Boston Children’s post-COVID clinic cares for those with lasting symptoms
One teenager complains of chronic muscle pain. Another child feels too exhausted to go to school or play sports. Still another can’t shake the feeling of “brain fog” — memory and cognition challenges. Despite their different symptoms, all three patients have one thing in common: They’ve all had COVID-19, and they’re all experiencing lingering symptoms ... Read More
Providing culturally responsive care to refugee and immigrant families
Refugee and immigrant parents and children have unique care needs. They have left their former lives behind, often due to discrimination, poverty, violence, or even ethnic cleansing operations. They may have witnessed or experienced torture or the death of a loved one. Once resettled in the U.S., parents must navigate and adjust to American culture, ... Read More
How lactation specialists can help you find answers to your nursing goals
Even if you’ve done it before, feeding a baby can be hard — especially breastfeeding. Research has shown that almost 60 percent of women in the United States who breastfeed stop before they intend to. This happens for a number of reasons: difficulties producing milk, including low supplyslow infant weight gain (sometimes called “failure to ... Read More
Send your kids to camp with peace of mind: Safety guidelines to look for this summer
After this past year, it may be hard to remember what a “normal” summer feels like, but as communities reopen, reclaiming the “normal” summer experience can be a reality for your family. We spoke with clinicians from Boston Children’s Primary Care Alliance about how to navigate camps and other summer activities as safety guidelines constantly evolve. The ... Read More
Transgender student athletes: Six things coaches should know
From elementary schools to the Olympics, questions abound about trans athletes, fairness, and equality, a topic we discussed last year, with insight from the clinicians in the Gender Multispecialty Service (GeMS) at Boston Children’s Hospital. But kids and their parents aren’t the only ones who might find themselves faced with these concerns. Indeed, as student ... Read More
Athletes and fatigue: Why am I so tired?
Working out can boost physical and mental energy. Yet as athletes return to play after a very strange year, some may feel more fatigued than energized. “Feeling tired after a tough workout or bad night’s sleep is normal and temporary,” says Nicole Farnsworth, clinical nutrition specialist in the Sports Medicine Division at Boston Children’s Hospital. ... Read More
COVID-19 takes its toll on kids’ mental health
As experts warn that increasing behavioral and mental health challenges could represent a “second wave” of the pandemic in kids and teens, a recent study suggests that hospitalizations for self-harm and suicide attempts show no signs of ebbing. According to a study from Boston Children’s Hospital and the Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) in Toronto, ... Read More
Eating disorders in the time of COVID: Advice for parents
As the COVID-19 pandemic has worn on, it has led to a secondary epidemic of eating disorders among children and teens. In January, the National Eating Disorders Association reported a spike of activity on its help lines. And treatment programs are having trouble keeping up with the requests. “We have seen a huge increase in ... Read More
Helping your kids understand and cope with anti-Asian racism
Over the past year, there has been an alarming increase in anti-Asian sentiment and discrimination in the United States. The advocacy and hate reporting group Stop AAPI (Asian American Pacific Islander) Hate reports more than 6,600 hate incidents — including harassment, shunning, and physical attacks — since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020. ... Read More
Can we explain sudden infant deaths? It’s complicated.
Since the early 1990s, “Back to Sleep” campaigns have urged parents to place infants to bed on their backs to prevent suffocation and sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). The results were clear: from 1992 to 1996, SIDS fell by more than half. But since then, rates of what is now called sudden unexpected infant death (SUID) ... Read More