The Montreal Children's Hospital Newsletter

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As parents, we always aim to model healthy and positive behavior for our children, especially when it comes to teaching them to eat well and respect their bodies. What we don't realize is that children develop mainstream attitudes towards food and weight at a very young age, and these attitudes can be influenced by a number of unhealthy messages from the media, their peers and especially our own conscious or unconscious struggles with our self-image.

The first week of February marked National Eating Disorders Awareness Week in Canada, and we have dedicated this issue to discussions about anorexia, bulimia and encouraging a positive body image in our daughters and sons.

In other news, we bring you the latest updates on the Kilimanjaro climb for The Children's and share a heartwarming story of a patient who started her own fundraising initiative after an eye-opening experience during Mini-Med at The Children's.

Until next month, happy reading!
The editorial team at Where Kids Come First


			She may only be twelve years old, but Sara Sabbah has already experienced at least one "ah-ha" moment in her lifetime. During a recent Mini-Med School lecture at the MCH, Sara was sitting in the audience, eager to learn about complex surgeries and conditions. [+]

Recovery from eating disorders a long process - but well worth the journey

Anorexia and Bulimia

Eating Disorders: More Thin Kids Say I'm Fat

Food for Thought


			On February 1^st and 2^nd, the MCH hosted Career Day, welcoming students from various high schools in the Montreal area. By showcasing just a few of our nurses on the job, we hoped to provide students with just a few more reasons to consider a satisfying career in this dynamic field. [+]

STREAMLINED ER CARE TO IMPROVE SERVICES

A trip to the emergency room is almost always an unpleasant experience. When a patient arrives, they're likely already in pain and the prospect of waiting for hours in a room crammed

with sniffling adults and screeching babies only adds to the discomfort. The doctors, nurses and planners at the McGill University Health Centre were very much aware of this when they began mapping out the emergency facilities in Montreal's new superhospital; and while they aren't promising that the ER will become the city's new destination of choice, they are hoping to make it a far less gruelling experience. [+]

TRAUMA SPECIALISTS PROMOTE CONCUSSION AWARENESS AT VERDUN MINOR HOCKEY TOURNAMENT

On Saturday January 29th and Sunday, January 30th, Trauma Specialists from The Montreal Children's Hospital cheered on various atom-level hockey teams as they participated in the National Atom Hockey Tournament in Verdun. More importantly, however, they were spreading awareness about concussions in sports by talking to players, parents and coaches, focusing on preventing the incidence of mild traumatic brain injuries in hockey. [+]

BILINGUAL CHILDREN HAVE AN EDGE, RESEARCH SHOWS

Bilingual children as young as the age of 2 start showing greater "cognitive flexibility" than toddlers who are unilingual, suggests a new study by researchers from Concordia and York universities. The research appears to confirm what bilingualism supporters have long argued: that learning two languages -rather than "stuffing" the brains of children with too many words -actually gives them an edge over kids who speak only English or French. [+]


	Do you have a question of a general nature that you'd like to ask our specialist? If your question is selected, the answer will be published in the next edition of the newsletter. Ask a question [+]

	I have an 11 month old baby. She has been eating pureed food since she was 6 months old without any problems. However, at 9 months, I started introducing small bites of solid foods: soft vegetables, bits of fruits, little bits of pre-cut pasta, soft cookies and crackers and small bits of cheese. She chews on them, but she refuses to swallow anything. If she happens to swallow something by accident, she chokes. Nevertheless, she wants to eat everything on her plate. Is this normal? What should I do? Should I continue with pureed foods and wait a little bit longer, or should I keep up my attempts at introducing solid foods? Thanks, Worried Mom R : Dear Worried Mom, My best advice to you is to stop introducing pieces solid food for now and keep feeding her purees, even though she seems interested in solid foods. I would also strongly advise you to bring your daughter to her pediatrician with the above details, including all the symptoms (especially choking) that you have mentioned above. [+]


	The roof of Africa On Thursday, January 27, 2011, eleven climbers reached the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro. Thank you to all our sponsors for supporting this event, and congratulations to all the climbers – you are exceptional people and we are so proud of what you have accomplished for the young patients at The Children's. [+]


	Viral conjunctivitis is the most common cause of pink eye. True: The cause of pink eye is commonly a viral or bacterial infection, or an allergic reaction. Viral conjunctivitis is the most common cause of pink eye. In babies, a condition may develop in which the tear ducts (unilaterally or bilaterally) are blocked. These babies will have watery eyes and occasionally the duct may become infected. This will case the watery discharge to change to a yellow or green discharge. The condition is generally treated with massage of the tear duct, and antibiotic ointments or drops are only used if an infection develops. [+]

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