by Jim Hudziak, MD and David Rettew, MD A few years ago, I was driving my son and three teammates to a hockey tournament in Montreal when I noticed it was oddly quiet in my car. Looking around, I saw four boys, all best pals, texting each other while they sat in the same car. That is […]
Kids and Chores
The idea of chores may seem a little old fashioned to some, but it remains a useful part of home life. Apart from any direct benefit of getting certain tasks accomplished, chores can teach kids practical skills, instills valuable lessons about work, and helps children feel like they are contributing to the family. The following […]
Vermont Pediatricians Call for Action on Gun Violence
This month, the Vermont chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) sent a letter to members of the Vermont legislature, executive leadership, and our US senators and representative, calling for specific action to prevent gun violence in the wake of tragedies like the Sandy Hook school shooting last December. The effort was led by […]
Tags: child mental health, gun violence
Causes of Adolescent Depression
A recent posting on Babysitting.net describes 10 Common Causes for Teenage Depression. I thought it was a useful post and worth passing along. I think it is also certainly worth noting that most frequently there isn’t a single cause but several that can conspire to work together. A child with a genetic predisposition for depression […]
Tags: depression
Baby Sign Shown Not to Accelerate Language Development
An increasingly popular activity for parents of infants and early childhood education centers is to demonstrate to babies and encourage the use of basic sign language or “baby sign” for words such as “milk” or “hot.” One touted benefit of the practice is the possibility that such activities foster accelerated language development, although this finding […]
Tags: baby sign, child development, language