Category: Health & Help

I have experienced the two sides of the vaccination process, both as a Mum taking my own children for their vaccinations, and as a Practice Nurse, vaccinating countless children.  I want to let you in on a little secret, on either side of the process it is not my favourite job in the world, but it is a really important one. My experiences have shown me that the way it is approached both by the parent and the vaccinator can make a world of...

Hugs are awesome. We all love giving and receiving hugs. The average length of a hug is three seconds, but did you know that when a hug lasts 20 seconds, there is a therapeutic effect on the body and mind? The reason is that a sincere embrace produces oxytocin, otherwise known as the love hormone. This substance has many benefits to our physical and mental health. Among many things it helps us relax, to feel safe, to calm our fears and...

It is no secret that I believe that first aid is a fundamental life skill.  Over the years people have asked me whether their children should learn first aid and it is no surprise that my response is a great big “YES”.  I know some people are understandably concerned that the topics covered could upset children. However, I believe if taught in the right way, first aid for children can be empowering and can save lives.  Let me...

People tell me that one of the most challenging things about first aid, is retaining the amount of information that is needed to deal with lots of different situations.  Most of us can remember the basics, like how to stop bleeding.  But for many people information like, what to do with a spider bite, gets filed in the “nice to know but rarely used” section of our brains.  For those situations there is always a first aid manual that we can...

We live in a constantly connected world, with this generation of children and adolescents experiencing the direct impacts of this on their health and wellbeing. Their posture is being impacted by the smartphone or tablet in home, in the car, with the use of laptops and devices at school and followed by compulsory homework. This connected interaction is starting from an alarmingly early age and will continue through school years and beyond....

I have spent 15 years working in General Practice as a Practice Nurse, and I have seen firsthand the positive impact that can come from a good relationship between a Patient and the Practice Team.  One thing that I have noticed is that what we need from a General practice Team can change with each life stage.  This is especially true when we move into parenthood.  During my Parent/Caregiver First Aid courses I talk about the importance of...

As a Nurse in my 20’s I prided myself on being prepared for the unexpected…. then I became a Mother and realised that NOTHING prepares you for the unexpected like children do!  It always amazes me the things that a mother carries around in her handbag.  We prepare for different things based on our children’s age and development.  However, sometimes it’s hard to prepare for the things that we would prefer not to think about, like our children...

In our latest Therapy Corner we are exploring Occupational Therapy (or OT for short). We are so lucky to have had the opportunity to chat with Kultar from one of Adelaide’s leading OT practices – Occupational Therapy for Children located in Adelaide City. Just like their logo states “Putting the pieces together” is probably one of the most accurate and easiest ways of explaining OT. Its a bit of this and a bit of that...

It’s that time of the year again, and as the back to school preparations get underway, the Chiropractors Association of SA are encouraging parents to be mindful of their child’s spinal heath this school year. The back to school period is a great time to check the fitting of your child’s backpack, and through making just a few simple changes, you could help prevent poor posture and long-term spinal health issues. A study conducted by the...

Introducing the  Kids in Adelaide Therapy Corner! We strive to enter 2018 with even more educational pieces for your interest in special development surrounding all things therapy and some great information from leading professionals right here in Adelaide! We decided to kick off the Therapy Corner with surprisingly one of the most common need therapies for Children  – Speech Therapy! Naturally, we went to the best of the best in Adelaide...

These school hols I must have been a little distracted because I have burnt myself twice!   Once on the grill and once on the iron. Both cooking and ironing are clearly dangerous and I do believe there is a good argument for giving up ironing all together… Prevention is the best first aid after all! But in all seriousness, it made me think of the patients that I have seen who have not applied appropriate first aid to a burn and then ended up...

This article was written by Karyn Hindle from Head2Toe First Aid. Karyn is an Adelaide based, Registered Nurse and Trainer with 18+ years of experience dealing with the medical and first aid needs of both adults and children. Visit her website at www.head2toefirstaid.com.au Summer is around the corner and last week my children had their first swim of the season in our pool (yay for “pool baths”)!   I know that water safety is always important,...

Winter bugs have well and truly hit Adelaide!  Everywhere I look, adults and children alike are falling victim to the array of nasty viruses that are doing the rounds.  Given the amount of illness around, I thought it was a good time to bring up a common cause of confusion/concern amongst parents…. whether or not we should treat a temperature. Over the years this question has caused debate and the current thinking is very different from the...

1 in 10 children born in Australia will be diagnosed with a food allergy.  This statistic astounds me.  It means that in a class of 25, 2-3 children on average will have a food allergy.  So, if your child does not have a food allergy, you can fairly safely assume that at some point they will have a friend or classmate that does.  They might want to invite that child over for a playdate or to their birthday party…  so, what can you teach your...

We are really excited to have Karyn from Adelaide based Head2Toe First Aid on board here at Kids in Adelaide to write us some really useful, interesting and important health and first aid articles for our website. Karyn is an Adelaide based, Registered Nurse and Trainer with 18+ years of experience dealing with the medical and first aid needs of both adults and children. She is also a Mother and has firsthand experience dealing with Asthma and...

This is an article that is VERY important to read. There are so many great tips to help your child stay strong and healthy, plus ways to identify if there is an underlying problem of low tone. Thanks Smart Health Training and Services! One of the most common “groups” of children that present into our clinic are children that have low tone.  So what is it, how does it effect the child and what can you do about it? The first concept to understand...

Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) is a common condition affecting more than 1 in 10 women of childbearing age. In fact 1 in 4 women show some characteristics of the syndrome. Recently there has been much debate as to whether the name PCOS should be changed as many women suffering from PCOS do not in fact have any recognisable cysts on their ovaries. But whether the name changes or not, is probably irrelevant for suffers.  The symptoms remain...

In 2014, when the inaugural Report Card on Physical Activity for Children and Young People was released, Australian kids scored an alarming D- in the area of Sedentary Behaviour. The report indicated that over two thirds of Aussie kids were engaging in recreational screen use for more than 2 hours a day. In fact, the average Australian young person was found to be spending about four hours a day in front of a screen of some sort. A typical home...

As an Aunty to several beautiful nieces and nephews, I’m always looking for new activities to do to keep them all fit, healthy and happy. Pilates is a great activity for kids. It improves flexibility, strength, balance and posture, assists to maintain an ideal bodyweight, assists with injury rehabilitation, encourages participation in regular exercise, and improves self esteem among many other benefits. Whether your child is the next Olympian...

This is a really BIG issue in schools, homes and workplaces. Thank you to Greg, who is a physio at Smart Health Training and Services, for his informative, relevant blog on the ergonomic use of devices. Ever had one of your children complain about neck pain, back pain or headaches?  You’re not alone………. A quick audit of the IT devices and “screens” in our household reveals just how heavily invested and surrounded by this technology we are.  2...

Growing Pains were a big part of my early teenage years. I suffered from aching legs most nights from age 10-12, and my mum used to help me massage my legs to try to ease the ache. I played loads and loads of sport and we were always outside running around so I was always confused as to whether they were growing pains or just tired muscles. As I got older, I realised that tired muscles feel very different to growing pains! This article is a...

Looking after your child’s teeth We are pretty pedantic about dental health in our family, but even so, I still dread going to the dentist! For some reason, despite all my previous years of check ups without a single filling, I still worry that the dentist will tell me I need my jaw broken, that my front teeth need to come out, or something equally horrendous! Of course this doesn’t happen, but I did feel similarly anxious taking my...

We have just taken a hit from a gastro bug. It began with our little 5 month old vomiting steadily on Saturday, before hitting my husband and finally getting me. Our 2 year old managed to avoid the lurgy thank goodness. So, here are my top 11 tips for surviving gastro. Prevent it spreading. Wash hands, wash hands, wash ALL the hands! Cover all couches with towels. You just never know when a vomit is going to come up to say hello. Water, water,...

We are lucky to have two amazing Adelaide based CranioSacral Therapy physiotherapists, Shelley and Erin, blogging for us, and we welcome them to the Kids in Adelaide team! We are making a big effort to link our Kids in Adelaide community with the best professionals in Adelaide. Shelley and Erin are highly knowledgeable and have loads of great information, tips and techniques for helping babies, toddlers and beyond. CST is a really gentle form...