With new medical technologies cropping up all the time, it’s easier than ever to keep your children healthy and strong. As a parent, you should schedule your children for regular visits to the doctor, just to be sure that their bodies are developing properly. Here are four annual appointments your children should never miss.
Back-to-School
A back-to-school checkup should be easy enough to remember. At the start of every school year, be sure your children are up to date on their immunizations. Vaccination requirements vary by state, and sometimes even by school district. Your family doctor should know what vaccinations your children need at what age, as will the school board.
Your children will not need immunizations every year, but check their records annually just to be sure that they aren’t missing any.
You might also want to have your children’s blood tested at the beginning of every year to look for diseases like diabetes or anemia.
Other tests exist for food allergies. If your child complains of stomach pains or cramping often, they might have an allergy or intolerance to gluten, dairy, or one of the other main allergens. Getting allergy tests done will help you know what foods your child needs to avoid to keep them as healthy as possible.
Dentist
Most medical professionals recommend that children have semiannual dentist appointments. If you can’t bring them in every six months, however, make sure that they see a dentist at least once a year. Children are turning up with more and more tooth problems, due in part to the increased amount of sugar and sugary drinks in their diets.
From the moment your child’s teeth begin to come in, establish a habit of brushing twice a day. As your child gets older, help them to brush often and teach them how to floss. Limit sugar, especially when your child wants a snack between meals. Practicing proper hygiene will make their annual visits to the dentist less scary (and result in fewer cavities!).
Optometrist
Your child should also have an annual visit with the eye doctor. Watch for warning signs that your child is having trouble seeing, such as squinting, extreme sensitivity to light, or frequent headaches. Ask their teachers at school if your child has trouble reading the blackboard.
Most of the time, getting your child glasses is the solution to his or her vision problems. Sometimes, however, more serious problems will need to be dealt with. Infantile cataracts, glaucoma, astigmatism, or amblyopia (“lazy eye”) can all be diagnosed by an optometrist, who can then treat and reverse the condition.
Make sure that your child feels comfortable with their eye doctor. Professionals like those at The Eyewear Place should be good working with children of all ages, but it’s important to match your child’s personality with their attending physician to give them the best experience possible.
Hearing
Having your child’s hearing tested is vital to their educational development. If your child has trouble hearing, they will have trouble reaching developmental landmarks, especially in their speech and language comprehension. If your child is older, his or her speech might also be affected by her loss of hearing.
The sooner a child is diagnosed with a hearing problem, the sooner they will be able to get treatment and the more likely it will be successful.
Taking care of your children’s health is more than just taking them to the family doctor when they’re sick. Stay on top of these important medical appointments to keep your children safe and healthy.
*Our content is not intended to provide medical advice or diagnosis of individual problems or circumstances, nor should it be implied that we are a substitute for professional medical advice. Users / readers are always advised to consult their Healthcare Professional prior to starting any new remedy, therapy or treatment. Your Wellness Group accepts no liability in the event you, a user of n-gage and a reader of this article, suffers a loss as a result of reliance upon or inappropriate application of the information.