Conditions and illnesses

When we hear the word arthritis, many of us think of adult or elderly patients with joint pain and stiffness. But did you know that arthritis is a condition that affects about one in 1,000 children and teenagers in Canada—a total of 10,000 young people?

True. Confusion can arise because the words “tumor” and “cancer” are often regarded as the same thing. A tumor is not necessarily cancer, however.

What can I do to ensure she stops visiting them and that she is not taking the content of these sites as fact?

False. This is perhaps the most widespread misconception about eating disorders and may be one of the reasons many disordered eating conditions go undiagnosed, according to Dr. Holly Agostino, a specialist in Adolescent Medicine at the Montreal Children’s Hospital.

All of us, from time to time, have experienced moments in which a little voice inside our head manages to put us down and make us feel less than perfect. For individuals who have eating disorders, that voice is repetitive and all consuming.

“When negative thoughts about body image get so overwhelming and distressing that they interfere with a child’s or teen’s daily functioning, that should be a red flag that something more is going on,” says Dr. Holly Agostino, a specialist in Adolescent Medicine at the Montreal Children’s Hospital.

Body image is a struggle for any average teenager, but when concerns about appearance, dieting, exercise and weight loss become all-consuming, they can lead to the development of eating disorders.

Dr. Caroline Quach answers your questions

Most kids, at one time or another in their childhood or adolescence, will need to take prescription medication to help treat symptoms of a condition or illness. As a parent, you’re the one who has to make sure that—as the old song goes—“the medicine goes down.”