ORMG Health Tips
Back to school
Back To School, 
Back to Sleep
 
By Dr. Samer El Zarif

Get a good night's sleep  
Children spend a substantial part of their lives asleep. In fact, in early childhood, the developing brain seems to need more time asleep than awake.

This underscores the importance of sleep to the overall well-being of a child. Teenagers need between 8.50 and 9.25 hours of sleep each night - much more than commonly believed.

Adolescents and older children may suffer from lack of sleep simply by not sleeping an adequate number of hours, or they may lack good-quality sleep.
 
With the typical school and after-school activities, homework and evening activities (e.g., TV watching and Internet involvement), a lot goes on in the older child's life. Add weekend social obligations and, perhaps, a job, and you have a recipe for sleep deprivation.
 
Get plenty of sleep  
Late bedtime hours are not, however, due solely to these activities. With the onset of puberty, adolescents begin to experience a delay in the "phase" of their biological clock. As a result, they fall asleep later in the evening, which makes it more difficult for them to wake up in time for school. In fact, the timing of the release of the sleep hormone, melatonin, is delayed. No wonder then, despite being sleep deprived, adolescents cannot seem to fall asleep earlier in the evening, even if forced to their bedrooms. 

Although the scientific literature on childhood sleep disorders is advancing rapidly, gaps remain in the delivery of this knowledge to the end user: the child. For instance, only about half the physicians who care for children address sleep-related issues in their clinics, and well-trained pediatric sleep specialists are still a rarity. 
 
Orange Regional Medical Group's Dr. Samer El Zarif is Board-certified physician in Internal, Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine and Board eligible in Sleep Medicine.
 
For more information about Orange Regional Medical Group's Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine, click here.

Schedule Your Child's Fall Physical Now!

While it may not seem urgent, a yearly physical exam by your family doctor is an important part of your child's health care. The back-to-school season is a convenient time for putting the exam on your family's schedule.
 
The annual physical exam offers the doctor time to provide wellness guidance and advice. Adolescence, for example, is a time when vital changes are taking place. It is important to have your child see your family doctor during the transition years from later childhood to puberty. In addition to monitoring heart and blood pressure and testing for diabetes, your health care provider can use this annual visit with your child to discuss diet, exercise options, pediatric vision screenings, and testing for cholesterol and anemia.
 
Get regular doctor checkups
 
 
Building a Medical History
The continuity of regular physical exams is invaluable. Having a long-term history with a child or adolescent gives the doctor the awareness of the child's progress and development over time. This helps the doctor detect emerging problems, as well as being informed by the detail of the patient's history, such as important past illnesses or injuries the child may forget to mention on the sports physical questionnaire.

That detail includes immunization records. A school entry form will generally include a check box asking whether all vaccinations are up-to-date, requiring the parents to remember whether or not they are. The family doctor will have accurate records to assist you in filling out these forms.

Getting the Balance Right
A healthy childhood and adolescence calls for balancing home life, school, social activities, sports, and extracurricular pursuits. This is not easy, especially during a time when the child is passing through the years of growth, learning, exploration, and emotional and physical development. This is all the more reason to set aside one day during each of those years for your child to see the family doctor.
  
To learn more visit healthychildren.org.
Pack a Better Bag Lunch
 
Healthy lunches
Kids get bored with the same old sandwiches from September through June. Find some new lunch ideas that will make your child ravenous and his classmates envious!

Cracker and Cheese Buffet 
One alternative to boring sandwiches is crackers and cheese. Buy low-sodium, multigrain or whole-wheat crackers and slice up some reduced-fat cheddar cheese. To add more food groups to your child's lunch, cut deli meat into cracker-sized pieces, and apples into slivers. Turkey, cheese, and apple are a tasty combination, and kids will enjoy assembling it on a cracker.

Breakfast for Lunch 
Some kids just like breakfast better than lunch, so why not pack a yogurt with low-sugar cereal and berries or banana slices to mix in? Another idea is a multi-grain waffle (that you toast or microwave before school) with a serving of peanut butter for your child to smear on at lunch. Just be sure to watch the sugar content and not to let your child eat the same foods all day, every day. You want him/her to get a good mix of foods so that she takes in different nutrients.

Healthy eating Rainbow Lunch 
Eating fruits and veggies in a variety of colors gives kids a healthy mix of nutrients. Challenge your child to eat a rainbow of at least a few different colors of food at lunch. Have him/her help you pack something red, yellow, and blue one day, and something orange, green, and purple the next day. Try to get creative and pick things other than apples and bananas. Has he/she tried red bell pepper or yellow star fruit yet?

Read more ideas here.
"At ORMG we want your child to have a healthy and successful school year," said Dr. Jennifer Vazquez-Bryan, Family Medicine Practitioner at Orange Regional Medical Group. "Starting the back-to-school season with a physical is important in order to make sure your child is up-to-date on his/her immunizations."
Make an appointment today! 
 
Schedule your child's annual physical to continue to build their medical history and make sure they are up to date on their vaccinations. 

Visit our website for more information on Orange Regional Medical Group's 
Orange Regional Medical Group
located in the  
Orange Regional Medical Pavilion
75 Crystal Run Road | Suite 135 | Middletown, NY 10941 | 845-333-7575
www.orangeregionalmedicalgroup.org
This message brought to you in partnership
with Orange Regional Medical Center.


ORMG
 A member of the Greater Hudson Valley Health System
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