Tag Archives: kids

Kids can actually RELAX you?

18 Thursday Nov 2021

Posted by in Intelligence for Your Life

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , ,

You may not believe me if you spend time around kids – but they actually RELAX us and help us chill out. Because despite the temper tantrums, neediness and constant questions, in the grand scheme of things, kids are little stress busters. The experts at Arizona State say it’s because kids get us involved in things where we interact and socialize with others, from play dates to classroom parenting duties. And the more social connections we have, the lower our stress. So next time you’re driving your kid to ANOTHER birthday party, think of it as something that ultimately benefits YOU.

Follow me on Facebook

Beat the kids at your next game!

19 Wednesday May 2021

Posted by in Intelligence for Your Life

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Want to be able to beat your grandkids at Scrabble or Words With Friends? Here’s how to keep your brain sharp as you get older: Spend two minutes a day catching up with a friend! It doesn’t matter whether you do it in person, over the phone, or on Facebook, it’ll cut your risk of age-related memory loss in half. That’s according to scientists at Cornell University. It’ll also boost your odds of staying sharp after you retire by about 50%. The reason? Because talking to someone you care about kick-starts the body’s production of neurotrophins, which are compounds that fuel the growth of healthy brain cells. That’s it: Just 2 minutes of chatting with a friend every day can keep your brain sharp as you age.

Follow me on Facebook 

Kids and social media

20 Thursday Feb 2020

Posted by in Intelligence for Your Life

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , ,

tweens-teens-social-media-wp

Kids spend 9 hours a day on social media. But just ONE hour a day can bum kids out! That’s from the UK’s Institute of Labor Economics. Researchers looked at data on tweens and teens from more than 40-thousand households over a 4-year span. The result: Just an hour a day on social media made kids more likely to feel dissatisfied in ALL areas of their lives, except for friendships. The top 3 reasons kids felt worse: Cyber-bullying, comparing themselves to others, and because social media invaded other activities that could benefit their psychological health, like exercising or spending quality time with family and friends.

Follow me on Facebook

There’s an upside to thumb sucking:

06 Friday Dec 2019

Posted by in Intelligence for Your Life

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , ,

thumb-sucking-kids-wp

Sure, it can make your kid’s teeth crooked. But they’d probably need braces anyway. In the meantime, it’ll boost their immunity and cut their chances of developing allergies! A study of over a‑thousand kids in the journal Pediatrics found those who sucked their thumbs for years were less likely to develop allergies as they grew. Because kids’ fingers are gross germ factories! But by ingesting germs in small amounts over time, they built a tolerance to things like pollen, pet dander, and dust. And if kids are thumb-suckers AND nail-biters, they get an even bigger immunity boost!

Follow me on Facebook

Back-to-school headaches are real!

29 Thursday Aug 2019

Posted by in Intelligence for Your Life

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , ,

back-to-school-headaches-wp

A new study has found headaches in children increase in the fall because of school stress caused by academic performance and changed bedtime routines. Researchers at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, analyzed about 1,300 visits to the hospital’s emergency department to figure this out. And while visits for headaches among kids between the ages of 5 to 18 stayed about the same for most of the year – they jumped over 30% in the fall.

Other factors contributing to kids’ headaches: An increase in after-school activities, skipping meals and not drinking enough water.

Follow me on Facebook

Too much tv may be bad for your little ones!

06 Tuesday Aug 2019

Posted by in Intelligence for Your Life

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , ,

toddler-tv-bully-wp

According to child psychologists at Erasmus University Rotterdam, the more TV a 4-year-old child watches, the more likely they are to become a bully later on in school. And it doesn’t matter if it’s an educational TV show or not – the researchers say the lack of social interaction that goes along with watching TV leads to aggressive behavior.

Follow me on Facebook

Have you talked to your kids about body image?

05 Friday Jul 2019

Posted by in Intelligence for Your Life

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , ,

teen-body-image-wp

The American Academy of Pediatrics says many teens try enhancing their looks with risky supplements. As you can probably guess, boys, go for steroids, protein supplements, and creatine, which boosts energy. Girls are more likely to pop over-the-counter diet pills. But these supplements aren’t regulated – and can be contaminated with toxic ingredients, like lead and mercury, and stimulants like amphetamines. So make sure your teen stays away from those supplements. If they want more muscles – or to lose weight – let them know they’re great, just as they are. And encourage them to make changes safely… with healthy food and an appropriate amount of exercise.

Follow me on Facebook

Here’s a weird way to get your kids to eat their vegetables:

11 Tuesday Dec 2018

Posted by in Intelligence for Your Life

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , ,

kids-eat-veggies-wp

Serve them with foods your kids hate even more! That’s the advice of researchers at Texas A&M. It sounds counter-intuitive, but after studying the foods that get tossed in the trash from the National School Lunch Program, researchers found that more vegetables are uneaten and thrown away on days when the entrée is really popular, like burgers, chicken nuggets and pasta. But when kids aren’t crazy about the entrée, like fish, fewer vegetables are tossed and more are eaten. It makes sense; it’s the lesser of two evils. If a kid really hates fish, that broccoli they think is so-so will taste a lot better by comparison.

Follow me on Facebook

Omega-3s help kids sleep better!

06 Tuesday Nov 2018

Posted by in Intelligence for Your Life

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , ,

child-sleep-wp

If you’d like your child to get a better night’s sleep, feed them more foods that contain Omega-3 fatty acids. A recent study in the Journal of Sleep Research found that children getting 600 milligrams of Omega-3s a day slept an hour longer and woke up 7 times less often, than kids who weren’t getting the Omega-3s. They believe it’s because fatty acids trigger production of the sleep hormone, melatonin.

Follow me on Facebook

The trick to get your kid to eat their veggies!

24 Friday Aug 2018

Posted by in Intelligence for Your Life

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , ,

children-eat-veggies-wp

Want your child to eat healthy vegetables, like broccoli and carrots – instead of not-so-healthy ones, like French fries? Make their plate as colorful as possible. Research at Cornell University found that children find colorful foods highly appealing. And when they’re faced with a plate containing 7 different items, in 6 different colors – they’re more likely to at least try a little of everything.

Follow me on Facebook