August in Arizona is a month full of anticipated change as we gear up for the start of a new school year, get ready for fall holidays and figure out how to take off those extra pounds we gained from the inactivity of a hot, lazy summer.

Your child is heading back to school or attending school for the first time. As he grows, his needs may change. Here are some parenting tips to help you discover positive ways to help the development of your 3- to 5-year old, 6- to 8-year old, 9- to 11-year old and adolescent.

Welcoming a new baby into the home is one of the most exciting events in a family's life, or is it? The feelings of expectant parents about the new addition to the family are quite different than those of their children.

Don’t feed the new baby pizza.

Sound like common sense? Well, not if you’re 3 years old.

Remember the days when a couple of hours of babysitting was worth a dollar's pay? Not so today. The average babysitter brings in about $5 an hour according to 13-year-old, Peoria resident, Tiffany Swain. In June, Swain attended the Safe Sitter® class offered by the Sun Health Community Education and Wellness Center in Sun City.

Newborns do not come with instructions, but Mother Nature is kind enough to give new mothers some clues about their care.

One of the first changes seen during pregnancy is a change in the breasts. They get larger and over the course of nine months gestation begin to produce milk. This milk is the most complete food source you can feed your newborn – it contains fat, sugar, water and protein all in the correct proportions to meet your babies nutritional needs. According to the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), breast milk can help babies avoid some common infections such as diarrhea, middle ear and certain lung infections. The institute also explains that breastfed babies have fewer deaths during the first year, and fewer illnesses than formula-fed babies. Breast milk also helps infants brains develop correctly, which may in turn help your child’s cognitive skills.

A number of organizations, including the World Health Organization, the La Leche League, and the American Academy of Pediatrics, have tried to determine how long babies should be breastfed. Some say six months is enough, others say you can stop after one year, and some even say you can continue nursing toddlers. But the truth is, there is no magic number. Each baby is different and each mother must decide for herself and her baby how long to continue breastfeeding.

We are entering some of the hottest, most dangerous temperatures of the summer in Arizona. Walter N. Simmons, M.D, is an emergency medicine physician at Sun Health Surprise Urgent Care. Simmons offers valuable answers to commonly asked questions related to heat exhaustion and heat stroke.

Thyroid Trouble: More Common Than You Might Think
Thyroid disease may be one of the most frequent hormone problems physicians deal with. It is also one of the most under-diagnosed and under-treated diseases in America today.

The reasons for this are simple: Thyroid disease can sneak up on you slowly and subtly. And the symptoms it causes are vague, easily confused with other health problems, or not present at all. As a result, more than 13 million Americans with a thyroid condition are not aware of the problem

Concerned about the unique dietary needs of seniors, researchers at Tufts University have compiled a special Food Guide Pyramid for people over age 70.

Dean Ornish, M.D., is probably best-known for his books Dean Ornish’s Program for Reversing Heart Disease and Eat More, Weight Less. Developed in the mid-90s, these books are still popular today. His low-fat, vegetarian diet touted in these books are renowned for its proven ability to both help lose weight and prevent heart disease. In fact, a recent study published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association , found that the Ornish diet out-performed Weight Watchers, New Glucose Revolution, South Beach/Phase 2 and the Zone diets when scored for weight loss and cardiovascular disease prevention.

Women’s Enrichment Series
Held the first Wednesday of every month.
All events are from noon -1 p.m.
Located at Sun Health Del E. Webb Hospital
Upcoming Schedule:

Aug 6 - Laparascopic Procedures
Sept 3 - Women’s Health and Hormones
Oct 11- Breast Health Awareness Fair

April 4, 2009 Save the date – Women’s Day of Health

For more information call 623/876-5432