Saturday, September 17, 2016

Cambodia - How to Maintain Optimum Growth for Your Kids

After giving birth safely, parents are also concerned of how to ensure their children grow up. However, this is not always happens naturally. Parents need to monitor on their children daily nutrition to ensure it provide best possible growth and strong bones.

This is about providing enough Calcium to their children, right from the beginning, even before birth. Growing stage is a stage that children more source of calcium for their optimum growth, healthy, and strong bone. They can take green vegetables and milk which are good natural sources of Calcium.

Calcium is an essential mineral for building strong bones and teeth for every children. In Cambodia, based on the Cambodian Demographic and Health Survey of the Ministry of Health and Ministry of Planning in 2014, 32% of children under age of 5 years-old are having issue of “Stunned”. For optimum growth of children, it is important for parents to understand and ensure that their children have enough Calcium, especially during the first 1000 days of their life.

The following questions and answers will help parents to ensure optimum growth for their children.

Q1: Why is Calcium important for children?

Answer: Calcium is an essential substance for build strong bones and teeth during childhood. Calcium contains 99% in bone and teeth, although Calcium has other roles in the body, including helping with heart functions.

Q2: What are the problems for kids with insufficient Calcium?

Answer: Young kids who do not get enough Calcium will face some problems with teeth growth, abnormal bone development, and take high risk for Rickets, which lead to stunned growth.

Q3: What is Rickets and what it causes?

Answer: Rickets is a disease that causes abnormal growth of bones especially with children. It can be caused by:

•    Lack of Vitamin D
•    Lack of Calcium
•    Lack of Phosphate
•    Lack of Being Exposed to Sunlight

Q4: What are the symptoms of Rickets?

Answer:
•    pain or tenderness in the bones of the arms, legs, pelvis, or spine
•    stunted growth
•    bone fractures
•    muscle cramps
•    teeth deformities
•    skeletal deformities

Q5: Who is affected by Rickets?

Answer:
•    Children who have less physical activities
•    Children with inadequate nutrition (specially insufficient Calcium and Vitamin D)
•    Children who are not exposed to enough sunlight.
•    Around 20% (genetic) children who have parents are Ricket.

Q6: What can be done to protect kids from Rickets?

Answer:
•    Eat foods that contain Calcium
•    Eat foods that contain vitamin D
•    Eat foods that contain phosphate
•    Get more exposed to sunlight
•    Do more exercise 

Q7: What is ‘Stunned’ or under-height growth?

Answer: Under-height growth is a symptom of insufficient growth of brain and bones for kids who do not have enough minerals or supplements during the first 1000 days of their life.

Q8: How can parents know if their kids have ‘Stunned’ growth?

Answer: Parents can measure the height of their children by using the Yellow Book of Vaccine Injection from the public hospital. In case your kids are not growing well in accordance with the standard in the Yellow Book, you should consult with Pediatric Doctors.

Q9: What can parents do to protect their kids from ‘Stunned’ growth?

Answer: Parents should provide foods that contain calcium and vitamin D to their kids, and encourage them do regular exercise, but not heavy-weight sport.

Q10: What kind of food contains Calcium?

Answer: Good sources of calcium are in milk and other dairy products, and most contain added vitamin D, which is also important for bone health. Other healthy diets include Calcium-fortified foods, including soy products, bread, salmon and broccoli etc...

Q11: What can parents do to ensure that their kids have food rich in Calcium?

Answer: Some kids do not prefer foods with rich Calcium substances such as meat and green vegetables. However, smart parents can choose Calcium supplements to ensure their kids’ optimal growth.

Q12: Why is it very important to provide enough Calcium for kids before going school?

Answer: At school age, kids need enough minerals and supplements for their physical, mental and intellectual growth. If your kids lack Calcium, they will lack the minerals to support their bone growth, risk getting Rickets, and many other problems. Therefore, parents should ensure their kids have enough minerals and supplements at school age.

Q13: What is the volume of Calcium intake for the optimal growth of kids?

Answer: For optimal growth, the National Academy Press recommends:
•    1 to 3 years old — 700 milligrams of Calcium daily
•    4 to 8 years old — 1,000 milligrams of Calcium daily
•    9 to 18 years old — 1,300 milligrams of Calcium daily

Q14: Can you (Parents) ensure that your children have enough Calcium substance for the required amount per day?

Answer: If you are not sure, do not wait until your kids have problems with under-height growth or Rickets. You should begin providing Calcium supplement daily following the required amount. You will be happy to see your children growing well in the near future.



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