As you know, we developed KidKupz to not only help children “take the ick out of sick”® and chase away the harsh taste of liquid medications,  but also to help parents ensure their child is always getting the proper dosage.  That is why KidKupz are made using standardized dosage cups with clearly marked measurements – no room for error and the cups can be used with ANY liquid medications.

Clearly, The Journal of the American Medical Association supports our concerns.  Here is the JAMA study, released yesterday.  Important reading for all parents and caregivers.

“ Evaluation of Consistency in Dosing Directions and Measuring Devices for Pediatric Nonprescription Liquid Medications ”

Also, here is the video from WABC and the esteemed Dr. Jay Adlersberg.

When my mother and I first created KidKupz, our main objective was to make taking liquid medications easier for children while at the same time making the job easier on moms, dads and caregivers.  Having spoken with many pediatricians and health care professionals, we were also concerned with another of aspect of administering liquid medications. We wanted to help ensure that children were receiving the proper dosage of their medication and that each dose was being taken in full. That is the reason behind our clearly marked dosage Kupz with standard, easy to read measurements.

We interviewed lots of moms who told us the many different concoctions they would create and mix with liquid medicines, including chocolate syrup and applesauce. The problem with this approach is that you can’t be sure your child is getting the complete dose if the medicine is mixed in with a larger portion of another food that is then not entirely consumed.

Our dream was, indeed, to “Take the ick out of sick” but most important is that children are administered medication safely, and accurately. Take a look at this Web M.D. article and see why perhaps Mary Poppins should have been singing, “Just a cup rimmed with fruity flavors helps the medicine go down..”

It has been nothing less than blisteringly hot and humid here in New York over the last couple of weeks. My children are  finishing up the school year and summer camp is just around the corner. I guess it’s time to prepare for the great outdoors! I have always been pretty much of a city girl, and to this day I envy those families who can pack up a cooler on a summer morning and head to the beach for the entire day. You know who you are…running in and out of the ocean to cool off, playing Kadima and jogging up and down the beach with your totally even, golden brown tans. My husband and children and I are a fair skinned bunch and no matter what we do, we burn. A burn, by the way, that never turns into a tan, but rather dries up and peels off. We are the family at the beach cowering under our big umbrella. My kids love the ocean but they sure don’t love the sunscreen protocol that preceeds it.

Every year it seems like the brands and types of sunscreens on the market triples exponentially. It’s hard to make sense of all the buzz words and the latest and greatest new technologies. I always wind up buying 6 different sprays all promising to be “sweat-proof” and “long-lasting” and it always seems as though the second my kids get in the water, the product washes right off. I slather the thick, white SPF 70 pastes on their chubby cheeks and noses as they leave for camp in the morning and what comes home are 2 red faced, freckled lobsters.

Take a look at this ABC News video featuring Consumer Reports choices for this year’s best and most effective sun protection products. I have already stocked up on 2 of the sprays one lotion and I will let you know how we do. The results and the prices may surprise you. And remember…life’s a beach!

Wow, I’m not quite sure what to think about this one. As of this week, there is a new social-networking site geared towards children between the ages of 6 and 10 – Togetherville. The site is www.Togetherville.com and it is available to children whose parents have an existing Facebook account.

Although I do use social-networking as a part of my business, I am not much on social-networking in my personal life and I guess that makes me a giant LOSER, so what else is new? My son and daughter have just in the last year been allowed to have an email account and while they only email with a few friends and family members, we are consistently monitoring and screening all communications. In our house, the computer can only be used by the kids in a common room, not alone in their own rooms. Let’s face it, my son is 11 and very shy and my daughter is only 9 so they don’t have much of substance to communicate to their friends after they have spent the entire day together at school. The problem is that they think they have a lot to say and that they are worthless human beings without email capability.  The thought of my children one day having Facebook pages scares me to death. There is just too much that can go wrong. If your children happen to have their email via gmail, then you are probably familiar with Buzz. Buzz is basically an instant messaging forum where you can share comments, photos, videos and more. This is not something that I want my children to have access to and I was not aware of the Buzz craze when they got their email accounts.  Now, yet another thing I need to be closely monitoring. Unfortunately, no matter how much you are monitoring your own children’s onlline activity, you have absolutely no control over what is coming in through things like Buzz.

So, for those of you who are grappling with similar issues, Togetherville may be the answer for you. The reality of today’s world is that it is almost impossible to keep our kids 100% free of cyberspace and once the door is opened, which it inevitably has to be even if just for school, the potential for trouble is unavoidable. We have to stay strong, stay vigilant and give our kids the strongest possible sense of self so that they can make the best and the safest choices.

You can read up on it here from the WSJ.com.

Back in February I weighed in on an article in USA Today about the American Academy of Pediatrics’ urging to the FDA that certain foods pose serious choking hazards to young children and should therefore be required to carry warning labels. The public response was passionate on both sides of the argument. Clearly food manufacturers of products like hot dogs, popcorn and gumballs feel strongly that parents need to be more vigilant as to what they give to their children and how they prepare it for them. On the other end of the spectrum, there are countless horror stories of mothers and fathers who innocently gave their child a little piece of popcorn or a sunflower seed assuming it was small enough not to constrict the airway only to have the child inhale the object into their lungs or bronchial tubes. In many cases, despite CPR and calls to 911, these children die.

Laurie Tarkan’s recent NY Times article outlines the recent developments in what is clearly a surprisingly controversial safety issue…truly food for thought.

Incidents of cyberbullying are all too common in the news lately.  It’s one of those evils that exists in today’s world of modern technology that is just devastating to contemplate. Typically, the stories that make it to the headlines involve young people and horrific acts of cyber cruelty that have lead to tremendous emotional damage, and in some cases suicide. The reality is, that there is so much cyberbullying going on that we are not hearing about, and this is perhaps just as dangerous. If out of shame or fear, children are keeping their experiences a secret, it is their private suffering that can lead to disastrous endings.

My son and daughter attend a kindergarten through 8th grade elementary school that prides itself on nurturing the whole child…body, mind and spirit. In addition to daily, informal chapel talks addressing everyday issues in their lives, the guiding principle of the school is the Golden Rule…Do unto others. The school has strict behavior codes as well as strict guidelines regarding use of technology and Internet safety. This being said, adolescence is adolescence and as early as middle school, if not before, children become keenly aware of the endless possibilities to connect with their peers online. Even as 4th and 5th graders, my children have begun to try and test the boundaries when it comes to cyberspace. Little girls are no longer begging for a pink princess phone in their bedroom. Today only a laptop and an iPhone will do. Walkie talkies hold no appeal for 12 year old boys to use in their tree-house when they can be texting and video chatting instead.

Until recently, our school had never had to deal with any serious incidents of cyberbullying or inappropriate use of technology. This past month, some students in the 8th grade became involved in an inappropriate scenario with their Facebook pages and text messaging. The issue was brought to the attention of the entire parent body so that we could be aware and vigilant in our own households. Our head of school provided us with many helpful resources and I wanted to share this one in particular. As with so many of the pitfalls that come with raising teenagers, we always think it won’t happen with our child. Let’s hope that is the case, but it is better to be fully aware of the dangers of the Internet and to be armed with strategies to confront those dangers.

Yikes, do I feel old! It was only 10 years ago that I was pushing my babies around in their strollers…running errands around my Manhattan neighborhood, or just taking them for a walk in the park.  Sure, there were times when I needed to be hands-free, and then I turned to my Baby Bjorn brand snuggy-thing. I remember being a nervous wreck when, as newborns, they lay up against my chest. I was constantly worried that they would be smothered. Then, as they got a bit bigger and were to face out in the snuggy thing, I worried that I couldn’t see their face and what if they were spitting up something. I can admit now that I never felt too secure with those things. I can also admit that 10 years ago, that was what hip young moms were doing so I gave it a try. The truth is, I was an old fashioned stroller kind of gal and I think I still am. It would have been quite rare back then to see a mom with one of those wrap- around, sling type of things. In fact, I would certainly have written that mother off as ultra-bohemian. But the times, they are a changin’!

Believe it or not, the movement away from strollers and towards these newer sling style carriers even has strollers being referred to as “isolation pods”…ouch! It seems the thinking is that “babywearing” leads to a happier, healthier baby than does using the traditional stroller. Whenever I see moms carrying their babies in the slings I wonder, “what if that knot comes loose?’ In case you haven’t picked up on it by now, I’m a bit of a worry wort. I just know that if I were to carry a baby in one of those, I would still have my hands cradling the baby from below just in case. The hands free thing wouldn’t be happening for me. And what about 10 years from now? I guarantee I will be blogging about articles by orthopedists, warning of the possible back injuries caused by these sling carriers. Read on and let me know what you think….

When my children were toddlers and preschoolers, I remember the constant reminders from teachers and playgroups to never send your child to school with grapes or carrots as they often get lodged in a child’s throat and cause choking.  Even as my children started elementary school, notes would come home when there was a class party reminding us not to bring grapes unless they were cut into small pieces. I always thought this was overkill but I am typically one to follow the rules and that I did.

Although less of an issue at school, I remember hot dogs being another area of major concern as mentioned in this article. I would always cut whatever food I gave to my children into what I thought were safe sized pieces.  I felt as though there was always an adult with them when they were eating but let’s face it, we all turn our backs, or leave the room, if only for a moment. Now that my children are older, it’s not often on my mind. I remind them to take normal size bites, chew carefully and hope for the best.

It was just this past Christmas that I was reminded how seriously these warnings need to be taken.  A man that works in our apartment building was, along with his wife, babysitting for his grandson. The 2 year old was given a hot dog for lunch and when his grandparents turned to check on him, he was choking, unable to make sounds. Although, they attempted to dislodge the hot dog and called for help, the baby did not survive. Whenever I hear horror stories such as this, I am, of course, devastated for the people involved, but I am also shaken by the realization that it could have just as easily been my own child.

None of this is intended to be a “downer” but rather a reminder that all those seemingly over the top warnings are out there for a reason.

Christmas is just a few days away and AAA predicts a significant increase in holiday travel – the biggest increase in three years. With so many folks traveling, safety should be at the forefront of every one’s minds. The American Red Cross has put out this helpful list of safety tips for you and your family – 12 Days of Holiday Safety from the American Red Cross. We often think of household safety when we think of the holidays (like keeping your tree watered and being safe with candles), but the Red Cross has brought us a few travel safety tips including:

• Make a kit for your car so that you are prepared in the event of a travel emergency.
• Designate a driver if you plan to indulge in holiday “cheer.”
• Buckle up.
• Always be alert.

Other travel safety suggestions include:

• Get frequent travel updates from the radio and web if possible.
• Keep up with the weather conditions and look ahead to what may be just down the road.
• Allow plenty of time for travel. With the recent snow storms, the roads may be unpredictable. Take your time and be safe.

Holiday travel is a great time for bonding with your family. Be safe, take your time and make your holiday a safe one!

Let the FDA know it’s not OK for bottles or food packaging to contain dangerous chemicals. The Food and Drug Administration is reviewing BPA, and they will release their findings next week.Click here and help get the message to FDA Commissioner, Margaret Hamburg, urging a ban of BPA in all food packaging!