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I get this question from parents quite frequently. It’s a great question! There is no right or wrong answer, it’s what’s best for your family. I hope this blog helps explain your options.

For some kids, the main reason for taking stimulants is to help with focus. In this case, taking a break from their meds during the summer is very sensible. In fact, they don’t need to take their medications on weekends, winter break, spring break, etc. However, if they will be attending summer school or an educational camp sometime during the summer, they will probably benefit from their meds. If these camps are 4 hours or less, a short-acting ADD medication is a reasonable option. Some of your kids may already take these medications for homework, extra-curricular activities or even church. If you would like to talk about trying a short-acting medication, I would be happy to discuss this option for your child.

For other kids, ADD medications help with focus & impulsive/hyperactive behaviors.

The decision to give them their medication is a family decision. Some families find their child’s behavior is greatly improved on their medication and makes family life more pleasant. These kids take their medications year-round. As long as they tolerate the medication well, it’s perfectly okay to give your child their medication every day.

An important factor to consider when deciding to give your child medication is appetite.

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Many teenagers love to play video games. Not every teen who plays video games has a problem. But it is a problem for some. What does it look like for your teen? Have you noticed they have healthy friendships, are active in their school, and making good grades? Do they like to do things besides play video games?

Or, do they only want to play video games and cannot stop talking about it? Do they become irritable when games are taken away and do not have any good supports? If you are unsure, talk to your teenager. Get to know their perspective on playing video games.

There are positives and negatives for playing video games. Here are a few signs to know if your teenager has a healthy or unhealthy relationship with playing video games.

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Managing screen use for our children can be hard. Luckily, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has some great recommendations for promoting healthy screen use. They recommend children 18 months and younger to not have exposure to screens other than video-chatting. Children 18-24 months old can start to be introduced to high-quality programs which are educational, such as Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood and Sesame Street. The parent should engage with the child to help them learn from the program. This means watching the program together and talking with them about what they learned to reinforce the lesson. 

Children ages 2-5 can watch a total of 1 hour of high-quality programs per day. Again, it is important to interact with your child to help them understand the concepts and skills from the programs. For children 6 and older, pediatricians recommend no more than 2 hours of screen time per day. Screen use needs to be in moderation and should not interfere with your child’s physical health, sleep, nutrition, and behaviors essential to health. 

The AAP has a way for you to create your own family media plan. You can specify when you want your family to use screens and set screen time rules. You can create the exact guidelines you want and hang them in your house. You can also calculate how much screen time you want your child to have through their Media Time Calculator. Check out those resources at https://www.healthychildren.org/English/media/Pages/default.aspx 

Implementing these standards from the AAP can be difficult. Here are four tips that can help you and your family manage healthy screen time.

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Spring is in the air! Only a few more months of the school year remain for many students. It is an exciting time to anticipate summer and its laid-back routines. One thing to consider for your junior high, high school kids, and athletes, is a wellness exam and a pre-participation sports physical for next school year. Spring and Summer are great times to have both exams done so your child is ready for athletics in the Fall. Also, your child’s general wellness exam can be completed at the same time as your sports physical (if your child is due for their wellness visit). Remember, there are also some immunization updates that are needed for this age group as well.

So why the pre-participation sports physical and what should you know before you come for your appointment? These are required by most school’s athletic departments. The physical must be completed on or after May 1st for the upcoming school year. If your child will participate in athletics, there is a form that will likely be provided by your child’s athletic coach or the school’s athletic department. It is a two-page form consisting of health history questions and a physical exam. The health history gives your provider a good glimpse into the overall health of your child and athlete. It is important for this form to be completed prior to the exam in order for the provider to review the history and complete the physical exam portion of the evaluation.

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