EAT RIGHT IN YOUR PREGNANCY TO GET A BRIGHT CHILD

                                                                                                                                        Dr. Arvind Dubey

Courtesy-Wikipedia

If you are a future mother, give your child a better start by taking balanced and adequate nutrition.

Proteins

Brain is nothing but protein:

The basic brain cells, connecting wires like structures (Axons), receiving ends, chemicals communicating these massages, are all proteins.  Substances that manage the growth of this all network are nothing but protein.

How much protein:

Regarding the above fact you may decide to go on high protein diet in pregnancy but there is a warning too. Avoid excessive protein in pregnancy not for brighter kids but to avoid toxemia of pregnancy. What your unborn kid’s brain need is right amounts of right protein which is around 100to 120 grams a day for a 45 to 50 kilograms women and about 200 to 250 grams for 70 kilograms woman.

Protein sources:

Animal proteins are considered as complete protein as they contain all amino acids in right amount and proportions, which is not the case with vegetable proteins.  So one has to combine two or more source of vegetable proteins to get the right amount and proportion of amino acids.  The components of this mixture are separately called complementary proteins.  Few of these mixtures are rice and beans, rice and lentils, beans and peas, bean and cornmeal or corn bread, roasted soybeans-sunflower seeds and peanuts, lentil and barley etc.  These combinations should replace the usual foods in strictly vegetarian expectant mothers.

Fat and Cholesterol

It is the interconnecting fine meshwork, which determine the potential brightness, a brain can achieve.  This all made up of fat and cholesterol. So high fat, high cholesterol diet is the answer. Surprising! Isn’t so? Repeatedly you might be advised to give away fat and cholesterol from your diet by your family physician to avoid heart disease and thickening of blood vessels.  But unborn and younger children certainly need high fat high cholesterol for their better growth.

Right amount of right fats:

Polyunsaturated fats, which are vegetable fats (expect palm and coconut oil, which are saturated ones and implicated in the onset of hardening of blood vessels) were considered good.  But recently there are evidences that under certain conditions these too may turn into harmful products.  So now monounsaturated fats, found in olive and peanut oil are consider best.  But do not take this as a license to gorge you with fatty foods. Follow the guidelines of your doctor.

Best and worst fat and cholesterol foods:

Best fat foods are the vegetable oils such as almonds, corn, safflower, soybeans and animal fats such as butter, fish liver oil etcetera.  While all other animal fats except above two are the worst fats for growing brain of your unborn child.  Similarly whole milk, eggs, dairy products meals (especially liver), fish etcetera are the good cholesterol foods but grains, pulses; vegetables are the worst foods for cholesterol.

Glucose: Instant energy for growing brain

Natural or purified sugar:

Commercially available white crystalline sugar does not contain any mineral or vitamin so it is an empty calorie food.  But in natural sources such as unprocessed fresh fruits, berries vegetables, and sugar cane sugar is always packaged with vitamins and minerals needed by body.  Saccharine and pure glucose too equals with pure crystalline sugars.

How it helps?

It helps in providing energy for the structural and hormonal changes needed for a successful pregnancy.  These too prevent a commonest complaint of “worn out feeling”, during pregnancy.

Best and worst sugar sources:

Fruits (grapes), berries, grains, vegetables, potatoes, milk and liver are the best however pure white crystalline sugars, glucose and other pure sugars and their products no doubt are source of sugar but worst ones.

Vital to vital mechanism: The Vitamins

To be very accurate these should be supplemented prior to the conception to replenish all the deficiencies adequately as most of the females who are on vegetarian diet, are deficient for these vitamins.  To compensate this, researchers recommend higher doses of these vitamins as no harmful effect of such high doses of these vitamins is seen in volunteers.

FEED THEM RIGHT TO MAKE YOUR KIDS BRIGHT PART-3 (Way to increase IQ of your child by the right food)

                                                                                                                                     Dr. Arvind Dubey

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INFANCY: BRAIN STILL HAS POTENTIAL TO GROW

Brain develops in infancy too:

Though it is true that not even a single cell is added in the brain after birth but intricate connections, which transform the virtually unrecognized brain at birth into the amazing machine, with which your child perceive the world and react to it, via talking, feeling, thinking and acting is keep on developing even later in the infancy. For this child needs fats, cholesterol, protein, natural glucose and vitamins.

Adequate breast feeding- Take off towards brightness:

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Breast milk contains all needed amino acids in right amount and proportion for your baby. It is also rich in fats. Lactose, the sugar of the milk, easily converts into glucose and serves as energy source. This sugar absorbs slowly, so remains in the intestine of a baby and nurture those bacteria, which help in fighting off the invading harmful bacteria.  Proportion of calcium to phosphate (important for absorption of calcium via intestine) is balanced in this milk. This contains immunoglobulins, which provide immunity against various diseases. Breast-feeding not only helps babies but it helps mothers too. It improves the figure, maintains breast contour and firmness (provided these are emptied by the baby regularly and supported with adequate size bra), acts a natural contraceptive, prevents breast cancer and make both mother and child dependable to each other so strengthens the bond between them.

Courtsey-.wikipedia

And after breast feedings:

Up to the age of three years total diet can be modified in such a way that constitutionally it resembles breast milk. It means that about 50% of total need of calories comes from fat, 35 to 45% from complex carbohydrates and 8-15% from protein. Whole milk, not the skimmed milk supplies these fats. So skimmed (or toned) milk is not better for children younger then two years because at two years of age the “dendrites”   essential for setting up connections between brains cells, reach to their maximum number.

In fourth and fifth month:

This is the time when diet supplementation is needed as body stores for various elements (especially iron) start exhausting in normal children and consistency of diet needs change from total liquid to semisolids.  You can start with iron containing cereals, mixed with breast milk, milk formula or animal milk.  Traditional ‘SATTU’ mixed in milk may be a good home made recipe for these kids. Commercially available starter cereal foods (obviously you all know the names of common brands) can also serve the purpose but are no way better than home made recipes (meshed rice, meshed and thoroughly cooked dal, meshed potato, meshed ripe papaya etcetera) and rather inferior to them as these home made recipes are always available fresh and does not involve extra expenditure or preparation. Start with one or two teaspoons full of these foods daily and increase it to 2.5 to 3 table spoonfuls daily along with 6 breastfeeding in 4^th month and 5-6 in 5^th month, about 10-20 minutes on each breast, each time.  Formula fed babies need 5-6 ounce daily in 4^th month and 8-10 ounce in 5^th month.  Increase the concentration of solids in the mixture so now your baby will be on a mixture having smooth and creamy texture. There is an agreement that these foods should not be seasoned with salt, sugar, honey or vinegar etc.

From sixth to eighth month:

Now your baby’s menu contains finely meshed fruits and vegetables.  At 6^th months give him meshed onion, tomatoes, asparagus and soft ripe banana but avoid cauliflower, cabbage, sweet potato, beans, honey, plain yogurt etc.  In seventh month finely minced chicken lamb, liver, pork etcetera may be a delightful experience for them.  It is a teething time, so a bit harder biscuits; toasts can be given to them to try their gums and also to reduce discomfort of teething.  Between 7^th to 8^th months give them small pieces of food that challenge their growing ability to pick up the things (babies learn to pick up the things in 7th month, first with their palms and later on in 8^th to 9^th month by thumb and fore finger.  These pieces of food also act as edible toys for your kid and these also provide stir to your child’s brain.

From eighth to tenth month:

This is the time when your child’s need of iron is at its maximum.  Feed them with iron fortified milk formula, juices, vegetables, meat, fish cheese, cooked beans, butter, and whole milk etcetera.  Egg yolk is of immense importance now, as it provides cholesterol, which a developing brain needs most. Try to avoid egg white, as your child may be allergic to it. This is the age when your child learns to drink from a cup (8^th month), so give him whole milk by a cup. Give him chopped vegetable too.

From tenth to twelfth month:

During this period gradually add articles from your family menu one by one. So by the end of first year, your child will start feeding himself on your family diet completely.

And after this?

 Continue from your family menu according to your list.  Enter the kitchen; select the adequate foods, use your cooking acumen and feed your kid to brightness.  Good luck!

The End

FEED RIGHT TO MAKE YOUR KIDS BRIGHT PART-2 (Way to increase IQ of your child by the right food)

                                                                                                                                   Dr. Arvind Dubey

III. Sugars (The empty calorie food)

Some observant mothers have reported that their previously well-behaved kids suddenly start exploding with anger going in temper tantrums or irrational outbursts following sugar filled meals.  Later Alexander from American institute of biosocial research, Florida, linked the outset of learning disabilities to a high sugar diet.  When such diet was continued, nine out of ten of these learning disabled kids developed into juvenile delinquents.  But to remove sugar from the diet is neither the answer of the problem nor it is practically possible because low glucose in the blood may lead to, irritability loss of concentration & attention, faltering memory, depression, anxiety, light headedness, dizziness, sleeplessness, fatigue, exhaustion electra.  However, it may be curtailed up to a great extent because it does not provide any vitamins and minerals, besides the empty calories.  But all sugar subtitutes cannot serve the purpose because these too have empty calories.

Break your kid’s sugar habit: 

Contrary to a popular belief no baby is born with a sweat tooth.  The taste for sugar is acquired but once acquired it is very hard to break.  To ban the sugar from you kitchen may be a smart idea but around 250 gm of sugar which an average adult consume daily, does not come from the sugar they spoon into their tea or coffee but the sugar hidden in virtually all junk foods (chocolates, cold drinks ice creams and even those foods which do not taste sweet at all such as potato chips). You can gradually reduce this hidden sugar by barring these junk foods and a time may come when their foods may not have extra sugars.

IV. Anti Iron Foods

A high carbohydrate diet (75% or more of total calories obtained from carbohydrates) can cause iron deficiency so the manufacture of adequate amount of haemoglobin, an oxygen-carrying compound of blood, is not possible. This may result into learning disabilities memory loss, diminished attention span, irritability, sluggishness, fatigue, and lack of motivation etc. This iron deficiency could have significant negative implications in terms of learning and scholastic achievements in later life.

Bran, cheese, corn, eggs, millet, pulses, rice, spinach, soya beans, tea are the principal anti iron food.  As these only attack iron present in the plants, so are harmless when animal foods are a regular part of the diet.

VI. High Fiber Diet

Eating fibers containing foods in moderate amount is a healthy practice but above optimal quantities can be harmful, both physically and mentally.  Excess fiber blocks absorption of vital minerals for the brain such as calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, phosphorus and zinc.  This may lead to irritability nervousness, sleeplessness, mood swings, anxiety, depression, memory loss, decreased attention span, impaired sense perception, and learning disabilities etcetera.

Beans, berries, figs, plums, pear, apples with skin, peas, corn almonds, coconut, backed potato with skin, salad greens etc are the important high fiber foods so use right quantities of these in the diet of your kid. 

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FEED RIGHT TO MAKE YOUR KIDS BRIGHT PART-1 (Way to increase IQ of your child by the right food)

Dr. Arvind Dubey

Some are born bright to many more it can be fed by their caring parents.  You may be one of them but how?  By giving them right quality of balanced food, by feeding them with the foods which help their brain to achieve its atmost potential and by avoiding the food which may turn them into Jekyll and Hydes, which may make them slow learner and hyperactive.  But from where one can get these foods.  Form your own kitchen.  It has been proved that by careful feeding one can increase the IQ of his or her kid by as much as 35.  So why not come along and try, not from tomorrow but from this very moment.

DANGEROUS FOODS

Food industries have progressed relentlessly in last few years.  Consequently the food market is now full of useless junk foods such as fast foods, easy to cook food, so called two-minute foods, ready to serve foods etcetera. These processed foods are simply useless and most of the time these are harmful to the developing brain of your child.

Salicylates: 

These are the compound used in various medications such as aspirin and other fever and pain reducing drugs.  It has been observed that children who consume food containing salicylates and other additives develop a symptom complex, the hyperactivity.

Hyperactive children:

 These are the children who cannot sit still for a brief moment, have a shorter attention span than it takes to read a line of type, are often uncontrollable and have sleep problems.  They go on unstoppable verbal marathons.  They are imitated by almost everything and usually respond with aggression.  They may be so disruptive in nature that they are presumed a nuiscence every where, either it is a playground, a classroom or their home.

What salicylates do?

Salicylates sharply reduce the amounts of vitamin C, B-complex and minerals like calcium, potassium and iron in child’s brain.  Deprivation of any of these may result in hyperactivity and salicylates may cause deficiency of all of these.

Salicylate containing foods:  

These are, some fruits such as apples, apricots, blackberries, cherries, grapes, oranges, peaches, plums, prunes, resins, raspberries, strawberries etc. and few vegetables such as cucumbers, tomatoes and their products. For detailed information regarding Salicylate content of food items click here

Stop giving your child such foods:

If you are sure on the basis of above said symptoms that your child is hyperactive then scan the items he eats and then only remove the food, which can cause it from this list and observe for the cure.  However doctors now a days recommends a diet with right amount of vitamins and minerals to compensate the loss of these vitamins by salicylate.  So it is better to consult you paediatrician after your hit and trial method of avoiding such foods fails.

Save your child’s brain by home made recipes:

Food additives too can cause hyperactivity in your child.  With the advent of junk foods these are present in almost all the food available in the market.  These substances are always mixed in food to hide some thing, which is disagreeable, foul smelling or noxious to the health.  Otherwise natural food doesn’t need any additive as they have their own natural pleasant colours and odour. So how to avoid it? Of course by home made freshly prepared recipes for your child.

II.Cerebral allergens (Foods that makes your child a slow learner)

Few of the day-to-day foods, act as allergens to brain are: soybean, bread and other backed goods, corn and corn products, grapefruit, lemons, lentils, limes, oranges peanuts, peas, potatoes, wheat germ etc.

How to recognize that slow learning is due to brain allergens:

As there may be many causes of slow learning tendency. If slow learning is accompanied by paleness, feeling under par, circles or bags under eyes, chronic stuffy nose, excessive sneezing, vague aches and pains, itching, rashes bedwetting, puffiness or bloating, wheezing etcetera it may be considered be due to cerebral allergens.  By removing the items one by one from the above list and observing the child for 8 days one can point out the possible culprit in the food.  But it is a long process.  So help of a medical allergy specialist may be taken for quick results and treatment in the form of desensitization against that particular food because the elemination diets (diets avoiding offending food elements) are not very convenient to arrange and tolerate both for the family and the kids too.

How these allergens act:

These allergens diminish the brain’s supply of certain vitamins and (Vit C, B₆, Pentothenic acid) minerals (calcium, copper, zinc, iron, magnesium, phosphorus,  selinium and chromium) below the levels that prevent total slow learning syndrome.  These levels are different for every particular child that’s why every child who is consuming these allergens is not affected.  A diet, capable of supplementing above said vitamins and minerals might counteract the effect of these allergens.  So help of a nutritionist may be sought.

Ref- salicylatesensitivity.com   (Continued in next post--------------------)

EARTH EATING: A HABIT OF CONCERN TO MOTHERS

-Dr. Arvind Dubey

Earth eating or eating and/or craving for abnormal edible objects in technical terms in known as ‘Pica’.  It is very commonly encountered in common day-to-day practice and everywhere remains a cause of concerns for mothers especially who are conscious of their child development to an extent. Even being a very common problem of childhood, Indian literature shows a paucity of accurate information about it, especially for non-medical masses.

Word ‘Pica’ is derived from a Latin word “Magpie” meaning a bird famous for its habit of stealing unnatural object for food commonly found inedible to general categories of birds.

Avicenna in 1000 AD brought attention of general public to this problem and presumed that probably it was due to some deficiency in diet especially Iron and also described benefit of iron preparation in treating it.  Recently this disorder had given full regards by putting it in separate category of habit disorders and by explaining accurate criteria for defining the disorder, which states “evidence of regular eating of non edible substances for at least one month.

Though this disorder has been evaluated to greater depth yet exact cause and factors responsible for it are still debatable. When child is born his world of experience uses to be very limited.  As he grows, it expands through the process of exploration.  According to concepts of psychological development, first erotic zone developed in early life is “oral one”.  So at this stage all the pleasures are associated with this zone and obtained by mouthing any thing comes in the way to child but it is supposed to be normal unto age of 18 month to 2 years.  But if this extends beyond this age and becomes a regular feature then it is to be investigated and may be considered as a health hazard.  Though this habit of eating abnormal things such as clay, mud, ash etc is also found in pregnancy but it is not supposed as health hazard because it is temporary and due to some established substantial deficiencies and increased levels of some hormones during pregnancy that ceases when the things come to the normal after pregnancy.  Though being a regular eating of these things more than 1 month it comes under boundaries to be diagnosed, as ‘Pica’ yet never needs investigation.

As such few defficiency states for certain substances blamed Widely for this disorder and important one from these was iron and some time calcium and magnesium also. People tried to treat this disorder by injectable iron preparations and results were good but probably due to fear of injections in a child.

 In some tribal areas and in some underdeveloped countries such as Rhodesia, some Portuguese tribal areas, East, North & West Africa and Congo, earth eating is a common practice.  There it is usually associated with religious and magical belief of natives.  On entering alien soil an African may eat a little of it’s soil as an act of homage.  His wife, children and even the baby must also partake in this rite.  It is also believed that if a woman eats earth before pregnancy she becomes more fertile and by continuing to eat, it increases her power of lactation.

Some social factors play vital role in development of this disorder.  Large facilities with inadequate resources to take care of that large family’s needs, uninformed parents, and inadequate child care due to family disorganization, marital disharmony, unmarried mother, working mothers etc. are the important ones.  Poverty also plays an important role in development of this habit but the factor causing it may be poor nutrition, inadequate attention to child due to ignorance, psychosocial environment or all of these.

 Psychological stresses are supposed to be the mainstay of causation.  This includes, recent arrival of new sibling or pregnant mother, maternal illness or hospitalization, hospitalization or recent illness of child himself, separation from mother father or from grand parents.  Frequent change of residence also affect child’s attitude a lot and may initiate earth eating in a previously normal child.

As it has already been stressed that oral exploration is a first mean used by child and young animals to understand the outside world.  In children these oral patterns of behaviour gradually become restricted to the feeding situation, towards the end of 1st year.  This is high time. At this stage some defect in oral fixation or disturbed behaviour or orality may lead to this disorder and so may be associated with pacifiers, thumb seeking prolonged bottle or breast-feeding.

Organic brain damage due to developmental causes, cause related to birth events such as delay in first breath etc. has also been blamed as a causative factor in development of this habit and unfortunately it form a self complete circle of events.  A mentally retarded child has greater dependency on parents. If it is not fulfilled either due to ignorance or due to aversion to child, this oral activity as an alternative for satisfaction persists.  On consumption of paint as an abnormal food object, the lead of this paint may cause further brain damage and complete the circle.

Some times loss or inevitable sharing of a loved object produces an internalized hostility, which in turn may be projected as earth eating.  General environmental situations which may also lead to this perverted eating include poor housing, houses painted by lead containing paints, children of parents, who had earth eating as a problem in their childhood and children having playmates with this perverted appetit

This problem is most prevalent in the age group of 1-3 years (on an average 2-3 years of age) and children in nuclear families.  If one child in the family having this disorder the chances of another children to have this disorder increase manifold.

Dirt eating is more common in male children, which is probably due to preferential concern of parents to male children in this part of country. Prferentially more number of male children in comparison female children is taken to the doctor for treatment of this problem.

The substances which are eaten in this habit includes dirt, mud, sand, earthen pottery, wall plaster, coal, chalk, ash, candles soap paper, agarbatties, cow dung, cement, plastic goods etc.  Among these eating dirt, mud, earthen pottery, sand and chalk are more common.

In one study conducted at various places, it was found that there are so many erroneous concepts of parents regarding causation of this habit.  These include worms, hereditary factors calcium, iron, deficiency, evil spirit, and ingestion of worms during play or some unknown causes etc.

This disorder manifests itself in many ways but anaemia, and malnutrition is the important ones but it is still doubtful that malnutrition itself is a cause or manifestation of this disorder.  Not all the children with this perverted eating habit have malnutrition though most of them manifest in this way.  Worm infestation is also a leading complaint among such children.  This in turn may lead to anaemia and malnutrition because each worm sucks around 0.2 ml of blood per day from intestine.  When children ingest wall plaster they may develop lead poisoning due to lead constituent of paint.  The children enjoy eating clay and earthen pottery may be deficient for zinc.

Most of the children with this habit have a number of associated behaviour problems.  Every child with perverted appetite should be expected to have some behaviour problem particularly if he has an aggressive nature.  Most of these behavioural problems are in the form of aggressive reactions, for example – temper tantrums, bruxism, and breath holding spells, head banging and nail biting etc. Continuous swallowing of hairs and vegetable fibers may lead to “Trichobezarre” and “Phytobezarre” respectively.  These later on may present as intestinal obstruction. Swallowing of stones and may cause intestinal perforation and even death.  Though these complications are rare now a day due to advent of modern surgery.

Treatment of such common habit is rather tedious.  Due to ignorance in its initial stage it usually never taken seriously.  As defective mothering is supposed to be a very important cause of it so manipulations here lead to abatement of this perverted eating habit.  This can be done by changing the pattern of relationship in such a way that child start feeling himself secure and an important part of family.  Due attention has to be paid to his works his hobbies and interests so he may not need an extra instrument to attract the attention of others by this habit. Environment and surrounding can be changed.