Kapi`olani Kids | Fall 2004

` Kapi`olani VOLUME VOL 1. ISSUE 2. ISSUE 1 2. NOVEMBER 2004

kids

` T H E L AT E S T I N C H I L D R E N ’ S H E A LT H F R O M K A P I ` O L A N I C H I L D R E N ’ S H O S P I TA L

Doctor or ER?

Food for Thought

Making the right decision

Help your children develop healthy eating habits

“You know your child best, so you’re the best judge of determining when something is wrong,” says Loren Yamamoto, M.D., M.P.H., M.B.A., U.H. professor of pediatrics and Pediatric Emergency Medicine Director at Kapi‘olani Medical Center. Often, children will become ill or injured when your doctor’s office is closed. Knowing more about childhood emergencies can assist you in making a decision.

“We are a nation of couch potatoes raising tater tots,” says Nicole Angelique Kerr, M.P.H., R.D., a registered dietitian and a member of Kapi‘olani Medical Center’s Childhood Obesity Task Force. “As a whole, Americans are moving less and eating more — it’s a recipe for disaster.” To help children embrace sensible nutritional habits, Kerr encourages parents to gradually implement these simple yet effective changes for their household: ■ Strive for five — Make fresh, whole fruits and vegetables a staple of your family’s daily menu. Encourage children to eat five servings of fruits or vegetables each day. Limit fruit juices to a half cup (4 oz.) per day. A 12-ounce can of soda or juice contains 10 teaspoons of sugar. ■ H2O alert — Drink more water. Provide children with water when they wake up and between meals. Stock bottled or filtered water in your house, jazz up a glass of water with a slice of lemon, lime or orange, and stash a six-pack of bottled water in your vehicle. ■ Put a lid on soda — Don’t keep soda or sweetened drinks in your house — if you buy it, they will consume it! Instead, offer children water and save soda for special occasions. ■ Special agenda — Limit snacks and desserts. Kids who Nicole Kerr, eat high-fat, sugary M.P.H., R.D. snacks and desserts every day will likely carry the habit into adulthood. Replace potato chips, sweets or other unhealthy snacks with fruit or low-fat alternatives.

Call your physician to discuss your child’s condition If your physician is unavailable, or you believe that you cannot wait, then seek emergency care. Having an emergency plan developed with your physician ahead of time can be very helpful. Below are some general guidelines to follow when deciding to seek emergency care: Fever is more serious when it occurs with fussiness, irritability or lethargy. Seizures are more serious when they last more than 2–3 minutes, recur, involve only part of the body, occur for the first time, or occur without a fever. Seizures are less serious when they occur with high fever from 6 months to 6 years, and the child is otherwise active, alert and playful. Seizures are usually followed by drowsiness, which gradually resolves. continued on page 7

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HAWAII’S EPIDEMIC Unhealthy eating habits have trickled down to our offspring: A recent study at the University of Hawaii of 6- to 11-year-olds showed that 26 percent of children of Hawaiian ancestry and 21 percent of non-Hawaiian children in Hawaii are obese. These numbers are especially shocking when you compare with the national average of 11 percent, according to the study. To help address the current pediatric obesity epidemic, Kapi‘olani formed a Childhood Obesity Task Force consisting of pediatric medical experts, university professors, community agencies and individuals, and members of the Department of Health. continued on page 6