I’m going to sound very much like a pediatrician here: wellness visits and check-ups add great value to preventing things. So much better than […]

I had a great trip to the grocery store today with the boys. Life has been so hectic these past few weeks, we haven’t had weekend time for a leisurely trip to the aisles of fruit and fondue. Today, we had the luxury of time, a list, and a proper plan. They weren’t hungry (and neither was I) so our stomachs didn’t drive the cart and the boys were uniquely engaged. We perused the produce area. We made peanut butter […]

Last year 180 children died in the United States from influenza infections or complications from the infection. And like many seasons before, about 80% of those children who died didn’t get a flu shot. As many pediatricians and parents remember, the influenza (“flu”) season was robust last year, coming on earlier than we expected, driving many children into serious-enough infections to require hospitalization, and causing tragedy in way too many families. Influenza is predictably unpredictable so layering protections in our […]

A new study, along with an incredible editorial, was published today in Pediatrics about the effects of watching fast-paced cartoons on the attention and working memory of 4 year-olds. It’s basically a Spongebob versus Crayola versus Caillou show-down. At least it feels that way in the media summaries today. And thus, it’s bound to hit the front pages of every parent’s windshield. First and foremost, it’s a genius study for getting the word out and attracting media attention–media love to talk about […]

> It’s time for flu shots. Winter respiratory season is on its way and, “The single best way to protect against flu is to be vaccinated every year.” Ideally your child (and you) will have had the flu shot at least 2 weeks prior to any exposure to the virus. If your infant, child, or teen hasn’t yet had their flu shot call today for an appointment. Waiting provides no added benefit and only increases the time a child is […]

I’m speaking tonight on a panel about tweens, teens, and technology and the impact it’s having on our children’s developing brains and well-being with Common Sense Media’s lead researcher, Dr. Mike Robb and University of Washington brain researcher, Dr. Pat Kuhl. The event is sold out because I think we’re all overwhelmed about the challenge of growing up digital. AND what is happening to our children. So if you haven’t registered- no worries – you can watch live on the […]

Take a peek at this KCTS video interview for a recap on the science and rationale behind the most recent blog posts. My condensed (well, kind of) thoughts about a few recent studies, an AAP statement, and the news. It’s a little like Cliff Notes for the blog. But you don’t even have to turn any pages… Links to studies discussed: Study on immunization and neuropsychological outcome Study on pesticide exposure

We survived one of the biggest tantrums of all time in June. At the Oakland, California airport check-in of all places. Did you happen to hear about it? I literally had to physically hold and restrain my son from running off into moving traffic. The tantrum caused for lots of staring and avoidance. It does feel like judgment sometimes, which only makes us feel worse. In a low moment, I explained to my 3 year-old that he was acting like […]

For practicing physicians, there’s a tricky balance in believing that the internet can help save lives. I’m a doctor who encourages families to look up health info online and one who believes technology will afford improved partnerships. Yet, when we’re in the old-fashioned exam room, there isn’t always a place for the internet. Many clinics block video-streaming sites and don’t allow for traditional email exchanges between clinicians and patients. It’s hard to “send” patients information discussed during the visit. In the […]

I’m curious what you think. Do you think companies that make, sell, and market soda can improve the challenges we face with obesity? I’m asking sincerely. I was struck by the Coca-Cola ad (below) recently released. I’m a pediatrician and I’ve never worked for a beverage company or any company that sells products to children. I don’t like that these companies market salty, fatty, sugary products to children. As a pediatrician, I would suggest I’m very biased. The food industry […]

To the owner of the two black poodles who bit my husband last Saturday early morning while running at Magnuson park, this is for you. But also for all of us as a reminder to something I know both from the medical data and from life experience too well: all dogs bite. Even when an owner assures you they don’t or won’t. For many, having a dog isn’t just having a pet, they are clearly part of our families. We invest, […]

Working-mom-struggle bubbling up. Work life balance. Feels like I’m sitting in a circle; there’s no corners to hide out in. Problem is, this circular spot happens about every 7 days. It’s Thursdays I’m talking about. This Thursday I was away from home for 14 hours. I left for a talk before the boys awoke, and arrived home well after bed time. During those 14 hours, I was able to hear an incredible talk by Perri Klass on reading & advocacy […]

I can’t stop thinking about a drive-thru. Not the one for burgers and shakes but the one for ear checks, sports forms, quick med refill visits or a lingering rash. For those things you just want to know fast or need done now, but don’t want to spend 2 hours resolving. For those things that really make you worry as a parent. Instead of the millisecond-mall-type clinic, we all want our doctors, our clinics, and our child’s team to provide […]

Turns out that in clinical practice I’ve learned that it’s okay to acknowledge that some children are simply harder to parent than others. From what I can tell it’s really true. Often those parents struggling with children with behavioral challenges blame themselves more than is necessary. Sometimes rationale for why it’s harder helps. There are all sorts of reasons for increased challenge. Chronic or challenging underlying illness, mental health struggles, and/or behavior challenges are a few of the reasons that […]

Most parents know that it’s not a good idea to beg your provider or child’s pediatrician for antibiotics — hoping to find a quick fix or relief for certain conditions doesn’t work when the medicines won’t help. Although we want to fix our children’s illnesses, antibiotics only help when an infection is caused by a susceptible bacteria. Antibiotics are used specifically for infections caused by bacteria. In general, most common cold symptoms—such as runny nose, cough, and congestion—are mild and your […]

For the last month or so O has woken up every single morning with the same question: “Is today a Mommy Daddy Day?” What he means is, “Is this a weekend where I get the day with both of you?” The answer, less than 2/7 of the time, is unfortunately “No.” And on some level it kills me. I don’t usually only say, “No” when he asks, I usually end up marketing the day. It goes something like, “No, but […]

My youngest had a dream a few months ago. In it he was a giant marshmallow (or maybe it was just about a giant marshmallow). Not necessarily clairvoyance or genius coming out here, but a monumental dream nonetheless. The reason: it was the first dream he remembered and reported to us at the breakfast table unprompted. It stuck with me (can you imagine dreaming about marshmallows and balloons and robots –these are things I hear about from my boys). I […]

I was at Back-To-School night this week at my boys’ school. Heard something I’m still thinking on. One of the teachers talked about how students are introduced to technology in the school house. She detailed how her philosophies helped shape their evolving understanding of, skills with, and opportunities with computers, code, and digital tools. She discussed her opacity with instructions as just one way to help develop grit. She said,       I use deliberate ambiguity. I want to […]

When I was pregnant with my second son, I had no idea how much I would love him. It didn’t seem possible that I could love him like I did my first. As I awaited his arrival (on bedrest), my expectations for him grew but my projected love and feelings remained very measured. I imagined having a blueprint for love, a near duplicate map of that with my first son. I was imagining a replica; I had no other schema […]

I work hard (as do most doctors) to avoid prescribing antibiotics when unnecessary. The reason? I’m concerned about both the short term effects (diarrhea, rash, allergies) and long term effects (drug resistance, altered normal bacteria and microbes on our bodies) of antibiotic use in children. As we learn more about health and about the role of “good” bacteria in wellness preservation, I suspect we will feel more and more compelled to avoid antibiotics in children. Less is often more. There are […]

Every infant cries. It’s a part of being a newborn, yet infant crying still puts many of us on edge. As parents, we want to calm our babies and prevent crying; it’s simply instinctive to want to make it go away. The period of time when our babies cry most (between 1-2 months of age) can be entirely exhausting, unsettling, and unnerving. As we transition into parenthood, one of the most difficult challenges can be learning to soothe our crying […]

A new study out confirms something that almost every working mom and dad already suspected — it can be a challenge to maintain breastfeeding goals when you return to work after only a few months with your newborn, especially when asked to return to working full time. The study out this week found that moms who worked about 1/2 time (19 hours or less) were able to continue breastfeeding similarly to those women who didn’t work. Logical: the more hours a new mom […]

Many of us have probably experienced influenza (the flu) at some point. Sometimes we really know it, sometimes we don’t. Previous data has even found that in a typical influenza season (winter) as many as 10 to 40% of all children get exposed or actually get influenza in a given year. Sometimes the infection from influenza is mild (“just a cold”) but sometimes it’s a horrific long-lasting-high-fever-achy-pneumonia-hospital-causing infection. Sometimes it’s worse. Hard to predict why we all don’t experience the same virus the same way each […]

I like Halloween far more as an adult than I ever did as a child. At least that is how it feels now. Witnessing the excitement this year around casa Swanson has been a hoot. Not all easy though. Like I have mentioned before, holidays come with all sorts of novel stresses that our children experience differently. Then mix in a whole bunch of costumes and candy and…imagine. On Friday, our little O had a mega-tantrum at the preschool parade. […]

Leaving anyone we love is fraught with duplicity. While we feel the tug of distance, we have the fortuitous lens to see two things at once: the treasure of the bond forged and the aching feeling of distance when it’s gone. This binocular into our lives inspires joy but it also occasionally does bear weight. I’ve often said that leaving my babies (now children, but let’s be honest they’re always my babies) and going to work feels a little like […]

More than nine people are killed and 1,060 people are injured every day in vehicle crashes reported to involve a distracted driver. Distractions include using a mobile device or eating, the CDC says. New data out last week on texting and driving has me fuming. This is a bit of a rant, just like the last time I wrote about data on texting and driving. I’ve got a loathing for the terrible American habit to text and drive. I loved Oprah’s […]

Over the past decade mounting evidence finds that teens are chronically sleep deprived and subsequently suffering significant health effects. Chronic sleep deprivation is becoming the norm for our high schoolers and is known to cause both mental and physical health challenges. In fact The National Sleep Foundation found that over 85% of high schoolers aren’t getting the 8-10 hours of sleep they need while over 50% of middle school students are already falling behind in their zzzzz’s. The evidence is […]

I called my doctor today. Well, I called her office, of course. I needed an appointment to see her this week. First available appointment was next Friday (11 days). “Okay,” I  thought, settling, “That will do.” But forgive me, let me rewind. The receptionist asked me for my medical record number. Before my name. It was the first question he had for me upon answering the call. When I didn’t have it, he started with my first and last name […]

Last weekend while heading home from a weekend medical conference in Canada we exited off the interstate to drive through the Skagit Valley on the country roads. The skies were clear and the valley stunning. The land is so spacious in the valley, stuck between the mountains and the sea, it inspires a feeling of brimmed, fertile opportunity. The moment we exited the highway the drive home immediately felt more of an adventure. Unsurprising to any parent who drives with […]

Great news about reducing cancer risk. Nothing controversial here… There is early evidence from a recent Pediatrics study that the HPV vaccine is doing what it was intended to do: decrease the rates of HPV infection in teens and young adults. The study compared HPV in two groups of teen girls and young women–one group during a time prior to the vaccine being used (pre-vaccine era 2003-2006) and another group of similar girls and young women after the vaccine’s introduction (vaccine […]

Television programming for children is abundant. Screens are a luxurious fixture in most of our lives and I’m not here to tell you to turn them off. Well, at least not today. In fact, that tactic, the one where we pediatricians urge families to turn off the TV, really isn’t working. Children tend to increase their TV viewing time as they age and preschool-aged children in the United States spend over 4 hours per day watching television at home and […]

Don’t wait on introducing new foods and especially new solids to your baby during the COVID-19 pandemic. Period. An anecdotal trend I’ve been discussing with colleagues across the county is the worry parents have with interventions right now, especially when it comes to prevention efforts. Parents are hesitating on seeing their pediatrician for vaccines, they are hesitating to do routine health visits, and they hesitate to do things that feel risky. Because of new and unfolding data, our track record […]

I cleaned out the closet for houseguests last week and discovered an old bumper. Instead of giving it away I am literally cutting up the fabric for crafts and putting the rest in the garbage. A no-brainer savvy parenting tip: baby crib bumpers are dangerous. Don’t use them, don’t even give them to charity, don’t pass them on to friends. Let’s get them out of circulation, outsmart the marketers, protect these little babies. Smart parents just don’t use crib bumpers. […]

A joint statement published in 2009 by the American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Pediatric Emergency Medicine, American College of Emergency Physicians Pediatric Committee, and Emergency Nurses Association Pediatric Committee spelled out the need for reform in emergency care when it comes to caring for children. The bottom line is this: if your child has an emergency and you have the luxury of time and choice of where to go, go to an ER at a Children’s Hospital or a […]

No question it’s tough to keep our cool when our children are unraveling. It’s especially a challenge when our children are rattled and over-run with anxiety. I partner with parents on a weekly basis who feel their children are anxious. All of us want support in knowing just what TO DO in helping our children thrive while also not letting them suffer. I partnered with Dr. Kathy Melman on the podcast to review tips and strategies for parenting when children are […]

Although you’ll see these lunch ideas don’t look exceptionally fancy, I think the point is this: you don’t have to spend a ton of time or money giving your children healthy lunch choices. But you do have to spend some. After the pizza debacle (“a slice of pizza still counts as a vegetable”) bubbled up when congress blocked proposals for changes in school lunches, I was reminded we still have to have a significant responsibility to watch over our children’s […]

Sleep. We’d all love a little. Especially once we have children. How have you, did you, or will you help your baby (and you!) sleep through the night? Everyone has an opinion. Really, one opinion is rarely better than another. It’s one of those beautiful parenting truths where often, we’re all a little “right.” Watch this segment from KCTS with insights from me and from sleep expert, Elizabeth Pantley.

I was up helping my son for the majority of the night. He’s got a stomach bug (which he got from his brother) therefore I was up dealing with the enormous mess that comes with vomiting in the middle of the night. I know you know my woe. This is the second round of this bug at our house so I was clearly exhausted when 6 am rolled around. First thing I reached for was my cup of coffee. Pretty […]

This blog caters to one principle I’ve learned along the way:  Parents just want to do what is right. The desperate love we have for our children can shock us into good and sometimes bad decisions.  I believe parents search for and sincerely desire simple answers to the How-What-Why–Who, the essence of doing right for their children.  Often it’s not a simple, isolated situation, and/or one as complicated as it may feel.  And, the abundance of online noise invokes fear […]

No question sleep — the good and restorative kind of sleep — changes our day. Sleep is tied to our outlook, our mood, our performance, our safety, and our sense of stress/anxiety. We’re nicer people after we sleep. I often say that after a good night of sleep I get to be more of the mom I earnestly want to be. Sleep is magical that way. Thing is, sleep has a profound effect on our perspectives and attitudes about life. […]

This is a guest blog from Karen Ernst. Karen is the mother of three boys and a military wife.  She sometimes teaches English and enjoys advocating for and working with children. She is the co-leader of Voices for Vaccines and one of the founders of the Minnesota Childhood Immunization Coalition. The preschool class party was one of the last hurrahs for my then five year old. The entire family attended, including our ten-day old newborn, whose only interest was nursing. […]

Something is in the air right now. There’s a strange mix of vaccine-preventable illness sweeping the country (measles) and a strange bump in media coverage for celebrities and vocal opponents to tested and recommended vaccine schedules. Part of me thought we might be done with that but pageviews, clicks, and views all sell. My hope is the coincidence of coverage and outbreaks is just that, a coincidence. But as a mom, pediatrician, author and media reporter, the view from here […]

I had the fortune of seeing Dr Atul Gawande speak last week in Seattle. Truth be told, I entirely invited myself. I heard there was a group from the hospital going and I begged my way in. I sat in the corner.  Flashbacks to finding a seat in the junior high cafeteria. I made it through and forgot all about the awkward act of my self-inviting and seat-finding by the end. Despite my disrespect for Ms Manners and my loud […]

It turns out, I don’t think you do have to be careful what you wait for when it comes to swimming. A study published a few weeks ago suggested that children under the age of 2 were at higher risk for bronchiolitis, a common pediatric lung infection, if they swam in chlorinated pools when they were babies. I’ve mulled this over and done additional reading. If it were my child, I’d sign up for infant swimming lessons. Believe me, I’m not getting off […]

On Monday night, Dr Bryan Vartabedian, a pediatric gastroenterologist in Texas, wrote a blog post about physician behavior on Twitter. In the world of health and social media, it’s caused a near nuclear explosion of thought, an outpouring of opinion, and most importantly a much-needed discussion. Discourse is perfect for progress. I think about this all the time. In the post, Doctor V called out an anonymous physician blogger and tweeter, (@Mommy_Doctor), on her tweets about a patient suffering from […]

I feel so much gratitude every day. I feel it for near cliche reasons (my sweet babies, good health, shelter, opportunity to make change, perspective that seeing the world has afforded me, and the freedom we have living here in a democratic society). Sometimes gratitude overwhelms me. And unsurprisingly that’s typically true on the most challenging days of life; I don’t see and feel and smell my gratitude on the easy days as well as I do on the days when […]

Good Reads (Data) On Family Meals: Correlations Between Family Meals and Teen Well-Being Adolescent Risk and Mealtime Routines Don’t have 100 or so seconds? Here’s the Cliff Notes on what I said: Family meals matter. Not because of the fruits and veggies but because of the communication that occurs. Any meal can be a family meal (breakfast on Tuesday or supper on Sunday). Don’t think only about dinner. Aim for 100% of your family at these precious events, but I […]

Five things I say in Clinic (in no particular order). After reading this, you’ll be all set for Family Feud when the category is Things Pediatricians Say. Number One: I’m so sorry you’ve been waiting for me. The reason is often varied. I’ve not been picking my nose or even doing something as productive as blogging. Usually I’m running behind because a patient or two arrived tardy for check-in or I’ve had to return a call to a doctor at […]

2010 was good to me. See the picture; see my boys? Was it good to you? Life was out of balance, but full, vibrant, meaty, and dynamic. I met amazing people. Work and time with family has been very textured; I feel saturated. Writing and maintaining this blog has ultimately caused me to pause and think about medicine, and my choices, quite a bit more than I used to. I chew on the things people say in comments and in […]

I’m not thrilled to close out 2015 — there were special parts of this year I’m a little desperate to hold onto. Not certain I always feel this way, but on this final day of the year it’s true: there’s a tiny bit of me bracing for the flip on that clock. I somehow skipped an end-of-the year 2014 “Greatest Hits” (most read blog posts) post last year and am eager to bring the tradition back to life (here’s 2010, 2011, 2012, […]

Raising children in a world full of accessible opinion is a funny thing. Everyone seems to have an idea about how to do this right. Stay home, work full time, work part time, return to work, cry to sleep, not cry to sleep, pacifier, no pacifier…the recipe for each of us is different, of course. Often we’re all right in what we’re doing from picking out baby food to enrolling our child in preschool. But it doesn’t always feel that […]

The most amazing thing about vacation is how much time you get to spend outside and how much time you get to move. We’ve just returned from a week away where the boys spent the far majority of their days without a ceiling. Delicious. Sure, it’s easy to live outside when you’re on vacation. The challenge is in our “normal” lives–the ones where we go to work, school, and complete activities. It turns out our parental efforts for safety and […]

TV before bed delays children going to sleep. We’ve all heard that TV isn’t necessarily good for our children right before bed, but something about that fact tends to go against instinct. In my experience, most of us feel like television and video-streaming is relaxing to our minds. Bum news is, it’s the opposite. Viewing TV or video or screens prior to sleep tends to rev up our brains, disrupt our sleep, and may even cause nightmares (especially for preschoolers). […]

Here’s a quick video about dosing liquid medications for infants and children. Some tips on how to avoid giving the incorrect dose. Measuring liquid medications & vitamins for children demands having the proper tools–which we don’t always have. It seems, 12 minutes after I come home with medications, I lose that pesky cap… So take a look at the video and see if it helps. For me it was a great reminder to organize the medicine cabinet again. And possibly […]

New immunization recommendations come out every February. They’re released to assist parents and clinicians in keeping all children up to date and protected from life-threatening infections. The update reflects new science and discoveries, while improving the schedule of vaccines due to outbreaks of infection or improved understandings of how to protect children better amidst a potential resurgence. This is relevant to every parent: every year the rules for what-children-need-which-shots-when can change. Just when we think all of our children are […]

Someone didn’t believe me this AM when I said my children (5 & 7) have never turned on the TV themselves. It’s true — WendySueSwanson MD (@SeattleMamaDoc) December 5, 2013 I got in a heated discussion with a researcher last week. We were chatting about strategies to improve challenges with overweight and obesity.  He mentioned it was media controls (automatic locks on devices) that would change children’s habits regrading screen time in the home — he just didn’t want to leave […]

Getting is an important part of our holiday tradition, too, even though most of us over age 18 naturally subscribe to the insight that, “We get far more when giving than when getting gifts.” Children feel differently, of course; when you’re young, holidays and celebrations are all about the getting. Part innocence, part their time and space, part their developmental stage (it’s normal for preschoolers to believe everything is about them); the recipe for being a child includes wanting more […]

18 month-olds are extremely determined,  constantly challenging, tenacious, adorable, witty, and ever-aware. By 18 months, most babies have really figured out how to get and hold a parent’s attention! As they explore their widening world, an 18 month-old’s curiosity leads while their judgment lags well behind. Providing your child with a safe and consistent environment is paramount. Development in all areas (gross motor, personal and social, fine motor, etc) is highly variable but the video reviews typical milestones your baby’s […]

We all know fireworks are dangerous, but outside the obvious hazards (burns, injuries, oh my!), there are other things to be aware of to stay safe this weekend. The 4th of July is a crazy-fun, chaotic day filled with friends and family. Lovely for the time and space to celebrate freedom and lovely for the holiday to celebrate each other. All easy ways to get distracted though, and take your eyes off your children who might be playing in circumstances not typical […]

As parents, many of us have been there. You’re going about your day and BAM…fear and anxiety start creeping in as soon as you read the email, that perhaps again, there’s an outbreak of lice. Someone in your child’s school has lice and your child may have been exposed…blah, blah, blah. Nothing about this ever feels benign, even though it always is. Lice just feels a gross inconvenience. This post details the lice life cycle, the ways lice spread, and […]

This is part deux to an earlier video/post describing the global effort to reduce flu & reasons why we need one every year. Infants and children under age 5 are at higher risk for serious complications from influenza infection. Influenza (“the flu”) is an illness that strikes during the late fall and early winter annually in our country. Great thing is, there is a global effort to coordinate knowledge to reduce the consequences of severe infections. Each year a new flu […]

PG-13 movies now have more gun violence than R-rated ones. I was in fourth grade when Red Dawn debuted as the first PG-13 rated movie back in 1985. At the time Red Dawn was released, it was considered one of the most violent films by The National Coalition on Television Violence, with a rate of 134 acts of violence per hour, or 2.23 per minute. And although not every PG-13 movie has had significant violence (think Pretty in Pink) it […]

I recently listened to an interview on This American Life that stuck with me. The show was entitled “It’s Not The Product, It’s The Person” and went through a series of examples uncovering the reality that great business (or great work) is more a product of the who than the what. Who people are, how much grit, tenacity, raw or natural talent, passion, or skill really matters when doing whatever it is that that they do. Far more perhaps than […]

What’s the right age to get your child a cell or a smartphone? I wish I had a concrete, data-driven, definitive answer for you. I think the answer is a balance between what’s right for your family and when you think your child is responsible enough to manage the risk that comes with opening up an entire new world online and the risk that comes with losing something expensive. Research from Pew Research Center out this month (Feb 2018) finds […]

It may not always be the sunniest here in Washington, but that doesn’t mean we’re safe from sun exposure and skin cancer risks. In fact, Washington had the 10th highest rate of skin cancer in 2013 (we beat out sunny states including Florida, California and Arizona). Part of that has to do with the population that lives here (non-Hispanic Caucasians have higher rates of skin cancer) but in general it’s a reminder that sun exposure and UV radiation can happen […]

Time is so slippery. As we get older we feel the slip of time differently, having children pulls these time-space continuums to extremes. Nothing slower than a night with an infant who won’ t sleep and nothing seems faster than a school-age child flying through grade levels. As we prep for the beginning of the school year again this year I cannot help mentioning that it is clearly a delight to see our little humans head back into the classroom. […]

I was just about to update the blog with a post detailing some new data on reducing SIDS. And then some information on tantrums and some thoughts on storing vaccines safely. And I will, later this week, but my heart is really here: After a precious, busy day back in clinic today with my patients and staff, I am delighted to tell you that tonight I discovered “Stronger” back up on Youtube where it had been suspended for some time. As […]

“Children appear to be less at risk for developing peanut or tree nut allergies if their mothers are not allergic and ate more nuts during pregnancy,” according to a study published today in JAMA Pediatrics. And although this doesn’t mean that you need to run out for the peanut brittle the minute you’re pregnant, it may mean we can reassure pregnant women that if they have no allergies themselves, what they eat during pregnancy should contain nuts, among other things. […]

This past week I was reminded of the power of wellness. From the other side. And it came wrapped up in sound. Five words, to be precise. I was instantly reminded how powerful a few words can be in the exam room. We all want to feel wellness. The freeing kind, as in the way you feel when towered over by big objects. You know what I mean, the wide open wellness you feel in the presence of grand nature. […]

My passion in work and the focus of my career is centered around improving the health and well-being of children. It always will be. I can get SO wrapped up in the opportunities to leverage every tool I’ve got to clarify, learn, relieve suffering, and contribute to pediatric health. I feel lucky to have the tools I do to translate/partner with patients and families and I feel humbled by the ongoing challenges in reducing pediatric illness and injury…earnestly it can leave me […]

As teens nestle into their deep, unrestricted summer sleep, let’s think clearly about setting them up for success in the upcoming school years. Today there is a pressing need for our attention and our action. An opportunity to improve the lives of teens exists this upcoming week here in Seattle and I suspect, in ways, the outcome will inform the nation. The School Board is revisiting their commitment to do an analysis of feasibility & community engagement in 2015 around […]

There is a mumps outbreak here in Washington State, as well as various other outbreaks across the nation. The CDC reports that mumps infections are currently at a 10-year high. This post is a quick update on the outbreak and why they occur, an explanation about the mumps virus, the infection and symptoms that are typical, and what parents should know now to avoid mumps. Mumps Outbreaks In 2016 Numbers This Year: For the calendar year 2016 through early December, 46 […]

Does this photo look familiar? We moved again today. Yup, we moved homes just 10 months ago. Crazy or stupid, you decide. I’m just home from a late night in clinic. The boys are in their new spaces while the boxes tower amidst the palpable tired. But the night still swells with possibility. I can see the stars from the back yard. And the bare walls blended with the smell of cardboard boxes, makes me feel like I just turned […]

When I recently shared this article on my Mama Doc Facebook about a “magic” children’s bedtime story promising to make the going-to-sleep process easier, many parents inquired about melatonin. No question that supplemental melatonin has a role in children’s sleep dysfunction but also no question that parents are turning to melatonin out of a need for convenience. I’ve had COUNTLESS curbside consults from parents asking me if melatonin is safe to use in the short-term but also for years on end. The […]

Warning: this is a rant. Recently I was on my way to meet a physician for coffee to talk about my work in social media and health. While driving in front of Children’s Hospital, I saw a car going more slowly than I’d expect, changing the traffic patterns. We stopped at the light, it turned green, and she didn’t move. I looked over and saw her punching away at her phone, composing a text message. I laid on the horn. […]

The minute we become parents we immediately start to hone in on the value of our children’s sleep. Their growth, their feeding, their development and their sometimes labile temperament quickly illustrate the import of real rest in our lives. Many parents advertise their commitment to their child’s sleep as a huge parenting win. Those of us who struggle with it, we often admit defeat. It’s clear, pretty early in infancy, that sleep transforms who we are, how we think and how we live […]

Unbelievable coincidence today: I stayed back this morning to finish this post while my family dropped off my son for a birthday party. There are complex carpools happening to get to the party (thank you, Village!) and while sorting it out someone offered my nine year-old a seat in a car — saying it would work out fine but the seat would be without a seat belt. What? This kid of mine always uses a booster and a seat belt […]

It seems to me that some of the greatest suffering in life comes with loss. Loss has all sorts of shapes and various hues of intensity. Comparing one loss to another in unlikely to ever do anyone any good. What feels big to someone you love IS big. For you, for your children, for your mom, or for your friend. Perspective shaping is important at times but acknowledging pain in loss is tantamount. Losses we feel can be immense (the […]

I had a phenomenal day in clinic yesterday. Imperfect for sure but inspiring, connected, and busy. I felt useful and like anybody else, that feels so good to me. Productivity can be defined in various ways and yesterday I fulfilled my personal definition. I wrote an email to a friend and cardiologist this morning where I said, But I must say, it’s a sincere fortune to be a doctor some days. Yesterday was one of those… It was typical day in the […]

You may have already read yesterday’s blog on preparing your daughter for college. Much of my advice for girls, of course, also pertains to boys (and vice versa). I’m writing two separate posts only for the purpose of getting people to read this content, not to differentiate. I added one section here for boys (on alcohol and risks) not because it’s an issue for boys only. In fact, we know that 1 out of every 5 high school girls binge drinks […]

Verbatim: a repeating entry of things overheard while taking care of kids in my clinic. One of the best parts of my job is coming to know the families I care for.  It sounds trite. It’s true.  Over the few years in practice, they have come to know my style, I suppose.  I’m direct.  I don’t want families to have to guess what I’m thinking.  I share stories (both the mess-ups and successes) of raising my own kids.  I can […]